Lobo

Billymac: My shop is just a production shop, no storefront. I don't usually take walk-ins, and I don't do business by telephone, as these would interrupt production continually. Everything is done by e-mail, and even that eats up 2 hours or more every day. I generally work in the shop from 3 to 6 hours daily, occasionally going in at night for an hour or two as needed to keep things moving along. I have a part-time apprentice who has come along very well over the past 6 months. She has developed a real talent for finishing work, which she can come in and do whenever she likes. She also does a lot of the cutting work for me. Imagine a 23-year old woman with a bachelors degree, owns her home, works a full-time job and two part-time jobs, and teaches a couple of nights per week! Not too many young folks with that much top spin! The shop is 432 sq. ft. of leased space. Most of my work stations are old metal office desks (very handy and practically indestructible), plus the 8-foot workbench and a couple of tables. I am always finding a need for more shelf space. Nothing wrong with the Tippmann Boss, but they are finicky about timing and have a couple of parts that like to break down (cast zinc gears and drive rack, which I suggest that you keep spares on hand for, and the 1/4"X20 cap screw attaching the handle, which develops metal fatigue in use and will snap off, so I recommend using Schedule 8 cap screws and changing those out about monthly). I still use the Boss for a number of small operations. Speed is actually just about as good as with a power machine (my Cobra Class 4 is set up for about 60 stitches per minute, allowing excellent control), but operator fatigue sets in on larger projects and longer production runs. When you are ready to invest in another machine I suggest getting one that exceeds your needs; that way you won't be pushing it too hard or struggling with some projects. Lots of throat depth helps greatly. Also, doing business with a good company (like Leather Machine Company) helps because Steve will always pick up the phone to provide answers to questions and help with the occasional glitch. Best regards.

To put a little perspective on the marketplace, consider that 40 of the 50 US states now have "shall issue" concealed weapon permit laws, 3 states now permit concealed carry with no permit requirement, and only a couple of states do not permit concealed carry at all. Approximately 30,000,000 citizens are now regularly carrying sidearms. Many handgun users own multiple weapons. Many customers will purchase two or three holsters before they find one that suits them better than others. In short, the market is quite large and continues to grow as an additional 2 to 3 million handguns are sold each year. Quality handguns, properly maintained, will last for decades (I have several that are over 100 years old and still fully functional). While holsters used occasionally may last for many years, those in use daily may wear to a point calling for replacement in a few years' time. The major manufacturers, no matter how big they are, have limits to their production capabilities and tend to concentrate on the most popular designs and most common handguns. This leaves a lot of room for smaller makers offering unique designs, more options, custom touches, and holsters for less frequently seen handguns. I have quite a few vintage handguns that, since they were discontinued in production, represent millions of pieces still in common use for which the big companies are no longer offering holsters. In addition to the concealed carry customers there has been incredible growth in shooting sports. IDPA, Cowboy Action Shooting, and other sports offer many opportunities for small manufacturers making a wide variety of products. Add in the incredible market exposure available with internet marketing and you can start to grasp the potential. When I started 38 years ago my customer base was limited to people I knew and worked with, and advertising in specialty magazines was quite expensive. Now I am regularly shipping orders to all 50 states and several foreign countries. Expenses are minimal for website hosting services, no catalogs to print and mail out, easy customer contact via e-mail, electronic fund transfers and credit card services. I average 30-plus pieces per week, so 1500-plus per year. I offer 8 basic models with 4 commonly requested options, in 4 finish colors, multiple lining options, a couple of tooling options, for about 90 different handgun models (thousands of possible variations). While not technically a "custom" shop, I offer the customer the ability to order a holster with the features they want to have. I also offer two completely unique holster designs not available from any other source. I think there is plenty of room in the marketplace for anyone who produces a quality product and gets it done when promised.

