Matt Alsaker

The back plate is 4/5 and 8/9 glued together, the lid is 6/7 glued to the tobacco lamb lining, the main front piece is 6/7, and the card slots are 4/5. I just got a couple 3/4 shoulders from Springfield that I am going to use for the card slots in the future. I'd like some 2/3, but Springfield doesn't have HO leather that thin. The Brazilian pigskin is Springfield's high end pigskin lining. I bought some mission pigskin from another vendor about a year ago and hated the quality of it. Springfield sent me some samples of their stuff. The Brazilian has a beautiful grain, clean hides, and is very durable. It was well worth the extra money I paid to get it.

Absolutely awesome seat and for a great Memorial. You need to send a picture over to the Facebook page SEAL of Honor so they can share it with their followers. Great job.

I don't use much gum trag, so I don't have a lot of experience cleaning it up. I've gotten plenty of other things (glue, bees wax, paraffin wax, bubble gum, playdough, etc.) on leather that I was able to use deglazer to clean up. Regrading the bubble gum and playdough, I have a child who likes to help also. Deglazer has its limits, but it's worth a try if you have some in the shop. You are correct that the black will not properly take to the leather. Try it on a scrap piece of leather first...just in case this is bad advice and it messes things up more.

I've make a few of these small shoulder bags for some of the ladies in a local motorcycle club. It's HO leather lined with Brazilian pigskin, except the lining on the lid is tobacco lamb and the gusset is oil tanned. The bag has the three card slots you see in the picture, a small internal pocket, and then the main compartment. I have a heck of a time gluing the gusset around the tight turn in the corners and am considering changing the shape of the bag slightly so the corners are not so square. I've only made a handful of purses / bags, so any feedback or suggestions would really be appreciated.

When I started I did everything by hand, now I do as much as I can on my Cobra Class 4. The machine is great and the service from Steve at Leather Machine Company is awesome.

Good grief Josh, those are awesome.

Thanks for the information. I'm off to the fabric store.

I've been trying my hat a making my own interiors for wallets. I haven't had much luck with layering credit card slots. I always seem to get to much material overlapping and it gets to thick. I made a couple basic badge holder wallets with a slot for an ID and maybe another card or cash. I've recently made a few of what you see pictured below. I'd like to make some more involved interiors (more credit card slots that overlap), so any ideas would be great. I've used pig skin and duck cloth on the interiors. I'm not a huge fan of the duck cloth since the edge threads seem to pull. Any feed back or ideas on this little guy would be appreciated.

Very cool wallet. I've just started trying my hand at them. The carving turned out very nice.

That's sharp. What did you use as a lining for all those credit card slots. I've tried duck cloth and pig skin. With the overlaying layers it always gets to thick. I'm going to be trying a wallet with a chain soon, but hadn't figured out placement for the chain. I like where you put yours. Is that an eyelet or a grommet? How much pressure is on the eyelet / grommet? Are you worried, with it in the bend, that it will tear out? I'll post the wallet I'm working on later this afternoon. It is much more basic, but I'd like to put a chain on it.

That's awesome. The entire set is beautiful. The design goes perfect with Independence Day.

+1 what particle has to say. He does a lot of carving and boning work. Awhile back I had a similar question and someone else on here (maybe Dwight) told me just to wet the inside of the holster to mold it. I use a damp rag and sponge. All my holsters are lined, so I'm only wetting the lining. I try not to get the outside wet. It takes more time, but has worked well for me. I still get ample molding detail while pressing (gently) only the outside of the holster. For what I do it works very well, but if you going to add very detailed boning - you'll need the leather wetter. Hope this helps.

I had the same question some time ago. I can't recall who (maybe Dwight) suggested I only wet the inside of the holster - using a damp rag or sponge. It takes a little more time instead of just wetting the entire holster, but I've found it works very well for me. Good luck.

I used suede on the inside of a wallet to cover a badge. The interior is otherwise veg-tanned leather. The veg-tanned was all sealed, but I didn't do anything to seal the suede. Now the black suede is bleeding onto the veg-tanned. Is there something I can do to stop this? I've seen the spray sealer for suede shoes, Will that work or is there something else I should use?

