Shorts

Thanks! I'm sure you'll do just fine. What pistol are you building a holster for?

Ahh, well that's good info to know right there. Thanks for the correction.

I was going through some old folders here on file and I ran across the first holster I ever built (back in '04 or '05). It was for the first pistol I purchased in '04. I couldn't find anything other than a generic Uncle Mike's nylon thing for carry. So I built a leather one myself. Anyway, talk about humble beginnings...Nobody laugh! There's one person here who I know has seen this thing! Although I don't have this pistol anymore, the holster remains alive and well at my parents house. I never did finish it any further than wet mold and a terrible edge burnish job. Once it dried, I strapped it on and wore it for range and carry - I loved it. After the new year when I get a chance to get back home, I'll get a pic of its condition.

They don't sell directly to civilians through that site so that site is useless. You have to go through a distributor (which is a list they have yet to put up). I use ondutygear.com

Smooth - nice work Jeff

IIRC horse is very dense. Makers often have trouble dyeing horse. That characteristic that makes it trouble to dye is what helps is be less resistant to the affects of body sweat and such. <--- All that is what Ive read of horse My opinion as a consumer is I wouldn't spend extra money for horse horsehide when cow is just as durable. With a quality craftsman a good holster is a good holster. It still must be built well. Both horse and cow can be destroyed if it isn't taken care of. Milt Sparks (well Tom now) does great work - currently they're very high in demand in the market. Wait times may be very high and orders are taken on a quota basis every month - first come, first serve. You might can find them also at distributors or Ebay. As for the cost, I'm just rolling at $55 +shipping for my IWB, but I'm pretty small-time

Beautiful holster

Honestly, I think I'd dye the individual colors of the weave before putting the knot together and then I'd finish with one last coat or two of sprayed top coat to completely seal. Then again, I err on the side of overkill.

No, it doesn't. G17 G27

Take a look at the frame area between the trigger guard and dust cover. That looks like an area to be concerned with. Of course with leather, you can make the big object fit into the smaller space, but...ehhh, not preferred. Akso if you use the G17 to mold but it'll be long in the muzzle. What you will end up is, even if the leather is the right length for the G17, there will be no taper on the end of the leather/muzzle. I've tried the same thing with 1911s, using a Commander to mold for an Officers (4.25 for a 3.5). It made a usable holster, but it wasn't up to par on my expectations for fit and finish.

Thanks guys I'm really looking forward to getting to the States and getting a machine. I have a lot of ideas but it just takes a while to get them out (if I even do) since I hand stitch. It'd be great to think it up and go sew it quick to test it. Of course, I might start running myself through thread and leather pretty quick if I have that kind of stitching ability

Great work! I'm partial to the Rattler

Thank you! Daryl, the stamp is doing excellent. Its been worked in as a regular tool I can't do without.

I use EcoFlo as well, mainly due to my location and they ar the only thing allowed to be shipped by air. Roght now they go on my holsters and mag pouches. My experience echos the others here, I'm getting good results from the dyes and I'm finding them versatile. And I mentioned in another post since they are water-soluable you need to make sure of your construction process and adjust accordingly. I use Resolene as top coat. Prior to that I used tan Kote. I spray on the top coat and get great results.

Randy, I use just the $5 special from Harbor Freight for the airbrush. I'll be upgrading that soon with a nice little Badger or Paasche. The marbled brown is the color I get most requests for. Of course, black is a close second. To do the side of the holsters, I'm liberal with the dye on the dauber. I especially like to be certain I get the crevices and nooks. I'm actually considering an eye dropper or long baster so I can apply the dye directly to the inside edges where the stitch lines are for good saturation. But so far, the dauber works. In my perfect world, I'd be dip dying everything for ease of process. But I don't mind hand finishing these for the marbled affect. I've already gone that for by hand This leftie below is the only one I have sprayed brown. It came out really smooth. The color here is actually lighter than what it truly is. But you can see how even the application is. And the different between it and the daubered browns.

