gavingear

Hello all- you may have seen a recent post I made about a design I came up with for my 1st holster project: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=5655 This holster is for my new S&W 629 44 magnum that I'm going to use for shooting at the range, and hiking with in bear/cougar country. Well, after a bunch of reading (mostly this forum) and sewing up some scraps, I embarked on my 1st gun holster project. I took the IWB design from the post above, and modified it for OWB as a pancake design. Got all of my leatherworking supplies, and went to work. The results are not perfect, but I'm really happy with how this turned out for 1. my own design, and 2. My 1st holster project (making it) Some photos: Top, and some of my reloads: The new 629: The backside: Stitching, etc: Another top view: So here's what I would change: 1. Not cover up the rear sight (less draw friction) 2. Make the gun opening a bit wider (did not seat a far down into holster as I had planned) It seem to work great, so I guess I can go hiking in bear country now...

So do you dye the leather after you cut out your pattern?Thanks,Gavin....another point, if you dye before stitching, then you align the edges and burnish/round the edges, do you just touch up the dye where the burnishing/alignment was done?Thanks.

Hello all, I've read of different approaches for dying holsters. Do you dye yours: 1. Before stitching? 2. After stitching? 3. After stitching and wet forming? I'm sure there are other options, but these seem to make sense to me... Also, how do you apply your dye (rag, brush, dip, etc)? Thanks!

Thanks for the information lobo, can you please elaborate about the wet forming process, specifically: 1. Do you just dip the whole holster in water after stitching? If so, for how long? Do you dry excess water off with a towell? 2. Where does dying fit into your process? (After the overnight drying?)

Thanks guys, yes, those considerations do make sense. Perhaps I should start with a pancake (would only need to substitute IWB loops/snaps for belt cutouts...) as I need and OWB for when shooting outdoors for fun anyways. I do like the idea of concealed carry with this gun while hiking however, so I'll need to ponder that some more. So if I do go with OWB, does anyone have a "leather and snap" design for a thumb-break action retention strap? ...or perhaps I do a 1911 IWB for my PT-1911

Well, I have some vegetable tan leather, 207 thread, needles, dye, and hand tools on order. I'm pretty excited to make my 1st holster. This will be an "Inside the Waistband" holster for my new 4" 44 magnum to wear concealed while hiking. I've already test fit the gun in my carhart jeans (to get desired height and cant angle), and have started to outline a basic design for this IWB holster based on quite a few designs that I've studied on this site, and from holster manufacturers. Here's the design: Here's the process that I intend on following: (belt loops and snaps not covered here) 1. Layout the pattern on the leather and gun. Trace the backing piece (the one that will contact your hip while wearing it IWB 2. Cut backing piece 3. Moisten the leather used for the outside piece 4. Use boning tool(s) and other methods to form the leather over the gun and add details 5. Let the leather dry (possibly with heat/oven) 6. Trim the top leather piece 7. Do the stitching (I have an industrial walking foot sewing machine with 9/16" presser foot lift and zipper feet for left and right directions) 8. If needed, moisten the leather again, insert gun for final forming, let dry 9. Round/burnish edges 10. Dye the whole thing black (I'm usign black thread as well) 11. Buff the holster Anyone want to correct this process and/or add anything? Thanks!