Josh Ashman

Thanks Bobby! I have no doubt that your work is as good as always. Hopefully you've been taking time off from the shop for fun stuff. All the best, Josh

Nice job Bruno!

Nice job!

Thank you Bob, I'd like to take some credit for that border and carving pattern but I just copied Al. Which, if you're gonna copy somebody, he's a good one to go to! Thank you Murray!

Thanks Murray & Red Cent!

Thanks Boriqua! And, yes that's the book!

Thanks Bruno & BHP!

Ha JLS! thank you and you made me laugh! Diesel man, thank you and you are correct, that is my 5" SR1911, I used it to form this for a customer in another state who ordered the rig for a long slide. To get the extra 1" I just took the slide off and pushed it further in. This will deliver next week so we'll see how it turned out. Thank you as well Thornton, Paris and Cleanview! Have a great day folks!

Thank you Camano! Did that chest holster work out OK? All the best, Josh

Thank you Dakotawolf!

Kinda quiet around here lately, everybody must be busy! Here is one recently off my bench for a long slide (6") 1911. It's 8oz HO doubled all around and dyed with a mixture of Fiebings oxblood and medium brown cut down with alcohol. Thanks for looking and have a good day!

I agree with Cleanview on this. Different carry options bring up different issues but they all come with issues. I will and do make SOB holsters after making sure the customer knows the pros and cons. I read a thread on a pistol forum the other day about bikers who were very anti-shoulder holster because of the risk of breaking ribs if you ever lay the bike down while wearing one. It's a valid point and a good thing to discuss with anyone who carries in a shoulder rig while on a bike, but not a reason to never make a shoulder rig. As to the OP's question, I prefer grip up and try to convince customers to go that route. They are easier to get a grip on if nothing else. All the best, Josh

Looking good Bruno, nice job!

I fold a piece of paper in half, lay the pistol upside down on the fold then "roll" the pistol off the center fold, this spaces the "top" about right. Then I trace the "bottom" of the pistol around the grip, trigger guard, dust cover etc and figure my stitch line by going 1/2 of the pistol plus 1/8" for the leather. You might have to play around with that a little to reach perfection but using that method I haven't had a first run holster that wasn't fine for use. YMMV. Good luck, Josh

Nice work Otto! neatsfoot oil and use will stop the squeaks but also darken and soften the leather. Put on a light to medium coat and let it soak in then wear it around, repeat if you like but you can overdo it. The oil and sunlight will darken the leather and may even out the different shades of brown. If you put a top coat or sealer on it the oil may not be able to penetrate through, if it won't then time will still do the trick it'll just take more of it. Again, really nice work! All the best, Josh

That's a great looking saddle Randy, really a nice job! All the best, Josh

Thanks JLS! I really appreciate that! I had to tweak it a little to fit a pancake style holster instead of the clamshell shown in his book but it sure made for a good starting place. That border is now one of my favorites, it has a retro look, almost like it's from the 50's. Go figure . IMO if anybody doesn't have Stohlman's book on making holsters it really is a fine investment. It doesn't matter if you're not looking to build his exact patterns there is still a lot you can learn from them. All the best, Josh

Thanks folks! I like that stitch pattern too but I can't take credit for it. I think I lifted the idea from Colthammerless or maybe it was BHPshooter. I imagine there are lots of folks out there that do it, it does work out pretty well. Have a great day, Josh

Thank you Dwight!

8 oz HO. Dip dyed in Fiebings saddle tan cut about 50% with alcohol then rubbed down wih medium brown antique and topped with 50/50 M&G/water.

Randy, It's difficult to feel like I have much to offer after Keith and Oltoot have covered it so well but I did want to share this BC attachment I did. I'm sure plenty of folks do this, I think I saw it on a Chavez saddle and thought it looked pretty nice. It's just a strap skived to nothing on the ends and screwed to the tree. You can drop it a little lower than if you use the latigo carries and it's a little cleaner. I have also used the latigo carriers and like that too. Or you can skip them all together and build a BC with buckles and have the straps go through the gullet. good luck, Josh

Nice job!

Very nice Camano!

I'd wipe a very light coat of NF oil on it, let it sit until the next day then wipe a coat of liquid glycerin saddle soap on it. There's a good chance the oil will soak into the areas that have had the original finish worn off and darken them up a little and the saddle soap should put a little shine and polish on it. If i fades right back to how it looks now you didn't do anything but condition the leather, which is a good thing regardless. Good luck. Josh

Ruger, I'm afraid I can't post any pics showing the lacing better as I shipped this out already. It's a standard straight lace sort of thing, the little you can see basically shows what there is to see. I thought about trying to braid it but I was already pretty far over my time budget and I couldn't figure out a good way to do it. Camano, I never thought of neoprene, that might be a good option in the future. Instead I took out the screw on the brass butt plate and screwed it through the cuff. I have a Marlin 30-30 with a sling stud that basically does the same thing (i.e. pin it in one spot) and I haven't had any trouble with it slipping for several years. Thank you both for looking and commenting! Josh