Nooj

The wood disc in the center would work too. And the tacks may add some decor to the piece as well. I think Aaron's idea sounds pretty good; The trick would be getting the leather to fit tight around the PVC... I really don't know how to do it. When I mentioned sewing two cups with a sleeve, I meant making two cups that would fit into a leather sleeve (tube), then stitching each outside end of the cup to the outside end of the sleeve. It would use more leather than other methods... but it's kinda simple, I guess. Really- you'd only have to make ONE cup- and a sleeve; The bottom of one cup would separate the two sides of the sleeve... I'm probably making it more complecated than it has to be, lol. My descriptive skills aren't very reader friendly. Nooj.

I think the 'well ventilated area with a fan blowing' will handle most of your issues. Unless you have a very peculiar way of trimming your beard, no mask or respirator will seal properly; So, there will be some intrusion of whatever you're trying to keep out. But, if you've got a decent flow of air away from you and the fumes aren't congregating in your work area, then you should be fine. There MAY be some kind of indoor use/ odorless glue that you could use... I don't know of any in particular, but it's possible. And as far as I know, they should be safe once the glue is dried and bonded. Once it's dry most of the smell is gone, which leads me to believe it's not releasing much if any fumes that should be a cause of concern. Nooj

Hmmm... Stitching or lacing something in the middle of a cylinder would be tough. If you made two cups with outward facing bottom lips, they could be joined fairly easily. Or you could make two cups, then a sleeve that both cups could fit into (the cup bottoms butted together, and the sleeve covers both end to end), then lace or stitch the outter rim of the cups to the outter ends of the cylinder, and make your caps for each end. I hope that makes sense. Good luck- let us know how you go about doing this project :-) Nooj

Looks outstanding! How are the loops done on the backside? (it is OWB, right?) Excellent job. I can't tell if there is a sweat shield or not; That would be the only thing I would do different... I like something there to 'pad' the slide/hammer/safety a bit- just my preference. Thanks for sharing :-) Nooj

Yeah, so... I'm trying to make a IWB holster for a friend, and can't seem to get it right AT ALL!! It's just one of those weeks... I have a ring's blue gun (M&P 9mm) for molding, but I keep botching my patterns. I'm drawing them all from scratch. The first go was coming along beautifully- then when it came time to wet form it I realized I hadn't added the extra space in my stitching layout to account for the leather thickness (I noticed this because the dummy gun just would NOT fit). It was about 1/4 to 3/8" too tight. My second attempt is a flat backed holster. First time I've ever done this, and I'm not feeling too good about it. I'm using 4/5 or 5/6 oz leather, bonded flesh side to flesh side (pancake style- so 4 layers thick). The back panel was made with about 1/4" gap from gun to stitch line, and I added 3/4 of the total spacing needed to fit and form the gun on the front panel. I believe I made a mistake by marking my stitch grooves on the front panel before bonding the rear panel. Since small variations left my alignment off, I have have areas of stitching that are closer to the edge than others, after sanding and finishing the edges... I don't know if I'm looking for advice or encouragement here... I just sure ain't happy with how things are going recently :-/ Nooj

Lol. When it got bumped to the front of the line I just assumed it was new. If he's still waiting on replies about this, he's been on hold for quite a while! Nooj

I don't really use a stitch marker, I just eyeball it stitch by stitch as I go. I actually had no idea how many stitches per inch I was doing until just now- I measured one of my recent holsters. Turns out I'm right at 6 spi. It seems 6 is the magic number for most. But, nothing wrong with going tighter or wider. Nooj

Haha- you cracked me up with your introduction there, Randy. I haven't heard anything for or against using Armorall on leather either... I guess you could try it on a finished piece of scrap and see how ya like it :-) Or maybe someone else will chime in on the why or why nots about using it. Nooj

Looking pretty awesome so far! I hope you post pics of your progress. I really like the different textures in the skull. What do the letters F & R in the flames represent? Nice work- I hope the rest of it goes well for you. Nooj

Gosh- sorry BigK; I hadn't noticed anyone else posted on this! I need to set up my account for email notices when someone posts on a topic I'm on. I just used Fieblings pro oil light brown, and topped it off with a resolene/water mix. I can't recall if I used neatsfoot oil or not... I did polish it very lightly with some neutral Kiwi shoe polish after the resolene had set. As far as the welt- I think I re-sanded (drum sander on the drill press) and re-burnished the edge after stitching. My welts always get pooched out after stitching. I did a lot of hand sanding to smooth it out before burnishing with dye and some bee's wax. Thanks for the comments and complements! Nooj

I don't know why I was thinking this was an IWB when I wrote that...

