Dwight

Yessir, . . . good lookin job, . . . and it looks like it "will do the job". Also, . . . for everyone here, . . . thanks for the detailed instruction. May God bless, Dwight

Actually, if you go back up to the original post, . . . mine is more or less fixed, . . . because it all comes off my little wooden arc making tool. I thought about making several different lengths, . . . then asked myself "Why?", . . . and couldn't find an answer. At only 3 3/4 or 5 1/4 inches, . . . adding one or taking away one length, . . . will not seriously hurt the belt design. I think I had one of my wife's plates out there in the shop (probably had a piece of pie on it earlier), . . . I just grabbed it and made the arc, . . . figuring ya gotta start somewhere, . . . and that was just as good as any for a beginning. It worked out better than I planned to be honest, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Something in the 10 / 15 yr age bracket, . . . I think it was one of them things ya order off Ebay, . . . I really love it too, . . . when you set it at a certain diameter, . . . it stays there, . . . use it, . . . lay it down, . . . use it, . . . lay it down, . . . stays the same distance all the time. I've got other ones that just do not do that. May God bless, Dwight

My hydraulic press cost me a total of about $50 if I recall correctly for the rubber, . . . $15 for a 6 ton bottle jack, . . . and some 2 x 4's, . . . plus some bolt. The steel press frame is totally overkill for what is needed, . . . BUT, . . . you don't have to build it, . . . I bought a $99 vacuum pump at Harbor freight, . . . $20 worth the vinyl at JoAnn's fabric, . . . and a couple pieces of scrap tubing, . . . Made a perfectly functional vacuum system for under $150. The tool is more than anything not an end in itself, . . . just something to make it easier to get to that end. May God bless, Dwight

I built a hydraulic press a number of years ago, . . . used gum rubber, . . . 40 durometer, . . . 2 layers above, . . . 2 below, . . . all were 2 inches thick. I scrapped it in favor of vacuum press for holsters when I started getting a bunch of "plastic fantastic" handguns, . . . just afraid that the extra pull on the handle might wind up helping me own a cracked handgun. I'd never go back after using the vacuum, . . . wish I had gone to it before hand, . . . May God bless, Dwight

I think Milt Sparks probably gets the nod on that one. May be wrong, . . . but I don't think so. Had a couple short computer conversations with him years ago, . . . was a truly stand up individual, . . . if I lived close to his shop, . . . I'd a been a regular pest. May God bless, Dwight

As they used to say many years ago, . . . that is top drawer stuff, . . . Awesome craftsmanship, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Thanks, RockyAussie , I don't usually "fancy up" a project, . . . but this was one of those that just begged the lazy stitch. Never knew why, . . . but auctioneers in this part of the country seem partial to cowboy hats, boots, and stitched belts. The guy getting the belt hangs around with a buddy who fills in as a substitute auctioneer sometimes. Gene will get to wear on him about having a real "auctioneer's belt" for a while, . . . and just knowing it will happen makes all the work worth while, . . . and of course, Gene's a good friend as well. That is pretty much the only belt I make, . . . double layer, . . . anywhere from 4 to 5 1/2 mm thick, . . . depending on the service and the length. I quit single layer belts a long time ago. May God bless, Dwight

Not meaning to hijack the thread, . . . Inglegunleather, . . . you did a fantastic job on that holster. I love the looks of it, . . . unfortunately, the makeup of my body does not like it. It is not comfortable for me, . . . but I'll bet you can find bunch of folks not like me if you keep making them like that one. But to go on.......... Curiosity, Stetson912 : What kind of leather are you using??? What are you using for your final finish??? Do you finish them inside and out??? I have never had an IWB collapse on me, . . . and never had a customer complain of it happening. The minimum thickness of leather I use for the holster body will be 7 oz, . . . It is always vegetable tanned leather. It only gets a very light coat of neatsfoot oil, . . . emphasis on "light". After dying, . . . it gets a coat of Resolene, . . . inside and out. This is my basic process, . . . never have had a problem yet. For even better results, . . . add a vacuum form molding device, . . . and after molding, . . . dry it in a 130 degree oven or drying box. NOW, . . . if you really want a hard holster, . . . layer two pieces of 4 oz together, . . . contact cemented flesh side to flesh side, . . . use that for your raw material. You can almost use those holsters for clubs. May God bless, Dwight

