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Glad its tighter. It looks like that rivet on the trigger guard side is stopping the gun from going in any farther.

Sorry to hear about your child. Were you able to get the gun any farther into the holster? is it any tighter? Michael

My only point was to show that there are several ways to achieve getting the leather to 125-130 deg F. I doubt I would have used a turkey had it not been 2 days past thanksgiving. If I still lived in Tucson, as I did as a child, a piece of aluminum foil and a noon day sun would give me the heat I needed. It was a teaching example. Thank you for your contributions to my attempt to assist someone with a question. It is what this forum is all about. Michael

Most regular ovens I have seen dont go as low as 135 deg. I know mine has a lowest temp of 190. As long as I keep an eye on it and make sure the leather does not rise above 125-130F there isnt a problem. With the leather damp it takes a while for it to get above 130 deg. Its all what you have available to you and how you do it. It's not the temp of the oven but the temp of the leather that really matters. It takes a couple of hours for a turkey to reach 180 degs in a 325 oven. same concept with a holster in a 190 oven but its a lot faster. Most times I use my toaster oven set at 200 with the door cracked by a fork. It takes at least 25 minutes in that oven for a damp holster to reach 125 degs in the leather. I agree that left too long 150-190 will ruin the leather but keep an eye on it and you will be fine. If you have an oven that goes as low as 135 you are lucky. most of us don't Denster your comment was helpful as I had not explained the hazard of leaving it too long in a warmer oven. Thanks for bringing it up. Michael

Leather is sized by weight. 1 sg ft of 1/64 thick leather is 1 oz. so 8/9 oz leather would be 8/64 (1/8) to 9/64. In other countries its done in metric. for your holster a good weight would be 8/9 but 7/8 or 9/10 would work on also. Its good to know the weight of the leather so you know if you have the right thickness for the project you are working on. In this case it would help to know how thick a single layer was to see how difficult it would be to bone the leather. the heaver the leather the harder it is to get good detail out of. If you have a caliper or are good with a ruler take a piece of your scrap and measure it. Most of my holsters are done in 8/9 oz leather. I am working on a cell phone case today that is using 4/5 oz leather. It's just something that is useful to know when you use leather. was this a scrap piece or did you buy it as a larger amount? Your receipt might tell you the size. Michael

Try not letting the leather dry after the acetone. Thats the way I heard it should be done. Michael.

What weight is the leather? 8/9, 5/6, 9/10?? You want the leather wet. not dripping but more than just damp like when you case it. Its called "Wet forming" for a reason. You might want to read this quote by TwinOaks, http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=35437&view=findpost&p=219512 you will find it helpful. Oil up the gun and try one layer of saran wrap and re-wet the holster. Then mold and bone the cylinder, the trigger guard (as much as there is, and any where else you can find to increase the hold on the gun. If it has an ejector strap on the bottom make sure to bone that real well. Anywhere you can get some detail so it will hold. When you first push the gun into the holster it might stop sooner than it should., Work it and try to push it in farther. Your original picture had the gun in farther. With some effort and work you should have the trigger guard up against that first curve of the stitch line. It just takes time and effort. Its not easy. You are asking the leather to stretch and its not going to want to. But it will. I had one that would not go into the wet holster more than 2 inches at first. With work and stretching the leather it made it all the way in. Depending on how wet you start with you might have to do it 4 or more times as it drys. After an hour or so it should be dry enough to remove the gun. Do not let it dry with the gun in place. Place it in an oven set to 150-190 DegF for 20 minutes. The leather needs to get to 120-130 deg. So keep an eye on it and maybe let it go a little more. Just dont over bake it and burn it. After you remove it from the oven place it in front of a fan for several hours or over night. Make sure the air is flowing through the inside of the hostler and not against one side. This will dry the inside really well. Hopefully at this point you will have a better fit on the holster. Michael

A lot of retention comes from the molding and stitching around the trigger guard. You have very little of the trigger guard inside the holster. You should try molding and boning the cylinder as detailed as possible and get as much detail as you can around the cylinder area. This may help hold the holster. You might need to place an additional stitch line between the gun and the current line to decrease the space in the holster. This will make the gun tighter. Make sure to mold and bone both sides. I would work on making the molding and boning as tight and formed as possible. This will increase the tension and hopefully fix the issue. Worst case you would either have to add a strap or chuck in in the scrap box and start over. Most of us have done that at least once. What weight is the leather? Where did the leather come from? Michael

Dwight, Along with being thankful remember that there are people that are thankful for you and what you do. Happy Thanksgiving.