Thank you, billymac. Multiple work stations and working in stages is the key to cutting down per-unit labor. I usually do production runs of about 10 to 15 units, preferably doing like-kind items in each run, I set up each dye station only once per week to dye everything of a particular color at one time. My shop has 6 work stations with plenty of shelf space to lay out items at each stage. By doing things this way I average about 45 minutes of hands-on time per completed item. Most of the "dead time" in a leather shop is while things are drying. I like to use that time for incidentals like belts, pouches, etc. I can set the timer on my drying cabinet at 10-minute intervals, allowing me to work each piece through the forming and boning processes, while at the same time producing a few incidental items that add profit to the day's work. I am not saying that anyone should jump into the game with a big expenditure in shop space, tools, equipment, etc. All I am saying is that there can be quite an economy of scale when you have a volume of orders that permits a good production schedule. I worked at home for many years before my bride put her foot down, protesting that she was tired of inventory stacked here and there, materials laying everywhere, etc. Only then did I open up the checkbook and lease a small shop. In less than a year I outgrew the small shop and moved to a larger facility. I recently dropped about $2800 on a new stitching machine, way more than the minimum I could have gotten by with. But I have learned that it is better to invest in the better equipment, have more capacity than you might ever need, than to try and struggle through with something that you are always pushing to capacity. The new machine (Cobra Class 4 from Leather Machine Company, see the banner ads) has been in service for about 6 weeks now, continues to function flawlessly and effortlessly, and has served to produce more than twice its price in orders in that time. I expect this machine to be in service for at least a decade or two after I have dropped dead, so the investment is well worth it. Having stitched a few thousand pieces by hand over many years I can assure you that a good quality stitching machine can be counted as a blessing. Best regards.

Big O: The production work order accompanies each piece through the shop. Work is done in stages, moving from one work station to the next. Each piece is in a tray with the work order, and I do my best to review the work order at each stage of the process. That doesn't stop me from making mistakes! I still produce right-hand holsters for left-handed customers, plunk one down in the black dye bucket when the work order says brown, etc. I still buy all my pencils with erasers on them because I make mistakes every day. There is nothing wrong with "one at a time". But when it becomes a business, as opposed to a hobby, we have to carefully evaluate how much time we are putting into each order. Time is the only thing that we can control; material costs will be material costs, overhead will be overhead. I do each production run with about 10 to 15 items, cutting each piece, then assembling the pieces, then stitching the pieces, then forming the pieces, etc, etc, etc. At the end of the production run I usually average about 45 minutes per completed piece. This is done in a 420 sq. ft. shop with 6 work stations and multiple shelf units. One-at-a-time production requires much more time per unit produced, if for no other reason than the time required to set up the work station, put away tools, clean up after each process, etc. The best way I can describe it is that this is a business for me, not a hobby. I enjoy what I am doing, so by definition I will never be "working", but I won't work unless the project is profitable and has been paid for when I produce it. Best regards.

Attached is a photo showing a production run ready for packing and shipping. This was the second production run last week, increased somewhat by the inclusion of several hand-carved holsters that my carver completed recently. Total of 20 holsters (5 carved, 8 lined), 4 belts (1 carved, 1 tooled, 3 lined) and 4 pouches. Production time about 20 hours, and my apprentice spent about 5 hours doing the finish work (burnishing, oiling, sealing, final finishes). Holsters were done 10 at a time (cutting, linings, assembly, stitching, dressing edges, forming), belts and pouches were done during drying periods. Sometimes it can be a lot like work, but looking at the results can be satisfying.

During my 24 years as a cop I received all sorts of requests for multiple pouches (dual mag pouches, combination mag & flashlight pouches, etc). These requests usually come from less experienced customers. The facts of the matter are that such accessories take up a lot of room on a belt, are considerably more difficult to conceal well, can be uncomfortable during extended use, and usually interfere with belt loops making them inconvenient to use. Most such accessories end up at the bottom of a drawer somewhere in short order. For my personal use I prefer to use two single mag pouches, allowing placement wherever convenient on the belt and far easier to keep concealed. I never used a handcuff case while in plainclothes. You might be doing your friend and the others a favor by visiting with them about these things. The younger officers are frequently more interested in how something looks rather than how it might work. I call it the "tacti-cool" attitude, and it frequently results in spending a lot of money on things that do not work very well. One thing is for certain, and that is the fact that when your customer discards his new "wonder pouch" he will always believe that it was your poor design or execution that caused the problem, not his bad idea. Just like holster design, everything involves compromises among the four basic factors of comfort, accessibility, security, and concealability. Best regards.

