JoelR

Due to the fiberous nature of shark and the like, I soak in some Feibings Edge Dye Finish along the edges before gluing down. Takes about 4 good coats to fully saturate the fibers and it helps to compress the edges with a hand roller once the dye/finish is dry and before gluing to the backing leather. Glue, trim, and burnish as usual.

Large calves leave no room in the top of a standard slip-on boot to get to anything that might be within the boot. Maybe a zipper...

A fellow shooter was picking my brain yesterday and asked about a very specific design he is contemplating. He would like a holster for a Glock 26 that sits within the upper portion of a cowboy boot and has absolutely no external attachment points - essentially built directly into the boot. I've seen ankle rigs that attach to the outside of a boot using the laces to hold the rig in place, and I've seen people use an IWB holster to tuck it into a boot. This falls outside of my comfort zone and am happy to pass him on to anyone who has experience in a rig of this type. Please be aware, due to his muscle structure, something that simply wraps around his ankle will probably not work as he would not be able to get to it without removing the boot so it would probably have to involve a fully modified boot. Any takers? PM me and I'll get you in touch.

+1 to the wooden dummies. Benefit is you can mold to the exposed round without the thing pressing back into the mag body when your trying to bone it out. Important for those mags that don't like to hold onto the rounds - Kahr 9mm mags are notorious for this.

Personally, I'd love to see someone produce a revolver line with interchangeable barrel lengths/types. Simplify the Dan Wesson approach and you'd have a winner (index pin under the barrel thread and simply a long allen bolt through the barrel) That being said, here is my list: Beretta Storm PX4 Colt 1911 Commander - railed and unrailed Colt 1911 Officer - railed and unrailed Colt Detectives Special 3" CZ 82 CZ 52 Dan Wesson Model 15 4" Glock 37 Kel Tek PF9 Kel Tek P3AT Ruger P97DC 45 (not sure there is much demand for this - have an extra that I am trying to sell on Ebay and am hardly getting any hits) S&W 10 2.5" S&W 15 4" S&W 66 2.5" and 4" S&W 686 2.5" Springfield 1911 Micro Springfield EMP Stoeger Cougar 45 (another odd-ball that is probably not in demand)

Excellent. Thank you. I have read other posts about Lindell's dummy guns in the past but could never find a source. EDIT: For anyone else following this thread and who decides to order from this gentleman, be aware that his ordering page IS NOT SECURE! DO NOT provide credit card details on his order form. Request a phone number to call in your credit card number.

I am in need of an L-Frame dummy gun for a S&W 686. I have borrowed a fellow shooter's gun in the past for this, but really need an alternative. Anyone have a substitute or an old Duncann's they are no longer using and would like to part with? I'm starting to think I need to find a way of making my own since Rings does not carry many of the popular guns and waiting for Duncanns to decide to do a run of something they have a mold for is really not a viable option.

REALLY liking that scabbard. May have to make me one for my new flintlock. Are those copper rivets? If so, how do you keep them from turning green over time?

Sounds like you placed the same order I did (minus the bellies - what do you plan on using them for?). I haven't cut into the russet yet, but noticed the black is a little denser and more uniform than the tooling I had been using. Made a belt and found that I have to pull my stitching in a little closer to the center or cut my strips oversized and recut after stitching as the back line is all over the place which I assume is from the needle bending slightly looking for the path of least resistance. In fact, the needle was squeeking on me as the machine was punching away which the tooling leather never did. Haven't made a holster with it yet but the belt took water and finish nicely and not having to rub the heck out of it after dying is a god-send.

First off, I feel my stitch lines are far from perfect so take my advice for what you paid for it. I have tried to pre-stitch my holsters over the years with mixed results. What I do now is stitch the top of the slide (if needed), conservitivly glue the trigger side, wet the leather, partially form the holster (just enought to take up any major slack in the pocket, and then mark lightly the resulting frame line in the wet leather. Allow the holster to dry completely and then run the stitching grove slightly tighter than marked on the verticals (along the lower portion of the trigger and the length of the slide) and exaclty where I marked on the horizontal (the front of the trigger guard). Still takes a holster or two to get the feel for the lines so the pocket is not too loose or too tight, but once you get the feel, it works for every handgun and you don't have to try and figure frame width and cylinder takeup if setting the lines before forming. Some guys/gals don't like having to wet the holster twice but I have not found any issues in doing so. If you are really paranoid about wetting it twice you could probably do it when you dye the holster if you dye once reinforcements are assembled but I try to dye each pice before any assembly.

