stu925

Looks great, very classy. Love the color combination, nice work. Stu

Looks great, and a great looking Marlin as well. Stu

Very similar to a pair that I made not long ago. I think you may have used the same buckle I did too. The ones I did didn't have cartridge loops and the customer opted for a plastic swivel snap so it wouldn't mar the bluing of his guns (ordered extras and shipped them with the slings so they could be easily replaced). This is the direction I went with it:

Great work, handles are beautiful. Stu

I do mine same as Dwight but I prefer the flat backed clips. Stu

The kydex is a great idea, the ones I've built I used leather for the back piece and some brass square rings which worked pretty well. Nice job Dwight, looks great. Stu

Yep I stop dead several times every time I make a lefty holster. Holster looks great even if it is wrong handed. Stu

I thought about lining it, I even have some pigskin here from an earlier project but ultimately time became an issue and forced me to go without lining it.

Looks great, nice work. Stu

Thank you, the mottling of the color was a happy coincidence. I was looking for a way to spread dye quickly rather than using wool daubers. I ended up using a piece of car wash sponge which really helps get the dye on the leather quickly and after the first coat I liked the mottling so much I decided to quit while I was ahead. Stu

Boy I really hope that's not the case for me. This thing gave me nightmares, I'm much more comfortable making holsters. It is unlined and basically is a big brown rectangular box on the inside

My brother in law wanted me to build a purse for my sister for their anniversary, no matter how many time I tell people I don't make purses they still ask. So I finally relented and told him I'd give it a try. He wanted a fairly large bag since she always seems to have the kitchen sink in her purse and wanted it in dark brown, he also wanted it to be a saddle bag style purse. So knowing absolutely nothing about purses I recruited my wife as a technical advisor and set out mocking up out of manilla folders which would later be used as templates. I used a sponge to apply the copious amount of dye which gave a mottled effect that my wife loves. By the way the leather is 2-4oz economy grade tooling leather from Tandy that was on sale dirt cheap (I think it was $39/side), there's some bug bite scars and other imperfections but I think it adds character to the project. So the hardware is all brass except for the copper rivets. Anyway after all that hand stitching I have absolutely no plans to build another one unless I buy a sewing machine. There's a couple of small issues with the project like the gusset ended up being just about 1/2" short and the closure not being quite centered but other than that I'm happy with the results. You guys tell me what you think. Stu

Thanks for the info guys, up until now I've been doing all my wet forming by hand. Generally I don't mind but I'd like to get a bit more definition in my holsters and have been admiring the definition achieved with the vacuum forming methods. Seems like most of the fittings are nothing but air compressor type fittings, that gives me a good place to start looking for them. First I have to get my office/leather shop moved to the bigger room in the house then I'll start building the vacuum bag press. Stu

Does your system hold vacuum or does the pump run the whole time you're forming? Seems to me a lot of the vacuum forming systems are very complicated but most are designed for veneering wood where it would need to hold vacuum for a significant amount of time. I'm thinking I could get away with just the pump and a bag and some connection hardware, at least to start with. Stu

Looks great, nice work. Stu

Yep I agree with the others looks perfect to me too, I'm sure your father was thrilled.

Beautiful work, looks great. Stu

Sheath looks great but the blade is beautiful. I can't get comfortable with crossdraw carry, seems like my spare tire always gets in the way. Stu

Great job. Nice interpretation and it looks great. Stu

Very nice Rohn, I like that basket weave, looks good. Stu

Looks good, I'd like to see the back too if you've got pictures. Nice job. Stu

Looks great, only thing I can see that you might want to work on a little more is the burnishing on the toe of the holster. Looks a little furry in the picture. Awesome work. Stu

I would have loved the opportunity to meet him, would love to hear his stories first hand. Thank you, I'm happy with the end result even if it's not 100% authentic. Stu

Your dad will be proud to wear it I'm sure. Lined holsters are pretty time consuming but they always look very nice. The edges on this one looks pretty good too, nice work. Stu

Nice work Rohn, I think the middle one is my favorite. I like that stamp it's different. Stu