Dwight

TwinOaks is right about the clamshell being easy. I usually introduce all my students to a flat backed pancake, . . . easy to make, . . . easy to adapt, . . . very comfortable when finished. May God bless, Dwight

/\ /\ /\ I'm with you, Shooter, . . . no SOB holsters come out of my shop. May God bless, Dwight

Personally, . . . I think everyone should have a "Duke" rig. I researched mine as best I could, . . . from what I was told, he liked a closed bottom, . . . and that the belt was also a money belt. Hence, . . . my version: May God bless, Dwight

I have had 1911's since 1966, and know for a fact that it would take several concurrent problems working together to make a 1911 unsafe in a holster just because it's trigger was not covered. BUT, . . . I also know that there are many folks out there who jam all their guns into any holster they can find. That can produce an unsafe condition, . . . especially if the customer is carrying a Glock or Springfield XD or another similar weapon that uses a striker firing mechanism and does not have a manual safety. The 1911 is without a doubt the safest semi auto on the market, . . . but you have to allow for the others. Glocks tout their "internal" trigger safety system, . . . but it has a well documented pattern of failure, . . . anything entering the trigger guard can easily snatch the trigger back, . . . and it is disasterville from there out. Having said all that, . . . I wouldn't make any holster that leaves the trigger exposed, . . . unless it is for a revolver. May God bless, Dwight

For the most part, . . . Sixer has it nailed for me too, . . . the major exception is belts, . . . especially black ones. I use a 1 HP motor, . . . it burnishes for all my belt edge burnishing. I burnish, . . dye, . . . then re-touch the burnishing before final finishing. For me it goes quicker before the dying process, . . . and even going over it a second time, . . . I save a bit of time. AND,................... the double burnishing gives my belts a better job I think. But you can do it the other way, . . . just remember to ALWAYS dye before any finishing process. Finish application is inclusive of that word, . . . FINSH, . . . meaning end or last. May God bless, Dwight

I guess I get to be the "other" voice. 1st power tool to buy: Harbor Freight, 1inch wide belt sander, . . . costs less than $50, . . . does all the edges on holsters, belts, purses, and does a good & quick job. A tubular sander can do a better job sometimes, . . . but it takes a lot more practice and a lot steadier hand. 2nd power tool to buy: Tippmann Boss Stitcher, . . . somewhere between $1000 (used) and $1500 (new with warranty, etc), . . . and if given reasonable care, . . . it should last you a lifetime of hobby leather work. If you get bored and want to unload it, . . . put it on Ebay with a $1100 reserve price, . . . it may have to stay there through a couple of cycles, . . . but they most generally sell quickly. You could even buy a new one, . . . sell it on Ebay a year later, . . . lose $300 in the process, . . . but you will have saved your fingers and wrists an untold amount of pricks, jabs, wrenching, pulling and twisting. AND, . . . you will have to practice for some kinda time, . . . and be a perfectionist type, . . . to hand stitch a 52 inch belt more evenly and better than my "Boss" will do it. That is not even counting that I will stitch that 52 inch belt in about 20 minutes, . . . while hand stitching will be at least several hours, . . . if not days. Anyway, . . . welcome to the wonderful world of leather work, . . . it's fun, exciting, nerve-wracking, expensive, and rewarding: sorta like getting married or buying a motor cycle. May God bless, Dwight

You can shop where you like for sure, . . . but I use Law Enforcement Target for all of my blue guns I need. Law Enforcement Targets, Inc. - Shooting Targets, Paper Targets ... www.letargets.com/Cached - SimilarYou +1'd this publicly. UndoLaw Enforcement Targets provides a full catalog of targets, including ... Paper & Cardboard Targets - Steel Targets & Stands - Zombie Targets - Contact Us8802 W 35w Service Dr NE Minneapolis, MN 55449 (651) 645-5246 Most of their guns are in the $33 to $36 price range, . . . and if they do not have it, they will arrange to have it directly shipped to you. Most of the time, I am lucky enough to reach Cathy, . . . she does a great job. I don't normally have any issues with the blue color coming off, . . . did once because of my own stupidity, . . . , and I have used a press, never broke one yet. May God bless, Dwight

The problem is that you are trying to use the wrong image. That image is of a bullet hole that has gone through a piece of sheet metal that has both a final coating and a primer coating. The square like frame around the hole is designed to look like the primer, . . . Typically, . . . that is the image of a bullet hole in a car body. Enclosed is a 240 grain, jacketed hollow point, +/- 700 feet per second, .45 caliber, at about 8 feet, . . . going through a 9 oz piece of veggie tan. The quarter is to help you determine the relative size. May God bless, Dwight

You may use any product you wish on the outside of the holster, . . . but for all the holsters I have done, . . . I totally, 100%, without any reservation, . . . prefer to use Resolene on the inside of the holster. Except for the time a guy tried to force another model into a formed holster, . . . I've never had any bad problems on the inside of those that were Resolene coated, . . . it forms a protective layer that is tops in my book. May God bless, Dwight

