lonestar tactical

Thanks for the leads. I am going to give them a call this morning. Didnt think it would be so difficult to find a smaller outfit to support in Texas. Looks like I may have to go with whoever wherever lol. Thanks and will let you know how it goes. Heck I may end up making a trip to our land in El Paso and hunt for them myself lol

SLC has been very good to me. They occassionaly will have shark remnants that they will sell you if they have them in stock. Give them a call and ask for Emma. Be Safe, Doc

Hello all. As some of you know I make holsters. I recently got bit by the exotic bug - have posted pics of my work recently done in elephant for a 1911, and shark for a G30 - and would like to try something I dreamed about as a young boyscout earning merit badges - working with rattle snake skin. I am thinking of using as an inlay but knowing some of my clients I am sure someone will want an entire holster made with it so whole skins would work best. I am trying to find a small texas rattle snake farmer type outfit to buy texas rattle snake skins. I have searched on line and also tried to contact some of those snake wrangler people we see on the rattle snake round up shows on discovery. no call backs. The skins that they sell on ebay are very high for some questionable quality. Anyone care to share a resource or point me in the right direction? Thanks for any assistance.

Hello all. I posted a week ago regarding my recent interaction with SLC. I had picked up a nice piece of elephant and also of shark. (As I type the mrs is opening another package from SLC.... hmmm more elephant). Great folks and emma has done right by me once again. This is The Cage holster in shark for my G30 (45acp). Few take aways - I like both shark and elephant, but I prefer the elephant vs the shark on my holsters. I found both easy to work with, but the shark has other concealment applications that I am exploring further. I am amazed at how non-fishy the hide smells. It had a slight aroma when being sanded but that is it. When I first started working with the shark I was concerned about how it almost felt like rubber. Had that real flexable durable feel to it. My standard leather is high quality 8/9 oz tooling sides on all of my belt hoslters. Used Barge contact cement to attach the shark to the cow hide. Clamped everything down for 24 hours to ensure a good dry and hold. Like all of my gear I hand stitched the holster, and dip dyed with another 24 hour dry period after I apply neatfeet oil. Rub down the holster and apply finish. Using fiebings dye is my standard dye now. I was using eco flo but was unhappy with the final product, and thanks to the good folks here I was encouraged to try fiebings. ... vinagaroon is next on my to do list. The shark took the dye and neatsfeet oil very well as well. I was concerned that it would repel to some degree both the oil and the dye. Not sure why but that is what I believed would happen. Thank goodness that was not the case. For anyone on the cusp of trying new things - give elephant and shark a try. Now if I can just find a Texas rattle snake farmer to get some wholesale Texas rattle snake skins.

http://riteonscrew.com/swivel.html I found this while putting together my chicago screw order. Not sure if this is what you are looking for but it might be a starting place

I have been using a utility knife from tandy with great joy - http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/department/Tools/Knives-Cutters-Splitters/3955-00.aspx On smaller weight I use http://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/department/Tools/Knives-Cutters-Splitters/Scissors/3050-00.aspx I would also like to mention that I had to learn to slow down when cutting. IMHO smooth is fast.

Not sure how you can make any changes once it has been finished. Hope somone can jump on here and give you some assistance. Future use - I find that wiping down after dying and then buffing before applying spray finish will help reduce this if not eleminate it all together. Fiebings dye IMHO is like night and day to the eco from tandy. I find the fiebings takes better and looks nicer than the eco dye.

Hands down - Barge Contact Cement

I used to try and dye using just a sponge or dobber but could not get the dye to come out even. Do not have an air compressor and do not like the little prevail power sprayer things. I started dip dying and wiping down the leather as it comes out to remove any excess and the issues went away. IMHO the wipe down when it comes out of being dipped really helps to even out the coat of dye. I usually dip 2x per holster with a wipe down between dips. then dry for 24 hours, coat with neatfeet oil, and finish. Also, Fiebings dye has been a better fit for me and the dye seems to take better than ecoflo. I just finished up 2 holsters - one in black and one in dark mahogony (sp). Black is fiebings and the other was eco. The fiebings dye just looks like the finished product is better YMMV.

I dip dye but when I pull the dyed leather out I rub it down with a clean dry brush. I leave it submerged in the dye for 5-10 seconds - remove - wipe down with a sponge - then repeat for a total of 2 dips and wipe downs with a sponge. I find that doing it this way avoids any blotchy areas. Also I picked up a storage container (like a ziploc plastic ware thing with resealable lids) and dip and store my dye in the same plastic. When done I seal it back up and put the entire plastic ware into a dark place. Have been doing this for over a year now and it has been working well.

Very nice work there - looks good. How difficult was it to make the ammo holder? I would like to make one of those for my Ruger LCR.

I have very limited experience working with exotics - first holster was just completed using elephant as a functional overlay piece. I like working with the elephant and imho the finished product has a great look and feel to it. OWB holster with removable IWB loops - no sweat shield or thumb break.

Best piece of advice that I can offer you - slow down and enjoy the work. If you are moving in haste you may end up with many many scraped projects - slow down and enjoy the work. Alot of great people here to help if needed.

Good day all. I have been a long time lurker but never felt like I had much to share in the way of information or work. It can be a little daunting with all the great work shown on this board. I am self taught so please keep that in mind. Nothing but printed books, online resources (I love this site) and a few youtube vids. Now that I had the opp to talk to SLC and get some great customer service and prompt replies I had no choice but to pick up some hide from them. Hate when a company has great employees - it makes it so difficult to do business with anyone else lol. Side note - Kevin and Emma are a joy to deal with. Nothing but the best experience with working with both of these individuals. Picked up a nice piece of black elephant and black shark from SLC. The Cage IWB/OWB holster for a 1911 Commander in elephant. It is an OWB holster that was modified to also accomodate IWB carry. The elephant is attached to 8/9 oz premium tooling side with Barge contact cement and hand stiched using nylon waxed line. Dried for complete 24 hours before working with it. Once it was dry I worked the edges and sanded for a perfect fit and finished edges with Fiebings edging. I then wet molded and then dyed with Fiebings USMC black (3 coats) and then applied neatsfoot oil to front and back. Dried for another 24 hours and then sealed with Fiebings Sheen. Straps are hand cut with strap cutter - got tired of paying for straps that never seemed to be the same size order to order. I attached the elephant to the hide with Barge contact cement and then used eyelets to re-enforce connection points. Sanded and finished edges. Same steps for the magazine carrier - I am going to be making this as my standard magazine carry method. Only difference is that I used chicago set screws to attach the sides. The leather seemed thick but I prefer it this way because it tends to grab a little better when pulling for a reload. I have the shark holster currently drying and it is looking fantastic as well. Hope you enjoy. Be Safe, Doc

I have found them locally at Tandy Leather - and online at knifekits.com. Knifekits has done right by me for the past 3 years ordering small amounts. I just prefer to shop locally when I can to get hands on. I prefer to make my tuckable loops out of 8/9oz leather - only because I personally do not care for metal around my firearm. To be honest i do not like kydex loops for the same reason. YMMV - good luck and be safe, Doc