mlapaglia

I would drop the sinew and get some waxed linen thread. Sinew has its place but now normally on a modern holster. Its great for reinactment articles. Stitching looks good. I would get closer on the trigger guide side. As the holster wears it will loosen up and the stitching will keep the gun tighter in the holster. Give some 3-5 cord waxed linen thread a try. You will like the looks of it.

I would try 5 cord Barbours linen thread. Wax it with Bees wax and give it a go. This assumes you are hand stitching it.

You will learn a lot more doing an all leather holster. Its a lot of fun and in my opinion they are better than the hybrid ones.

Start at the middle of the bottom. Right in the middle of the piece that holds the key links. Finish at the same point. You have two layers of leather at this point to hide the lace in. Thats how I did mine when I made one.

Well tell us how you did it. Lets see if its the way others would have or is it a new way..

Not to take this off track but thats an 1860 Colt army Cap and Ball revolver. with 44 ca bullets on the belt. I know that several thousand were converted to 44's but you can still see the nipples on the cylinder on this one. Funny that hollywood makes mistakes like this. Note: the above assumes I am not crazy. There are those that say I am. It sure looks like the cap and ball version to me. I also dont know how to make the picture follow the quote.

Is it two layers? Did you glue the layers together before you stitched them?

One other suggestion. Get a contrasting background. Its hard to see the holster against that background.

Sorry we stole your thread. Good luck on the bench tomorrow and yell if you need help. Michael

Biggest reason is one used Mop&Glow full strength and the other cut it 50% with water. I would imangine the full strenght application of Mop&Glow was thick enough to crack when bent. I would bet that full strentgh of the 600 and 50/50 of Mop&Glow would be about the same finish in the end.

It dilutes it to the correct strength to use on leather. If you don't cut it 50/50 it goes on too thick and cracks.

That may by why it cracked like it did. The way to use it is to dilute it 50/50 with water. Then apply 2 light coats. Let it penetrate between coats and then follow, when dry, with Kiwi neutral polish and buff to a mellow finish. The stuff can be wiped on with a rag dampened with the stuff, sprayed with an airbrush and even an old Windex pump sprayer will do the job. If a drip appears, just wipe with a rag or even your finger. Streaking is almost impossible. a quart of the stuff makes a half gallon of finish for about $8.00. The key is that it has to be cut with water 50/50 or it cracks like crazy. A quote from Katsass on the start of using mop&glow, from another post

Thanks for the info. One question. Did you use the M&G full strength or 50/50 with water? Michael

No you were not attacking anyone and I am sorry if my response seemed like I thought that. This forum is great for its multiple opinions on what works. There are many ways to do most things around here and it all depends on what you want to do and how you want to accomplish it. I have used mop&glo and like it. I like resolene better but thats an opinion. I also tried a drill once. I like the awl better. In my opinion the awl does a better job. Again, my apologies if my response seemed like I thought you were attacking anything or anyone. I just didnt make my reply clear. Michael Once you have all the colors on and before you do any buffing let it dry at least over night 24 hours is better. It sounds like it was not dry.

If Mop-&-Glow is for floors than drills are for wood and metal. There are many different ways to do things and most times no one way is right. Katsass (the grump) is very knowledgeable when it comes to leather work and he is really smart on saddle stitching. Don't discount the mop&glow just because one person does not care for it or one person likes it. Try it yourself and see how it works. I think you will like the mop&glow. Don't forget to dilute it with 50% water. way too many people here use the mop&glow to discount it just because its not for leather. Learn how to use an awl. It is better than any size drill bit. It's also kind of cool that its old school. It does look great when done right. Better than any machine or drilled stitch line. As for your first problem how long are you letting it dry between the two colors and before the buffing?

Does it come with any accessories, extra presser feet, material guide, extra bobbins, etc? A couple of pictures would help show off its condition.

Make sure he understands that a fleeced lining will hold dirt to scratch the gun and moisture to make it rust. wool and fleece are not good ideas no matter how much the customer wants one.

Its whatever you like. I alternate between an 11 ounce rawhide mallet and an 18 ounce maul. It depends on what I feel like at the time. I tend to use the maul more than the mallet but not all the time. Try them both and see what you like.

Thread is 346 6spi Thread is 277 6spi Both done on a Boss.one by me and the other (346) by Dwight. Michael

It will always smell like vinegar. It does turn brown and mine kept having stuff settle to the bottom for a long time but it worked great. Just keep adding steel wool until it stops dissolving it. takes at least 2 weeks minimum. You can also dip your leather in some really strong tea first to add tannin to the leather for the vinegaroon to react too. Never heard about heating it to make it work better. I think you need to read something from a few places before you take it as something you should do But for the moment use the 'roon you have and then oil it and you will be fine.

Its no more ugly than a Glock. Here is a pancake for a S&W M&P 9 (My first holster that was any good but still had issues) Here is an Avenger for the same pistol. (Better but that square corner on the stitch like really bugs me now that I know better) And an IWB for the aforementioned Glock. Its what you want to make.

I have 3 or 4 different types of meandering tools each in at least 2 sizes. I really like the pattern you can get with it. Once you get the spacing down its easy to do. Thanks Michael

Ferg, Thank you for sharing that. It was worth watching. Michael

Your vinegaroon may be week or the leather is low on tannins if its only turning gray before you oil it. Mine always turns a just black. I always oil my leather after tooling it or after a vinegaroon treatment. It will not soften up the leather enough to matter. If you dried it in an oven or hot box for 10-15 minutes at 125 degs F it will not change at all with the oil. I have never had a holster go soft after being treated with neatsfoot oil. It will be fine. As for the slots I use a 5/16 hole punch at each end and then connect the holes with a 1.5" chisel. works great and the belts always fit fine.

I am not sure where I got them. I bought 10) 794 S 200 and 10) 794 S 180 when I did get them so its been a while. You can get them from Bob @ Toledo industrial Machines. He should have them in stock 1-866-362-7397. He has a lot of needles and other stuff. One of the advertisers on this forums too. They have a website but its better to just call him and ask. Zack White also has them listed on his site. they are $1.80 ea. I have not used him but they are a advertiser on this site and I have never heard bad things about them. Let me know if you cant get one from either of these two places.