Billsotx

Oh, I can see a big demand for these. Every Cop Shop should have them. Vibrating Sam Browne keepers - sets of four - "feel fresh and invigorating when you arrive at your next call!" ... lol

Hey the "Hide-tanner" is here ... lol!

Ohio Travel Bag.

Thanks for the advice Tom on the mouse. I used Word and then cut and pasted. Wes, I think you’ve got some real good advice from Tom and Lindsay. First I would make a heavy poster board and duct tape pattern and actually wear that around the house/shop for a few hours. Once you cut the pattern out square up the edges. I use sandpaper. Burnish the mouth and the muzzle end, any part you can’t get to once you’ve sewn it. Casing will mess this up a bit, but later minimal burnishing with easily bring it back as you finish it. Wet the leather and wrap it around the pistol. I usually dip it in hot facet water for 1, not more than 2 minutes, then there's the wait until you see surface dryness. Don’t put the gun in plastic. If you have the leather damp it will little to no moisture on the gun. In a “one-off†(or prototype*) like you have here I wet mold twice. The first time is to establish a good tight stitch line. I wrap the leather around the pistol and secure the edges with clothespins. (Line the jaws of the pins with thin leather so they don’t mar. Oh, keep you hands clean and your fingernails short. Tom already mentioned a clean space, so heed his advice.) Use your fingers to press and shape the leather around the pistol. Don’t try to do any detail work. Use you bone folder to lay out a stitch line. Get a tight fit around the trigger guard – this is key! Then bone in around the dust cover all the way to the muzzle. Gently remove the pistol as Tom mentioned.* Let it dry. Remove the clothespin and gently open the holster and apply glue into the stitch area and then clamp. I use the white weld glue, but I’ve used to use Barge – both will work. (Watch the fumes if you use Barge.) Once the glue is set, 30 min. and hour is better, mark your stitches with an over stitch wheel and sew – follow Stohlman’s instructions in the Art of Hand Sewing – that’s the Bible on sewing as far as I’m concerned. Once it is sewn wet it again – just dip in hot water – in and out – shake off the water, blot it with a clean towel and lay it aside and watch for the surface dryness to start appearing. Put the pistol in and work the leather with your fingers. If you want a sight track you need to have made up something to attach to your pistol. I use a wooden dowel. You can tape it on in place. As little tape as possible. Mold with you fingers and then detail with you bone folder. (Bone folder is a general term here – I know guys that bone with an open end wrench, half of a pair of pliers, a ball bearing soldered in the end of a piece of copper tubing, pieces of antler. Ask them why and most can’t remember. I use the butt end on my edge beveller to shape inside the trigger guard.) Once you have it details out very gently remove the pistol and then squeeze the leather back in place ever so slightly. You want a tight fit. Let it dry for 24 hours or more. Burnish the edges. If you going to dye it do that before you burnish. If you’re going to dye it – good luck. If you want it a different color than natural I suggest you buy drum dye. It’s hard to prevent rub off. Bottle dyes don’t seem to do well. The best I’ve found is Fiebings oil dye. Watch the fumes. My experience with dye is don’t do it yourself. There’s a lot of voodoo out there. Try it on scrap. (You’ll need a big garbage can for ruined scrap.) When you try something make notes. When you find something that works stay with it. What works for one guy/gal may not work for you. You will more than likely make several trial runs before you get a good one, but the key is in your pattern. The Stohlman holster book tells you “how†to make a pattern. That’s good advice in there. There’s not much else in there for the modern holster. There is no one book that I have found. Hawk this forum and ask questions and you’ll get further than buying books. What applies to someone else’s craft may also work for you. I’ve learned a lot from the artsy fartsy folks. When I started out an old holster maker told me, “There are no good books available on holster building.†and that still applies. *If you’re going to make more of the same holster flatten it back out and do some measuring and get the stitch line transferred onto you pattern. (There’s a bunch of those old 591s around and holsters that fit them are rare. You can buy a bag but not a good holster – bag is what I call those nylon POC … lol Study that picture you posted. That holster is a pull through snap with a pivot, or call it swivel if you want. There’s a double band in the upper cover and it probably has metal or plastic sewn in between two pieces of leather. Gutter flashing is probably what you’ll find it there. It will work just find. You may find a plastic, but I prefer metal because you can start with it flat and then curve it to fit the specific gun. If you go polymer you’ll have to heat and shape it and then you have to work around that. Sort of like a monkey fumbling a football in my experience … lol … won’t go there. Personally I believe you should go to 7/8 oz material for you scabbard and use your lightweight for the harness. There’s a pattern for a harness in the Stohlman book on holsters that may help you with that. Whatever, stay with double shoulders; there’s less waist in holster making. Make prototypes out of the saggy scarred stuff if there’s any. You’ll need some tools: Good knife. I like a round knife. I also keep a large Exacto on the bench. The Exacto will get you started. This is a learning curve, big time, to get smooth cuts. Sandpaper will make pretty what you do ugly. Keep it sharp. Learn to sharpen your tools. Stitching groover to cut grooves – see the Stohlman book. Hand stitching Awl with diamond-shaped blade, ditto Stohlman. Stitching marker, overstitch wheel, whatever you want to call it: it marks the locations for the holes to be punched by the awl. These come in stitches per inch: 5, 6, 7, etc. I usually sew holsters 6 per inch. Egg-eyed stitching needles. Blunt tipped rather large with a rounded eye, used to stitch. They come in various sizes, buy several sizes. Stitching pony – I’d start with TLF version and then make one to you liking. Stitching cord. Personal preference. I like waxed polyester, which is hard to find, and sometimes settle for nylon. I use white. Suit your fancy. Different colors for different jobs. Like dye and finishes you can spend a bunch – if you desire! Snaps. Get high-grade, heavy-duty snaps, made of brass, Mil-spec bright brass, nickel plated or black as in your photo. And don’t forget the snap setting tools. Line 24 is the best all around size for a utility rig like your building. Consider One-way, Lift the Dot snaps – cost five times a Line 24 but worth it. Edge bevellers. These are tools that cut a bevel on the edges of leather. Buy several sizes. Border marking tool. This is an adjustable tool that marks a borderline around the edge of leather, which in places becomes part of the stitch line. This tool is mostly for appearance, but you can mark with it. Rawhide mallet heavy 30 oz + and some punches. You need some momentum to bag punch belt slots. On punches buy the individual punch type, not the pliers type. I’ll sell you several pliers types if you want to try them … lol … ebay material for sure. You’ll undoubtedly come up with some homegrown tools. It may be a "What’s It" there on your bench. Use whatever feels "right". Get some miscellaneous dyes, finishes, edge finishing, and dressings and experiment. Boy can you have fun with these. That’s why I like au naturale! Also some thin cardboard, pencils, drawing tools like compass and ruler to make your own patterns. Masking tape, duct tape, blue painters tape, and a stick of glue. Piece meal you pattern and then make a nice one after you “think†it right. Then you’ll probably make a few more. This is key to easy holster making. I’d start off just trying to make a holster that will fit my gun. You will only learn by doing. There are no books, and no schools that I know of on holster making. Find a holster you like the look of, modify it to your liking, and make it. If you copy someone give credit. Just jump in get started. When you realize your first isn’t perfect you’ll have joined the club. You will probably have to redesign and remake – and it never WILL be perfect. Not if you’re a true craftsman. That’s what fun about leather. I think trying to make a "perfect" holster and failing for the rest of your life … lol … is what makes a master at the craft. For the most part others will not see the flaws. They will marvel at you skill. Any you have a secret: trying to do better. … Buena suerte amigo. See you down the trail.

