TexasJack

If you used an awl to make the holes, and you did the stitching right, 2 back stitches should be just fine. The only reason I say that is I've seen people drill out the holes and then there's not much leather to close back up tight on the stitches.

Nice!

Really nice job! Looks like a very solid holster that will perform as well as look pretty.

I'm not a fan of rivets. They have their place - esp. for decoration - but proper stitching will hold as good as anything and you don't risk corrosion or scratching something. I've seen so many sheaths and holsters where the maker did a good job but then decided to add rivets to make it look strong and instead just made it look cheap. You used to see kid's cap gun holsters with rivets like that. You made a pretty nice looking and solid sheath. Take a bow and move on to the next one.

Very nice!

Nice!

It is different! Nice work on the graphic. I don't know that I'd want to wear it, but I like when people get out of the comfort zone and start experimenting. Cool things appear in that environment.

When you have an unusual shape for a pistol, it follows that the holster will be different as well. Looks to me like you made a nice looking holster that will function to meet your needs. Thumbs up!

Nice holster. Your photographic skills tho....... ;(

Nice job!

Our litigious society has people so scared that it's a wonder that anyone gets out of bed in the morning. You see the same kind of thing on gun forums: "If you shoot a robber with a reload, you'll go to prison forever! - or - you'll be sued by the robber - or - both bad things will happen and then Armageddon!" If you have ANY kind of business, you have to be careful and make sure things are structured and insured. It never hurts to be prepared. On the other hand, how many holsters "fail". You'd pretty much have to design one that dropped the gun or snagged the trigger or something stupid in order for that to happen.

Really like that "Rhodesian"! I'm sure your father will be proud to own that.

Really nice - super clean (as others have pointed out). Beautiful work. I'm not crazy about the buckle on the holster. Somehow it looks out of place. A small comment, don't take it too seriously.

Nice. Clean. Looks like it could do the job.

There's nothing quite like an old single action in .45LC. So much fun to shoot! And I like your holster. Nothing fancy, but it fits good and does the job.

Believe it or not, the best Stohlman book is the ultra basic "The Art of Hand Sewing Leather". Super easy to follow and it shows lots of technique for getting the job done right. I know that Chuck Burrows used to refer to illustrations from it when trying to show people how to do something.

If you can find a copy of Chuck Burrows "Custom Knife Sheaths", the DVD is well worth the price. Fortunately for your efforts, those are pretty easy knives to fit. Some knives - like those with big guards - take a lot of extra work. Take a manila folder and open it halfway. Place the spine of the knife against the upright part of the folder. Now you can trace the knife on the side of the folder that it's laying on. Once done, remove the knife and draw a line outside of your tracing about 1/2 inch larger (or slightly more). Now fold the folder backwards from how it started out. Cut out the outer line that you drew. When you open that cut out part, you will have a good starting pattern to cut out the leather you need for the sheath.

The Red River D is a nice touch.

Very nice!

Beautiful work!

Rifles had moved from flintlock to caps by the Texas Revolution. (The Mexicans were still using surplus British flintlocks at the time). Civil War revolvers were quite accurate - in fact no different than modern pistols. Will Ghormley was mentioned. If you haven't seen his stuff before, look up his web site or his postings on Leatherworker. He's done a lot of holsters for Hollywood and has posted a lot of helpful stuff for us amateurs. Hollywood uses stuff that looks cool, but frequently doesn't match equipment to the right era. For example, there's a movie, Man from the Alamo, where everyone is shooting Colt SAAs (from 1872+) in a fight that took place in 1836. It would be like seeing jet fighters in WW1.

Very pretty - both separately and as a pair. Thanks for posting!

A handy thing to have!

Ghormley's tutorial is on leatherworker.net. Talented people who are willing to share their knowledge with others are special in my book. Will is one of the very best.

The actual numbers are arguable because they were manufactured on both sides of the Mason/Dixon and some foreign countries, too. Somewhere I seem to recall that 100,000 Colt 1860's were made and 50,000 Remington 1858s. Allegedly a lot of them were thrown away during long marches. (As a friend of mine who served in Afghanistan told me, "There were days when I thought about cutting the buttons off my shirt to lighten the load.")