I have put together designs for single and double mag pouches to match most of my holster designs. Simple rear loop, pancake-style slots, tunnel-loop, and snap-loop models.

The very talented gentleman who does the carving work on my Threepersons' style holsters returned 5 carved patterns and a matching belt to me last week. The carving pattern is based upon the original holster designed by Tom Threepersons and made by S.D. Myres Saddlery, c. 1920. I installed linings, assembled, stitched, and formed the holsters on Friday. Finish work was completed on Monday and these are ready to go out to customers. Here are a left-hand with strap for S&W J-frame 4", a right-hand cross-draw with strap for S&W N-frame 6", a right-hand with strap for S&W N-frame 5" with matching belt, a right-hand with strap for S&W J-frame 4", and a right-hand with strap for S&W K-frame 2.5". Finishing out these carved specimens is always a pleasure!

Rayban: This design is credited to Tom Threepersons, a noted Texas lawman during the early 20th Century. The original is believed to have been made to Threepersons' specifications by S.D. Myres Saddlery. This style has remained popular for nearly a century now and has been made (with some variation) by every major holster maker. These were pretty much the standard for law enforcement and sportsmen for many years, and demand remains strong. Covered trigger guards are a relatively recent trend, primarily due to the increased law enforcement usage of semi-auto pistols, particularly the striker-fired models with short & light trigger engagement and no manual safety devices. (I recently posted about this trend and the reasons for it, so you may review my other posts for that). Essentially, covered trigger guards have been an attempt to "idiot-proof" holsters for people using certain types of modern handguns. Open trigger guards were the most common style used for many years for both single-action and double-action revolvers. With a single-action there is no danger involved with trigger contact unless the hammer is cocked. Modern double-action revolvers require significant force (typically 15 to 20 lbs) applied and maintained on the trigger to rotate the cylinder, cock and release the hammer; and most incorporate internal safety blocks to prevent discharge unless that force is continual through the final hammer fall. While modern double-action revolvers do not feature manual safety devices, they are commonly considered to be among the safest handguns in actual use. There are a few weapons that are inherently unsafe. There are a few holster designs that are inherently unsafe. The much larger problem is the inherently unsafe user, inadequately trained in the use of the weapon in question and lacking the mental discipline to maintain safe handling procedures.

I am truly humbled by your post. The classic Tom Threepersons-style holster holds a special place for me in the evolution of holster design. I made up 3 of these today (about typical for a week's demand), and my carver is completing 5 carved holster patterns and a matching belt right now for customers who appreciate this vintage design. The classic and vintage revolvers just seem to demand an appropriate piece of leather. Thank you for the compliment you have paid to me. You have done a fine piece of work. Best regards.

Each approach offers benefits while also presenting challenges, as already described. Personally, I dye after forming using the immersion method (dip-dyeing). The benefits are less mess during stitching, forming, etc, and easier forming. The challenges include achieving good dye penetration in leather that has been formed, molded, heavily compressed in some areas, etc, all of which inhibit dye penetration. I am experimenting with a new finish color, kind of a dark tan with white stitching. This requires that the pieces be dyed prior to assembly and stitching. One of the challenges that I am dealing with is color transfer from the dyed leather to the thread during the finishing processes. I've found that the longer I wait after dying before assembly and stitching, the less color transfer occurs when finishes are applied. I have waited up to a week after dying the pieces before proceeding, and noticably less color transfer is taking place. The obvious down side is longer production times. Best regards.

