Dwight

All I do is put the wax and the oil in a jar, . . . set it in my crock pot with enough water in it to float the jar of wax & oil, . . . and go find something to do for about a half hour. When I come back, . . . all is melted and run together, . . . so I grab the jar with a hot glove, . . . pour the contents into cupcake papers in a muffin pan, . . . let it harden up, . . . stack it up on the shelf. I use it almost like it was Kiwi shoe polish, . . . the same process will work for you. And yes, . . . it will darn near waterproof something. Makes a really nice finish. May God bless, Dwight

Cut the blank, . . . measure and punch the holes to make the blank the "right" length belt. Make the belt keeper. Now all mine are 2 layer belts, . . . so this is where I glue the pieces together, . . . sand the edges, . . . run my #4 edger down both sides, . . . stitch groove the thing, . . . then run it through my sewing machine. Dye with Feibings pro oil dye, . . . cut 50/50 with Feibing thinner, . . . let dry 24 hours, . . . buff off the extra pigment, . . . buff again, . . . buff again, . . . buff until a white face cloth will not show any appreciable pigment coming off. Burnish the edges real good, . . . apply a coat of 50/50 resolene and water, . . . OR, . . . apply a pre-blended 50/50 mixture (measured by weight) of virgin beeswax and neatsfoot oil, . . . The wax/oil mixture has to be put on by hand, . . . then hit with a heat gun on low, . . . melts the wax and helps it cling to the leather pores. THIS IS something you want to practice before putting on a finished product. See if you like it. Resolene will give you a more stiff belt, . . . wax/nfo a more supple belt. Then leave it over night and the next day, . . . polish it like you were getting ready for Captain's inspection. This is my workflow, . . . so to speak, . . . don't get any complaints, . . . so it must be working. May God bless, Dwight

Red Cent, . . . bring your camp fire chair, . . . your root beer, . . . come on over, . . . I'll light the fire when you come in the driveway. Seriously, . . . I love a good conversation as well as the next guy, . . . but I've also learned that there are any number and/or percentage who feel they have to "defend" their way of doing something, their purchase, their ownership, . . . so depending on the subject, . . . sometimes I'll ask people (I have a question over on the purse section, . . . been there for a couple of weeks, . . . knowing someone on here has the answer), . . . but other times, . . . Google is my friend. I put something like "snake skin tanning" and got a couple of youtubes right out of the chute, . . . tough to beat that. But anyway, . . . I'm just glad we have both, . . . Google, . . . and this site, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Yes, . . . absolutely, . . . provided: a) you did as Shooter McGavin suggested, . . . buffed all the loose dye off the project first, . . . and you really do have to put some muscle into getting it out or off the flesh side, . . . and you put on a proper coat or two of Resolene. I've read where folks just "dunk" it in Resolene, . . . shake it, . . . and consider it done. Simply stated, that has never worked for me, . . . I have to take a bristle brush and paint it on like I'm painting the holster. Then I brush it around, up, down, left, right, obliques each way, . . . beginning with a bit of a lather created by the brushing and adding of product, . . . and ending with all the little lather bubbles broken by my constant brushing. Once the lather is obtained, . . . don't add product, . . . just brush. When I use this technique, . . . mine don't bleed. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, Camano, . . . Good job, Red Cent, . . . as before, . . . that is one of my favorite patterns. Been seeing it for over 50 years on belts, purses, and stuff. Can't say as I ever got tired of seeing it. May God bless, Dwight

I searched both pages, the margins, the headers, . . . anybody seen the holster? May God bless, Dwgiht

Goggle it my friend, . . . take the lesson you find there that sounds most logical. I have just about quit asking people, . . . I just do the Google, . . . asked a "people" a week ago about a feature on a sound mixing board he sold me, . . . when it didn't work, . . . Googled the right answer. You have a world at your fingertips, . . . use it. May God bless, Dwight

Hicks, . . . ya done a good job there pardner. I am not a fan of ankle carry in any form, . . . but yours is the pattern I have made before for others, . . . who do seem to like them. And, . . . just as a comment, . . . I much prefer the real wool, . . . the synthetic stuff feels like a Walmart bag on my skin when it gets all hot and sweaty. And, . . . Well, Lobo, . . . we're probably about the same age, . . . because I remember complaining like the devil, . . . I bought my 4 inch Python for $160, . . . and they wanted $190 for the 6 inch model, . . . and I got all miffed and didn't buy it. Would I ever like to go back and re do that decision. But anyway, . . . I'm saying late 60's, . . . early 70's, . . . still in the prime. BTW, . . . you do know that since God told Noah that man's life would dwindle down to no more that 120, . . . that that makes 60 middle age. Just a little note there to help your day. May God bless, Dwight