Some folks voiced an interest in making lazy stitch belts, . . . and I found it is not that hard at all if you have just a few tools. 1: Template, . . . THE most important tool in the whole job. When you make your template, . . . take care, . . . spend time, . . . do it right, . . . so your images will come out right later on. 2: Pair of large dividers 3: Arc making tool with edge finder (another tool you will have to make yourself, . . . but it really is a piece of cake to do) 4: Hand held stitch gouger, . . . mine came from Tandy's __________________ LZ 5 picture: This needs to be made first: the arc making tool with edge finder. Its a piece of pine cut and sanded into a really nice arc, the edge finder is the little shelf at the bottom, it lays up against the edge of the belt as you are using it. It ALWAYS LAYS against the belt edge in order to properly use it. LZ 1 picture: Use the arc making tool to make your template. Your template will be the exact width of the belts you are making. I only use this on 1 1/2 inch belts, . . . so I only had to make 1. LZ 2 picture: After making the original template, . . . measure the distances for the length of the lazy stitch and for the fish tail stitch. Next, measure the free space you have between the first belt hole and the buckle area. Leave an equal portion on each end by dividing the distance up between the two parts of the belt, and sharing whatever is left over. In this example I had 31 inches, . . . using the lazy stitch, . . . 31 divided by 3.75 gave me 8.26 lazy stitch images, . . . I would probably only do 7 images and divide up 1.26 of the images which is roughly 4 3/4 inches, . . . giving me a border on each side of 2 1/8 inches. Find your center point and lay it out, . . . here I laid it out as an even number of lazy stitches, . . . making a center mark. At that center mark, I laid down my template and placed my dividers in the template holes. Next just rotate the template up the belt blank, . . . marking each place with the dividers. Once you have all the points marked, . . . put away the template, . . . get out the arc making tool, . . . and the hand held stitch gouger. Now use the gouge to make the trough from one mark to the next. Continue until you have them all done on one side of the belt. Then flip the belt over and do the other side, . . . voila, . . . lazy stitch pattern is done and ready for the stitching. The only difference for the lazy stitch and the fish tail, is that the fish tail is longer (less images), . . . and you use the outside points instead of the center ones. Again, . . . gouge one side, . . . then the other, . . . stitch and smile. Hope this helps and everyone enjoys it. May God bless, Dwight

It's paranoia in my book. Been doing this for quite some time, . . . have never had a complaint yet, . . . course there is a first time for everything. Besides that, . . . the slot on the outside is some kind of ugly in my personal opinion. May God bless, Dwight

I'm not sure what you are asking, . . . the wording of your statement " I bought mine from stecks and like its possible look with the cartridge carrier counter weight" is confusing. Try your question again. May God bless, Dwight

Thanks folks for the good words, . . . and, . . . yes, Stetson, I do use a template. There are probably easier ways to do this, . . . but basically I've got a piece of leather with a copy of the oval on it, . . . with holes punched where the lines intersect. That piece of leather is the exact width of the belt as well. I measure out how many ovals I'll need for "this" belt, . . . divide the oval length into it, . . . center it on the belt blank, . . . and start marking it on the belt using the two punched holes as my reference points, . . . using a pair of dividers that are set at the width of the holes in the leather template. I then use a freehand stitch gouger to mark where the stitches go, . . . using a wooden template I made. Takes longer to lay it out than to stitch it. May God bless, Dwight

A friend stopped by the other day, needed a belt. This will be the one he gets tomorrow at church. He's helping me refinish an old clawfoot table, . . . so this is "payback". May God bless, Dwight

GaryNunn, . . . I had a similar pair of experiences on Ebay, . . . the total of the two was just under $500, . . . one was a purchase from a scammer, . . . the other was a sale to a scammer. In the purchase, . . . it was my credit card company who bailed me (scammer sold me a piece of junk computer and when I returned it, . . . he swore it never happened, . . . Ebay took his word, . . . even when I sent them a copy of his signed receipt acknowledging the return). In the sale, . . . the guy veiled the threat of zero feedback if I didn't refund part of the purchase price. I did what I had to do so I could keep my 100% rating on Ebay, . . . just considered both as lessons, . . . and "cost of doing business" charge. Sort of like having a shop and someone comes in and shop lifts the goods. I did also have a similar holster deal, . . . put it on Ebay later, . . . "Customer return, . . . still functional, . . . seriously reduced", . . . and I got my leather / hardware / and labor cost back. No profit, . . . but not as great a loss, . . . and the second buyer was tickled pink with the holster. Best wishes, my friend, . . . may God bless, Dwight PS: My money is like you said, . . . on the wife. "You paid how much for that?????"