Thank you To get a solid tone without airbrushing you'll need to completely saturate the leather evenly. I have not tried dip dyeing yet (probably a swatch would do). But for a dauber, you'll need to apply heavy coats until its very dark. It is difficult to apply a smooth tone w/o airbrush. I've read here in the forum a tip that dampening the leather when applying the finish will help as the water in the leather allows a smooth medium to disperse the dye. But I don't think it would be completely fool proof. When you apply the browns with an airbrush you do get a smooth finish. The tones of the airbrushed browns will change a bit compared to the tones found in the marbling. So it's a good idea to experiment on scrap. For example, the marbling you can see in the brown that looks like burl when swabbed will look like hot chocolate when airbrushed. Of course, with airbrushing, you can also control the shade by applying as little or as much as suits your preference. I think the EcoFlo dyes are very versatile in that regard. Of course, where they are not is in them being water soluble. If you're doing projects that are in and out of moisture, or need wet molding, you'll have to plan accordingly. One of the things I have not tried much but am tempted with is dying a two tone color or trim. I think something like that would work better in a set, with a belt and mag pouches to go along with a holster. I guess in a way it'd be like faux exotics Edit: I should remind that the difference in leathers will come through on these dyes. Its important if you're making a matched set to do the project together to use the same leather and dyes. I know most are aware that different leather can have a variety of results from the same bottle of dye. So, keep consistency in mind.

Thank Rhome. October huh? Well...I must say, I'm jealous We have to go through some of the crazy of winter and PCS in the middle of it, much like we did when we came here. For the CSO, that holster is extremely comfortable. The HRP is the pancake design. That one is my classic. There's an ExC up there which is an extreme cant and it was off the first pattern I ever made. The IWB I like - very comfortable. But as most IWBs with no mouth support, it closes a bit if you unholster while wearing. I'm still debating my options. There a few things I could 'easily' do, but I have my reservations for a number of reasons. I do need to get my tuckable IWB drawn up, I have the clips just sitting there begging to get in the game. My unpictured is my Askin's Avenger style holster, I like that one but I haven't spent any more time on it. It's also the base for a crossdraw I've also not tended to like I should Thanks Art - I can't take too much credit for the marbling. It's one of the characteristics of using EcoFlo dyes with a dauber. It has a beautiful effect for for browns. If I want it darker, I apply more. If I want a lighter color, just a couple lights coats. For a solid color, I use the airbrush. Especially on blacks. The black formula gets the leather very wet for the amount of color transfer. So, I do a ton of light coats instead, with a sweep of the hair dryer in between each to keep the leather dry. Airbrush uses less black dye vs dauber. Oh, it does go through the green prism in the early layers which had me worried the first time I saw it.

I haven't posted pictures in a while, but here's what I've worked on for customers:

Worked on that original mag pouch design a little bit to clean it up. Here's how they came out: (sorry about the dark pictures) As per the suggestions, I raised the pouch a bit (made them a hint deeper). I also cut out the center of the rear flap on the double pouches to make room for belt loops. I used the retention screw input from another post as well on the hardware and how it works. I think the suggestions worked out great. And I couldn't done them without the help from the fine folks here Thanks yall

I've been asked if this was possible on a cowboy holster. I realize the products used are vital in answering this question. And when I know those details I'll post them up. But for the sake of 'is it possible' - is it?

Hey I have that! It works After about a year though, you'll probably wear out the rubber bushing under the button shaft that seals the air pressure, that's what mine did. I still use the thing for my projects now as I haven't ordered any replacement. I run about 10-15psi depending on the fluid I'm spraying. It has the fine tip and sprays the dyes just fine. On the same tip, just opening it up I spray undiluted Resolene and Tan Kote and it goes without a hitch. It is pretty darn easy to take apart and clean.

Good call Jeff. My husband also mentioned the same thing unsolicited. And when I was trying it on, the position I wanted it to sit was immediately centered on a belt loop of my jeans. So, three confirms on the slot right off the bat

Thanks Jordan. I have tossed around the idea of using a stitch in the center instead. The main reason for using a tension screw is it's pretty easy and keeps the stitching to a bare minimum. Mike good eye. The cap is from a line 24 snap. The hardware underneath are the hard action DOTs. Someone forgot to order to the caps when she ordered everything else I'm also thinking of opening up the back flap in the center to form 2 flaps or at least cut a nice window between them. I think it would look better. But I do like the stability that one solid piece provides.

I really like that - nice work

Here's this first run - Rough Cuts The rear attachment is just a foldover flap to a snap. The screw stud there is only temporarily acting as the socket screw & washer (out of those for the moment). As the name implies, these are real rough cut - got the basic construction and halfhearted quality. This was just to put it on paper so to speak, the edges aren't even straight. For a final run, the relief notches at the bottom corners will be full blown pieces cut out instead of a 10mm hole punched. That ought to take away a little corner bulk and allow the edges to sit a bit flatter for stitching. I'll also extend the stitches out slightly, getting those mags in there for initial molding was pretty tough. I'm not molding these thing past what they are. It's very difficult on this amount of leather without a hydraulic press. Plus this gives a little flexibility on a loaded mag. Any words of critique as far as structure goes? Yes, I realize things need to be straight, presentable and well finished otherwise lol