Lobo

John: The SW9Ve pistol is considerably larger in just about every dimension than the 1911's. Much thicker and broader slide, larger and thicker trigger guard area, etc. You will need to pattern the holster for the SW9Ve, and use that for forming, to have a satisfactory result. The Sigma pistols were in production for a relatively short period of time, and have been out of production for several years. So "dummy guns" may be a little difficult to locate. I got mine from Duncan's Outdoors a few years ago, but don't know if they are still producing them. If your friend can make his pistol available for patterning and fitting that would be your best course.

DickF: As you have noticed, my young apprentice continues to build her stitching skills!

Completed 5 more of the hand-carved Threepersons' style holsters, along with a couple of matching belts. Somehow I never get tired of doing these. Threepersons' with strap retention, smooth lined, cordovan brown, for S&W 627 PC R8 5". Threepersons' with strap retention, smooth lined, cordovan brown, for S&W 60 Pro 3". Matching carved belt. Threepersons' with strap retention, smooth lined, cordovan brown, for S&W 627 Pro 5", with matching belt. Threepersons' with strap retention, smooth lined, cordovan brown, for S&W Model 34 Kit Gun 4". Threepersons, hammer thong retention, smooth lined, black, for Colt Single Action Army 5.5". The first 3 pieces were ordered by the wife of a gentleman who outfitted himself similarly, and she didn't want to be outdone so she ordered her own. My carver continues to excel in his artistry.

One of my regular customers recently requested that I make one of my Enhanced Avenger models with neutral cant in horsehide for his S&W M&P.45. I selected a nice piece of appropriate weight and went to work. When the finishes had been applied the typical mottling seen in horsehide displayed an incredible pattern and colorations, similar to highly figured hardwoods like maple. Thought I would share the photo with you.

This is absolutely correct. PayPal works similarly. Delivery confirmation is required, and delivery must be to the address on file with PayPal, otherwise the customer may receive a refund. I accept PayPal (secure website for credit card transactions and cash transfers with no sharing of account information) and I take hundreds of personal checks every year from all over the country. I have never had a customer try to scam me via PayPal, and I have never received a bad check for a holster order. My conclusion is that people that use firearms and checking accounts do not abuse either. Others' experiences may be different.

My thoughts on such matters: 1. I send out 1200-plus parcels each year. I use first class mail for the majority (up to the 13 oz. limit) and priority mail for those over the weight limit. Average cost per parcel, packaging and postage, about $3.00. For those who aren't aware of this fact, priority mail travels with first class mail so there is no advantage in delivery times. I charge $3.00 for delivery to any US address on orders less than $60.00. Orders of $60.00 or more I include delivery in the price of the products. 2. Typical delivery time runs 2 to 7 days. Occasionally one might take two weeks. Once in a great while I've seen 20 days or so. USPS facilities rely heavily on automated scanning and sorting, so there will be the occasional misdirected parcel. It happens. 3. Over the past two years I can recall 3 incidents of parcels not received after 21 days. At that point I started re-making the orders. One arrived on day 24. One arrived on day 29. One was returned to me as undeliverable, although the address was correct; I re-mailed it and it went through without problems. None have been permanently lost (a testimony to the efficiency of USPS, in my opinion). 4. Delivery confirmation adds about $0.80 per parcel. For me that would be around $1,000 per year added cost. Insurance adds about $1.50 per parcel. For me that would be about $1800.00 per year. While these costs can be passed on to customers, some (like me) get tired of what can be interpreted as excessive "shipping and handling fees" when ordering things, so I choose not to do so. 5. Essentially, I am self-insuring the deliveries. If one ever goes permanently missing I will replace it at no charge, and my costs will be a few dollars in materials and a little bit of my time (probably less than I would spend on the phone dealing with tracking issues or insurance claims). To me, this is preferable to either sticking each customer with an additional $2.30 or so for tracking and insurance, or me paying out $2800 +/- in additional costs for those services. I also have a suspicion that the "free delivery on orders over $60.00" causes some folks to add to their orders. So, my 2 cents worth. Very nice holster you made, Steelhawk, but if worse comes to worst it won't take more than a little effort on your part to replace it, and you'll have a happy customer forever.