When I'm making a guitar strap (or a belt) I either use two pieces of material that I just now cut with the same strap cutter, at the same setting, . . . or try to match up previous pairs. Cover both pieces with contact cement, . . . let em dry, . . . put them together. I usually take a strap that is not as wide as my product, . . . lay it under the project, . . . and use my fingers to guide the pieces together, . . . without looking. I find my fingers do a better job of this than my eyes do Then I take the same rolling pin I use for apple pies, . . . roll the pieces together, . . . take it to my belt sander (its a Harbor Freight 20 x 1) and do any necessary dressing of the edges. Tooling, . . . edging, . . . sewing, . . . final finish, . . . in that order. This works the best for me. May God bless, Dwight

Depending on how handy you are, . . . you may make one yourself. I make most of mine I need out of electrical conduit (EMT). Cut off a piece about 9 inches long to start. Take it to the sander first, . . . sharpen it all the way around by rolling the edge against the sander, . . . and every now and then put it in a can of water so it don't get over heated. Then take a piece of 3/8" steel you cut into a long triangle, . . . and rounded both of the long edges real smooth, . . . lay it down on your anvil and start whacking it with a ball peen hammer until you get the slot punch made in the sharpened end of the EMT tubing. Use the 3/8 inch steel to keep the tubing from collapsing and to get the sides straight. If you start out with a piece of 1 1/4 inch EMT, . . . it should come awful close to finishing out the size you want. May God bless, Dwight

I think if I did that, . . . I'd use "Amazing Grace". Not that one song is better than another, . . . but it is much shorter, . . . and I would think it would be easier to do for the first one. Then if I liked it well enough, . . . go back and do another one with longer lines, . . . such as the song you pictured. Mine has a simple cross, . . . with the sun behind it, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Markush made an excellent observation on the mag release, . . . I had one lose a mag for me once, . . . really not a good thing. My other comment would be to suggest that the next one you make, . . . put a sweat shield on it. I personally will not wear a holster without one, . . . as the weapon is forever digging in my side, . . . especially when belted in and driving. You're doing good, . . . I was a whole bunch further up the number scale before I produced one that looked as good as this one. May God bless, Dwight

If you live near a Goodwill or Salvation Army store, . . . they usually have a supply of vests there, . . . buy the one that fits you, . . . take it apart at the seams, . . . you have the pattern. OR, . . . I personally don't like them, . . . but Tandy does have vest patterns. Go to leather shop (find it in the yellow pages) and let them show you appropriate garment leather. Yes, . . . many sewing machines can sew this type of leather, . . . but probably an equal number will not be able. You need to go to Jo Ann fabrics, . . . buy the appropriate leather needle for your sewing machine, . . . get some scrap leather pieces, . . . and try it. Personally, . . . I would hand sew the thing if I didn't already have a machine, . . . the tools and thread for that are available at Tandys. May God bless, Dwight

I personally do not trust myself with a round knife, . . . have to count my fingers too often. Therefore, . . . I use my Stanley drywall razor knife (I have about 5 of them) with cheapo blades I bought at Big Lots, . . . but long before they touch the leather, . . . they go to my strop, . . . and get stropped REAL good. For me, . . . there is nothing that works as well, . . . as in the holsters I do, . . . there are always short radius cuts, . . . quick corners, . . . short straights, . . . all which are not condusive to round blades, whether they are the round knife or the rolling type quilters use. One of these days, . . . I'm going to invest in a band saw, . . . there is a company in Florida that will make a band saw blade that is just one long sharp blade, . . . I plan to try that some day, . . . just don't have the band saw machine to do it with yet. But please remember, . . . if you are trying to cut out the pattern, . . . put it together, . . . and have the edges looking good without some sanding or dressing, . . . you are chasing a rainbow, . . . that only happens once in a while, . . . on a very good day. May God bless, Dwight

Think about it, . . . if it would work well, . . . it would have long ago put the dye makers out of business. Shoe polish is just that, . . . polish for an already completed item. It does not have the depth of color needed to do a good job, . . . unless you want to go over it a dozen times. I tried the shoe polish a couple of times trying for a different "look" and finally came back to dye to get a "distressed" and faded look on a black gunfighter rig I made for myself. Dye is for the new project, . . . to complete it correctly, . . . polish is just that, . . . polish. May God bless, Dwight

Another thing to think about if you are dip dyeing, . . . Lay the piece out horizontal, . . . especially a belt. When I first started, . . . I did some belts all together in a hurry, . . . and not thinking, hung them up on one end to dry. The black ones were OK, . . . all the browns were dark brown on the bottom, . . . and much lighter at the top, . . . as the dye had migrated down during the drying process, All my leather gets "dipped", . . . kinda like dipping a french fry in ketchup, . . . leaving it there doesn't do any good, . . . dip it, . . . get it out, . . . go on with life. It also dries out faster that way. And yes, . . . use something to absorb the excess that is laying on the surface when you pull it out of the pan / bowl / tray / bucket or whatever. May God bless, Dwight

