CaptQuirk

Not long after I started doing leatherwork, I learned bellies aren't really good for much. But, as I'm shopping through suppliers for leather, I keep seeing fancy bellies for sale. You have H.O., W&C, and different types of tanned bellies. Is there any difference between these, and run of the mill bellies... aside from the name and bigger price?

Maybe try laying some of the blue painter's tape over the letters, and cut out what you need to paint. You'd effectively be making a stencil, or in your case, a shield.

Well, the one I have is long, but if you can work around the barrel, I'm happy to loan it to you. Let me know.

I have a Colt 45 7"BBL. that close to what you need?

Eh... I'm more of a Trekkie.

Ok, I see what you did there. It is more of a wide retaining strap, and not a narrow butt flap. Ok, very cool. Your work is well done, and I like the way you adapted it to suit the need. I know I'll be doing a scabbard sooner or later, so I'm watching for different features... like the straps. I don't normally deal with horse people, but they are out there.

Sorry Dwight, my Google skills let me down.

The reason I ask about the flap, I am used to seeing them like the old flap holsters, where the flap is the width of the holster. But, like I said, I have no practical experience. That is why I ask. I've also never seen one for a bolt rifle like that. Where did you get your pattern or inspiration from?

That looks really cool! Of course, I have no practical experience with scabbards to draw from... But I like it! A couple of questions, like what is the hole in the flap for? And why is your flap so narrow? What is the purpose of the straps? By the way, really nice job on the strap retainers

Not a pattern, but a better look. It was made by Martin and Sons.

There's a Walking Dead site that has chat. Both Rick and Darryl were in there the other day. Sounds like you're on the wrong site Witchypoo... JK:)

I don't believe Weaver's is Wholesale only, but that is sure the way they want you to roll. What is it to be a wholesale customer? $1,500 annual orders or something?

And that is a problem with dummy guns, since they are a hit or miss. They might, or might not have the model you need, and they certainly don't know anything about what they do have. Considering the sheer volume of firearms out there, it is hard to condemn them, but... if you are selling a product, you should know as much as you can about it. I ran into this when I was selling auto parts. GM in particular, issues one part with sometimes up to 10 different part numbers. I took on the task of cross referencing all these numbers, when I made a sales flyer/ replacement chart for our customers. I'm sure it is still used 25 years later by some. Glock is sort of like that, as a holster for a G17 will also fit a G22 and G33. They keep cranking them out, don't they?

Thanks for that tip! I looked everywhere, and the closest I could find to the 586, were airguns. Most of those were priced at $100-225, which was cost prohibitive. Then I discovered the 586 and 686 were the same pistol, but different metals and finishes. When you think about it, when they made the BlueGun, it didn't matter. They didn't know that, and never mentioned the 7 shot.

Never mind. Apparently it is the same as the 686, which is available.

I searched my regular sources, checked Blue Guns, but can't seem to find a S&W 586. Any ideas I may have missed?

I would have gone with a longer box, so that you can really see the artwork. But, adding the book was an extra nice touch

That goes hand in hand with eating the critter, to not let anything go to waste. Back in his day, your grandparents likely saved coffee cans, buttons, twine and paper from the butcher (If they went to town for meat), and anything else. Coffee cans made good shingles, buttons were always lost... and I have no idea why they saved the butcher's twine and paper. Not sure they did either, but they did it, just in case

I have to ask, why egg? Why not bark or brain?

The trick is, to only expose enough edge to burnish, using the sticks to support the leather. This helps keep it from just flopping under the pressure of the burnisher. It works ok with just one of those slicker disks, and I also use a home made burnisher chucked in a drill.

Another thing you can try, is a modified stitching pony to clamp the leather. I've been clamping thinner leather between paint sticks to make it more manageable.

It looks good to me, just a little rough around the edges. Take a modeling spoon to the rough areas you beveled, and that should make you feel better.

They do make for an odd shaped holster, but you did a really nice job with it. I've made 3 for the Taurus Judge, one of which was a shoulder rig.

I just spoke with Roger at RJF yesterday. His site has been down, due to some confusion with his Domain Provider. It should be up soon. His number is (607) 742-8969. He is located in upstate NY. But be aware, he does PayPal or Check only, he isn't set up to take credit card orders directly.