I hand-stitched everything for over 30 years, and got pretty good at it. I have several pony-type devices for holding items during stitching, a bench-top jig for stitching belts, special gloves with built-in stitching palms, etc. When I took my little business on-line and orders started regularly exceeding 20 holsters per week it became obvious that hand-stitching was out, so I purchased a machine. Hand-stitching even a relatively simple holster takes me about 40 minutes or so, and that is after a lot of experience. Add a holster lining or other options and the time per unit easily goes over an hour. With even the simplest of machine stitchers production time drops to 5 minutes or so. Last month I added a new Cobra Class 4 stitcher with servo motor and speed control. It is set up for about 60 stitches per minute, allowing very good control. With that machine I can easily stitch 12-plus holsters per hour, and lined belts can be fully stitched in about 10 minutes. Stitching quality and finished appearance are excellent with the Cobra Class 4. The initial cost of a good stitching machine appears to be high. But when volume production is needed there is simply no alternative, and the increased rate of production makes the investment well worth the money. Producing about 1500 items per year, if the machine lasts only one year it will cost me less than $2 per unit produced (and I expect this machine to last several decades!). I haven't hand-stitched more than a few items over the past 2 years. The weird pattern of callouses on my fingers and hands has almost disappeared. I no longer suffer from arthritic swelling in my fingers and hands. I can stitch for half a day now without pain in my wrists, forearms, and shoulders. Added benefits to machine stitching! Best regards.

Well, it has come time for everyone to express their opinions on trigger guard coverage. I have carried a sidearm just about every day since the late 1960's, including two tours in Vietnam and 24 years as a cop. Holsters featuring covered trigger guards were very seldom seen until the 1980's, especially not holsters for double-action revolvers. Thousands of law enforcement officers carried double-action revolvers in holsters with open trigger guards for many decades, uniformed and plainclothes, on-duty and off-duty. Starting in the mid-1980's there was a general movement in law enforcement away from revolvers and into semi-auto handguns. During the late-1980's the so-called "safe action" pistols (Glock, etc) started becoming very popular, and many agencies started issuing this type. These striker-fired pistols have a relatively short trigger travel and do not usually have any manual safety devices. There were quite a number of accidental discharges reported. Officer accustomed to the 15-20 pound trigger pulls of double-action revolvers required quite a lot of training to handle the striker-fired semi-autos safely. Range training showed that there were a number of ways in which the newer semi-auto designs could go "bang", including foreign objects entering the trigger guard, as well as trying to holster the weapon with one's finger inside the guard. To maximize safety with these pistols many departments began requiring holsters that completely covered the trigger guard. Many private ranges began requiring similar equipment for use on their properties. Accidental discharges and unintentional discharges continue to occur. Occasionally these might be the result of equipment, such as holsters. More frequently the cause is human error due to insufficient training and/or attention. The debate over covered vs. uncovered trigger guards seems to have come about largely because of changes in training and equipment needs due to the widespread use of semi-auto handguns that are striker-fired via very short and light trigger engagement. For such pistols there is a requirement for not only covered trigger guards, but also for a higher level of training in the use of the weapon. The double-action revolvers, while not featuring manual safety devices, require much more force applied to the trigger, much longer trigger travel, and most (Colt, S&W, Dan Wesson, Charter Arms, Ruger) feature internal blocks to prevent discharge unless the trigger remains fully depressed during the hammer fall. A simple bump won't do it. Significant force must be applied and maintained to cause the weapon to discharge in double-action mode. Covered trigger guards on holsters for modern double-action revolvers are more a matter of personal preference than an absolute safety requirement. Many law enforcement agencies and public-access shooting ranges have adopted policies requiring such holster features which, of course, those subject to the rules must comply with. Don't run with scissors!

Update: The new machine has been in use for about 3 weeks now. No major glitches, just the normal learning curve for a new tool. I've called Steve once for help, phone was answered on the second ring and problem solved in a couple of minutes. Excellent product and excellent service.

I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Bianchi during the mid-1970's. He is truly an impressive gentleman! Thanks for posting.

I ordered my new Cobra 4000 from Steve on Aug. 30. It was delivered by truck to Colorado. It took me just 85 minutes to set it up and get it running, and my first production piece was done less than 2 hours after opening up the box. Steve is a great guy to deal with, and the Cobra 4000 is an exceptional machine.

I use the Kobalt 9.5" heavy duty scissors shown in the photo. These are available at Lowes for around $20.00. I use these to cut up to 9-10 oz. veg-tanned all the time, regularly producing 25 to 40 holsters, belts, and pouches weekly. My apprentice can cut out 12 to 15 holster patterns in an hour. One set has been in use for nearly 2 years and has required only one touch-up of the edge using a diamond sharpening steel.

