Searching for quality leather sofa in my price range

I have been trying to find a quality leather sofa in a rolled arm design similar to the Lancaster model offered by Restoration Hardware. I would prefer it to be in a semi-aniline or other leather that is more protected than the natural waxed-aniline and that it is not made in china. I have seen several online sites that offer similar sofas, but I have no way to either sit in those or measure the true quality.

After reading a few posts on this board, I see that you recommend Hancock and More, Bradington Young and Classic leather. So far, I have been unable to find a suitably deep sofa (at least 29" inside seat depth) in my price range (~$3000).

I have looked at the Classic Leather Tamarack (http://www.classic-leather.com/produ...rack%20Sofa&13) but the lowest price in a grade 2 leather I can find is $4100.

From what I can tell, Bradington Young doesn't make anything with seats that deep and so far, I have not found a good source for H&M. I think their 4192 Settlement Sofa would work, but I have no idea of how much it will cost.

Are there any other reliable brands that I check out to fit my budget and requirements?

To match your price point, even the Restoration Hardware Lancaster would have to be one of the shorter versions - both under 80 inches long. That's not a lot of seating width when you subtract the rolled arms. I can't help thinking that the proportions would be odd with such a deep seat.

The Settlement sofa is extra long, extra deep and has a fairly high back. The extra materials alone will cost. Duane provided a ballpark estimate of a bit under $6000 for the H&M Settlement sofa in another post:

http://www.myfurnitureforum.com/show...mp-Alteratives

Ouch! That is definitely outside of my budget. I am looking for at least 95" wide. There has to be some quality manufacturers out there that can fit in my budget. RH just recently had a sale where the large on would be $3400. We are also looking at some online retailers like Casco Bay and LeatherGroups.com, but I would prefer to purchase from a B & M store where I can sit on the sofa first.

Anyone have any experience with Leather Creations? http://www.leathercreationsfurniture...=402&styid=385

The offer hand tied coils as a $300 upgrade or have some sort of sinuous / hand tied hybrid system that they use by default. Also, there cushions are innerspring encased in foam and down... is this good or not?

Its that inside seat depth that's limiting you in choices. There are very few models out there with a 29" inside seat depth. That's pretty much a lay-down sofa, and difficult to sit upright in comfortably is why. Most sofas will be in the 20" to 22" inside seat depth range. When you get them deep like that, you're using a LOT of raw materials, moreso than when its simply longer. You have more deck webbing, more coil springs to install, more strings to tie, and larger cushions cores, not to mention more hides to use in the making of it. And all that costs money to do it right. So you really have two choices at that point - increase the budget or compromise on quality/components. And at 95" in length, you've got a lot of surface area to cover as well as big depth.

As you increase sizes on upholstery, its more important to have the quality in the components. With size comes flex and twist. And flex/twist is the enemy of longevity. The key to any premium (quality) sofa is the tightness of the webbing at the base. The webbing has to be as tight as a drum skin to hold the springs in place. As you increase size, it becomes more critical. So it starts with the frame, because if the frame isn't strong, how can the webbing stay tight? The strongest frames are made of solid hardwood (maple) and those are more costly than one made of engineered plywood. While plywood is strong, it lacks torsional rigidity - but it costs less. If you want to minimize your twist in the frame, especially a long and deep frame, you want solid hardwood lumber.

OK, so now that we have a solid frame and drum-tight webbing, we want 8-way hand-tied springs for the most comfort and performance over time. No sag springs work great on smaller pieces (they're far less costly), but not so good on longer spans, especially in seating areas vs backs. Eight-ways have to be set and clipped in place, by hand - then tied as the name implies. That's takes a lot of labor vs. stapling on no-sag springs or using pre-manufactured drop-in grids. But now that we've done that we have a frame/spring/deck that will last 20 + years with no deterioration in performance over time. You many wear out the cushion cores themselves at about the ten year mark, but many of the better makers (such as H&M) will replace those for you at that time free of charge.

Also not to be overlooked is the number of hides a sofa this size will use. Something like the H&M # 4192 Settlement uses appx 1/3 more hides than their 9840 City Sofa. There's cost there as well.

What it really comes down to is do you spend more at this point to get performance over time (20 Years +) or work to your budget for a sofa that will have lesser product build and begin deteriorating in 3 to 5 years? The quality built sofa will actually cost you far less per year of service than the budget models, but you do have to lay the cash out up front. Something to think about.

While I've been asked to not post prices on the forum by H&M that # 4192 Settlement can be had in a GR1 leather for less than $ 5K delivered. Still a far cry from your $ 3K budget, but something to think about. That's about the only sofa in your dimensional requirements I can think of that I would buy for my own home.