Yessir, . . . good looking. What does the knife itself look like? I enjoy seeing those hand made knives, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Remove the rear (left side) clip, . . . take it to a grinder or sander, . . . remove all the metal you can up to about 1/8 of an inch below the rivet hole. That will make it tip forward a bit, . . . bring the butt end up out where it belongs. Then place it back in the holster, . . . shove it as far down as you can, . . . re-punch your hole, . . . it should make a good holster from what I can see here. Make your stitch lines tight to the frame of the gun, . . . you'll be doing two outlines, . . . down next to the weapon, . . . along the bottom, . . . then up the outside, . . . and across the top, . . . finish up at the bottom of the weapon for best looks, . . . double stitching about 4 or 5 stitches. The fact that you cannot stitch the very bottom is good, . . . it allows "stuff" to fall out the bottom and never plug up your barrel, . . . which produces a never forgotten moment. Honestly, I don't understand the trouble you are having with snaps, . . . the military has used plain old snaps for about a hundred years, . . . I've used em for many years, . . . just do not have a problem. Perhaps you are doing something wrong in the setting of the snap. If the male portion (bottom) is not secure, . . . fastened down tight, . . . they come unsnapped a bit easier, . . . but that's the best advice I know. Reverting to another type of snap is to ignore the bottom line problem you have now with snaps. May God bless, Dwight

Looks good, . . . but then again, . . . I'm partial, . . . always did like that design. May God bless, Dwight

My first two critiques, . . . the front stitch line, and the back stitch line. 1: Both are too far away from the piece, . . . wearing that as an OWB pancake, . . . it will open up and become loose pretty quickly. 2. Your back stitch line looks like it just wandered away from the weapon down at the muzzle end. Follow it around the trigger guard, . . . and stay close, . . . all the way down. You are also most likely boning your leather when it is really too wet. Boning needs to be done when the leather is almost dry, . . . otherwise it will "unbone" as yours has done. Personal preference: I hide the slots in Chicago screws, . . . let em see the pretty part, . . . not a screw slot. But, . . . in all honesty, . . . it is a heck of a lot better than my first couple of holsters. You're on the right track. . . . just polish the rails a bit, . . . you'll do OK. May God bless, Dwight

Bob, . . . thanks for the tip, . . . spent about an hour "perusing" their offerings, . . . got a couple of ideas, . . . sent the questionaire off to her soon to be mother in law, . . . needed some advice, . . . but I think we are on the track. Now to get a bottle of Aussie and dig out those special pieces I saved. Yessir, . . . I think we have a plan. May God bless, Dwight

If you google Ohio Travel Bag, . . . then on the left side, "view catalog", starting on page 3(?) through the next 8 or 10 pages is a ton of rivets, . . . they will have pretty much what is out there in the industry. You have several choices for brass, . . . but not precisely what you asked for. You could buy some longer solid brass rivets, . . . some brass washers, . . . and create your own, . . . but as said above, . . . they would not be as strong as the copper ones. May God bless, Dwight

I started to get sarcastic, . . . say if the leather was as old as you and me, . . . ain't no wonder it wrinkled, . . . but you know I wouldn't do anything like that. But seriously, . . . I've had a couple of bouts with the wrinkle monster, . . . wish I had a definitive answer. I do know it seems to happen more with thicker leather than thinner. AND, . . . the one place I have whooped him, . . . is in the front inside of my lined holsters, . . . I do the John Bianchi skive on the inside piece, . . . takes them thar wrankles right out of the holster front. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, Joe, . . . I did a bag for a lady to carry her books in at the university, . . . not thinking, I "Resolened" it, . . . man was it stiff, . . . beautiful, . . . but stiff. If she had a small book in the bottom of it, . . . would have made a dandy weapon. I'll have to give the Aussie a shot, . . . May God bless, Dwight

