Dwight

Get a simple program . . . put it on your computer Adobe photo shop elements 2.0 is a really good one . . . it's 5 bucks on Ebay . . . comes with a disc . . . don't buy one that is a down load as you will forever be plagued with ads and adware Use it to size the photos to 800 by 600 pixels . . . and an overall size of 500 kb or so. Then use the choose files below . . . go to your file on your computer . . . choose the pic . . . and it'll load. You can do a lot with that little photoshop program afterwards as well. May God bless, Dwight

Generally speaking . . . me and the welt don't get together until everything else is done . . . and time to add or not add the welt. Most of the time is is . . . but slim Jims are a different animal . . . the gun is so far down . . . doesn't make a lot of difference. Anyway . . . I get it 100% ready for stitching . . . minus the contact cement . . . fold it over . . . and laying on the work table . . . I check the fit. Most of the time a welt is advantageous . . . sometimes not . . . Make sure we get to see pictures . . . and I'm seriously sorry to hear the shoulder problem. My doc injected something in my right shoulder some 20 years ago . . . very little problems since then. I don't have any "butt" . . . so belts don't do a lot for me . . . I do the suspender routine. Which makes any shoulder rig a good deal for me. May God bless, Dwight

Sorry bsshog40 . . . personally I've often thought it would be a really nice addition . . . but it probably is more than a 30 minute fix. May God bless, Dwight

Making a chest holster is really pretty simple as long as one does not get all wrapped up in technicalities. Take this simple picture of a slim jim . . . instead of a flap going down over the belt . . . a slight oval or round part is cut in the pattern to allow the back of the pistol to lay against your chest. Into this oval . . . three tabs are made that simply go thru a "D" ring . . . and on each side of the holster . . . and are riveted thru the oval. I like an inch and a quarter belt going from the D ring as you see it on the right side . . . it goes all the way around your back . . . and attaches with a snap hook to the D ring you see on the left of the picture. Just make it adjustable enough to wear with a Tee shirt or your favorite cold weather hunting coat. Attached to the top D ring is another strap that goes up over your left shoulder if you want to wear it off center . . . or over your right shoulder if you want it to point pretty much straight down between your legs. Personally . . . I prefer the left shoulder . . . it is more comfortable for me. You can put a thumb break . . . a hammer loop . . . or a suicide strap on it to retain the gun . . . and some guys like a loop that goes down to their britches belt to hold it from flopping if you are running or going down hill in the brush. Seriously . . . this is a simple rig to make . . . and I've never had anyone say it is seriously un-comfortable . . . while I have heard that with cross draw holsters. I've also included a similar rig I did for a guy who wanted one for his plastic fantastic pistola. May God bless, Dwight

The Boss is lifetime warranty as well. The "cast iron" is just advertising gimmikery . . . the aluminum body on mine has lasted a full 25 years . . . has never had a problem . . . and when I have to move it . . . I'm darn sure glad it is aluminum . . . Probably best thought there . . . can you drive to either location for service. I'm 2 hours from Tippmann . . . I call em . . . they tell me they're waiting for me to get there. May God bless, Dwight

We have a lot of the same things going for us. I'm 80 . . . and while I can walk pretty good . . . I don't add extra if I don't have to. Given all of the particulars you mentioned . . . I would not do a cross draw . . . I would do a chest holster . . . with probably a hammer thong to hold it in place. I think could be made so it would fit the 45 as well as the Remington clone. Laugh if you will . . . but I would make the holster for the larger of the two (I'm thinking the Remington would be) . . . and letting it also be used for the 45. If there is a big difference in the barrel length . . . a short piece of wooden dowel could be dropped in the toe of the holster to keep the 45 from falling all the way down in. Tie a slim leather thong to that piece of wood . . . and it could be pulled out for the Remington. Cross draw holsters for large pistols are uncomfortable for me . . . chest holsters are much better . . . but you'll have to make that decision. Making the holster standard or rough out . . . makes little difference unless the flesh side is really rough. Don't add a lot of finish to the inside of the holster . . . as the finish is harder than the leather. Also never leave your weapon in the holster when you come back in. Also keep them minimally oiled . . . as the excessive oil will be picked up by the leather . . . then dust . . . and it will act like sandpaper. For what you are doing you should not need to line it . . . just make it and use it . . . Have fun. May God bless, Dwight

In 2000 . . . I made a deal with a retailer that after the Christmas season . . . he would sell me his used Tippmann Boss for a thousand bucks . . . and put out a new one for display. Christmas came and went . . . I got my cash together and went to see him. Some kids had jammed up the machine . . . and it needed to go back to Tippmann for repair . . . SOOOOooooo . . . he went in the back . . . grabbed a brand new machine . . . and gave it to me for the thousand bucks price. A Tippmann Boss. I still have it . . . have sewn everything from about 3/32 of an inch (207 thread probably) to 3/4 inch . . . (no thread . . . just punched the holes . . . cowboy stitched that holster later) . . . and the number of belts and holsters I've done with 95% 346 thred . . . is well . . . beyond calculation . . . there were so many. I've looked at the others and will give them a possibility of being worth while . . . but the Boss is definitely so. I've also needed work a couple times . . . took it to them . . . they sat it on the desk . . . an hour later . . . me and the Boss are headed home to do more work. And of course there was no charge for their work . . . including once putting in new parts . . . even though we were not 100% convinced that it was necessary. Tippmann ponied up the cost as a Just In Case scenario to keep an old client happy. And I still am. I also have a Cowboy 4500 . . . which now does most of the work . . . but the Boss is there when needed. And I have no doubt it will answer the call when needed to do so. May God bless, Dwight PS: Remember . . . the Boss is the one with the proven track record . . . the others are the new kids on the block. Where do you want to put your money . . . proven track record . . . or possibly good performance. That is the bet you make . . . either way.

