JoelR

I can attest to this. Just finished my first lined holster and the pig does grab the gun more than any of my unlined holsters. Gonna have to hit it with some soap to slick it up a bit.

Thanks everyone.

Can someone please explain to me what is meant when a leather is described as 'Hot Stuffed' and what are the pros/cons to this (and maybe add it to the 'leather terms' post)? Thanks.

Thanks all. I took a look at the leather while I was picking up a stingray, and now I see that it is much thicker than I had imagined. Had it not been pointed out that it was very difficult to work with for boning and molding I may have dropped the money only to have regretted it after I tried working with it the first time. Although, I do have a possible order for an X-Frame shoulder rig that may benefit from a really thick hide like that and the single holster would more than pay for the hide. I'll have to keep it in mind if the order comes through and look more into the welted seams.

Got it. I can see the wear, but the diamond is enhanced. No big deal. I can't wait to get started with it. Just dredding the stitching...

I was at Tandy today and picked up a small stingray for a new personal holster I am envisioning. To me, the diamond looks painted-on. The edges of the diamond split some of the pebbles. All were like this so I figured, what-the-hey. Is this natural, junk, or jsut they way they do small stingrays?

Excuse my ignorance, but can you explain what is meant by a welted back seam?

Thanks Lobo. I was thinking that it might be a pain to work. Leerwerker: Are you saying that this is coming in the near future or is this a sale price I missed? 9051 on thier site points to three different double shoulders - one of which is already significantly marked-down. Thanks!

So, Tandy came out with their November sales flyer. On the front is plastered full sides of what they refer to as saddle skirting leather for $65 a side. I honeslty don't know what makes saddle skirting leather, saddle skirting leather. I am currently finishing up with a 6/7oz double shoulder and have enough inquiries to justify purchasing some more leather. So, is 13/15 oz and/or 13/10 oz sides too thick for holster work? Anyone have any input? Thanks!

Thank you all for your insites. As I really did not start this discussion with the intent of discussing the LEGALITY with regards to local and state laws and lending/loaning/temporarilly transfering handguns the conversation was well appreciated. I believe after reviewing all points that I will simply come up with a sheet that acts as receipt for the owner and acknowledging that they voluntarily loaned the firearm for the purpose of having something custom make for it. Something like: I, the undersigned, acknowledge that a firearm recognized as _______________________(make and model) posessing the serial number __________ was temporarily loaned to ___________________ with the express purpose of designing a custom leather holster and/or other related accessories. I acknowledge that I am the current legal owner of the above firearm. I have confirmed that ______________________ posesses a current license to carry permit issued by the state of Pennsylvania and is therefore legally allowed to take temporary posession of said firearm under current Federal and State laws. (sign)____________________________________ (date)__________ (print)________________________________ (firearm owner) (sign)____________________________________ (date)__________ (print)________________________________ (maker)

Well, here is some backround for Pennsylvania: It is unlawful to lend, give, or otherwise transfer a handgun unless exempted by law or by following the procedure previously described [through a licensed dealer or county sheriff, between active LEOs, immediate family members, etc.]. Exempted is a person who receives the handgun and has a license to carry or who is engaged in a Pennsylvania Game Commission or NRA hunter safety, firearm training, or competition program or who is engaged in hunting or trapping. Also exempted is the loaning or giving of a handgun to another person who will remain within the transferor's dwelling or place of business, a transfer to carry out a bequest or intestate succession, and a person under 18 who is under the direct supervision of a responsible person at least 21. That all being said, without my CCW, it is technically illegal for me to take temporary posession of another person's handgun in Pennsylvania. So, this goes to LOBO's point of "Know your local and state laws". Another point to consider, althogh VERY rare, what happens if the person you have taken temporary posession from either dies or becomes otherwise incapacitated/inelegible to take back posession of their handgun (incarceration, PFA order, hospitalization, etc). You COULD then become legally required to ensure that the handgun is given to another individual who has the legal right to posses it - within reason. Obviously, you would have no knowledge of a restraining order issued against one of your customers unless you were visited by a LEO to take posession of the handgun (and I would very much prefer to have something in writing stating that you followed the laws with regards to the temporary transfer to hand to the officer if asked). Yes, I know I am picking at straws, but there can be very real legal ramifications to taking temporary posession of another's handgun. Hence, the reason I began the discussion. Wanted to see what others had come up with. Oh, and my Jaw-Drop was due to the neglegence of the firearm owner. They should assume the receiving party is incompetent and ensure the handgun is unloaded before handing it over. I would not hesitate in checking the chamber after being handed a firearm even if it was just checked by the person previously in posession. You know why S&W put an internal decocker in their M&P line? Police chief's were tired of repairing holes in their ceilings from "unloaded" Glocks being disassembled for cleaning... Well, that's the rumor anyway...

Duncan's Customs has the exact model and barrel length of the customer's gun, so maybe I'll just save myself a stress headache and go that route...

