Dwight

This works like a champ. May God bless, Dwight

You need to add a bunch of details, my friend. Are you putting oil on a Roman shield to be used in the arena, . . . a billfold, . . . a cattle whip? Are you trying to use candle wax, . . . Johnson's paste, . . . ??? No, . . . dipping is not out of the question, . . . I personally dip all my dog leashes, . . . for oil and for dye. May God bless, Dwight

Let me suggest that if you have a Tandy store local, . . . go there and ask if they have any classes available. We could write all day, . . . and they can show you in 30 minutes, . . . twice what you would absorb here. May God bless, Dwight

Rather than for me to re-write it, . . . read what Chief31794 said again, . . . it's all right on my experience as well. I still have a bottle of USMC, . . . but will only use it when it is specifically asked for. And, . . . yes, . . . dip dyeing has for me been THE preferred manner of dying. Browns I cut 50/50, . . . blacks I don't cut at all. May God bless, Dwight

My first inclination would be to adapt a single point sling like some of our young men are using in the sandbox on their M4's or M14's. That would take care of you during the stalk. For across the back, . . . I'm partial to shoulder straps, . . . kinda like pack straps, . . . as your crossbow is like my muzzle loader, . . . wants to slide off the shoulder and down under, . . . With a little ingenuity, . . . you could probably combine the two straps / sets, . . . into one "rig". May God bless, Dwight

The kinda sorta simple way is to simply lay the cell phone down on the back piece, . . . lay a piece of heavy paper on it, . . . form the paper down around the cell phone the way you want the leather to fit, . . . mark the paper, . . . cut the paper, . . . and you then have THE pattern for your cell phone case. You may goof up on trying to transfer measurements, . . . we all have, . . . but if you outline a pattern, . . . cut that, . . . it should fit. The arch rule, . . . rule numero uno, . . . never cut a piece of leather without first having a pattern. Make the pattern first. I buy legal size manila file folders from the office supply store expressly for this purpose, . . . it is my pattern material, . . . and it works great. A master holster maker, John Bianchi, taught me that trick, . . . using manila file folders, . . . a razor knife, . . . and 1 inch wide masking tape. If you cut a pattern and you cut it too small, . . . tape the piece back on with the masking tape, . . . re-cut it, . . . and go on with life. You will probably not like your first cell phone case, . . . you will be in great company, . . . many of us did the same thing with our first project. Keep it though, . . . it will be a constant reminder to try and do better. May God bless, Dwight

That's a good looking holster, . . . the smile says it all. May God bless, Dwight

I literally take a dial caliper with me when I go buying leather. An 8 oz starts at .125 thickness, . . . and a 9 oz could go as high as .155 and not be technically a 10. Putting two pieces of that together will make one heavy belt. I generally shoot for the belt to finish at .200 +, . . . and no greater than .240. I've worn a .250 for a number of years, . . . which also is very rigid and unforgiving at times. I buy my leather accordingly, . . . using my caliper to tell me what it is, . . . regardless of which stack it is in, . . . or what stamp is on it. Sometimes they inadvertently have a fat or skinny one in the stack, . . . it can mess up your whole day if you buy it without noticing it. May God bless, Dwight

If you google Thad Rybka you'll find he's another custom holster maker, and he's from Alabama, I believe. I heard something about his naming that particular design the Rhodesian, . . . because the first one like it went to Rhodesia, . . . may have just been a rumor. Anyway, . . . I've seen several pictures of his work, . . . it is surely top shelf stuff, . . . I like the design because it removes anything at the rear that could possibly interfere with the draw. I dislike it because in its OWB configuration, . . . it does not seem like it would tuck in close to the body, . . . but that is one of those situations where you can have one or the other, . . . but not both. It is also duck soup simple to make one, . . . practically regardless of if it is a .25 colt auto, . . . or a 45-70 wheel gun. The one I made for me serves me well in it's intended form. But from looking at some of the pictures, . . . he tends to use thicker leather than I did on mine, . . . and I'm not sure if he makes an IWB in that style. All I've seen were OWB with a loop for the belt coming directly off the top of the holster, . . . bending down, . . . and sewn in place. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, Winterbear, . . . now to distill all the examples into one or two products, . . . I think I need a nap. May God bless, Dwight