As long as we are talking quilts, I was playing around with my new beveler that fits my swivel knife. I think I maybe should have stopped before the "star" points. I did fix the one that is missing a point. Michael

You can see some good pictures and instructions in Al Stohlman's book, "The art of hand sewing leather" Pages 45 and 46.

Al Stohlman talks about that in his Tools book. Sounds like Tandy used to sell it. I just ordered one last Monday. Glad to hear its a good as I thought it might be.

Thanks Mike, as always you are there with the answers. I figured the skiving was needed but its better to ask and be sure. The stamping I would have done wrong. Your response makes perfect sense. My stamp area is a 1.5 inch thick granite slap over the table leg. I can see it bouncing just as you described it. I read somewhere here about adding 2 inches to the length if using a gun belt thickness. I wasn't sure so I asked. I finished a normal tooled belt today, well finished except for the sewing, and I hit the center hole dead on. Amazing how that works when I follow directions. Thanks for all you help Michael Two Pieces of 8/9 comes out to 1/4 inch. Its a great thickness for a gun belt. I make sure that all the holsters I make. (all 4 so far) will fit a 1/4 inch thick belt. Michael

The B997 is still in the catalog. https://www.tandyleatherfactory.com/en-usd/home/department/leathercraft-projects-old/Leather-Holster-Making-Supplies/6997-00.aspx I have one, Ill have to try it that way. Michael

I moisten the leather around the area I will be doing the groove and the overstitch wheel. The wheel really wont leave a good mark if you use it on dry leather. Then I start sewing and do not go back and re-wet it as it dries. Don't soak it to do the groove and overstitch just moisten it a little about a 1/4 inch wide along the edge. The only time you want to wet the holster or at least get it really damp is when you go to mold and bone the leather over the gun. Get your awl and harness needles and waxed thread, grab the book and take a scrap of leather and give it a try, groove it, mark it with the overstitch and sew about 6 inches. You will see its not has hard as you are making it. Slightly off topic, is that veg tanned leather you are using? Michael

Get "The Art of Hand Sewing Leather" book and then get a regular diamond shaped awl. What you are looking at is a chisel and while it has its use its not as good as a diamond awl. Get this http://www.tandyleat...s/31218-01.aspx or http://www.tandyleat...ts/3318-01.aspx and http://www.tandyleat...ts/3319-05.aspx I like the second option as you can replace the blade when it breaks. I started out with the chisels and they left large holes on the leather. With the awl they tend to close up and look better. FYI, if you can afford it get two blades so when one breaks you can keep going and not have to run to the store. IF you use the awl get a wine or champagne cork and hold it behind the leather so you punch through the leather and into the cork. Saves the fingers and makes it easier to use. If you can afford it buy this and you have almost everything you need. http://www.tandyleat...s/11189-00.aspx but its not cheap. You can either use a fork to mark your hole placement as suggested above or buy an overstitch wheel. If you are going to buy only one wheel get this one http://www.tandyleat...ts/8079-06.aspx Its a 6 per inch If you can afford it get this one as it has a 5,6 and 7 per inch wheel. http://www.tandyleat...ts/8091-00.aspx It you do want to stay with the chisels then get the chrome one its cheaper and no real difference. To save your sanity get one of these too http://www.tandyleat...ts/8067-00.aspx that punches 4 at a time. after the first punch place the first leg in the last hole to line up the spacing for the next 3. You use the single for corners and strange curves. But if at all possible stick with the Awl. you will appreciate it in the long run. Michael Once you get over the sticker shock we can talk about one of these. http://www.tandyleat...ts/8074-00.aspx its for making a groove in the leather to mark and stitch so the stitches do not get worn down as fast. Its not required but nice to have.