Wes, See if this will get you over to some of my pix. There's no shoulder holster, but I wet mold & bone. http://www.geocities.com/billmclennan@sbcg....net/index.html later, Bill

Line 24s in TLF (I think others are Dot 24) have a 5/16 inch post. Does anyone know of a source of line 24 size snaps with 1/4" or 3/16" posts? I had a few 3/16s that I found in my Dad's shop but don't know when or where he got them. I don't want the smaller line 20 snaps. Thanks in advance for your replies. ~Bill

Thanks Clay. I watch for your posts because I know I will learn from you. Darn scarey when I do something artsy ....

Those could only be improved by wet molding ... don't you think? ...

We made these in one of Jim Linnell's classes up in Ft. Worth. He's a fine instructor and a real gentleman. I'm not too artsy, but I enjoyed this class and have used what I learned in making better gun leather.

The "Mojo" bag. Lucky for you it can't talk ... lol!

Thanks Billy. I'll check that out. ~Bill

You inspire me Lady! I just may start ridin' again. One of those seats would look cool on a vintage BSA. Now to find the machine to go with the seat ... lol! Glad you joined Jo's forum Shirley. Welcome!

Holly's right, the Sheridan is pretty cool!, but my favorite is her self-portrait! Nice --- Shirley! ... lol

Things come out backwards when you don't know what you're doing. But I put the pages in bass-ackwards so it works for me ... lol

I found what I was looking for at LF. Thanks for replies.

This place is worth a visit: http://www.brettunsvillage.com/leather/

Where does one get snakeskin that is tanned not soaked in anti-freeze?