dickf

My ventures have been in 6-7oz so far, but just got a real pretty double shoulder in 7-8oz. The edges look nice in the thicker leather, I think.

Exactly what I was looking for - thank you!

Thanks for the replies. I think I'm going to go the dip route, but will definitely experiment with the foam brush. Do you use it on the interior as well?

Looks really great. I also use Photoshop to mock up my patterns. I have actually developed a little system that is working nicely. I scan the pistol into Photoshop and cut it out with the pen tool. After I have the pistol on it's own layer, I throw in a 1.75" black strip all the way across the canvas to act as a belt. Then, I can cant the pistol by selecting the pistol layer and apple+T it to my liking. I usually adjust it's opacity to ~25% and print it out. I can then pencil a pattern over top of a life-size image of the pistol and a belt. I scan it back in and clean the pencil up with the pen tool on a new layer (round out the curves and put more thought into cutting the pattern in leather (i.e. eliminating any hard to get to spots)), then print 1 last time. Cut it out of the paper, and trace the pattern on the leather. Viola - a printable pattern. I keep the pattern itself on it's own layer, so in my psd, I have the pistol and have multiple pattern layers, so I can just switch them on and off depending on what pattern I want to work with/print. Sorry for the long winded post.

Can resolene be applied without an airbrush? Any tips on applying it without air?

That is absolutely NOT the real gun - it is indeed a dummy gun (a blue gun).

It doesn't look like you buffed the purple off of that black. Get yourself a soft cloth and buff that puppy until the residual dye isn't there anymore. It should then turn black without the purple.

Randy, I'm no expert, but I think this is a great start. Attached is a quick edit to your photo which illustrates what I would do differently next time (but like I said, I'm no expert). I think I would get a steel ruler and slightly angle the slots. Good work - I'd love to get my hands on that Artisan you have.

Thanks for the kind words - I'm proud of this one!

Once again, another masterpiece! Very well done. I really enjoy the amount of thought and planning and how it shows through in the end.

I finished this for a fellow in Texas. He wanted white thread on black leather, and I think it turned out pretty classy. Pistol is a Polish P-64. This was my first experience with spirit dye - I like it a lot better than the eco-flow stuff. I grooved the piece, dyed the inside and outside, then stitched, molded, and finished. Wish I had a better camera - these photos don't really do it justice. Comments and critiques welcome!

Beautiful leather - I also vote to leave natural. Do you have a photo of this holster being worn? Wonderful work!

Well said!

If they did, in fact, support 25lbs without collapsing, that's like a hard piece of plastic on my hip all day - no thanks. I'll take the leather that gives and feels like part of me, thank you.

Amen brother!

As I stated in another thread, I drill the holes at the top and bottom of the slot, then use a very sharp wood chisel to get a perfect line. Cheaper than Tandy punches, and you probably have a source for them right down the road (Lowe's, HD, Harbor Freight, etc). I'd be interested to see what this holster looks like when someone is wearing it. ?? Randy, pics?

The chisel is soooo sharp, you can lightly 'walk' it across the length of the slot and then almost push it through with needing to tap it home. And, chisels are relatively cheap.

Great looking finish. I guess an airbrush is something to add to my ever-growing list of tools and gear. I've used the method in Chuck's thread about Isopropyl alcohol as a deglazer and it works really well.

I use a drill to get the diameter of the slot and to make the top and bottom holes, then join them using a wood chisel. The chisel is so sharp, it makes easy work of leather, and the lines stay perfectly straight. Great holsters - I like the 1st one the best!

Thanks, Bruce - means a lot coming from you.

Dan, these look superb! I'm also having issues with achieving a solid tan finish. All in good time I suppose. Yours look really really nice. Bruce, I admit - I'm also a closet Gibson fan. Thanks for the inspiration. Cheers!

I think it looks great. Nice and clean. What type of finish are you using?

Haha!! I bet your right! Good looking setup. It's not often that you see a shoulder rig for a lefty. Is the open trigger guard a customer request? I have found that spraying rubbing alcohol on my piece to clean it and slightly dampen it lets the brown dye soak in more evenly. I apply it with a rag. Cheers! *edit* Oh yeah, what weight is that leather?

gavingear, the strap would help keep the mouth open more if it wrapped around the holster all the way. As it is now, it certainly helps in keeping the mouth open and gives the muzzle something to butt up against when reholstering. It almost serves as a guide, if that makes any sense. I think it's necessary - at least, on this type of pattern. I made one for my XD40, and it's become my daily carry. This version (P64 - pistol is almost a duplicate of a Walther PPK) lets the pistol ride high enough for a solid grip, yet low enough the conceal really well. Plus, the pistol wants to hug the body, which is also desirable. We'll see how this H&K comes out. Without this forum, I wouldn't know anything that I do now.

Thanks, Randy!