I have given priority to a few orders, all being from either law enforcement agencies or military personnel (being a retired cop and Vietnam veteran have guided me a bit on this). A law enforcement agency requested 17 identical holsters with matching mag pouches for pistols expected to be delivered within 3 weeks. They got their order a week before the pistols arrived. A special operations unit requested holsters for pistols they were to be provided upon arrival in an unstated location in two weeks. They received their holsters prior to deployment. An Army Reserve officer received short-notice deployment orders and requested a holster 11 days before departure. He received his holster in 8 days. In each of these cases I chose to add hours to my work schedule every day to complete these orders without interrupting regular production. No other orders were put aside or otherwise delayed. No additional charge was added to any of these orders. Just about everybody else gets the same response, i.e.: orders are filled in the order received. I provide an estimated production time for each order and the customer can decide whether or not to proceed, based on that. Customers who indicate that they will order only if I put their needs ahead of those who came before them are politely declined. Frankly, when I receive such requests I wonder just how many other companies have received the same demands from the same people. Then there was the order from Israel, paid for in cash, with instructions to be delivered to a post office box address with no name on the parcel, and no identifying markings on the holster. No rush instructions, so it went out with regular production items. Interesting business at times.

Wet-forming a holster involves considerable stretching of the leather fibers. As the leather dries there will be some shrinkage that can cause what you have experienced. A simple and effective solution is to place the pistol into a plastic bag (freezer bags work well), then force it into the holster and leave it overnight. This will usually result in just the right amount of stretching to permit a good fit with easy draw.

For cutting holster patterns I use the Kobalt 9-1/2" heavy duty scissor from Lowes, about $20. These will cut veg-tanned from 5 oz. to 10 oz. weight pretty easily. Touch up the edges ocassionally with a diamond steel sharpener. Mindy, my 25-year old assistant, cuts out about 15 holster patterns per hour using these (so about 4 minutes per holster), wearing a glove to avoid blisters and callouses. We have two of these in the shop, one is about 4 years old and the other is about 1-1/2 years old, both still going strong. Leathers under about 5 oz. weight (linings, etc) can be cut easily with household scissors. For long straight cuts, like the first cut necessary to begin cutting belt straps with a strap cutter, I use an electric sheet metal shear. The draw gauge strap cutter can then cut nice straight belt straps in about one minute each. Harbor Freight, about $40.00. Keep the blades adjusted very closely together and these will make a very clean cut on veg-tanned up to about 12 oz. weight, or down to about 5 oz. weight. Non-traditional, for sure. Simple, fast, and easy to use as well.

Assuming that you stick with it you will accumulate quite a lot of stuff. Some will prove to be useful, some things you will wonder what you were thinking when you bought them. The next phase will be one you are sure to enjoy, with things that you were sure to be great ideas ending up as chew toys for the dogs and play things for the kids. Then you will make something that you are genuinely proud of, show it to a few friends, and find yourself making things for others. Pretty soon you will get real tired of things like hand-stitching and start looking at machines. At some point in time your wife will put her foot down firmly and you'll be forced to move everything somewhere that doesn't annoy her constantly. That's how things went for me. Now I have a regular production shop and ship out 1200 to 1500 items per year for customers in all 50 states and 16 other countries (so far). Couple of hours per day tending to the website and dealing with questions and orders, 3 to 5 hours per day doing production work, couple of hours per day at my club playing cards and having a few beers, couple of hours per month doing the books and taking care of the taxes. It's a rough life. Some days it is all I can do to struggle over to the club and order another beer. Have fun. Don't worry too much about a few bucks here and there. Buy quality tools and equipment that will be with you for the long haul. Buy quality materials that make your efforts worthwhile. Best regards.

Three thoughts come to mind: 1. Anything that adds bulk to an IWB-style holster is an exercise in defeating the purpose of IWB-carry. 2. Decoration of a holster that will be carried inside the trousers (with the decoration hidden) makes little sense to me. 3. The exotic inlay will be constantly exposed to friction and perspiration, thus likely to be damaged during normal use of an IWB-style holster. My 3 cents worth, I guess.

HellfireJack: You seem to be taking this matter quite personally, and you appear to be intentionally argumentative and, quite frankly borderline rude, so I will withdraw from this discussion and leave the field to you. Anyone who wishes to determine the facts of the case in federal court can easily find those. Anyone who wants to examine the evidence can easily do so. You may do as you wish. I hope that you will take a deep breath or two, perhaps allow some of your anger and hostility to vent, then maybe you will be able to see things more clearly. Best regards.