I'm a chap, chink, holster, belt, and knife sheath guy. These I can do. I have a very special lady getting married later this month, . . . and I want to make her a purse, . . . one she will treasure, . . . and I can do the whole thing except that super elegant finish. Most of my stuff gets Resolene, . . . Beeswax/NFO, . . . or Bag Kote. Her purse will be tooled, . . . not much but some, . . . shoulder strap, . . . either a largish clutch purse or small revival bag, . . . and probably out of nothing heavier than 8 oz. What will give her a soft feel, . . . warm touch, . . . and yet protect her bag? Thanks, guys, . . . this is a "once in a lifetime" shot for me to say "welcome to the family" to a very special young lady, . . . marrying a very special young man who happens to be my cousin. It needs to be right, . . . so I need your advice. Thanks, may God bless, Dwight

It was really easy, Keith, . . . it's a concho, . . . not sure where I picked it up, . . . had two of them in my "other things" drawer, . . . dug it out, . . . took a look, . . . liked it, . . . used it. I'm thinking I bought it for a project that fell through, . . . but anyway, . . . it's just a pretty brass concho. May God bless, Dwight

USMC black is a great dye, . . . goes deeper than the pro oil or any of the H2O stuff I've used, . . . but it leaves a pigment trail that a blind man could follow at midnight in a coal mine. I used to use it, . . . got sick and tired (arms got tired too) of all the buffing to remove the extra pigment, . . . moved to pro oil, . . . haven't looked back. May God bless, Dwight

At this point, . . . your best bet is to grab a couple of towels your wife won't miss, . . . lay the project down and rub it like you are trying to rub the black off that pretty brown leather. It will take some elbow grease, . . . but it will be worth it when you are done. THEN, . . . find a large wash cloth (again something she won't miss), . . . wet this one, . . . have at it again. Don't quit until you no longer get any black coming off the bag. Then put a coat of 50/50 Resolene & water on the project, . . . and a second coat on anything that will touch the owner's saddle. Next time, . . . use something like Feibings professional black oil dye, . . . but stay away from USMC black, . . . and cut the dye 50/50 with Feibings thinner. May God bless, Dwight

I have a box full of leather pieces, . . . and among them are the "lesson pieces" that were salvaged from the project that in a different frame of mind would have gotten hung up on my rifle range and used for target practice. Throwing them in the box, . . . allows me to salvage any good leather that may be there, . . . and also reminds me of my humanity, . . . something that every now and then we all tend to forget, . . . But like Electrathon alluded to, . . . there are times when you realize that this is NOT ever going to be a properly finished product, . . . so it just becomes a lesson piece. May God bless, Dwight

There are a couple of cowboy chap videos out there (haven't seen them in a long timel . . . but I have viewed them), . . . that use an old pair of YOUR jeans as the pattern for YOUR chaps. Having had MC chaps in the past, . . . I would not doubt that it would work for MC chaps too. You just may have to do a bit of doctoring. One mistake some folks make with chaps, . . . put your zippers on upside down, . . . so you close the zipper from the top, . . . not from the bottom. Make your trial set out of a pair of jeans from a second hand store that is one size too big for you, . . . I think you'll like the fit, . . . I also make some of my chap "trials" out of heavy vinyl (about $20 USD per yard at JoAnn fabric, . . . it's $12 USD with a 40% off coupon, . . . and one yard will make a set of MC chaps for a petite woman. You then transfer the vinyl pattern to leather, . . . VOILA, . . . you are done. May God bless, Dwight

If you haven't already, . . . you might try dunking it, . . . in water, . . . it doesn't look veggie tanned, . . . but that will be the test that will tell. Personally, I would be tempted to get a veg tan belt strip, . . . lace it all around the top up there, . . . soak it down with hot water and set it in the sun, . . . if you bend it where you want it, . . . it will help, . . . will not cure, . . . If you REALLY want it to hold that square shape, . . . lace on the strip, . . . but put a piece of 18 gauge aluminum between the layers, . . . bend the aluminum, . . . it will work. But remember in the end, . . . leather doesn't really lend itself to bags like that, . . . think "saddlebags", . . . they always have a clasp, and a top to pull them together. May God bless, Dwight

I just fold my outside over, . . . Chicago Screw it together, . . . no problems. (I apologize that one layer is thicker than the other, . . . not intended, . . . just a cranky drawing program today, . . . almost all my belts are either the same thickness, or the inside is 1 or 2 oz thinner) May God bless, Dwight