rectifier

It would be a lie to say I wasn't a little discouraged... but I suspect I would be more discouraged if I were to waste tens of hours on tooling only to ruin it in the forming! Thanks for telling it like it is, I will start with a plain holster and if when it is finished it has a large and flat enough section I may try to carve a simple motif on it after forming. That way it won't be 100% plain like a store bought item, but will still be simple enough to be achievable.

Haven't worked any leather in awhile and I've only lurked these forums, but I am digging out the tools for the upcoming Canadian winter and have a question. I've decided to make my first holster, a tooled holster for my pest shooter (.177 Crosman Vigilante) with mice and sparrows rampant along with some western floral. It's a nice big gun so there should be plenty of room for an interesting design. I've read around and can't find the best procedure for a relatively complex tooling on a curved object like a holster. Most I've heard is: - tool first and have it ruined in the forming - tool after and have to go around the curves of the gun, hard to apply the pattern and you need to block it with something (maybe the gun itself?) Any input would be useful. I've seen pics of some great holsters out there so I know it is possible! Also, this will be my first time wet forming too as I have only ever made flat items before. Not sure if I should make a plain holster first to try out the process before I do all the tooling work.