OK, I will try one more time to put all of this into perspective: 1. Honorably discharged US veteran passes away. 2. Veteran's family/next of kin/personal representative submits request for interment at national cemetery. 3. Veteran's family/next of kin/personal representative requests military honors by VFW and/or American Legion team, as authorized by congressional charter and federal law. 4. Hearse arrives at national cemetery containing the veteran's remains for interment. 5. Family and friends arrive at national cemetery for the purpose of participating in the ceremonies. 6. Ritual team (VFW, American Legion, perhaps both) arrive at the national cemetery. 7. Family's pastor, rabbi, imam, medicine man, voodoo priestess, or other religious leader arrives at the national cemetery. 8. The Memorial Ladies arrive at the national cemetery. 9. Ritual team is prohibited from saying the words "God", "Jesus Christ", "Allah", "Great Spirit", "Holy Father", "Earth Goddess", etc. 10. Pastor, rabbi, imam, medicine man, voodoo priestess, or other religious leader is either (a) not permitted to pray unless the prayer was submitted in advance in writing, pre-approved for content, and/or censored by national cemetery director; or ( permitted to offer prayer that has passed approval for content by a government official. 11. The Memorial Ladies are forbidden to say the words "God Bless you" to family members and friends. 12. Military ritual team is not permitted to say the words "God Bless you" when presenting the burial flag to widow, son, father, mother, etc. 13. Families complaints reach a Texas congressman. 14. Ritual teams complaints reach a Texas congressman. 15. Memorial Ladies complaints reach a Texas congressman. 16. Texas Congressman attends a burial service and personally observes national cemetery director interfering with services and prayers. 17. Lawsuit filed citing First Amendment issues and federal law. 18. Federal judge issues an injunction forbidding interference with services pending resolution of the issues at trial. 19. National cemetery director ignores court order and continues the interference. 20. The Houston National Cemetery chapel is converted to a storage room, denying families from any facility for communal prayer, devotion, reflection, etc. There certainly doesn't seem to be much difficulty in seeing just whose rights are being violated, who is being imposed upon, or what the source of the problem is, at least not to me. It appears to be nothing more than politically correct "tolerance" being imposed by official intolerance. Others may see this as the government protecting people from some imposition of religious content on unwilling participants. I view this as unlawful and unconstitutional government intrusion on the private affairs and practices of citizens, and doing so during a time of loss and grief. By the way, I just read that the clergy has been banned from the planned events at the World Trade Center on 9/11/2011, tenth anniversary of the most deadly attack on US soil in our history. Anecdotal certainly, but such things might be signs of a pattern of government activity.

No offense taken, and no offense intended. The major point that seems to have been missed is that constitutional rights, such as those affirmed in the First Amendment, cease to be rights and become privileges when official permission must be obtained prior to exercising those rights. HellfireJack is correct in that the current plaintiffs in litigation are VFW, American Legion, and the Memorial Ladies, thus the members of those organizations are seldom (if ever) related to the veterans being interred or their families. However, those organizations are specifically authorized by public law to perform prescribed military honors at burials of veterans, and those honors are only performed when requested by the decedents' families at the time that interment in a national cemetary is applied for. Those organizations do not attend or participate in any veterans' burial unless they have been requested to do so. The argument that persons engaging in offensive activities during a funeral or interment service be restricted is valid. Such conduct is also covered more than adequately by appropriate laws pertaining to disorderly conduct and other criminal acts. In the situation under discussion we are looking at organizations created and chartered by the United States Congress and specifically tasked by federal laws and the charters of those organizations with rendering military honors at services for deceased military personnel whose next of kin or designated personal representative have specifically requested their participation. In short, the veterans' families have requested that established rituals be performed at the graveside service and an appointed government official has actively prevented those honors from being performed. Also to be noted is the fact that a federal judge has entered a temporary injunction preventing Arleen Ocasio from interfering in these ceremonies, pending the outcome of the lawsuit. Ms. Ocasio is clearly in contempt of court for continuing to violate the orders of the court. This situation is much different than an intentionally disruptive or offensive demonstration perpetrated by some who might intrude upon a veteran's family and friends in a time of grief. By the way, I am a 2-tour Vietnam veteran, my brother is a Vietnam veteran, my son is a Gulf War veteran, my father was a WW2 veteran, my grandfather was a WW1 veteran, my great-grandfather died in the Civil War less than 50 miles from the family farm, and that farm consists of land granted to an earlier ancestor in lieu of salary due for service in the Revolutionary War. Perhaps I have some standing to demand that VA officials abide by the expressed wishes of families for the funeral services of their loved ones in national cemeteries, including the performance of duly adopted military honors by Congressionally-chartered service organizations.

