particle

I haven't bought needles in a while - but I purchased them from Tippmann. Someone posted in a thread a month or two ago with a link to a needle manufacturer that showed a ton of different styles of needles and the resulting stitch. Maybe someone will chime in and guide you to that thread.

Wow! Would love to see some photos of your new shop! Very cool.

Gary - did you attach the concho at the very end? Or prior to attaching the reinforcement piece to the body? I assume that's what prompted Wishful's question. If you installed it at the very end, it's likely the screw post could scratch the firearm. I'm assuming you attached it prior to sewing on the reinforcement to prevent that. Nice looking holster!

The EMP size is a little different when compared to a standard 3" .45 1911. I've posted a size comparison overlay I found somewhere, but can't find it right now to repost. I did find a muzzle shot of a railed version of the Springer 3" .45, but was trying to find an exact comparison (non-railed Springer vs. non-railed Colt - both .45's, both 3") to get a better idea of why the Colt Defender isn't fitting in my Springfield Loaded 3" Micro Compact .45 holster. Ahh, found it -attached.

You're right - the Micro Compact .45 has no barrel bushing and I'm in fact seeing the tip of the barrel protruding more on the Springfield than on the Colt with it's flush barrel. It's amazing how difficult it is to find photos of the muzzle of a Springer Micro Compact 3" .45 1911.

colt1911 - are you saying that the Springer is 1/8" longer in the slide? Or the Colt is longer in the slide? If the Springer is longer, then it doesn't make sense that the Defender won't fit in the holster. Would you be willing to shoot and post some comparison photos with the guns side-by-side? Here is a pair of photos I found yesterday that made me question the difference in slide length. It's pretty obvious there is a difference in exposed area the slide after the end of the dust cover. So, either the Colt has a shorter dustcover, or it has a longer slide.

I recently had a customer email asking if I could remake a holster for his Colt Defender 3" 1911. I made the holster around my 3" Springfield Armory Micro Compact 1911. Upon close examination of photos via Google searches, it seems the Colt Defender has a 3" bushing-less bull barrel, while the Springer has a 3" barrel WITH a bushing. The end of the slide seems to be flush with the end of the barrel on the Colt, while the bushing is exposed on the Springer indicating that the Springer has a slightly shorter slide. Can anyone confirm this? I curled the end of the holster inward at the muzzle, and it looks like the Colt isn't seating all the way leaving too much trigger exposed.

Very nice! Can I ask what letter stamps you're using? They look pretty small - 1/8"? Interesting finish combination - I guess they are chemically similar enough there was no problem mixing them?

Can't say for sure, but I know the initial blue guns I ordered had a blue finish coat sprayed on. I had to dunk the dummy in denatured alcohol and scrub it with a tooth brush to remove it - made a nasty mess. I assume the black ones would receive the same type of finish coat, but I really have no idea. I just always make sure and tell them I'll be using them for holsters so they leave the finish coat off. Personally, I always prefer blue dummies - that way, if some kid wanders into my garage and snags one of my dummies and walks off with it, he doesn't get shot by someone thinking he's pointing a "Glock" at people. And if my neighbors see me forming holsters, they don't think I'm using real guns. Plus, I've heard you can't post pictures of guns on Ebay -even if the gun is inside a holster and the only thing exposed is the grip. Dummy guns are fine apparently. Another reason for buying the blue versions for those that plan to sell their holsters on Ebay.

I much prefer working with a holster that is too wet rather than too dry. When the leather is wet, it's much more easy to manipulate the leather without risk of over-burnishing the leather. That being said - once the initial forming is done, you'll want to let the leather dry a tad before chasing in the final detail lines - otherwise, they'll just pop back out and won't retain any notable detail. I use a vacuum press to initially form the holster which helps to suck the moisture out of the leather. If you're using a real firearm (instead of a dummy), just remove the firearm after initial forming and set the holster aside to dry a bit before proceeding with detail boning. I agree you could probably stand to bring your stitch lines in closer to the gun. To help get the gun into the holster initially, try taking the handle of your mallet, or a wooden dowel that's been sanded smooth with no sharp edges - insert it into the holster and pre-stretch the trigger guard area a bit, and open up the interior of the holster. Don't over-do it - you don't want to over-stretch the holster.

Will you be maintaining an inventory of dummies for faster shipping? Will you be having Rings leave the finish coat off the dummies? If so, I'll keep you in mind next time I place an order! I have to jump through hoops every time I order from Rings because Florida is blocked by my bank due to an excessive amount of fraud that comes from that state - have to get the bank to temporarily release the block so the purchase can go through, and I never know when to lift the block because I never know when Rings will process the order...

