Josh Ashman

Thank you Scoutmom! My pleasure to answer a few questions! I did a quick google search and came up with this video that shows a guy using them and how he made one. I guess it's OK for me to share a Youtube video? If not search "leather speed beveler" and you'll come right to it. All the best, Josh

Hey dikman, That first picture shows my swivel knife, which has a hollow ground blade and the other tool with the white nylon deal where the blade would otherwise be is the beveler I use. Basically, you cut the like then go back over it (with a fair amount of down pressure) to bevel it. It's doesn't do as good of a job as an actual beveler stamp, but it's quicker and you don't get the "choppy" look that you sometimes do if you're not great at beveling (I'm better now than I once was, but still have tons of room for improvement). I'm not sure that the swivel knife blade being hollow ground makes it any better, but it's the blade I always use. I've had it for a long time, probably about 30 years, although I didn't use it much until the last 7 or 8 years. It was purchased from Tandy in the late 80's when I was in grade school shop class and we did a little leatherwork for one of the school projects. I'm not sure that a Tandy blade purchased today would be the same thing but that one works well for me. Thanks Lobo! I appreciate that! Hope retirement is treating you well sir! All the best, Josh

Thanks LederRudi! As for the color, these 2 will just get highlighter so they'll be mostly left "natural". It a big order and I cut and stamped the 3rd this morning. It'll get black antique. They would look nice with just a few light coats of oil and left in the sun for a day, but I'll have to save that for one of my own sometime! All the best, Josh

You're certainly welcome Chris! Broke down into each step it's pretty easy to pull this border off. I'll also add that the more you get stacked in there the less each little flaw jumps out. All the best!

Thanks Dikman, it's nice of you to say so! Thanks Gary! As for how I stamp, it's been s bit of a progression. I started out going all the way around the "inside" and then filling in the "outside". I also pre-measured the spacing by laying it out with little tick marks. Then I went to alternating each side a stamp at a time, making the complete design as I went so I didn't need to pre-measure their locations so much. And now, since alternating sides requires me to twist and turn more than I care to, I've gone back to stamping all the way around one side complete and then doing the other and I just "eyeball" the spacing. Thanks noobleather! Will do! All the best, Josh

Thanks Alpha2! I could never decide where to stop the border, so I just started running them all the way around All the best, Josh

Couple of progress pics of two Threepersons style holsters I'm working on this week. One is strong side for a 45/8" Blackhawk, the other is crossdraw for a 6-1/2" Single Six. Both have what I call a San Carlos border. Both are 10/11 HO craftsman.

Very good, sorry for the slow reply! I was goofing at at the lake All the best!

I've had lots or practice at making poorly stamped/tooled gear. It seems that the more you do it the better you get. My stuff isn't great by any means, but it's better now than when I started. Not sure if it's helpful, but the way I do serpentine borders is to scribe my lines lightly, then cut them with a swivel knife, then run over them with whatever the beveler blades for a swivel knife handle are called. Then I do the "hourglass" shaped stamp that I use. I put one of the flat sides into the cut and beveled line and go to work stamping. I use the same side of the stamp all around the one side then do the other side. I used to layout spacing marks but anymore I just "eyeball" them in. When coming into a corner that has to "close out" I'll stop short several inches then work my way out of the corner and try to make any spacing adjustments over several stamps so I don't have one big gap or 1 space that is way too tight. Good luck!

Hello Alex, For what it's worth, my thoughts are that if your process for building a flat back takes an extra 30 minutes or so I think adding an additional $15 to $25 is what I would do. I also agree with what Dwight had to say, where his flat back process doesn't add any time for him I can see why he wouldn't bother with charging any more. I charge more for tooled stuff. The reason being that it takes more time. It's the same leather, dye and thread but the time investment increases. The dollar amount I mention above is in line with what I add for a similar amount of tooling time. All the best, Josh

Outstanding! I really like your sight channel bump out! Classy looking holsters for sure and great attention to detail in the assembly and finish. Thanks for sharing!

You could do all that, and it'll probably work nicely. Or, you could use the awl by hand and spend the time and effort you would have used to build your hole stabbing machine to practice stabbing holes by hand. Good luck whichever way you go!

I've glued cased leather without issue. Specific times I can think of are the cantle back and seat and I also use Barge, sometimes Masters if it's cheaper. All the best! Josh

When I hand stitched my process was somewhat similar. Instead of a drill press (don't have one) I used a regular awl blade and haft handle but I did "pre-stab" all my holes. I'd place one of those rubber "poundo" boards from Tandy over a cutting board and stab the holes straight down. the poundo board is basically just rubber and is roughly 1/4" thick. It kept my awl blade from going too deep and the cutting board kept it from getting dull too quick. Once the holes were stabbed I'd stitch it up using a saddle stitch (2 needles). I did make a home made stitching horse that I used all the time, but before I built it I got by with holding whatever I was sewing. To me, using the horse was faster because I could use both hands to stitch. Light leather gloves with a doubled up palm to keep fingers from getting sliced by the thread when pulling tight and for pushing the needle through. Finger tips and thumb tips cut off on both gloves for increased dexterity. Hand stitching holsters isn't bad at all. Hand stitching saddle skirts is not that fun! Good luck with your project! Josh

Hello Presley, I've built 4 saddles so I'm not any great source of information and I don't want to come off like I am. That said, I've followed the Stohlman books fairly close as far as basic process and been happy. If it were me I'd likely try to do something like this; Swells - stamp once they're in place. Bonus points if you can get them done while they are still cased from fitting. Skirts - stamp after blocking and before plugging. bonus points if you can stamp them while still cased from blocking. Rigging plates (if flat plate that drops to visible and you want to stamp) - stamp the front piece prior to assembling the plates. Rear jockies - I follow the process Stohlman lines out in book #2. It involves fitting temporary laces to get them fit up and multiple fit ups. they get tooled somewhere in the middle of that process. Cantle back - stamp it right before you glue it on. It works OK for me to tool it while it's still cased from fitting it but you may need to re-wet it a few times along the way. At least I've had to. Good luck! Someone who knows more than me will hopefully chime in and get you some good advice. All the best, Josh

Very nice! Good job!!