Yes, pictures are a big help. Most of us don't know what we need until we see it for sale. And, what you see as an old relic we may see as pure gold. I may be interested if something jumps out at me - Central PA area.

+1 to phillips. Better prices than the plastic stamps, great service, great turnaround times and should outlast the plastic stamps many times over. Only gripe is the required boarder but if you really don't like it you can file it off once you get the stamp.

+1 to what particle said. Don't blindly invest in items you have no guaranteed way of recooping the cost of - business 101. Well, unless it's a sewing machine, or that exotic skin (or two) that would just look perfect hanging on your wall, or those really nice silver buckles that your sure you will find a use for, or... Heck, forget the dummys and just get the real thing.

Anyone playing with these have any comments on the finishes? For whatever reason, I'm having a heck of a time getting Resoleen to wear well and am looking for alternatives (using the mop-and-glow finish at the moment with initial nice results but am concerned with how well it will wear).

At the moment, no. I have too little time to get my current workload done without other projects. Once I get everything squared away and am 100% happy with the design of the jig, I have no problems putting together a tutorial on how to build one.

Yes, much better than heat - bend - cool - heat - bend - cool - heat - bend - cool. Simply heat the top 2.5" of the Kydex strip, line it up in the jig, fold it up and hold it closed for about a minute to cool. Next version will be more accurate, add a better back-bend to the end of the clip, have a swing-away core for easier Kydex positioning, have a properly sized core (hence the reason this first run has a leather-wrapped core), and possibly add the ability to do "C" clips and quick-release style clips. The Kydex is .093" in thickness and can be bought at Springfield Leather. For the indended use, it is more than adequate but I would probably bump up to the next thickness if I needed to make "C" clips or "J" clips.

When I have worked with fiberous leathers as overlays I soak the edge with acrylic resoleen to "glue" the fibers together and then sand with 600 grit until nice and smooth. That is how I do edges with fresh water shark and how the attached edges for some really soft Alligator were acomplished:

Here's the resulting first clip for a tuckable PF9 holster I am working on. The clip measures 2" wide for reference. And here is the clip in the jig.

If you are only 1/8" off as you say, you aren't trying hard enough. I've literally hammered handguns into their too-tight holsters in the past (relax, they were my handguns and not a customer's). As others have stated, they usually end up with the best 'feel' when all is said and done.

Got tired of molding kydex clips one-bend-at-a-time so I put together a forming jig, then got to thinking, is there already such a device available somewhere for sale? My jig does really well as a first attempt, but I'm sure a commercially made device would be more accurate and form a better clip. Anyone know of one?

Old topic, but I have some knowledge. If you are looking for a table-top setup, you are best to make your own. Harbor Freight sells a two stage vacuum pump that is regularly on sale and would work well for this type of system. If you are looking for a bag system, the same pump will work wonderfully and look for nylon vacuum form bags. I had a supplier in CA that I was going to work with and had the best prices around for bags and all related gear (and was willing to trade to boot), but I took a different direction in my work and do not remember the web site. I believe the initial cost for a tube-bag, ends, nipples and matting (I already have a vacuum pump) was around $75.

Anyone know of a source of oblong punches (bag punches for the search engines) in a suitable size for gun-weight belts of 1 1/2" width. I currently use the two round punches and a chisel method but would like the speed and consistency of a punch. Only issue I have seen is the 1 5/8" punches are only about 3/16" wide and I have found that 3/8" is a better size.

+ 1 to what Lobo said - as to where I am at in his description. The hardest part is not cheeping out out on the tools. Bought my first Barry King edger and can't figure why I bothered with the Tandy ones for the last year-and-a-half. The sewing machine was a hard pill to swallow (for my wife) and I am currently secluded in the corner of the laundry room waiting for some breathing room on orders so I can clean out the garage and turn it into a shop

Good looks as usual shooter. Haven't played with Ostrich leg yet but the more I see it the more I like it. For thread, try The Thread Exchange (www.thethreadexchange.com). Good prices and reasonable shipping plus they tell you who the manufacturer if the thread you are buying is. Clearance section can garner some good deals as well - just picked up a 32oz spool of bonded white Nylon in 554 for $13.

I have a 1" and am now looking for 1/2" and some specialty stamps - "Horsehide", "Hand Stitched", etc... So, one size may not fit all.