The American Cyclopædia (1879)/Buff Leather

BUFF LEATHER, a strong soft preparation of bull's or elk's hide, which was worn under the mail armor of the middle ages, to deaden the effect of a blow. As armor fell into disuse, buff coats, which would turn a broadsword cut, and even a pistol ball, were often worn in lieu of complete steel, either with or without a cuirass and gorget of metal. Modern buff leather, of which soldiers' crossbelts and other accoutrements are frequently made, is for the most part made of common buckskin.