Very nice!

Hello TM, You're off to a good start. Looking at what you have there reminds me of a lot of my beginning projects! I highly recommend you find a copy of Al Stohlman's excellent book "how to make holsters", it's $13 on Amazon and probably available in every Tandy store if you have one of those near you. It has a section on how to lace up a holster. It also has some pointers on basket stamping and making borders. In addition it has some good (but dated) info on how to design holsters as well as many patterns that you can also use. Including a 1911 pattern that isn't terribly different that what you have there. I'm too slow at typing to try and pick out an answer that would be helpful to you and my advice probably isn't as good as it should be. Al's book will do a far better job than I could attempt. Again, good job on getting started! Also, good luck moving forward! Josh

You're welcome Bodean! Thanks Bigfoote! Thanks Battlemunky! Thanks Plinker! I'm not exactly sure how much time I have into it. I generally put in a few hours each morning before my day job and sometimes a few hours in the evening or over the weekend. I worked on this for just over 2 weeks and my best guess is I have around 30 hours in it. If I did leather work full time I like to think that I'd get more done in one 8 or 10 hour day vs. 2 hours at a time over a 4 or 5 day period, but I might be kidding myself. Occasionally on a weekend were there is poor weather and I'm stuck in the house anyway I'll put in a full day at my bench and burnout is a real thing for me. After a while my eyes go fuzzy and my mind starts to wander, not an ideal thing when playing with sharp things :)! Once again, I appreciate all the positive feedback folks! Have a great Friday and weekend!

Bodean, I use the liquid acrylic, which is a little gel like, so probably the same you have. My process is to give the leather a good coat of neatsfoot oil and let it "soak" in at least overnight. I apply the antique heavily with a scrap piece of shearling working from one end to the other on the front side then flip it over and work the other way applying it o the backside. Once I'm back at my starting point I wipe off the excess with a damp paper towel that has been doubled over multiple times. As the towel gets filthy with the excess dye I'll turn it over, then inside out, etc. If it doesn't want to "wash" off very well I'll add more water and/or pressure until it does. It seems to me the longer it sits the darker the the "highs" will be. Which can be good or bad, depending on how dark you wanted it. This isn't universally true, some hides go darker and some go lighter, more brown or more gray regardless of how long you let it sit on before wiping it off. Once it's been wiped off as much as I like, or as much as I can get I'll let it dry. At least overnight and if possible 24 hours. Then I give it a good wipe down with liquid glycerin saddle soap applied with a piece of scrap shearling. This often bleeds off some of the dye and in my opinion adds depth and warmth. From there it gets a seal coat made with a 50/50 mixture of Mop & Glo and water. Once that's dry I'll give it another wipe down or two of the glycerin soap. I often spray the shearling then rub it on a bar of soap, then apply it to the leather. I don't want it wet, I want it "waxy". That's about it. Somewhere int he middle of saddle soaping and seal coating I'll put everything together. When I start with the neatsfoot oil it's all separate pieces and when I do the last soap wipe down it's an assembled rig. I have a jar of the paste as well. When I was a kid that's what my dad used. I think somewhere along the line they changed the formula because the paste stuff in the jar doesn't seem to stick as well. At least not for me. All the best, Josh

Thanks OldNSlow! Thank you sir! Thanks Bodean! I encourage you to do both! Thanks JD! With the cartridge belt full it's a little heavy but with the width of the belt (2-3/4") it isn't bad to carry. That said, I don't know how many of these fancy rigs get used that much. I have one myself and it mostly hangs on the wall. When I carry a sixgun it's usually in a simple pants belt mounted crossdraw or in a chest rig. Everybody is different, but for me those are less in the way when I'm out and about. That said, there is no question for me that a full western rig is cool as can be! Thanks again for the kind words folks, have a great day!

Thanks Chris, I appreciate that!

Very similar to a lefty Buscadero I recently made and posted pics of. Leather is HO 10/11 and dye is Fiebings antique black. Thanks for looking and have a great day! Josh

I use a Fiebings Aussie wax a lot on field holsters and tack. It's similar to Sno Seal, which I have also used. My preference is the Aussie wax which is textured about like Vaseline but I have nothing against Sno Seal and it's easier to find. With either I like to "work" them into the leather. I rub a generous amount on then set the item in the sun for a few hours until it's no longer visible. If there's no sun I'll put them somewhere it gets uncomfortably hot (attic, dash of a parked truck, etc.). I have heard of people using a heat gun or hair dryer to work it in, but I've always been able to find a place I can set it and let time work it in. Once it's "melted" into the leather it's fairly dull. If I want a little "glow" I'll rub on some glycerin saddle soap. All the best, Josh

Looking good Dwight! You've been busy!