My answers: 1. When I did my copy, . . . I used British Tan, . . . toned down with a 1 to 1 ratio of thinner. 2. I use 5 oz for all my ammo loops. 3. No, . . . you can stitch if you want, . . . I prefer the in / out process in the same slot, . . . use a 3/4 inch bag punch for my slots. 4. I had problems with gun belts I bought that were sewn, . . . I do not have problems with the gunbelts I make that use the slotted method. 5. That particular gunbelt was also a money belt. That is why it was folded and sewn only on one edge. On mine, . . . I glue it shut except for enough in the buckle end to hold a 10 dollar bill. That happens to be a fun rig to make, . . . I love mine, . . . and sometimes hope no one buys it at the next show :-) May God bless, Dwight

FWIW, . . . I had many of the same issues listed here when I first started doing holsters. I read a post from a deceased professional who said they only used oil dye, . . . and dip dyed everything, . . . no exceptions. I tried it and have never looked back. Fact is, . . . if someone came up in my driveway and wanted it, . . . I'd hand him/her a half full container of USMC black. For me, . . . dip dying is the only way to go. May God bless, Dwight

Hey, Toasty, . . . been using this stuff for something near 30 years, . . . and I'm not having any new issues. 1st: make sure you have good stuff, . . . if it is gooey at all, . . . not runny, . . . pitch it. 2nd: when you use it, . . . make sure to put the lid back on, . . . tight, . . . also if you use a lot of it, . . . buy a quart, pour it into a half pint container, use out of the half pint, . . . it'll stay better longer that way. 3rd: there is no canned time limit on how long it should take to dry. Temperature, humidity, product, . . . all have an effect on IF it is ready yet. The very best test is to pat the piece with a piece of newspaper. If it don't stick AT ALL, . . . AT ALL, . . . then you are ready to use it. 4th: if you have a heat gun, . . . you can use it in a VERY WELL VENTILATED area on smaller pieces, . . . less than 2 square feet is my rule, . . . to hasten the drying process. Laying the piece, glue side up, in a window where the sun can hit it will also work to dry it quicker. 5th: even when it is done perfectly, . . . enough force, . . . will pull it apart. It has been my experience that it takes quite a while for the process to fully bond, . . . permanently, . . . but letting it dry correctly is 95% of getting it right. Also if you are doing belts or anything you can get a rolling pin onto, . . . do that, . . . roll it with a rolling pin, . . . and put some force onto it. I also use a very flat faced hammer to put my holster edges together, . . . or a wallpaper seam roller. Just sticking them face to face is not enough to complete whatever the chemical process is that happens there, . . . need to add a bit of force. Anyway, may God bless, Dwight

The original stirrup leather was a 2 1/2 in wide strap of 14 oz leather. To the back of that where the Blevins buckle adjusts the length of the stirrup, . . . there was a piece of 5 oz leather sewn to reinforce the punched out hole area up and down the stirrup strap. It was sewn on in the original, and when I replaced the original, I sewed one on the replacement just like it. May God bless, Dwight

OK, . . . to most of you all here, . . . no biggie, . . . but I finally got to break the ice. Fixed some other things here and there, . . . but never got to do the machine sew until this little lady brought her Billy Cook barrel racer in for some work. Her stirrups were tight, . . . one stirrup leather needed replaced, . . . whole thing needed a bath and oil, . . . had to make a special pair of hobble straps for her saddle, . . . did all that and gave it a good layer of Bag Kote, . . . shined up like bald headed deacon on Sunday. Thanks to some on line help here, . . . she walked in, . . . took one look, . . . did the Ooooh, . . . Aaaahhhh thing, . . . all is good. Thanks for all the advice, . . . help, . . . encouragement, . . . y'all are great !! May God bless, Dwight

If you were to use a 3/4 to 1 in wide strap, . . . you could use a bag punch, . . . put 4 holes in a row down the outside of the holster, . . . weave the strap down through it, . . . fillet or fray the end to make it look like part of the decoration, . . . you would be able to adjust it up and down to whateve you wanted to do with it. May God bless, Dwight

A friend of my son asked me to fix her saddle, the stirrup leather on the mounting side had broken over half way. It was a fairly nice Billy Cook barrel racing saddle I believe. It seemed simple to replace a 2.5 in wide strap of 14 oz leather, . . . sew on a backer strip, . . . punch some holes. I started to remove the old stirrup leather, then is when it became fun. IS THERE A TOOL that saddlers have tucked away in the recesses of secret areas that assist in un-screwing the conchos? I was only able to get them off because I have excellent finger strength, . . . and just grabbed them and hogged em out of their holes. Just lookin for some direction, guys, . . . in case this comes around again. May God bless, Dwight

Electrical conduit is not very often aluminum, . . . although it looks like it, . . . it is really galvanized steel. And it can be a bit on the rough side inside the pipes themselves. I've used enough EMT in one lifetime to be sure I would not use it for this job. I am no expert, . . . have never made one, . . . but if I had one of them high dollar cues, . . . I'd probably think seriously of putting it in a suede lined PVC pipe. Just some thoughts. May God bless, Dwight