That looks great Denster - and thanks Reaper for the kind words. I have a revised pattern sitting on my bench, but haven't had a chance to work on it yet - dang allergies giving me headaches in the evenings! Will be starting another batch tonight and will try to post photos as soon as I can of the revised HK holster.

Great looking stuff! Go have fun with that baby girl, then make her a pink holster for her sippy cup!

Thanks for all of the input you all have offered. I worked up a revised pattern last night with an increased forward cant, tightened stitch lines, and a narrower footprint on the hip. I'll post pictures once I get the revised version formed up - hopefully tonight.

Don't know off-hand, but judging by the grid on the green cutting board I use, it's about 5 stitches per inch. I'm using 277 thread. And thanks for the compliment on the boning!

I should note that this was a mock-up with belly portions of the hide - it will not be sold or distributed. It's not a finished product... I simply built this to test and refine the pattern.

Thanks Troop - I did debate increasing the angle some - right now it's about 15 degrees.

I'm working on a holster for an HK P7M8. The customer said these guns have a really heavy grip and with the short barrel, they tend to tip outward in most holsters. To compensate for that, I tried to bring the bottom of the wings further outward, instead of trimming away the excess. I'm hoping this will give more surface area to push against the hip. I need to tighten up the stitch line on both sides, and perhaps bring the reinforcement a little further to the left on the trigger guard area. The grip area looks a little cramped right at the narrowest area, but my hands fit just fine with a good grip on the gun - my finger does contact the top of the holster just a tad, but I can still get a good grip without any problems. Plus, I've never handled one of these guns before (a real one), but I'm hoping that front-strap grip safety can be depressed easily enough to allow even more clearance when gripping the gun. Anyone made any holsters for these pistols? Care to share any tips you might have learned when you developed your pattern?

I got a free sink cut-out awhile back from a guy that does the granite counter tops for my dad's apartment building projects. My dad asked if he could set aside one of the cutouts for me. The guy was trying to be helpful, so he applied a fiberglass mesh to the back and epoxied it in place. I suppose he was trying to strengthen the slab. Nice gesture, but I had two problems with it. The first being that the mesh scratches up my table top. Second being that it creates an uneven surface on the back, which actually increased the chances of cracking the slab when you start pounding on it - which is exactly what happened. If you go the way of counter top sink cutouts, make sure they don't glue anything to the back so it will sit nice and flat on your work surface.

Well, I have a Sig Mosquito, but haven't made any holsters for that particular gun yet. Check my site (in my signature) for more information.

I can't believe I've never seen this thread before!! Beautiful, well thought out piece of craftsmanship. My mom asked me to make a storage box to keep her family tree documents in. That was well over a year ago. I wasn't really sure how to make a strong enough box out of leather, but your leather-topped solution seems like the best one yet. Thanks for sharing!

All the glocks All the 1911s (cocked and locked when available) All the XDs If money allows - the Ruger SR9c, LCP, Sig P238, etc.. If you want to build revolver holsters, I'd start with the Ruger LCR and the S&W J-Frame. You'll get a lot of requests for older standard issue revolvers, but there just isn't a lot of dummies available for wheel guns.

LOL! I should have mentioned that 100 s.p.m. is for straight lines or gradual curves, and it's VERY easy to make a mistake when you're moving that fast since your body is moving quite a bit side to side with each cranking motion. I don't usually stitch anywhere near that fast. I probably average more like 30-60 s.p.m., depending on which parts I'm sewing. You know how Captain Kirk is always asking Scotty for more power? The Boss can be made to stitch that fast, but there is a lot of force on that lever when your punching it back and forth and it probably wouldn't take too much more effort to break something.

I know very little about sewing machines... That being said... The Boss will be great for holsters, and will work well for belts and slings. Not sure about bags, as I've yet to make any. I have to wonder if the throat clearance and lack of a true cylinder arm will be sufficient for your items. The advantage over the GA5-1R is the Boss has needle feed so you won't mar up the leather like the GA5-1R's bottom feed will. It's a little laborious when it comes to cranking that lever for belts, but I'm guessing I can get about 100 stitches per minute with mine - that seems to be about the norm I believe. The bad - if you're hand-holding your pieces together (not glued), it can be a pain since you need to guide the piece at the same time. Sometimes you really need two hands to hold your pieces while you sew.

Very nice! Sharp looking rig.