Big O

If he has any friends around who've "been there", those are an excellent resource, as well. There's a big difference between someone who's actually experienced it and some "expert" who's read all the books.....

I just had occasion to make my very first ankle holster. I used sheepskin. It seemed a little too thick, so I trimmed it down with scissors. Worked like a charm.

For a pistol that small, for an IWB holster, it makes sense to increase the surface area of the holster a little bit. Increases stability. I've got a PM40. It's a tiny, TINY little pistol, and there's not much of it under the belt as is. If you were to try "Mexican carry", it'd be very much in danger of falling out.

I want to thank you for the ONE Dremel burnisher you sold me. It's been a great help. Spend as much time with Emily as you can. I lost my daughter, Sarah, to lymphoma on July 20th. She was 24 years old. This Friday would have been her 25th birthday.

That is one gorgeous hunk of leather right there. If it's not perfect, it's the next best thing. I, too, would like to see the back.

I started out using a 4-prong diamond punch. Broke two of them in short order. Worked just "okay". You could still see the holes after stitching. Then I tried drilling the holes. Same result, just smaller holes. The awl worked best, and that's what I continue to use. Keep a washcloth, towel, or gauze pads handy, though, because at first, you'll poke your fingers on a fairly regular basis.....

YOU, sir, are an outstanding storyteller....... Took me more than a minute to stop laughing.

When I've been in a hurry (almost always a mistake), I've cut my dye with denatured alcohol and done the molding while the leather was still damp. Messy, but it works.

Just looking at that first one makes my shoulder and wrist ache.... Nice workmanship, in general, but that first one would be very awkward to draw from. I like your design for the tan 1911 holster. Belt slots could be a bit smaller. Edges look about 1/2 of the way there. I'd burnish more before applying the Edge Kote, and my edges are nothing to write home about.

I just hang the holster inside a cardboard box and prop up a handheld hair dryer about three feet away, pointed into the box below where the holster is.

All I use is Resolene.

I tend to agree that 8/9oz leather would be perfectly fine for an OWB holster for a CZ75, especially an Avenger style. It's what I typically use, and with the reinforcement of the wraparound piece, it's plenty sturdy. For compact pistols, I've found that even 6/7oz works. I could see using heavier leather for a pancake holster, which lacks that reinforcement. I've tried making IWB holsters out of 8/9oz, and it's like carrying a brick in your pants......6/7oz is pretty much the max for that, in my opinion. The tanning process is what determines, to a large extent, how rigid the leather will be. Vegetable-tanned leather is firmer than chrome- or oil-tanned leather, and can be molded. This makes it well-suited for holsters and sheaths, and ill-suited for clothing. I'm currently using Eco-Flo Leathercraft Cement to glue leather. I've used superglue gel before. In my opinion, the only purpose of any glue in holstermaking is to hold the leather in place long enough for you to stitch it together, so I *personally* don't think it much matters. At some point, I might even try Elmer's. LoL Slicking leather is somewhat similar to sanding wood, in the sense that you start with a coarse tool and finish with a smooth tool. The difference is wetting/waxing the leather. For a broke newbie MacGuyver solution, you can use water, a piece of denim, and a Sharpie marker. Just wet your finger and run it along the edge you want to smooth out. Then rub the (rough) denim across it vigorously. Follow up using the (smooth) BODY of the Sharpie (the color is irrelevant, since you're only using the container, not the contents). Once you save up just a few pennies, you might buy a hardwood burnishing tool that can be used in a Dremel or a drill press. That's a lot faster, and takes a lot less work. When "casing" leather for wet-molding, the water doesn't necessarily have to be hot. You can also use denatured alcohol instead of water, which speeds air-drying time. For that matter, you could use denatured alcohol to dilute your dye, and do your molding before it dries, but I wouldn't recommend it, because that would tend to make the end product a bit splotchy, and your blue gun or real gun a bit messy. Applying low heat to cased leather hardens it. Apparently, heating leather to about 130 degrees for about 30 minutes causes chemical changes within the leather that make it rigid. I learned that from this forum, somewhere. So, I tried it, and found that it works. I use this highly technical process in which I suspend the wet, freshly molded holster with the gun still in it in a cardboard box about three feet in front of a handheld hair dryer set on "High" while a cooking timer counts down from the 30-minute mark. It works. It goes without saying that you only do this with water, not with alcohol. Don't think that you can just put the holster in the oven and set it at 150, because 150 isn't all THAT much more than 130. Ovens are devious and evil, and THEY LIE!!!! You'll end up with a holster that looks like a pork rind. Boning.....you can make the leather conform to the BASIC shape of the handgun using only your fingers. For detail, though, you'll need something hard. The round end of the aforementioned Sharpie marker works well for this, and the tip of its cap is small enough for SOME fine detailing. I use the "non-business" end of my groovers for boning. the larger, rounded end of my adjustable stitching groover works well for pressing the leather HARD against the pistol, and the much smaller end of the freehand groover works well for following slide lines and defining the ejection port, trigger guard, levers, pins, etc. DEFINITELY invest in stitching groovers. Having your stitches in a groove not only protects the stitches, but keeps them in line - literally. Grooves can also serve as decoration, even in spots where there are no stitches. Different folks do their dyeing at different points in the process. Some do it as a final step before applying a finish. I like to do it after grooving and initial burnishing, but before glueing and stitching. I'm not sure there's a "right" way to do it in that regard. I use denatured alcohol to cut my dye, and brush it on using a 2" paintbrush, brushing every which way, in several coats until I get the desired result. I hang the dyed leather up to dry. If I'm smart that particular week, I just leave it alone to dry for at least a day. If I'm not that smart, I sometimes get to thinking that it's "dry enough" after a few hours, because it feels dry on the outside. (Don't be that guy) Keep looking around this forum. It's a GREAT resource. And the only stupid question is the one that you realize you SHOULD have asked........afterwards......