Now that I have read your reply I know that Ocasio didn't really shut down the cemetery chapel and turn it into a supply room, that a US congressman didn't really attend a funeral there at which he personally witnessed Ocasio preventing the VFW honor guard from performing their burial ritual that invokes the name of God, and that there really wasn't a federal court order enjoining Ocasio from censoring the use of the words "God" and "Jesus Christ" by employees and volunteers at the cemetery (which Ocasio continues to defy and violate on a daily basis) pending final resolution of the lawsuit. You have certainly straightened me out on this situation. I should have known that dozens of VA cemetery employees and volunteers couldn't possibly be telling the truth, that a US congressman checking out the situation was probably lying about what he saw, and that a Christian minister's prayer during a Memorial Day observance at the Houston National Cemetery wasn't really censored by Ocasio to remove every reference to "God" and "Jesus Christ". I should have known that a Google search for "national cemetery houston prayer ban" that turned up 1,550,000 related hits couldn't possibly be accurate. I guess I'm just gullible, ready to believe anything. That has to be the answer, doesn't it?

Reported in the Sept. 2011 issue of VFW magazine. The US National Cemetery at Houston, TX, has banned prayers at veterans' funerals, unless requested in advance in writing and the prayer is submitted for prior approval. This policy was enacted by cemetary director Arleen Ocasio. Issues related to First Amendment rights and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act have brought a lawsuit from the Liberty Institute on behalf of the VFW and American Legion. As a veteran I am shocked. As an American I am outraged. I will be making myself heard at: Houston National Cemetery 10410 Veterans Memorial Drive Houston, TX 77028 281-447-8686 and at my congressman's office, my senators' offices, and at the Secretary of Veterans Affairs office. This policy cannot be permitted to stand even a moment longer.

You mentioned using 4/5 or 5/6 oz. leather bonded together flesh-side to flesh-side. The resulting laminations will be the equivalent of 9 to 11 oz. which is pretty heavyweight stuff, probably more useful for extremely heavy duty gear. Trying to assemble and stitch those weights into a flat-backed IWB holster of pancake-style construction is a challenge in itself, and the resulting holster can be expected to be rather bulky and far heavier than needed for the relatively lightweight S&W M&P pistol. I make most of my IWB-style holsters from either 6/7 or 7/8 oz. cowhide, depending on the overall size and weight of the handgun to be fitted for. With horsehide I can use even lighter weights and have equal strength in the completed holster. You may want to consider a bit lighter combination of leather. The flat-backed holsters present a number of challenges not encountered in either the more traditional pancake designs or envelope-style construction. All of the forming work ends up being on the outer side of the holster, and all of the adjustments for fit are also on that side. You might want to consider assembling and stitching each portion of the holster in separate operations. Cementing and stitching the forward portion, then cementing and stitching the rearward portion, will eliminate some of the stresses on the leather during the work. Depending on how you are stitching this will also present some challenges, and you may find that you have to wet the leather prior to assembly to relieve the tension on the outer holster panel. This would require a drying period prior to stitching. If using a machine you will need to select a presser foot that permits stitching against the raised portion of the outer panel. If hand-stitching you will need to carefully adjust the outer holster panel prior to punching the stitch holes in order to avoid burying your stitch completely. You may also find that the leather must be wetted prior to each segment of the work, then dried thoroughly before stitching that segment, then wetted again to permit adjustment for the next segment. As has been pointed out by others the assembly, cementing, and dressing of edges prior to stitching will eliminate the problems you have described in stitching along the edges. In short, you have selected a pretty complex method, and you have complicated it further by the use of a very heavy combination of material. There is nothing wrong with challenging yourself with a project, but unforeseen obstacles can be expected as you work through your plan. Even with the more basic designs and methods we can expect to have to "tweak" each pattern a number of times, adjusting stitch lines, etc, to achieve the desired result. I hope this helps.

Very nice work. Good design and well executed.

Try Duncan Outdoors. They sent me one a year or two ago.

