Lizard

Thanks for the info Bluesman and Marine MP. Marine MP I don't care for the bright shine either, I like a soft satin look. But I can't even get that with the rooned piece, kind a flat. I'll try some of the suggestions and keep experimenting. I definately won't do anything that matters until I get a handle on this thing. Thanks again, Steve

Hello all. I've been experimenting with vinegaroon here as of late and have a question. So far everything has been done on scraps laying around the shop. Heres my process, the roon is about two weeks old, dip scrap for about 2-3 min. comes out black as night, quick dip in BS bath and rinse with fresh water. I then let it dry for about one hour and apply EVOO and let that dry over night. The next day it gets a coat of Montana Pitch Blend followed by a light coat of Kiwi netural. Heres my problem, I'm not getting the shine from the Kiwi I get with dyed holsters. Also if I flex the leather even slightly the Kiwi cracks and leaves little chalky crack lines on the leather. The chalk lines can be buffed out somewhat but you can still see faint crack lines in the leather. I've never seen this in any of my dyed holsters and was just wondering how you folks finished your roon projects. As always, look forward to any advice. Thanks Steve

Thanks for the help Gunslinger. I hope I can get started on it next week. Lizard

OUTSTANDING, I'm a little late to this topic but I have a Henry .22lr I've been thinking about making a sling for. Your design looks like it may fit the bill and I also will be stealing it (I have no shame). Could we possibly get a close up of where the sling attaches to the barrel? Great work and great design. Lizard

Thanks for the insight folks. Shooter, I am rethinking my process now and am probably going to go the same route as you. Doing an inlay and having a window around the Caiman would solve edge issues and make life simpler, just a little more leather and sewing. Thanks, Lizard

I'm trying something new for me. I got a caiman tail and am going to use it as a partial overlay on a little J Frame pancake I make. I've never worked with exotics before and thought Caiman would be a good place to start, now I'm not so sure. it is very thin and flimsy. I will glue and stitch to the face of the holster, but I'm not sure how to finish the edges before I combine the two. Also, because of the humps and bumps of the skin, I don't think it will lay completly flat where the edges are glued and stitched. I guess this is what experimenting is all about. Anyhow, all suggestions and advice will be appreciated. Thanks, Lizard

Thanks for the advice folks. I went with a second coat of dye, made the leather a little darker as well as the sweat spot so no real change there. I then threw all caution to the wind and went to the Montana Pitch Blend. It also made the leather darker, but seemed to blend it in a little better. So after three coats of MPB and finished off with Kiwi, the normal observer can't tell that it's a spot, but I still know it's there. So now I have a very servicable holster that's darker than I wanted but still looks pretty good. I guess we all learn from our mistakes. Lizard

Last night while dying (Fiebings Pro Oil Saddle Tan) a pancake holster outside in the heat, a drop of sweat fell from my forhead right square on the face of the holster. I didn't think much about it, I just wiped it off and continued the dying process. Much to my disappointment after it dryed, it left a darker water spot. It's not a major dark spot, but a blimish none the less. My next step would be a couple of coats of Montana Pitch Blend, finish the edges and then a little Kiwi netural for shine. I don't know if I should chance another coat of dye to try and lessen the spot or if this would just enhance the spot and make it darker. If I just go ahead and apply the MPB as normal, it usually darkens the dye a little and may blend in, or it also could enhance the spot and make it stand out. I'm looking for a little advice from the more experinced here in hopes of salvaging what has been a good build up to this point. I've spent some time stamping and tooling this holster and would hate to lose it for something stupid like this. I guess I've got to be more careful from now on. Thanks, Lizard

Thanks Particle, I never thought about a backer behind the leather when I drilled. But I do want to get an awl and give it a try. I was looking at awls on ebay and saw there was sizes 1,2, and 3. Which size would be best for holsters? Also, who makes a good awl? Thanks to everyone for all the good advice. Lizard

This is some good info. Everyone says go to an awl, guess I'll have to get myself an awl and learn to use it. Woodandsteel - Thanks for the link, it was very informative. Big O - I've been using my dremel on a slow speed, maybe I should crank that baby up and see how it turns out, Thanks. Thanks again for all the advice, Lizard

Hi, I'm new to Leatherworker, so I'm not sure where to ask this but here goes. I've been reading the posts on here and picking up some really good advice but this is my first post. I make a few holsters as a hobby for myself, friends and family. This is kind of how my process goes. Cut out the pattern, rough in the edges, groove the front for stitching, glue the holster, mark then drill the stitching holes along the grooved stitching line, groove the back where the drilled holes came through, saddle stitch, wet mold, dye and finish. My proplem is the drilled holes. They work OK for sewing, but when grooving the back there are little raised areas that kind of look like mini gopher mounds around the drilled hole and it's really difficult to groove over these mounds and get a neat job. I've tried chucking up a needle and drilling the holes, but with pretty much the same results, except a smaller tighter hole to try and sew up. Broke a few needles on that one. This may be a crazy question, but it's been buging me for a while. This might be an easy fix, and I hope those of you with much more experience than I can help.