Excellent, . . . You have a lot more patience than I my friend, . . . May God bless, Dwight

Absolutely beautiful work. Curious question, . . . what weight leather did you use for that one?? Thanks, may God bless, Dwight

I made this sheath for a "scary sharp" BIG knife some years back. I, too, was afraid of something happening, . . . so I took matters a different route. Instead of relying on a welt that over time might be compromised by the knife, . . . I lined the sheath with good old rawhide. And the break in the rawhide is not at the blade, . . . but up on the back of the knife. That blade will have to cut through the rawhide, . . . then into the welt, . . . before it can hurt the sheath. I'll be worm food long before that happens. May God bless, Dwight

This ol' sailor likes it, . . . good job. Don't sweat the inside stitches, . . . only you, him, and those in his household will ever see em. I might have joined him if I wasn't so "outdoor-sey". When we tested for sub duty back in '63, . . . my personnel folder had a big red stamp that went just about from bottom left to top right on the application for sub duty: "NOT PSYCHOLOGICALLY QUALIFIED FOR SUBMARINE DUTY". I laughed when I saw it, . . . because I was hoping something would open up and make it certain if I was or was not destined to be there, . . . was not, was the answer. Give him a hug and a glad hand from an old Destroyer sailor, . . . and thank you for you kind words. May God bless, Dwight

Well, Brian, . . . thanks again until you are better paid. My Vietnam Veterans of America group will be mostly the users, . . . making "give away" tags with our name on em, . . . boys will be handing em out. May God bless, Dwight PS: I saw that belt dressing machine you made, . . . that is neat. It is always fun to see someone else who enjoys finding an answer to a problem without having to buy someone else's product and then rejuvenate it for your purpose.

Brian, . . . package came today, . . . looks great, . . . should work just fine. Sure wish there was some way I could repay you, . . . I'd offer you a fresh baked apple pie (just did two of em tonight, one goes to a fellow from our church who had eye surgery this week), . . . but it'd never get there in time to eat it. Let me know if there is anything I can help you with up this direction. May God bless, Dwight

Had a friend years ago, . . . liked to carry a roll of dimes in his pocket, . . . In case he had to make a lot of local calls of course. They're TSA proof. May God bless, Dwight

Glad to hear it my friend, . . . I used a Dremel for a long time, . . . wound up with a large job one time, . . . stopped and invented my burnisher (most of my tools like that are self invented if I can do it), . . . and the rest is history. I still use the Dremel for holsters and other small stuff, . . . but belts are threatened that if they don't burnish themselves, . . . they're going on the machine. And away we go. May God bless, Dwight

Hey, Cap, . . . to save you a bit of time, . . . I went out and grabbed my mike, . . . The tongue on the male part of the mold is .560 deep and 1.385 wide. The trough on the female part is 1.700 wide, . . . by .635 deep. The mags fit just right in the pouch this mold makes. May God bless, Dwight

Actually this is for a 1911, . . . 8 round mag that just about everyone is carrying these days, . . . who carries a 1911. I also have one for a Ruger p85, . . . works for Glocks and other double stack 9's. If it keeps up, . . . probably gonna have to make one for a Shield too, I'm thinking. If you make one, . . . allow enough room to get your leather in there, . . . and a few thousands over won't hurt you at all. The pic of the mold you see, . . . if I recall correctly, . . . it was for a little Springfield Micro .45, . . . Key to using it is get your leather well wetted, . . . I use a couple of "C" clamps, . . . one at each end, . . . slowly draw it down, . . . takes me 3 or 4 minutes to draw down each one, . . . but I sincerely do love the final effect. May God bless, Dwight