Good job, . . . both on the holster and the machine. Like I tell em, . . . hands are for hamburgers, machines are for stitching. May God bless, Dwight

I made a pair of spur straps once, . . . same color, . . . so if they throw us out, Mike, . . . at least we got company. Good looking holster. May God bless, Dwight

Uhhh, . . . US Navy, . . . Navy Reserve, . . . Ohio Army National Guard, . . . never made it to the Corps. Fact of the matter is, . . . when I sincerely did go to see about joining, . . . door was locked, lights were out, nobody home, . . . so I boogied up the street and joined the Navy. But, . . . . yeah, . . . that is one area that would follow along the lines of some of the NA beading that was done. But I'm for now holding out trying to see if I can find any examples of anything done by the Powhatan tribe. I understand they were fairly big into wampum belts and the like, . . . but again I would like to let whatever is done be at least influenced by at least one original design. From what I understand, . . . Powhatan was actually a group that was part of the larger Algonquin nation. May God bless, Dwight

Yes, . . . it is. In addition to a different style, . . . this also was THE first holster I tried using my vacuum system. Not knowing how to use it, . . . experimenting as I went, . . . I used a piece of .110 veggie tan shoulder (just barely 7 oz) and really laid the vacuum to it. The weapon came out "fairly easily", . . . and I hung it up to dry. About 24 hours later, . . . it didn't want to go down in the holster, . . . so I shoved it in. I honestly thought I was going to have to cut the front seam to get it out. BUT, . . . I wiggled and wiggled till I got it out. Long and short of the story, . . . the mag button is seriously protected by a little dimple formed in the vacuum process, . . . I cannot take my thumb and press it hard enough through the holster to get it to realease. Maybe just a curious anomaly, . . . but it works. May God bless, Dwight

Actually, . . . I'm more of a 3:00 guy, . . . maybe just behind the right seam belt loop. UNLESS, . . . I'm on a longer trip, . . . then that dude swings back to almost 5, . . . and gets buried in the Jeep seat May God bless, Dwight

Actually, Eric, . . . I don't like it as well as I thought I might. Don't get me wrong, . . . it is a good holster, . . . works well, . . . and Thad's design has some real advantages. My "problem" is that the portion of my body where that dude hangs, . . . is really pretty skinny, . . . maybe boney would be a better term. That makes it kinda rub the wrong way some times. The holster in my avatar is for a 24/7 carry, . . . more comfortable, . . . but the Ribka flavored one is really great for grabbing my 1911, . . . going to the bank, . . . heading in town for a gallon of milk, . . . and it is the one I usually use when I'm on my Kubota zero turn, . . . doing my mower thing. May God bless, Dwight

Because you have the suicide strap across the top, . . . I wouldn't worry too much about retention, . . . I'd stretch it. One little "cheating" way you could easily overcome it is to go into the holster a bit below the belt width you want, . . . put a Chicago screw through the holster coming out of the back and through the loop. Looking at the holster itself, . . . it looks like you actually could put one on each side, . . . and both would miss the weapon itself if you drew them up tight. But, . . . you did good, . . . I'm an old softie, personally, when I look at personalizing a piece with something as you did with the collar device, . . . and I really like that touch. May God bless, Dwight

I've never used a sponge for Resolene, . . . I buy cheap ($.22 each more or less) from Harbor Freight. http://www.harborfreight.com/pack-of-36-1-inch-industrial-grade-chip-brushes-4181.html I've never had an issue with my Resolene, other than sometimes if I get in a tad of a hurry, . . . I have left streaks with these. I just wash it out after use with soap and water, . . . hang it up to dry. I'll put on a "coat" and brush it around until I get almost a lather look out of it, . . . then I'll quit adding material, . . . just brush out those little bubbles, . . . I really like that finish myself. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, WinterBear, It's good to know what brand the beads are that I have left. The place I used went under when the economy went to Florida a few years ago. Funny you mentioned graph paper, . . . I started to use that, . . . wound up using Microsoft Excel instead, . . . for the USMC logo I did for the gun bag. First one turned out to be out of proportion, . . . went back and re-did the Excel, . . . voila, . . . second one wasn't perfect, . . . but it worked quite well. It is really easy to use, . . . make the whole page the main color, . . . then change the individual beads to give you the pattern you want. Anyway, . . . just passing on my little bit of knowledge, . . . maybe you or someone else will be able to use it. May God bless, Dwight