I've made quite a few shoulder holsters over the years, including some with the X-style harness, so I wasn't starting from scratch on this project. Some years back I settled on a different harness style for general production (support harness of 4-5 oz. suede leather, off-side strap of soft woven nylon) with the horizontal-carry thumb-break holster design the same as used on this one. The X-style harness has demonstrated some problems in other configurations, notably the tendency to shift around with normal body motions (sitting down, getting up, leaning over, etc), and comfort issues related to how the weight is supported and distributed. So, the emphasis of this project was primarily to tweak the harness design. In this harness design my goal was to provide a rather large central pivot point that is contoured to ride between the shoulders without protrusions that would cause irritation, snag on clothing, or "print" through the cover garment. This was accomplished by utilizing very thin and flexible pieces of horsehide to make the pivot point/support piece and 3/16" Chicago screws at each strap mount point. That piece was carefully patterned to the human shape. Another requirement known from prior experience is that each strap connection point must be fully articulated, permitting the holster, harness, and accessories to move freely throughout the normal range of motion in common physical activities. Without that provision we can expect constant binding, pinching, and bunching of the harness straps. A feature not incorporated on this piece (at customer request) is a belt tie-down strap on either the holster side or off-side. That is something that I would recommend on shoulder holsters intended to be worn during strenuous physical activities. A simple adjustable snap-strap can be incorporated at each side to secure the holster and accessory side down to the waist belt. This greatly limits shifting of the load and harness, and keeps the holstered handgun from flopping against the body during strenuous activities such as running, etc. For comparison with a different harness style I have included a few photos of my earlier standardized design. I have used this style for years to comfortably carry on long driving trips. The soft suede harness conforms readily to the body, supports the weight without irritation, and the nap of the suede grips the material of your shirt to resist shifting. Shoulder holsters in general are rather time-consuming projects so some thought has to be given to pricing. Once the design has been finalized and patterns produced I estimate that I spend about 2 hours on a shoulder holster, as compared to less than an hour on a typical belt holster. A final note on shoulder holsters is to avoid using dyes. The combination of lengthy exposure to perspiration during use and friction against the clothing can be expected to result in color transfer to the clothing. For this reason I make shoulder holsters only in natural tan finishes, without dyeing.

Congratulations! I hope your family doesn't plan on seeing much of you for a while! Best regards.

Correct. The photo is a mirror image.

Try Duncan Outdoors. They make aluminum dummies. You should be able to find their website with a Google search, the check their inventory page or call them direct. Note on the N-frames that there are quite a few differences between various models. The 4" Model 25 will have a shorter cylinder length and may have any one of several different barrel profiles and underlug styles. The .45LC Mountain Gun will have the longer cylinder with tapered barrel profile and standard underlug. I use 6 different guns in my shop to form holsters for various N-frame revolvers, and there are still a few that I can't accomodate.

An old friend of mine is a security contractor with many varied and interesting things to deal with. A couple of situations have gotten ugly in recent years and my friend has been shot on a couple of occasions. Some folks would take this as a hint to look into career change; some might develop a bit of paranoia; others tend to become very involved in their own self-interest. For reasons of his own my friend has decided that he needs a way to carry a riot gun in a readiness posture somewhat higher than slung over his shoulder, described what he had in mind, and asked me to take it on. Certainly the biggest piece I've ever had to make a holster for, and conditions for readiness preclude any type of scabbard idea, so here is what I've come up with. Weight is supported by a slide-through belt mount for the duty belt (2.25" width) with a wrap-around closure to hold the weapon at center of balance (just forward of the receiver and behind the slide handle). This keeps the weight fully supported and prevents tipping away from the body. An adjustable shoulder strap connects to the belt mount with D-rings and passes over the off-side shoulder. On the shoulder strap is a secondary retention strap snapping around behind the trigger guard. In use one grasps the pistol grip of the shotgun with the right hand, releases the primary and secondary snap closures with the left hand, and the shotgun is deployed. This one won't win any fashion contasts, and Matt Dillon will almost certainly out-draw the user, but it is much quicker than a shoulder sling and provides a rather menacing appearance that is likely to deter many would-be challengers. I don't think I will be adding this to my website offerings.

That portion of the harness is where all of the weight is supported. Having the weight distributed between the shoulders helps to keep the harness in position without excessive shifting. The upper harness straps, passing over the shoulders, carries the weight. The lower harness straps hold the holster and magazine pouch in position against the body. If the pivot point were placed lower the effects of gravity would cause constant shifting of the harness, which is a general problem with many shoulder holster designs. I hope this answers your questions.