JackRabbit

Thank you for the info , Bob . And that pic of how to make a steel liner , it cleared the whole idea with a glance. Why not to make whole holster steel lined like Arvo Ojala did ? JR

Inspired by this thread , I am watching "The Wild Bunch" once again , and ... why this rig is called a "Wild Bunch" -rig ? I cannot see anybody carrying a 1911 in that way ; Angel is having kinda cross-draw version across his stomach . Pike having his in a shoulder holster , Lyle Gorch uses flap holster. Is it named so , because rig like that is used in the "Wild Bunch" - shooting competitions ? And Bob , this is an honest question with NO intention to mock nor to insult ya. JR (And hey , I have announced that I am just a shooter with no involved with SASS / CASS ... yet. )

You will get one heck of a gun , then . Do not forget to post a pic , when it's done. I repeat : Do not leave the undercut out , it is a very important . https://www.google.fi/search?q=how+to+undercut+1911+trigger+guard&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:fi:official&client=firefox-a JR

Good gun , one of mine is a Norc . Does not need much to be adjusted . There are a few good tricks to do ( or a gunsmith does) for it. Maybe most important is make the "undercut " to make the gun fit tightly in your hand . Another is to slicken and tighten the slide / frame sit together well , improves accuracy. I guess you shoot in "Traditional" ? JR

If you can visit a shop with a skiving machine , buy the leather a bit thick and ask them to skive it to wanted thickness . The machine leaves a "clean shave" with no loose hairs. ( I can do that due the harness racing factory in my hometown . Bought my leather from there over 20 yrs now) The Dwight's wax+oil -trick works , too . I'd like to add : After add wax - scrub in - buff it ...put the holster in a fridge for a while ; the coldnesss stiffens the wax . About 10 minutes , take out and buff again . Repeat until satisfied. JR

One more question ... from what factory is that .45 in the holster ? JR

Thanks mate , but I have made .45 rig for myself ... just much simpler . Envy your abilty to make fine decor stamping *nods hat* . Mine are simple and rust-tank black but they do work. Only decor is the "gunfighter stitch" in the belt like in Clint's belt. I was at range today with my .45 enjoying shooting. I carry my.45 in high-ride ; just behind hip bone ( right word ?!) and ...quick draw-quick aim - BLAMM--BLAMM ! 74 rounds ; 70 hit the x from 16 meters ( that's 53ft4in for ya americans ) . Like our way to use those "wings" . Kinda the Andy Anderson did for the Clint Eastwood rig for his revolvers. Keep up the good work ! *Two thumbs up* JR

Yep , Bob ... That is really a nice set . But I find one thing being awfully wrong ... it's YOUR rig ; not mine ! No fair JR

You have a good taste for guns . I have Para Ordnance P 18.9 and very keen on it . Nice shark front , mate ! JR

same in pictures .

Being a fan of Clint Eastwood westerns , I wanted to do a stitch like that , too . It is in his gunbelt in most , if not all westerns . That Luke Hatley - post gave me an idea and I did a few tries succeeding at last . You need an arc ; height is equal of the height of wished pattern . So , In my case I used an arc 1" high and 4,5" length ( cut that from used pistol target using the arc from 8 - ring ) . Then drew two lines 1" apart . Drew set of arcs and when starting the other side , I used a square to get the points of a "diamond" in a vertically straight line . If the points are not aligned , the pattern does not look right . And after drawing... there I had my wished stitching pattern . Now a first belt having a fancy stitch like that is being stitched in a harness racing equipment factory in my HT . They have machines heavy enough for that . JR

I have used stingray and used no extra finish . JR

Which is a fact , it will shape to fit to YOUR waist. Just wear the belt , that's all it takes. JR

Just came to my mind ... Which way you'd go in making a ccw belt when using exotic skins as a part of it : 1 ) 9-10 oz for belt , 4-5 oz for lining PLUS a decorative panel (stingray , shark ...) on top OR 1) 9-10 for a lining AND a heavy panel on that ( again shark / stingray ...) ? And yes , I'd like to use a decor like that , kinda hits my eye. Suggestions for thicknesses will be appreciated . My old belt has given me much more than suggested 5 or so years , but seems that I'll need a new one later.

Heh , not the only Finn , I see . Hello from Lahti . You do not need to buy the slicker . Use antler tips , sand them to shape you wish and polish . My choice. Ei sinun tarvitse ostaa reunakiillotinta , ota sarvea , muotoile ja kiillota se . minun valintani. JR

Neat work , what else I can say . If You demand something to criticize , the loop over the holster , in lower stampings ... are the lines different or is it my screen ? JR

Two holes and then A) use very sharp chisel or B ) a carpet cutting knife to cut the slots open . If you use carpet cutter , do not try to get through with a single cut . Good way to avoid blade marks in the ends is to start the cut from the hole and meet at center o =><=o . For sanding take a 0,5 or so strip of aluminium or plastic . Then attach the sandpaper on it with two-side adhesive . Now You have a "leather rasp" in your use . For the icing on the cake , use thin bone stick and burnish the sides of the slots . My o o : s JR

Ok , second rig I've made but this is MY first rig . Got a license for .45 SAA 1873 and there we went . Credits for achieving that deeeep black goes for Will Ghormley , who has shared a lot of valuable info . His "rust tank trick" just did the job . Still has not decided if I want the ammo loops or not on the belt itself , so just made a slide for having spares on the belt . It has already been used at the range , that's why you see marks on the face of the loop.

Try also the rust tank method by Will Ghormley . Takes a bit of time to get the liquid ready but the result are really good with no vinegar odor . VERY nice derringer holster , mate . JR

..."at least 100 per day..." If you work 10 hours per day , you must make 10 holsters per hour = 1 holster per six minutes ... Or 10 persons , 10 holsters per hour = 1 holster per person per hour . There is no time to dry the wet leather properly in that time without burning it , at least what I know about it. And the quality ... well ...You know what is the result of rushing too hard. But what comes to your question ... IMHO. Best results are reached by doing one at time , hand molding with a decent drying time before next step. JR

Answering to my own question : Yes , the boning works . My buddy had asked me to make a cartridge slide for spare ammo for his .38 . Today when back home I took a strap of thick leather and drew the lines for punching the holes for a ammo slide and taking the bag punch I whacked a row of slots into leather . Got the V - shaped slots as usual ...but then I moistened the areas between the slots , then boned them to re-flatten the leather for straightening the V's into I I - shaped slots. Went just fine . I dryed the leather with the warm-air blower and did the weaved loops for 38 Specials . Had very neat and TIGHT loops all the way . JR

Hey guys , do you have the same problem as I do ... after punching the holes in thick leather with the bag punch they are widening up towards the surface , like ... V ? Only the behind of the belt has that 1/8" oblong slot topside slot being much wider. Do you have the punch sides reshaped or what is the way to get the slots formed straight ... well , at least not so wide on a top . ( My idea to try is to moist the areas between slots and bone them flat with the boner , sounds any good ??) JR

Tasty looking . That's something to aim . JR

tyvm...as said that was my first try for a full rig . What comes to that ssholder , I made first a couple for a practise and just handed them for the fellow shotgunners . After that made the shell holder for the guy as an extra ... he is a gunsmith maintaining my pieces ; had to use golden shells for connecting the colours , hahahahaha. Now making a rig for myself , got a license for SAA. Other critique is welcomed ,too . Tomatoes are in the box at left and rotten eggs at right ( sorry my attitude , too much Bugs Bunny when a kid ) . JR