First thing I would say is toss the glue . . . go to Weldwood contact cement. Much easier and quicker . . . and . . . more accurate to use as far as getting the result you wanted. A note worth thinking about . . . dye will not penetrate glue successfully. Sometimes a bit . . . most times not at all . . . so learn to be careful where you put it. I use cheap little acid brushes . . . get a 100 for 3 bucks or so . . . use one a day . . . get fresh one tomorrow. Edge paint . . . I don't bother with it. My customers in 20 years have never mentioned it one time . . . so for me . . . it's not worth the hassle . . . But on the very very seldom time I do it . . . little round wool dauber on a metal handle . . . dip in the dye . . . shake off most of it . . . and very light short strokes . . . and if you hold your mouth right . . . if the moon is in the right position . . . and if the Ohio river isn't flooding . . . it might work. May God bless, Dwight

Look on Ebay . . . copper rivets . . . https://www.ebay.com/itm/352511867169?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20231107084023%26meid%3D0d1f268ea5e74b5c84712fb55d99b4c2%26pid%3D101875%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D4%26sd%3D352656754562%26itm%3D352511867169%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2332490%26algv%3DSimVIDwebV3WithCPCExpansionEmbeddingSearchQuerySemanticBroadMatchSingularityRecallReplaceKnnV4WithVectorDbNsOptHotPlRecallCIICentroidCoviewCPCAuto%26brand%3DUnbranded&_trksid=p2332490.c101875.m1851&itmprp=cksum%3A3525118671690d1f268ea5e74b5c84712fb55d99b4c2|enc%3AAQAKAAABkG96wQ16jds4VFcrhy1F3d4mbwZUJI9Fs%2BgdXYAHIzlX2e3YaNh7x%2BEnKA3G%2BCqSl1Xn4McfcWFK1GytmS2qxJ87mtE8Gm3iR1Ja4WBwh0hNHJrJx3Ki5mp04ow4CO7lP%2BooCybZDDU%2BbbSwmg7CbTin%2BBzBzbCYVnbjvyQAHu6--HI4MB7SvJl5IJqlyvomgoLMlgT6qAJzX0SANJhty2dLNihoUJlF8VqAlqljdRi835uzdT%2FRw2dvDZ%2FKGbQCHYRB14v0kGwE3cSXw%2B2qhe%2B0H%2F1j8myQUlVEX3joNhwh7qOrSJOdzneyRFZuDtxGj41Mo4ttFpvmPdZnY7DNvrzgPZCIDLjXsrwahFpin7FtgWogJyNJJFhlkZOSSgeqjgV%2FE6qC577KxRtf3aqZZ0MdG4rIUuSNO3m0nywm82cOYvXRVnn69oHwxBnnQ0KjnMpyrigJIETey1stdnFqzITxjP1rL6sGbvwarZEpOM1iVBWuTfedF6PWlN7ZXF9L4SBY50J8Wnr10iexzh033FM%3D|ampid%3APL_CLK|clp%3A2332490&itmmeta=01JX5ZZDZP9HHYXS3MDAEYDAG9 Cut a piece of 8 or 10 oz . . . about 7 inches long. Push the ends together . . . . then overlap the top corners . . . and swing the bottom corners of each end up so they are level with the top edge of the loop of leather. Put three rivets in it . . . in a triangle pattern . . . with the point at the top. That is the VERY BEST way to hang a hammer loop off a nail apron. I usually put a 8 or 9 inch piece that goes straight up from the loop we talked about . . . and fold it over the belt . . . with two snaps. it's THE most comfortable and easiest to use May God bless, Dwight

Harbor Freight has a plastic pouch with like 10 different files . . . they're all little guys . . . perfect for this kind of work. Sign up on line . . . . you may hit their 50% off deal. May God bless, Dwight

This idea will not get you thru a dozen belts . . . but it should get you thru 1 anyway. Take a look on youtube . . . making things out of HDPE . . . which is gobbledygook for milk jugs. You can melt the milk jug and put it into a mold you have made that is about 1 inch square and 4 inches long. Once you have that piece . . . cut it with a sander to the correct width and depth . . . then get a set of fine files . . . there's about 10 in the set at Harbor Freight . . . you can use those smaller files to make the lines in the HDPE. If you take your time . . . you should get at least one belt out of it . . . and if the tip messes up . . . sand it off . . . and make another one. OR second . . . find someone who has a laser engraver . . . that is strong enough to cut 1/8 inch steel . . . He should be able to duplicate one for you . . . that will last a long time. One of the keys to being successful in almost any hand work these days . . . think out of the box . . . and be resourceful May God bless, Dwight

That's good . . . the new Bat Masterson . . . lol May God bless, Dwight

You can't do much better than dealing with one of the sponsors here . . . Toledo Industrial Sewing Machine Co . . . call em at 866-362-7397 I've done business with them for a number of years . . . always good folks to work with May God bless, Dwight

Weaver leather. . . in Ohio . . . their handbag section may have them too. I've used Tandy's brass rivets for 20+ yrs . . . never had any major problem with them. Not meaning to be disrespectful . . . but setting technique is the key to good rivet use. May God bless, Dwight

Resolene is THE sealer . . . May God bless, Dwight