AzShooter

I'm in the process of making a new briefcase. After cutting everything and gouging the folds I damped them and bent them into shape. When I get the full bend in the leather is cracking around the edges. I'm using 10 ounce VegTan leather for stiffness. I haven't dyed it yet but will be using Tan dye and figure I need to wax it or put some other coating on it to prevent the cracking. Any ideas? Would Saddle Soap help, Leather Honey or something else?

Great looking holster. Tooling and basket weave are spot on and I like that color as well.

I can see why you are excited to share. That's some beautiful work.

Fantastic job. Very professional looking bag.

Very functional and it fits your needs so it's a great wallet. I like the edges as well.

Very nicely done. Is that Boa? I like the way you did it. To prevent the snake skin from splitting it's nice to edge it with leather so that the snake is not exposed. It really protects the skin.

Darkened using tan antique. Let it sit for 10 minutes and then wipe it off and put resolene on the holster. Here's a pic with gun in the holster. The botton 2 inches of the holster are molded to the end of the barrel and compensator giving plenty of retention. I can turn the holster upside down and shake it and the gun will not fall out.

All from old pieces? What a fantastic job. Looks and functionality. I wish I could do from good leather what you produced from scrap.

Most excellent!

Thanks. I have a set of red grips as well. 45/70 at 1000 is a real challenge. Most I fired mine was 500 for Black Powder Shilhouette shooting. Really miss those days. Thanks.

Made this one today. I can see I need more work on my basket weaving and edging. It holds the gun firmly without having to use a tension screw and feels pretty good on my belt. I'm open to all comments and suggestions.

alph2: Thanks for that information. I'm definitely going to check out that video.

Thanks for the replies. That's what I needed to know. Bret: I know the rules, been doing it for over 30 years. Yes, speed on the draw is very importent but you need the retention when walking around. Man of the new plastic holster lock the gun in place. When you are beginning the shoot, you unlock it. I've seen lots of guns drop their gun at this point. The way I described it is an old rule but I still make my holsters that way. I too am a revolver shooter. I'm Master Class in Steel Challenge and A in USPSA. Here's one of my finished holsters for matches.

I'm making a new speed holster. The idea is to hold the gun tight so you can actually turn it upside down without having it fall out but it has to be comfortable and the gun must come out quickly when you go for your draw. It's a copy of a friend ( Ernie Hill ) design and he lets me make them with his blessing. The holster gets a second piece for the strap and that is attached to the three T-Nuts you can see. I decided to basket weave it and to put my initials and maker's mark on it. First time I'm painting my initials and I hope it works. I was in Tandy today and was told to use Resoline as a stop over the paint and then use Antiquing instead of dye. The salesperson said dye would cover my red paint no matter what I did to prevent it. Anyone have experience with this? Is there a better way? I normally use tan dye.

Just started using a divider and find it much better than my groover especially when changing the width.

That is the nicest wallet I have seen. Improving it will make it spectacular. Thanks for sharing your feelings and the pictures. I've learned something today.

Well, I decided to make a new competition holster today for speed shooting. I shoot a .22 and holsters are not needed but I'd rather wear one than having to take my bag to the starting box every stage. It's basically the same as the one below but needs to be about 1 1/2 inches longer so that the muzzle/compensator is still covered. First try I put the T-Nuts for the flap on the wrong side. It will make a nice left handed holster if I ever get a lefty interested. Second try I cut it out and did the same thing. Third try I went and Basket weaved it because I had everything correct. I did the tooling on the wrong side. I took a break and will probably wait a few days. Here is what it should look like.

Most excellent belt. Good luck with your machine, your talent is great.

I just tried it myself and it was interesting to say the least. Good luck. This is my new shooting bag. It was an experiment and I can imagine the next one.

Very nice.

Wonderful case and thanks for the video. Always nice to learn something new.

Spectacular job. Great looking rig.

Excellent work.

Most excellent rig. Stitching is dead on. I like the color and the angle.

The thickness is good but it's very soft leather and doesn't allow skiving so that you can get a miter corner. It does stay open on it's own. There are grooves on the edges that lets the leather stay that way.