Your work is truly exceptional. Thank you for posting.

Every holster design requires compromises among the four factors of comfort, accessibility, security, and concealability. Only the user can decide how much of each factor should be compromised in order to enhance other factors (of course, an experienced holster maker will know when what the customer requests is so much of a compromise that the result will be unusable or unsafe, and will decline the job). What you have described as "a OWB cowboy-style shorty, high rider holster that is smooth on the back and shaped-formed on the front, with integral belt loops" brings to mind the classic Tom Threepersons' style which has been around for about 90 years and served as the basis for dozens of holster models from nearly every maker in the country. Envelope-style construction, integral belt loop, generally smooth outer contours. Whereas the IWB designs generally maximize concealability, but typically with compromises to comfort and accessibility, the vintage OWB designs emphasize comfort and accessibility, but frequently with compromises in security and concealability. Security can be improved with retention devices such as straps or thumb-breaks. Attached are a few photos showing the Threepersons' style adapted for a 1911 pistol and my old standard Model 5 belt holster with thumb-break. Either design might be adapted to your needs. I would not recommend shearling or other padding on the back side. As has already been noted, that would have negative effects on the stability of the holster on the belt. It would also be likely to absorb perspiration to a point that the holster might become saturated with salty water, not good for handgun finishes. Best regards.

I just set up my new Cobra Class 4 from Leather Machine Company (see banner ads). This is a cylinder arm machine with 16.5" throat and will sew just about anything easily. Flat bed attachment was included with mine, as was a roller-style material guide. Servo motor provides excellent control. Reverse is easily engaged and stitches back in the same holes. The difference in price between a middle-of-the-road machine and a top-of-the-line machine is relatively small. I recommend buying a machine that will exceed your needs rather than struggling with less for some applications. I also recommend buying from a company known for outstanding customer service. Call Steve, he will see that you get exactly what you need and be there after the sale with technical support.

Last week I realized that it was time to add a new sewing machine for my shop. I called Steve at Leather Machine Company (see banner ads) and placed the order for a Cobra Class 4. Five business days later the machine was delivered. From the time the parts were unpacked until I was stitching the first item was 85 minutes. The Class 4 comes complete with stand, LED light, servo motor, etc. Extra needles, two pounds of thread, and all necessary accessories included. Nothing else required. The servo motor provides outstanding control. This is a very easy machine to use. 16.5" throat depth will handle just about any job, and the Class 4 will stitch up to 7/8" thickness with ease. Reverse is easy to engage and stitches back perfectly in the same holes. Palletized shipment with weight shown on the bill of lading at 310 lbs. Pallet dimensions about 36" X 36" X 36", so you'll need either a large door into the shop or unpack it outside (ten minute job) and move the pieces inside for assembly. Outstanding quality product and excellent customer service! If you have the need Steve is the man to talk to, and he actually answers his phone!

Rubber cement does not provide a permanent bond, being easily pulled apart. This is contributing to the wrinkling that you are experiencing. Contact cement works well. I especially like Fiebings' Tanners Bond for cementing holster linings. It can be difficult to cement in a lining when the leather has been folded. I prefer to stretch the lining material on the work surface, then cement to the holster leather. After it sets up you should be able to do your forming with little, if any, distortion of the lining material.

+1. Six stitches per inch is just about perfect for holster work.

Joel: I recommend against sanding the interior surfaces because grit from the sanding process can become embedded in the leather fibers and subsequently damage the finish of the handgun. Any of the usual acrylics (Leather Sheen, Resolene) will do a good job of sealing the fibers and smoothing out the interiors. These can be applied prior to assembly and stitching if you like, and rougher spots can be slicked down while damp. Bag Kote can also be used, and the waxy finish is very easy on handgun finishes. Good old Johnson's Paste Wax also works and provides lubrication at contact points for an easier draw. Paste wax can be applied after sealing with acrylic. Best regards.

Not the best photo, but here is mine. Delrin stamp from Laser Gift Creations. Image size is about 7/8". This stamp has been used at least 2000 times and still gives a nice imprint.