Eaglestroker

Love the whole rig, great job!

I especially like the second knife. Nice work!

Feibings Dark Brown, thanks for the compliments. Keep at it, sewing loops takes a while to get proficient at! Thanks Josh! I appreciate it!

Thank you! I really loved that little scabbard. Had the right 'look' to it. Josh, I wouldn't double stitch with a Tippmann...I can't even imagine LOL. Thanks! Thanks ricky, nice look for sure. Thank you! Frank, I like those rigs. I may have to try something like that! Thank you! Appreciate it! Thank you, I'm happy with the clean look of it!

Had a fella get with me that wanted a 3" 45 cal ammo belt do double for his 45 Colt 6.5" Ruger SBH and his 45-70 Marlins. We bantered back and forth for a while and he wanted one just like another I made as he loved the depth of the color. Seeing as I did that on accident I just told him I'd do what I can. The belt is 32" @ center...I learned I enjoy making rigs for thin folks! I cut it close on the ammo loops as their tight enough it curves the belt when loaded. Should be fine on the body as it will be curved more than that anyway.

Josh...do yourself a favor and get something more like 4-5 oz for loops. I feel bad for your hands! Rig looks perfect as always. I wish I could carve worth a dang every time I see one of yours.

I had a semi-local customer approach me right after I made my first cowboy style rig and tell me he wanted one just like it with reversed colors. Also wanted a scabbard for a Rossi Ranch Hand - no problem. When we got together for me to get the lever we chatted a bit and off we go. By the time I got home it had gone from 'just like this' to a rig in the ol flick "Silverado." He wanted an 'Emmett' style rig in the color combo he'd already picked. This is obviously a pretty loose interpretation but you get the idea.The scabbard can be worn as a backpack or lashed down like a traditional scabbard would. Derek is a local LEO and I'm hoping to get an action shot of him wearing it out of his squad car somewhere down the line. Maybe on one of his SWAT raids!

Nailed that border Josh, great work as always!

Very clean!

Great work Josh!

Thanks all! I carry them that way because their easier to get out. It also shows potential customers through the photo the retention of the loops. Hey Joel, appreciate the compliments. he charges me $5-10 per project. Pretty reasonable in my mind.

I'm sure everyone does. Take it with a grain of salt as a lot of times in my experience their the most loyal customers. Thanks Jake! Thanks dick, I really appreciate that. Considering my first holster was patterned off a Roy Baker pancake i think my styling cues were skewed from the start You'll always have folks that want it. I'm just content not offering it, I'm no good at it so why try. Only thing I can get to turn out decent is a 1911 because I know them well.

I have two friends that come in and help me from time to time, edges, one of them stamps quite well now, etc. I only know the equation from one side, but the amount of time involved in getting someone willing and able up to speed is quite large from my experience. I don't make a holster expensive enough to only charge that much as there are lots of little tips, tricks, etc I just never put much thought into that need to be explained. This is a scenario where it is truly worth what someone is willing to pay. How can you put a price on proprietary knowledge? At the same time you can't take it with you. Good luck! Judging by the popularity of your videos I don't think that you'll have any problems teaching.

I dip dye all my leather. It gives inconsistent colors but I can force 'shades' to a customers tastes. Takes a while to figure out and your never really done. Thanks! Thanks Matt!

I'll let you know a little secret, I can't use a swivel knife to save my life. That was laser engraved and much to my surprise turned out beautifully.

I figured it was appropriate that this was finished so close to the 4th of July. I had a fella out of Texas by the name of Danny contact me in March of last year. Danny wanted a rifle cuff for a Marlin rifle in 30-30 his grandad recently passed down to him made as a tribute of sorts. We talked about it off and on for a while and initially it was just some stamping work and that was that. Then he decided a few weeks later he wanted a sling. Few weeks later he called and asked if we could figure out how to put 'don't tread on me' on it right as I was finishing his first initial piece. When I got the ball rolling he decided he wanted a belt..then..and then...and then...and then again. Danny kept telling me don't send anything until it's all ready. He knew that his grandad was going to be tickled pink and didn't want him finding something without him having the chance to show it all. I finally cut Danny off on additions when he said 'oh yeah, I need a few ammo pouches and an ammo slide.' Any further ideas will go onto the next rig he decides he wants All of his pieces aren't shown but there are 22 in total. So I bid you farewell old friend in form of leather and the project that I thought would never end. It was nice knowing you and fun while it lasted but you need to move along to Texas where anxious hands are a waitin.'

I thought a few of you might enjoy this. I had the gun out for an order this weekend so I went a little snap happy. To some folks that name doesn't mean squat but to me it means a good bit, and the fact that my grandfather was friends with him and purchased a many rigs after he watched Roy make them is a neat connection for me. After my grandfather saw the growing interest in all things leather he told me, 'You know that 1903 I have? I bought if off Ray one day when he was on a drinking binge.' My grandad is a trader/wheeler/dealer who worked for the Arkansas Highway Patrol and traveled all over so this really didn't surprise me. It's pretty neat to know where this came from, though. As a side note Roy Baker is a little fella from Arkansas who invented, patented, and made a bit of money off the Pancake holster. In any case on to the photos. She isn't winning any beauty contests but she's awful pretty to me.

Thank you very much! Thanks Hi D, I'd say the single biggest factor was not the maul but the hitting surface. It's a piece of marble 24" x 24" and 2" thick. I use a 20 oz Barry King. They say that's overkill for stamping but I wanted a one size fits all. That in itself could be the difference? I'd love to have a Bear Maul but it isn't in the cards.

The biggest thing I ever did for my tooling was buying a proper maul and finding a marble slab. Once I did those things I didn't have the 'push out' issue anymore. The more times you wet the holster the more definition you'll loose. If you notice in the main stress lines it still presses it out but it's just not as noticeable. Thanks! I was worried about stuffing that much stitching ( I usually make all of my tooled belts single) but it came out beautiful to my eye.

Very nice belt Ray. Nice work!

I had a customer approach me about a tooled rig for his Glock 27. He wanted the belt double stitched and tooled with a rough out interior, and black edges. If that weren't specific enough he didn't want an acrylic finish on it. I met him half way on the last one with an application off Bee Naturals Sheridan/RTC finish and a buff/polish of wax. I'm not much for tupperware but I sure do like how this one turned out.

That looks fantastic, excellent job!

I made a dryer using a filing cabinet, a hot plate, and a bathroom fan. I can hang the items from the divider bars while drying.

Nice work Jason, very tidy stitching

I think I did that 3-4 times one day. I realized what I'd done each time and in a bit of anger went to redo.... I stayed out of the shop the rest of the weekend on that one. Sort of thing just happens sometimes.