I've never used suede before, but chose to use it inside of a recent badge wallet. All of the veg-tanned leather used inside the wallet was sealed, but I didn't do anything to seal the suede. Within two days I was getting "bleeding" from the suede onto the veg-tanned surfaces. Is there something I can use on the suede to prevent this? Will the spray sealer used on suede shoes work?

For a 1.5" belt loop, mine are 7/8" wide and 5-1/4" long. Snap placement will affect length. My snaps are approx 7/16" from the tip of the loop to the center of the snap. I used to use 6/7 oz leather for the loops, then one of the guys I work with asked for a heavier loop - so I used 8/9 oz on his. A couple other guys saw his and wanted the heavier loops on theirs. I've been using 8/9 oz exclusively for the last year without any complaints. Most of the commercially available ones I've seen appear to be about 6 oz.

Has anyone found a replica for the SIG 1911 GSR? I know there are some differences in the slide and rail when compared to other similar 1911's. This is the only thing I could come up with on a quick internet search: http://www.replicaairguns.com/posts/2011/9/1/cybergun-sig-sauer-gsr-sigarms-all-metal-co2-bb-gun-review.html It notes that it is " Very accurate Sig Sauer GSR Sigarms with licensing.", but I'm not sure how that translates into being able to mold a holster with it. The stuff I found online says the GSR barrel is 5"...this replica says theirs is 5.2". Thanks for any leads you can come up with. Matt

That rig is very cool Josh. Nicely done.

I use black oxide Chicago screws with a piece of fuel line. I went to several different automotive and hardware stores before I found a fuel line I liked. The first couple I bought were to rigid. Fuel line is sold by the foot for about $1.25 depending on the store.

I don't have pictures of the back of this one, but here's the back of another holster I did using the same construction method. The construction method is taken from Will Ghormley's "Hugger" style holster in the 1911 Pattern Pack. Prior to folding the body of the holster over itself, it is stitched to the back plate along where the slide will rest (the upside down "L" shaped stitch line). The holster body is then folded onto itself and stitched down along the bottom of the barrel and trigger guard (the "S" shaped stitch line). Hope that helps. The same guy who bought this holster wants a chest rig for hunting purposes. It'll be a few months before I get to that and I've never done one before, but I'm pretty excited about building one. I want a chest rig for when I take my horses into the backcountry, that holster is way down on the list. Yeah, the back plate follows the contour of the holster. It made the holster fit comfortably over the thigh. I'm working on the same style holster with an alligator inlay for a Glock 19 and a traditional thumb break right now. I'll get pictures up in a couple weeks when that one is done.

Sorry for not getting the pictures sooner. I had the guy it was made for email me these. The holster sits in the 10 - 11 o'clock position. The photo's make it look like the holster is leaning away from the body, but it does not. The curve in the holster going from the trigger guard down along the barrel sits nicely over his thigh while sitting.

Joel, My wife and I never let our personal saddles get to this point, so I've never had to clean one up like this. Did you just use saddle soap and a light coat of oil? Did you have to dye that saddle to get it back into that condition? What is your procedure for cleaning a saddle like this and what cleaners / conditions do you use? Thanks

What dye did you use? I love the dark rich color. I like the sheath also. A friend makes custom knives with antler or hardwood for the handles...every blade is different. I enjoy making sheaths for him.

That cross draw holster is already out the door. Here is the back of one of my regular holsters, the construction method is the same. This method was taken from the "Hugger" style holster Will Ghormley did in his 1911 Pattern Pack. With the body of the holster still open, it is sewn to the back plate (the "L" shaped stitch line). The body is then folded over and the two edges along the trigger guard and bottom of the rail are lined up. These edges are then stitched together all the way through the back plate (the curved stitch line). The Blue Gun is then inserted into the holster body and it is molded. Hope this helps.

A local machine shop laser cut them for me. They are stainless steel. The dimensions are: 3.5" long and 1" wide. I had to order a minimum of 100, but it was worth the price considering the time it saves me.