I love the simplicity of the 1911 scabbard, even though the exposed trigger gives me the heebie-jeebies. I'd love to see the back of it.

A Swingline. A red one. I believe you have it. .....and that's the last straw......

I used to have a Jackass Leather Co rig, the original "Miami Classic". It put the pivot point right smack dab in between the shoulder blades. Which, probably not coincidentally, was exactly where my muscles knotted up after about 4 hours......

Yeah, I've had sloppier dyed edges too. As in, ALL of them.... That's a gorgeous piece of work, particle!

1. Tell the rancher he needs to spray for mosquitoes. 2. Also, the cattle need more grass, and not as much feed. 3. You missed a spot. Oh, nevermind, that's just a speck of dust. 4. DAMNNNNNNNNN.....that's a big picture! 5. Not bad for a thrown-together holster.

The only color suggestion I have is this: Dye the belt loops and reinforcement piece to match the belt that will be worn.

That is one beautimus holster!

You also have a real knack for photography.

When you say "side panels", I take it you're referring to the parts where the belt loops attach. I'm not sure what the proper name for them is, but I call them "wings". There are differing schools of thought regarding their spacing. Some say that wider spacing spreads the weight across the belt better, while others say that wide spacing simply allows more rotation of the holster, making it less stable. One thing's for sure, though: you want to be sure you have ENOUGH space to allow the leather to flex toward the belt, or it'll apply too much pressure to the pistol, making the draw more difficult. Your rear belt loop looks like it's as close as would be practical. I might move that a little farther out. The front belt loop might be just a bit TOO far out. I, too, think you'll find that cant a bit too extreme, unless you're planning on carrying at about 4:30 or 5 instead of 3:30 or 4. Two other suggestions: 1. Don't cover quite as much of the rear sight with the leather. It could interfere with the draw. 2. You mentioned a spare tire. I have one of those, too. I've also carried a 5906. You might want to put some leather between the decocking lever on the left side of the slide and your "tread"......

In the design phase of your next one, bring the stitch lines in a little closer to the gun. Half the width of the slide, plus the thickness of the leather - that's all the space you need. Burnish the BEJEEZUS out of the reinforcement piece BEFORE you stitch it on, because it's the last chance you'll get to do it right. Throw in some CURVES, man! While the holster looks nice, it's a mite squarish. You did a fine job of molding. For a first holster, that's downright awesome!

Is THIS the sort of thing you're talking about, Mike? http://www.dragonleatherworks.com/index.php

Mine are intended as "body shields", but that phrase seems to confuse people. I suppose, in the case of the holsters I build for myself, "spare tire guard" would be most appropriate...... I use my own holsters at the range, drawing from concealment, and have never gotten the gun "trapped" in the holster, whether by the sweat shield, or the cover garment, or any combination thereof. T-shirt, tank top, jacket, "shoot me first" vest, whatever. Hasn't been a problem. Not saying it couldn't possibly be, just that it hasn't yet, in hundreds if not thousands of presentations from the holster. I think design plays a big part. If the holster is designed in such a fashion that a full firing grip (minus the finger in the trigger guard, of course) does not interfere with the holster, then it shouldn't be a problem. And if it IS a problem, you don't HAVE a full firing grip, and are predictably opening doors to problems no matter WHAT holster you're using. I need sweat shields to keep thumb safeties and the sides of high-profile rear sights from digging painfully into my flesh. Maybe it's a form of projection, but I figure other people want them, for that same reason, as well.

I'm amazed by how close to PERFECT the stitch line is! Did you mold this BEFORE the stitching?