That's one gorgeous holster. I don't know how you got that finish either, but keep doing it because it looks great. I know what you mean about the foamy resolene. I have to wipe mine down the same way, and it's easy to get a blotchy or uneven finish. An airbrush is one solution to foamy brushed on resolene. I really like the airbrushed resolene/water finish, when applied evenly. Just be sure to wear your respirator, as with any sprayed product. I really can't see the glossy/satin spots in your pictures... Besides, after being worn in the pants a while I don't think you'll notice it anyways. I can't really recommend anything on the exotic gluing... I've never used Barge or exotics. I have some Weldwood contact cement, and Tandy 'tanners bond craftsman contact cement'. The Weldwood goes on much thinner and evenly, IMO; But I think the tanners bond stuff holds better (it's just more bulky and leaves a more visible line on edges, in my experience anyways). I'm not sure which one is closer, if either, to the Barge formula. I think you'll be your biggest critic in regards to this piece. This holster looks great! I've got a request for a left handed IWB coming up. I'd be very happy to have mine turn out nearly as nice looking as yours here. Nooj

Just work those thread ends so they're sticking out a little, and lightly touch them with a lighter/match, or even a soldering iron. Shortens 'em up and keeps them from fraying. cheers, Nooj

I've ordered parts from them quite easily. I should've expected the tech support to be just as effective. Thanks for the tip- I may just give them a call tomorrow as well. Nooj

Perhaps someone more experienced will contribute their input. I've only sewn a lot of scrap with mine- and one simple project. Because of my issues I've continued to just hand stitch everything. If you get a response from Tippman, please be sure to share. Good luck, Nooj

I've had the same problem with mine as well. I noticed that occasionally one of the threads would get bound in the bobbin shuttle track. Sometimes it would jam and sometimes it would rip the thread in two. I'm not sure if it's a timing issue or what... I'd be interested to hear what Tippman has to say when you contact them. Does yours seem to be 'stuck' in place, or can you cycle it up to remove your workpiece with the air off? Mine was becoming jammed and took some effort to raise the needle to remove my work. Nooj

Great job on all those tools! (and great job on that holster you posted in the holster forum- very nice). The bottom knife in the picture looks very similar to a Klein wire stripping knife I had. We've got some old big hack blades at work... I think you just inspired me to give it a try ;-) I made a mallet out of that UHMW PE, and a wide slicker. It does takes a lot of work to get 'em smooth! I don't think I went nearly a fine with my polishing as you. I bet yours are a joy to work with. Beautiful tool rack too- there's nothing like having your tools right where you want them when you need them. I like the little padding under the bladed tools. Nice touch. Nooj

That looks like some serious leather for serious business. Wonderful job on the basket weave. What type of thread did you use? And- what's that silver finger-grooved piece on that pistola?? I'm not familiar with that model. Did they all come that way, or is that an add on of some kind? Great work- much to be learned and admired from. Nooj

Great work! Did you melt/burn the ends of your threads? You can usually see the doubled thread where it's overstitched anyways, but melting the ends down to little nubs makes it a tad less noticable. Awesome molding on this! I love how crisp and clean the lines are. As far as the edge sharpness, I think that a well burnished, evenly finished edge looks great even with less of a bevel. Some may disagree with how the trigger guard area comes up to an abrupt point, but I like it. It's different and looks great on this piece. Keep up the great work Nooj

Years ago, before I got into leather, I was replacing a convertible top on an old Triumph Spitfire. After ruining several of the caps and female snaps (and breaking a few porch spindles from throwing my hammer in frustration), I found a company that sells snap setting tools that fit onto the jaws of 10" straight jawed vice-grip type pliers. I've used them on a couple leather projects so far, and they've worked error free so far with my Tandy snaps. It's probably not as easy and nice as using a snap press or arbor press, but it's fairly inexpensive and easy enough to do. If I can think of the name of the company that makes 'em, I'll post it. Nooj

Nice looking sheath! Simple and effective. Your stitching looks great and the edges aren't that bad. I'm sure it'll serve you well for many years. How do you do your edges? Do you sand them even, then burnish, then stitch? I noticed that whenever I burnish edges before I stitch something up, they always get uneven from the stitching pressure, and have to be redone. I think that would look great with a dangler set up. The first time I had seen or used the dangler system was when I made an axe sheath for my pa-in-law. I think it's a cool option to have (I've had the rib jab from items in stiff sheaths- so the freedom to swing out of the way when sitting, moving, etc is nice). Looks good man- keep it up. Nooj

Thanks for the comments, yall :-) I'm gonna keep practicing. I just hope I catch the mistakes beforehand, not afterwards, lol. Nooj