dakotawolf

This is kind of a late response, but I use my food dehydrator for things small enough to fit. I can set the temp (90 to 160) and it gets mild air circulation. I set it at 130 degrees . It's been working great, and no, it doesn't turn leather to jerkey (if you don't leave it in there for days LoL).

Thank you for your response. I think I will politely tell him I'll have to pass. All my riveting needs are being met with a hand riveter and maul for the foreseeable future.

I put an ad on the local craigslist for leather tools. I have had good luck so far. The most recent response offered the tools in the photos below. Can anyone help me figure out what they are. I'm guessing two of them are arbor presses. I wonder if the presses are compatible with craft tool stamps? The other two items, that sort of resemble pliers, I have no idea about.

Looks good to me. Maybe it's the photo, but make sure you make enough space to behind the trigger guard to get a full grip on the holstered gun. I notice the tight space in that area the most on the Glock 19/23/(whatever the 357sig one is) one the most.

Beautiful burnishing on the outside edges. What is your inspiration for the design?

When I was managing the pics in my gallery I deleted the two photos on the first post in this thread. I have added them below. On the new holster (not these) I loosened the stich line on the trigger guard. This allowed me to mold a little more detail inside the trigger guard. The one in the photo below was stretched tight like a drum; I pushed and pushed but it did no good. I also covered the trigger guard more on the newer version as well as moved the stich line in closer on the dust cover area. I made the trailing wing about 1/8 of an inch longer. The lower edge of the belt slot still got a little closer to the edge than I had intended. I used a drill press (1/4 bit) and a razor to cut the belt slots. I'm not happy with them. I think I wanna try making the EMT electrical conduit belt slot punch. As far as the holster functions, it's perfect. You can vigoursly shake the gun upside down and it don't even wiggle, but the draw is not too tough (little more resistance than a Fobus holster if that helps). I'll be happy to deliver it today and collect my $30.

BHPshooter, Did you use a press to help form those? The boning detail is very good. That is the level of boning I am hoping to acheive someday, as that is what people seem to expect out of a custom made holster. Maybe if I made holsters for something other than Glocks...

I have made ten holsters so far - all using 6-7oz leather. It seems to be similar thickness to the factory made holster I've boughten over the years. Since I've started making my own, the factory made ones now live in my box o'holsters. I would speculate that 8-9oz would be more suitable for western style holsters or a law enforcement uniformed duty holster.

What thickness did you use for those?

OMG, those are jaw dropping. Nice work. I think I need to try the Herman Oak now too. Beautiful work.

I made some revisions to my design. Let me know what you think.

Stitching it on is the common practice. Recess the stitches using a stitching groover, that way the stitches will not abrade apart.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts and suggestions. I'm going to be making another one for a guy on the local PD. I'll incorporate many of your suggestions and post the pic. Thank you again, I truly appreciate you taking the time post responses!

Hi, this is my first post. I have been lurking here for quite a few months. I have literally read almost all of the holster posts in this forum. I also have been reading books on leather working. I had read, but didn't fully understand what people had written about this being an addicting hobby. Then, after I finally bought some tools and leather, I began to understand. Now I'm totally hooked. The holster I decided to use for my introductory post is actually my seventh attempt at making a holster. The gun is a Glock 42, the new (in Jan 2014) single stack .380 acp. I have made holsters for larger pistols, but I think this one was more challenging. The layout proved to kind of like a rubix cube. I wanted to make sure I left enough room for a full grip, but yet still be able to cover as much of the trigger guard as possible. I wanted the belt line to run across the trigger guard area for balance, bet there is not much room on this gun to pick and choose placement. I also noticed that I couldn't bone any indentation in the trigger guard. I suspect this is due to tight stitch lines to begin with, and a minimal amount of overall leather which to stretch. The holster rides with a forward cant. If you visualise the rear belt loop at vertical, you'll get an idea of the cant. I am hoping for honest critiques. I have read enough posts to know that whatever you guys say will be constructive. I have a thick skin. I really am trying to get good at this; I am hoping to sell a few and make my hobby self supporting. Thanks for looking!

Looks great. I agree that the smaller guns can be tricky. I recently made some avenger style holsters for the new mini Glock 42 .380. The layout was harder because of the smaller size.

Very nice. I was just considering making myself one of these for campfires and those times I'm trying to hurry up the charcoal for the grill. Did you find a pattern, or make your own?

The links aren't working. I'm new to this as well, and would like to see your projects.

Good questions, I would like to know too.