Deanimator

Thanks for the replies. My previous designs have not allowed for any adjustment. Given that this holster is just for me, I don't have to allow for anybody else's needs. I haven't come up with a clip design that allows for adjustment, but I think I'm definitely going to have to raise the ride height at least somewhat. Of course the clip attachment method I used was unsatisfactory, so that's going to have to change as well. Work permitting, I'm going to try to get started on another iteration. Fortunately, I lay my patterns out using Corel Draw, so modifications are relatively easy.

Does anybody have any general rules of thumb regarding ride height on IWBs, especially tuckables? I made a tuckable IWB for my 3 1/2" M1911, and while in general it's satisfactory (aside from the clip attachment), I find I have to be VERY careful regarding belt placement lest it dig into my leg/hip. The clip on this one is mounted so that the grip rides just above the belt line. It gives me just enough room to properly grip the gun. I'm thinking that I need to move the clip downward at least somewhat in order to minimize the comfort issues. Any suggestions? Thanks.

Nice holster, and it looks well made. When I make my J frame holsters I don't mold to the gun to prevent the holster coming out with the gun. Have you found that to be a problem?

There are other ways to incorporate a stiffener without giving up the tuckability that your original design uses. What I do is to cut a strip of leather to fit the mouth of the holster. I then sew it in place while the holster is flat, before I fold and sew the body. That creates tension on the mouth that keeps it open. If you don't need the holster to be tuckable, the way pictured will work. What sort of screw did you use to attach the clip, and where did you get it? Also, did you put something on the inside of the holster to protect the finish on the gun?

Regarding one handed holstering: My first holster for my Glock 19 was a cheap Bianchi IWB. It was so flimsy that it was virtually impossible to holster with it while on my body. I was literally afraid that I might shoot myself struggling with it, especially if part of it managed to get into the trigger guard. Between that and the insanely aggressive belt clip which made it nearly impossible to put on or take off while my pants were on, I gave up after a couple of days and tossed it into a drawer. I replaced it with a Don Hume 715M until I learned to make my own holsters. I eventually disassembled it to learn how to properly attach a spring clip to my own holsters. Every one of the tuckable IWBs I've made has had a reinforced top. They're all "envelope" types in which the tension of the reinforcement is more than sufficient to keep them open without any metal. Alton "Good Eats" Brown wisely says that when you have to force dull kitchen knives, you get cut. Likewise, when you have to struggle excessively with a holster, your odds of an ND go up.

While you certainly can use CAD to do this kind of work, that may actually be overkill, depending upon what CAD program you use. I do my design work with Corel Draw, which is a vector graphics program. It's a lot easier to learn than a lot of CAD programs. Regarding hand layout, if you have the talent, there's nothing wrong with it. Some of us simply never have, don't now, and never will. I'm one of them. On the other hand, I can use Corel Draw to create a rectangular primitive and add nodes and curves to end up with a creditable holster pattern. What I create using Corel Draw (or what somebody else could do with a CAD program) is endlessly modifiable and re-producible. My last CAD experience of any substance was with AutoCad 12 for DOS. People with more recent and extensive CAD experience should have few problems.

If you have native artistic skills, good for you. Unfortunately, some of us don't. I'm not going to let that stand in the way of me making a decent holster. By the way, I've got a friend who's a mechanical engineer and a brilliant manual draftsman. He designed part of the wiring harness for the B-1. He has almost no computer drafting skills. He can't BUY a mechanical engineering job. Times change.

Doing a cardboard mockup really helps with this. I suspect that using pliable foam cut with the pattern would help even more. That's the boxed version. You can usually get a good deal on an OEM disk(s) only version. I'll probably be shopping for a newer version in the coming year.

I'm a lousy freehand artist. What Corel Draw does for me is give me the ability to copy and modify existing patterns. I can break apart an existing pattern and modify parts as necessary to fit a different need. It's easy to redimension, change radiuses, and even to modify the entire outline. I let technology compensate for my lack of artistic skill.

I use Corel Draw X3 (I think it's up to X6 or something now). It's a vector drawing program (also comes with a bitmap editor, among other tools). The nice thing about it is that you can pretty much endlessly modify, combine and break apart shapes, as well as scale them. When designing, I create the separate parts of my patterns, then put them together. This shows me how things are going to fit together (more or less) when assembled. I print the components on card stock, cut them out and trace them onto leather. If necessary, I'll glue or paper clip parts of a pattern together to see how they [should] fit together. In fact, I'm picking up a 13"x19" Canon inkjet printer today to replace the one that died on me last week. The larger than 8.5"x11" will make it much easier for me to do larger holsters, like the OWB for my 4" S&W 29-2 that I wanted to develop. The nice thing about Corel draw is that while it's not free, OEM versions are VERY reasonably priced (I paid around $99 for mine). It's also a very well known program with a large user community.

On another thread, somebody mentioned dampening the leather before using EcoFlo dye. I'd never seen that before. I'd gotten disgusted with the dye issues and put things aside for a while, but rather than go out in the snow, I decided I'd try this technique on a piece of scrap. I just lightly dampened the work with a wet sponge and immediately applied the dye. In fact, it worked quite well. After only one coat, the finish is very even and consistent. I've still got a large bottle of the Bison Brown EcoFlo dye that I'd rather not discard. Is dampening the work first a generally accepted technique and one that generally works better than applying the dye to the work while dry?

I started out using a Tandy scratch awl. That worked, but it produced large holes than I wanted. I recently switched to a Tandy stitching awl with interchangeable blades. That produces a much more attractive stitch, although it's significantly harder to use. I groove using a Tandy adjustable groover. I use a Tandy stitch wheel to mark the holes, then the awl to make the holes. I groove the opposite side with a Tandy freehand groover.

I know what you mean about perfectionism. I've got three holsters I'm reluctant to try to sell to strangers because I'm unhappy with the results of the EcoFlo dye, even after multiple coats. I suspect these holsters are going to replace the Don Hume 715Ms I have. When you're hand stitching, I suppose you're selling higher quality.

I wasn't able to quickly find a picture, since most of the links are to the now common thigh holsters. The way a drop holster works is that it has a long belt loop or loops fastened to the flap. When the flap is fastened it shortens the loops so that the holster rides at a normal height on the belt. . When you undo the flap, the weight of the gun drags the gun and holster downward, the now unrestrained loop(s) straightening out so that the flap is now straight up, parallel to the holster body, and providing a "drop". This lowers the holster to be closer to your hand when your arm is relaxed by your side. Obviously, the holster body is NOT molded to the gun. If I remember correctly, this can be combined with a strap on the inside of the flap which goes underneath the triggerguard and is anchored on the inside of the holster. This partially raises the gun out of the holster when the flap lifts. I haven't seen one of these AT LEAST since I was in high school, but it'd be something neat to make for a surplus handgun. If I had the extra leather, I'd think about making one for my Mauser Broomhandle.

If you wanted to make something neat, you could always make a "drop" holster. I had one for one of the Japanese fake guns when I was a kid in the late '60s. It's a flap holster, but when you undo the flap, the whole holster drops so that the flap is out of the way. I haven't seen one in at least 35 years, but they're very interesting.