Thanks Carl, I had forgotten about them. I'm still not really making any money doing this, so that may be an option. All the leather being used and other tools and supplies have been paid for by previous aquaintances I have made holsters for. So, anything else I sell off this double-shoulder will go towards my next double-shoulder. At this moment I'm not even sure what a fair price is from someone like me (I do not consider myself anything but a hobbiest at this point - Still learning and reinforcing the basics). Thanks all for the opinions. I'm well versed in the state laws so the legality of me taking temporary posession of a firearm is not a problem. Johanna, I think the very first message I ever read of yours (a few years ago when I first contemplated making my own holsters) was you ranting about the number of people dropping off firearms to you with a round in the chamber I was mostly worried about the legal ramifications of if the firearm gets stollen (I have a safe, but they are not fool-proof), or the owner accuses me of damaging the firearm. I'm thinking at this point that I will make a standardized form for just such an occasion with an intent of temporary posession clause, a damage clause, and a current condition fill-in section. Wonder if Legal Zoom is watching this...

I've got my first referral job (Yippee!). Issue is it is not someone I know and is for a firearm I do not own, know someone who owns, or can find a reasonable blue gun for - S&W X-Frame revolver. The customer wants a shoulder rig so I think it is my best interest from a quality and safety standpoint to take possession of the firearm so I can ensure fit and function. What do you all do in this situation? Do you simply take possession and part with a simple handshake, or are legal liability forms and the like filled out? I do not have a business license of any sort at this point as I still consider this a hobby but I'm thinking it may become wortwhile for situations like this. Thoughts?

You could line it with veg pigskin. Tandy has theirs on sale for $1.99/ft at the moment. The hide I picked up leaves a lot to be desired on the hair side but is incredibly smooth and soft on the flesh side.

Damn, no one's worked with it and no one has any other uses for it than as lining. Boy do I have a lot of lined holsters to make to recover my costs . And, since it is Halloween setup day:

Kevin at Springfield will cut what you want. Tandy also sells a 6-7oz 12"x12" tooling piece. Another thing to consider. A double-shoulder on sale will run you around $45+shipping. I'm up to 10 hoslters on my first double and a number of them were pancake 1911's. That's a lot of leather to practice with for 1/2 the cost of a single holster. I have about 1/3 of the double to go... I've been making holsters for aquantainces for about the cost of the leather - $40 (those following along, catch your breath and grab a paper bag if needed) so my practice costs me nothing and I may actually make a buck-or-two on the side - as long as I stop buying tools and dummy guns... There are also holster kits out there that have the leather rough-cut to size and all you need to do is stitch, dye and finish the edges. I think they run around $20. Forget where I found them. Good start to see if this addiction... Ah-hem, profession is right for you.

It is by far the most comfortable 1911 holster I have worn. No digging of any kind and really fast access. Problem I had with this one was I dyed the leather prior to assembly which resulted in the wrinkles. The hair side of leather seamed to become stiffer than the rest of the leather almost seamed to split itself when trying to bend everything for assembly - of course I did not wet the leather while bending it either which is my fault.

Thanks all. MADMAX22 - I've never been much of a Taurus fan, but I must admit I like the trigger on this piece. May have to ask the owner if I can put a magazine or two through it just to see how controllable this compact .45 is. dirtclod - Not sure I'm following you. Are you referring to the general outline of the holster? I'm guessing your recommendation is to watch how far I cut the drop from the sight rail to the trigger guard. Would extendting the reinforcing strap further toward the trigger guard help in this? Maybe something a little more like this back design:

My bike is not worthy of a seat like that.

I had promissed two guys I shoot with that I would make them 1911 holsters similar to the holster I had made for myself. Since the pattern was proven I made an aluminum pattern out of the paper originals and used it to cut out the first pieces with it. After cutting the pieces out, I realized I had forgotten to mark which-side-up on the templates - the original design is a flesh side out... So, it either became a smooth holster or a lefty and neither of the shooters is a lefty so I went with a smooth side out and would ask if either was interested after it was complete. The first guy I showed it to said 'YES' without pause... Still working on that final fit-and-finish to match the quality I'm seeing from the others, but at least I have my edges down.

My second holster to go to somone other than myself. I'm really happy with the results. Especially after comparing it to the original proof-of-concept. Still need to work on a few things with regards to fit-and-finish, but as I said, I'm really happy with the results. Comments/critiques/criticisms welcome.

I've been looking for a sale on pigskin to try it as lining for holsters. Finally got some from tandy that is super smooth on the flesh side and about 75% usable on the hair side. So, other than for lining material, is this really useful for anything else? I have 2-3oz and it seams stretchy. Is this normal? I cut a stip and doubled it over to see how it would work for straps and find that it does not take a burnish very well. Is this normal? Being as thin as it is I could always fold to the center to hide the seam and try some decorative stitching to hold it all together. If all I can do is use it for lining, no big deal. I may make a fold-over glasses case with it just for kicks and to see how well my old White Rotary will sew leather.

Just a follow-up on my recommendation. I received the Pull-The-Dot snaps from the site I mentioned above. Shipping was very slow - about 2 weeks but they are in fact DOT fasteners. Full sets at $0.80 per set.