dikman

A nice gesture. A well-executed little holster and the logo on the front is a nice touch.

The Mexican Loop is traditionally made by cutting slits/slots in the skirt to form a loop by pushing the strip of leather between the cuts forward and the holster pouch is then pushed through the loop. The holster is thus formed from one piece of leather. The OP's holsters are a method where the loops are separate pieces, these can be rivetted or Chicago screws used to attach them to the skirt. This is an easier way as it can be a bit fiddly getting the slits cut just right so that it's all a neat fit with no slop. I've made a few holsters where I cut vertical slots in the skirt for the loop piece to go through and it's joined at the rear of the skirt, just another variation.

But....but....but....where's the compass and fishing line? Just kidding, great job, very neat.

I agree, very nice, and I've also been thinking about tackling oak leaves.

Technically they're not Mexican loops.

Very well executed.

I just re-read the thread and there's some good info in it (thanks for starting it ScottWolf ). I first started down the "natural ingredients" path when I started shooting black powder muzzleloaders. It is widely accepted that it's a good idea not to use petroleum-based products due to the residue problems with BP. Having said that many swear by Ballistol, which is a German product used widely by their army during WWII. What many don't realise is it's virtually all medicinal-grade mineral oil, with something added (anethole these days) to make it smell nice! There are as many recipes for patch lubes as there are for leather conditioners! I have spent many hours searching for the MSDS for both, and it isn't always easy to find out what is in them. Regarding leather conditioners probably the most common/widely used ingredient is medicinal/food grade mineral oil as this blends nicely with waxes to make them "spreadable". This is also apparently considered by some manufacturers to be natural. Paraffin wax is also widely used presumably because it is readily available commercially and no doubt is cheaper than using beeswax. As with the mineral oil the wax is basically a highly refined petroleum product. Some manufacturers don't list what is in their products in the MSDS because if the products are natural and aren't considered dangerous within the various regulatory guidelines then they're not required to list them. Most of them usually have beeswax, because it's a great marketing tool to say it contains beeswax, but you don't know what is used to make the wax "spreadable". I once made a concoction using beeswax and pure gum turpentine as the solvent (natural, you see) but over time the container developed a black tar-like deposit in it so I haven't used it since. I also made my own tallow from sheep fat (suet) using a slow cooker. That was many years ago and I've still got some, it's stored in a shed that gets bloody hot in summer and very cold in winter and it's still fine. I've found extra virgin olive oil works well as a softening agent when mixed with beeswax and so far haven't found any downside to it. Blending waxes is a fascinating exercise.

No reason it shouldn't work, you'll probably end up with something smelling like woolly bees.

Wouldn't be hard to fit a wooden (or stag) handle, just cut off the ring, drill a hole in the handle and jam it in.

If you have a lathe and drill press then you can either make the fittings you want or buy them and make adapters to fit them to the press.

Wow! That is some impressive work there!

I can't help but just wanted to say nice machines!

Good stuff! But the reason it finally worked is because the cat put in an appearance. Everyone knows that cats are magical/mystical creatures.

Possible out-of-balance pulleys shouldn't be an issue if using a servo as the speeds are generally not fast enough to cause a problem. I have quite a few various size (generic) pulleys I've bought off ebay and none of them have had balance problems.

Nice job on the belt, looks like a lot of work. I use head magnifiers - a lot! I have a pair in my lathe shed, a pair in my garage, a pair in my leatherwork/reloading shed and a pair in my computer room. And two pairs of glasses, one for computers/reading and one for distance. Getting old is a bummer, but better than the alternative.

Could be a feature, to ensure it doesn't go floppy when made? As Chuck said, keep going, at the very least it's all experience. Working with leather is a bit like shooting black powder, there's an element of unpredictability involved.

Toxo, could you elaborate a bit, please? All I see is a long piece of wood with a couple of clamps on it.

I agree with SUP. While the quality of some of the bits in those kits may not be "first grade" they will be more than adequate to start with. As you get a feel for leatherwork and a better understanding of what's involved you will also learn which tools need to be upgraded. I still use cheap punches off ebay (I have better ones but the cheapies still work) and a set of cheap stamps as well as better quality ones. I bought one of those cheap wooden strap cutters and it works fine, same with strap-end cutters, they're pretty rough in their finish but they cut just fine. Mauls I made myself, stitching pony I made myself and as for knives - I have a somewhat eclectic assortment including re-shaped kitchen knives! If money is no object then by all means buy the items you have listed (there's something to be said for owning quality equipment) but few can do that and usually start off on the cheap end of the scale.

Fred, they look good and that's a simple and effective way to make them. I'm fortunate to have a couple of lathes so it's no big deal to turn the nylon to the right size. Howie, that's an interesting way to make one.

Frodo that is basically a drop hammer you're describing, as used in the very early days in factories and often driven via a waterwheel. The noise from them operating must have been deafening! We won't get into the politics here but suffice to say when it comes to firearms, knives and even bows we are heavily constrained. In my State (South Australia) Airsoft toys are banned and gel blasters have to be registered with the police and you have to be licensed to own and use one. One guy even had to register a Nerf gun because he fired gel blaster pellets from it! I kid you not! If you carry a pocketknife and the police stop you for any reason you can be charged with carrying an offensive weapon. The chances of changing any of this is probably zero. $40 for a damascus blank seems very cheap considering the work that goes into making one.

Vaseline is more likely to cause problems with leather than neatsfoot oil. Most commercial paste waxes use highly refined mineral oil (baby oil) to make the beeswax in their products soft enough to use. Generally, flat/satin finishes are somewhat permeable compared to gloss finishes so Tan-kote is likely to allow oils through - BUT I haven't tried it myself because I don't use Tan-kote. Or Resolene.

After reading this thread I got interested in it - until I found out the cost of a decent laser. Likewise resin printing, already having a filament printer, which is adequate for my needs, I have now lost interest.

I made one out of nylon, pretty easy to make.

Nice work Chuck, certainly looks a lot better than the original. Your idea to hang it off a belt is interesting. Fred, yes, when I first looked I was expecting a "conventional" quiver. I consider these to be arrow holders, rather than quivers, as Chuck said they are normally mounted on the bow itself and are popular among hunters. The arrows can't rattle, like in a quiver, and are less likely to get caught up on something.

Search for "chinese shoe patcher" (also known as a tinker's delight) there have been quite a few posts on here about them.