I am making a belt, I assume its called a gun belt I plan to use it while wearing an avenger holster. Its 2 layers of 8/9 H&O leather. 1.5 inches wide, maybe 1.25 so it fits more pants, I'm not sure yet. Questions. Should I glue the two sides together before I tool the outside? How far back from the buckle fold and the billet should I skive it down to one thickness? Should I skive it down? I cant see it being easy to cinch if its that thick. I have heard that I need to add 2 inches to the length in order to account for the extra thickness. Is this correct? Any other advice is welcome. Thanks Michael

I bought the Craftool Keen Edge Sharpener http://www.tandyleat...s/88118-00.aspx from Tandy and it really helps. Just do not tighten the blade screw at the end. If you leave it loose it will always be flat and not at an angle on the stone. Just keep a finger on it for when you pull back. Sharpen it in a figure 8 motion. Start with a coarse stone and finish with a fine stone and then strop. Only pull the blade on the strop. I made a strop with 3/4 oz leather on a paint stirring stick. Get a 5 gallon size and you will have to strop it less times as the stick is a lot longer. Cement the leather down with contact cement. Do half grain side up and half flesh side up. This gives you two different surfaces to work with. Trim the edge to the edge of the stick. I got the white compound from Tandy but I have heard that the green is better. You can get that at a hardware store. Walmart has the 5 gallon wooden stir sticks for 50 cents each. Once its sharp strop it before each use and often during the session. You will feel the difference. It really helps. Michael

Dwight, Either I explained it wrong or you misunderstood. My reference was the sewing awl in this line, "but its not a good idea for sewing a holster". I firmly believe that the saddle stitch by hand is better than the lock stitch done with the sewing awl when done on leather by hand. If not I would expect most of the saddle makers that hand sew to use the sewing awl instead of the saddle stitch. Sewing machines were not a consideration in my comment. In the drawing below I feel the label "hand stitch" should read "Saddle Stitch". I do not have a sewing machine so I will not attempt to comment on the quality or durability of its stitch. Sorry if I did not explain it clearly. Michael

Thanks Ill give that a try when the sun comes back to Denver. I have H&O right now. I have to say that the natural color of Wickett & Craig is way too white for me but the russet looks pretty good. I need to get some neets foot oil. I have olive oil and Lexol but no neets foot yet. Thanks for the pictures Michael

Well said Lobo, You and I are total opposites in the Business world. You have a full functioning business with employees or contract people and mine is a hobby that generates a small, very small at the moment, income. Your ability to write off equipment is very different than mine. As we both said, Ask your Tax person. If you do not have one and plan to try to write off office space, shop space or equipment I suggest you get one before you file. You should ask around and maybe not go with the big generic tax groups like H&R Block. They have their place in the world but I am not convinced that small business is something they are good at. I could be wrong. Michael

Thank you Gentlemen. At least I now know that Its not worthless and does have some uses. Michael

A good piece of advice. Ask a good tax lawyer!!!! Short fact. My Tax guy says I can not write off equipment at 100% amortized over 5 years if I use it for personal use. I have to estimate how much time its for business and how much use is personal. He suggests never writing off something for more than 78% if it can be used for personal use. He says the Tax people assume you will use it for personal use also. This applies to writing off space in your house for the business. If its at 100% you better never use it for anything else. Better to write off less than 100% and be safe. This so you do not set off flags on your return. This is what my guy says. Dont trust him or me. Ask your tax person. YMMV Michael

Those are great if you are making sails or tents. It will not give you the quality of stitch or look as good as using a manual Saddle Stitch. A saddle stitch is strong and will not unravel if one of the threads break. The lock stitch that the sewing awl does will unravel if it breaks. It looks like a great tool and for the right purpose it is, but its not a good idea for sewing a holster. I looked at your pattern and from the one on the left it looks like I got the layout of the stitch line pretty close. Thats thanks to all the folks here who listened to and responded to my constant questions about stitch lines. Michael

Get a pack of #0 Harness needles from Tandy. The needles with the large eye are a pain to use as they get really hard to pull through the hole. If you don't or cant use a drill bit, like no drill press to keep the bit 90 deg to the leather, get a diamond awl and use that to poke your holes. You will also need an over stitch wheel and a groover. Before you get anything buy "The art of hand sewing leather" By Al Stolhman. It will answer all your questions about sewing. You want to use a saddle stitch on the holster. The picture below is an example of my first holster with all its mistakes. The stitching at the top strap is ok but the line around the trigger guard was so bad I had to add the second line to get the to stay in the holster. I show you this so no matter what mistakes you make it will be better than this one, Get the book, read it twice, then make sure you are close to your trigger guard when you stich that side of the holster. The second picture is of my second holster and the stitching is better although it could have been a little closer to the trigger guard. The last picture is an approximate stitch line as I really could not tell where the gun is inside the holster. IT should give you an idea on what to do. If not let me know and Ill try to help more. Don't be afraid of messing up, its only leather. You have a good start at a holster. Read the book and give it a shot. Michael