malabar

Your English is just fine. And your work is lovely. tk

That is STUNNING! tk

Very nice. Elegant workmanship. What weight leather did you use for the various pieces? tk

They're in bankruptcy and apparently having bunch of issues. I ordered some snaps from their online site two months ago. Immediately got an automatic reply. But my account was never debited and the snaps didn't arrive. Finally I ordered some snaps from a reseller. They arrived. And then, the snaps I arrived directly from DOT arrived. It took about five weeks. But everything I ordered arrived. tk

Thanks so much for posting this. It's precisely the kind of information I was looking for. Can you clarify a couple of things for me? -- This appears to be for an IWB holster. Are the top and bottom pieces the same size? On mine, the top is substantially larger, so that the back stays flat. -- So do you make up a new template every time you make a holster, or do you get more than one use out of each? Thanks for all of the help! tk

Randy, So then your bottom stitches are on the front face of your holster? Or do I misunderstand? tk

Folks, thanks for all the replies and ideas! My specific questions are below.... tk

Folks, New guy decloaking here with another question: How do you guys mark your stitch lines on your holsters? This is the part I have the most trouble with. My current procedure uses a hardboard template for the particular model of the gun. I place the template on the leather, draw out the pattern, and then cut a groove on top of the line. But I'm still having a very hard time getting my lines just right, in relation to where I want the gun to be positioned within the holster. I've made a couple that were too tight for the gun they were designed for. And if the template slips slightly, I leave a mark on the surface of the leather that won't be covered by the stitch line. How do you guys get your lines so perfect? thanks for the help. tk

That's what I look for in my holsters -- a smooth push in and then "click" as it snaps into place. I dunk them in vinegaroon after they have dried. tk

Wow. Is that a typical week? So what I'd like to know, is: What did you tell them? tk

That's good advice. THANKS! tk

Folks, thanks for all the insight. Yeah, this was Tandy leather. I'm going to have to check out the better stuff from Herman Oak and W&C. tk

New guy with a question here. I've followed the instructions for making vinegaroon posted on the site and have used it on maybe two dozen holsters, mostly with excellent results. But I've had a couple where parts of the leather just don't turn black completely -- I get a little of the natural tan showing through in a blotchy kinds of way. Repeated applications of vinegaroon didn't fix the blotchy areas. I've fixed it by touching it up with black dye, so I can't post any pictures. But I'm wondering what would cause the problem. I vaccuum-formed the holster before staining it, and the area seemed kid of shiny. But I've had similar shiny places on other holsters that have taken the stain uniformly. BTW: This site is amazing. I've learned a huge amount from everything that you folks post here. tk