renegadelizard

Hey Bob, why not sandwich the t nuts between the wings?..

nice edges mike, top notch!

Cant will/can also either increase or decrease the comfort level of the holster, depending upon the size of the pistol, the size of the wearer, and the shae of the wearer....this, comfort that it, i think is paramount to all other considerations..not everyone is overly concerned with tactical thinking (most are to busy trying to look tacticool), and many are not overly concerned about concealment, but a holster that is uncomfortable will not be worn...i usually have a customer stick the gun in their waistband when possible, and let them determine what works for their body type/gun size...for me, standard is something that the big box holster makers do..we do custom holsters..

I did the same thing with an avenger that was all ostrich..that was an expensive mistake there...i keep it setting on my shelf in front of my workbench to remind me to think before i glue and stitch...lol...

hey Jake, photos look good, i like the background you are using, it kinda makes everything pop out...i dont see anything wrong with the way you didnt stitch all the way around..really, as long as the holster is unlined, its only for show, and some people prefer that look...especially doing the white thread on darker leather...nice job i think...

I cant even sharpen a pencil, much less hand carve basket weave..lol...thats awesome work brother...ive decided that my complete lack of carving, tooling, stamping skills means i was meant to work with exotic leather....lol..thats my excuse for now anyway...

nice color..love the way horsehide dyes...good job..

I usually stick to the good ole chip mccormic shooting star mags...ive had a ton of those and they have never let me down..

Just delivered this to a happy customer...i love the way gator/caiman looks, but its such a pain to cut and edge....

I use 277 prelubricated bonded nylon thread and a size 25 needle for holsters, sheathes, and gunbelts...

even with a loose stitchline, your leather should hold its shape..my guess is the quality of leather..try using some herman oak or wickett and craig...i have always had great results with these...also, you are making this holster for a s&w shield..its probably safe to assume that if it turns out good, you will be making more, as this is a pretty popular gun..so making a good pattern could be a real time and money saver...take the holster you just made, figure out where the stitch lines shouldhave been, correct your pattern and start over..in the long run, this will save you time and money...

looks great...you a lefty?...i always have to double and triple check my patterns when doing lefties...my mind just refuses to grasp the concept...lol...

thanks for the knife Bruce, it was just what I needed..

I have care and maintainance instructions on my website.

Looks pretty good....i might move the stitch line on the reinforcement overlay a little closer th the edge...i like mine right at 3/16 or a little under....good material choice, ostrich rocks...

yeah, i think you are underselling yourself...that is a quality piece...until recently, i was letting holsters go for cheap, mostly just to cover cost..then i decided i was going to try to get paid for my time as well, and wouldnt you know, not a single customer balked at the price..well, one, but he kind of wanted to dictate to me how to build it, basically wanted me to copy a galco OWB design and make it IWB with a metal clip, but fully lined, so i told him if the price and he said he would just go buy the galco...i wished him well with a sigh of relief...sometimes the money isnt worth it...

you and me both...

Honestly, i dont think most people would..i tend to be hard on myself, and consequently, others...so take everything i say with a grain of salt...i think im getting to be a little grumpy as i get older..

Hey Murry, I think what they were getting at is that although the retention might be good now, when new, after use it will will loosen up quite a bit...thats why tight stitch lines are important in this type of minimalist design...you might want to consider more detail molding in this design to ensure some positive friction areas, such as the lower part of the trigger guard and ejection port...you also might look at rounding off the lower rear corner as this sharp "point" might cause some discomfort..good luch and keep at it..

That is Amazing work Josh, I love your stitch line and your edging, its so clean and orderly...awesome...just out of curiosity, what do you get for a sheath like that and how much time do you have in it? I have only made a few sheaths and they have all been gifts, and i really have no clue what a good sheath goes for... Don

looking pretty darn good for your third and fourth holster..i usually dont mold the trigger guard as far up as you do, but hey, to each their own, right?...ive started dying the insides of my holsters now to avoid the dye line on the single edges when i can...when a customer wants it undyed, i go real slow and use very little dye...all in all, good job..

vinagroon will work, but i think i would lightly sand the edges again then re dye it...try angulus spirit dyes cut 5 to 1 with denatured alchohol.

Hey Eric, ive started waxing my edges right after i dye them...i usually dye the edge, then burnish it, then immediately wax it with 50/50 paraffin/beeswax...no dye transfer after that..

i started yesterday on a pancake for an xd-9.from scratch...7-8pm pattern made and cut...8-830 edged single edges and glued...830 to 9, sewed and finish edged...10-11, wetmolded and baked...11pm last night til today at 4pm, drying...4-410 agelus dip, 410-6 am tomorrow, drying...deliver to customer tomorrow at 9am...so 4 hours labor, 36 hours or so of dry time...$70 Law enforcement pricing...non LE, $90...using drum dyed leather, no embellishments

I agree pete...60-80 for the tooled ones...the economy is bad, but go try to find a table at a local restaurant on a friday or saturday night....as a while, we may not be as rich as we were, but were still plenty rich....dont sell yourself short...