A little bird must have whispered in your ear, . . . "he likes to read", . . . I do, . . . and WOW, . . . I didn't come up for air for about 2 hours, . . . only when I sent to Amazon for a book, . . . I thiink I'll find what I'm really looking for in it, . . . if not, . . . I'll go under for another hour or so. Thank you for the effort, . . . I really think this might turn out to be one fun project, . . . at least I've got some better ideas now. It was really fun reading about "Wampum", . . . which I had heard about but never really understood. Gonna have to get me some purple and white wampum beads and see about starting my first wampum belt one day this January when it is just too doggone cold to do anything but sit near the fire. Thanks again, Chuck, . . . have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. May God bless, Dwight

My blood pressure usually takes an uptick when this discussion, delivery to wrong address, comes up. Several years ago I bought a high end video camera on Ebay, . . . paid with the church's credit card, . . . and expected delivery on I think a Friday. Anyway, . . . delivery day came and went, . . . no package. Later that weekend, . . . a black pickup and a bunch of unknown folks comes into my driveway. They asked for me by name, . . . and something about the tone just didn't set right. When he said he had something for me, . . . and started looking on the other side of where he was sitting, . . . I was getting this "fight or flight" feeling coming up. Lo and behold, . . . he had my box, . . . with the video camera, . . . UPS had simply sat it on the porch and left. Didn't ring the doorbell, . . . knock on the door, . . . nothing. Marked it as delivered, . . . and went on his merry way. Half of me wanted to shout halleluia, . . . the other half wanted to wring a UPS driver's scrawny neck. It all worked out, . . . but there certainly was potential for otherwise. May God bless, Dwight

Good work as usual, . . . Keep inspiring the rest of us. May God bless, Dwight

Big Red, . . . stop what you are doing, . . . and GO, . . . RUN if you have to but go get the tests. Take it from a person who has allergies run in his family like black in a coal mine, . . . all over the place. Believe me, . . . you don't have to have the money, . . . there are clinics, . . . foundations, . . . all sorts of places that will do something to help you find out EXACTLY what this is, . . . and that is what you need. Failure to do so just might land you in an ER with a doctor shaking his head, . . . and you really do not want that. True allergies will generally give you a sample warning, . . . and if you do not heed it, . . . the next time it can come on you with a vengeance worse that living in the same house with 3 ex mother in laws. Do it. May God bless, Dwight

It IS that time of year, . . . somehow Christmas seems to bring out the best of the best, . . . and the other guys too. I do not always do it, . . . but if it is possible, . . . and I have even a moment to think about it, . . . I'll take the high road. The last thing I want is my name rubbed in the dirt with the likes of Yugo, Ponzi, Amway, etc. I like to think of my business as being a lot closer to Zippo. If the Zippo don't work, . . . they'll fix it (actually they just put new guts in it), . . . and I really always did like it knowing that my investment in Zippo was a good one. Don't smoke any more, . . . but that's another story. Anyway, . . . hope things work out, Andy, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Stop right there my friend. We don't BOIL the leather. All we do is dunk it in hot water. And the water should NOT be hot enough to burn your hand. It should not be over 130 degrees farenheit. Do all the construction work, . . . sewing, buckles, rivets, cutting, . . . . get all that done first. THEN, . . . dunk it in a big pan of really warm water. Using 4mm leather, it should probably be in there about 30 seconds or so, . . . you want to make sure it gets water all the way through, . . . not just the surface. Then, . . . carefully hand mold it to the final shape you want it to be. Be very careful to roll out the edges of the neck hole and arm holes, . . . it will cut down on chafing later on, . . . as well as rolling up the bottom edge a bit. That will add immense strength to the bottom panels of your armor. AFTER you have molded it to the shape, . . . put it in front of a fan or lay it where there is a lot of good air circulation. You want to leave it alone for at least 24 hours, . . . LET IT DRY. Moving it about while it is drying will result it a less than satisfactory product. After it is dry, . . . you can stain or paint it to your heart's content, . . . AND, . . . don't forget to bring pictures back here and let us see the final product. May God bless, Dwight