Bronson

In the upholstery shop we have at work they do something to keep straps from stretching and I was wondering if anybody did it on gun belts? The upholsterers sew a layer of thin denim into the strap. It doesn't act as a stiffener really but it does a good job keeping the strap from stretching out of shape. Of course they are also using chrome tanned upholstery leather but the theory seems sound. Bronson

Typically about 1/2 the thickness of the gun that area i.e. the stitch allowance will be less around the trigger guard than on top of the slide. Bronson

Coincidentally I just received a paddle from knifekits.com. They are made by Bladetech and can also be purchased directly from Bladetech...for the same price as knifekits.com. They come with mounting hardware but I'll replace the threaded female part with a barbed T-nut. Bronson

Exceptional work. Please keep posting. Bronson

Always love your work. Bronson

Here's one I did for a friend. It's a 1911 field holster that has neatsfoot oil and then a neatsfoot oil/beeswax finish. http://www.flickr.co...57606586066759/ As a side note this is the holster he gave me that he wanted me to recreate in LH http://www.flickr.com/photos/29310638@N07/4997493071/in/set-72157606586066759/ I told him I didn't think I could make something that ugly if I tried Bronson

I like them. I would rather see something simple but done well than something fancy that's done poorly. Bronson

Thanks for the pics Shooter McG but I notice that the thumb safety has been disengaged by the retention strap. That's what happens to mine if I put the snap/strap in that location. I can move the snap a little foward but then the strap doesn't sit nice and tight to the back of the slide. Thanks again for the pics. Bronson

I'd love to see pics of 1911 c/l holsters with thumb straps. I'm having a hard time placing the strap/snap so it 1) fits nice and tight to the back of the slide and 2) doesn't interfere with the thumb safety. I can get one or the other but not both to my satisfaction. Bronson

If you want to keep hand stitching get this book: The Art of Hand Sewing Leather Bronson

I mark my stitch locations with an overstitch wheel and use a stitching awl and two needles as described in Al Stohlman's "The Art of Hand Sewing Leather" Before that I used the diamond stitching chisels from Tandy but someone here mentioned that my stitch holes looked huge (which they did) and suggested I learn to saddle stitch with an awl. It was good advice and I'm glad I listened. Bronson

The best thing I found was to buy better leather. The stuff I had from Tandy was fuzzy like a sweater. Boomstick pointed me toward some over a Zach White's that had a very smooth back. My next leather will probably be Herman Oak from Springfield. Bronson

On a related note how are you dying the edges that you had it drip down the back? I've started using the method that Al Stohlman recommends in one of his books and it works great. Get a piece of thick felt and put a hunk in clothespin or binder clip. Dip the felt in the dye and when you run it over the edge it conforms to the shape and dyes the entire edge evenly and with one swipe. No muss, no fuss. Bronson

Only if that portion of the hide works well for holsters or if most makers were using the back portion for other things like belts. Since it sounds like it'll work just fine I'll probably save up a few bucks and go with the back over the single shoulder. Thanks again, Bronson

Do you use the back leather for holsters or only belts? I'm still hand stitching and I don't intend to hand stitch another belt any time soon so any leather I get will be for holsters and the occasional sheath exclusively. Thanks, Bronson Thanks Mike. Bronson

I've been in contact with Kevin at Springfield (very helpful) about some Herman Oak leather. He said Herman Oak doesn't do double shoulders and while he can cut me a single shoulder he recommended I think about getting a back so I wouldn't have the wasted belly leather I would have from a side (I only do holsters). I've only ever used shoulder leather and was wondering folks' thoughts on back leather for holsters/sheaths. Thanks, Bronson

That's because you are considering getting one with a full underlug and wanted to be able to use the same holster.....correct? Bronson

I've done pocket holsters where I only wet the one side of the holster I want molded. It seems to work on thin guns. Bronson

I've had much better results with regular dye on the edges than the edgekote. It goes like this. Sand edges smooth, bevel edges, wet edges, burnish edges, dye edges (I use a hunk of felt held in a binder/paper clip), buff off excess dye, rub with beeswax, rub with canvas. Somebody here gave me the tip to dye after the initial burnish because it helps keep the dye from bleeding out into the body of the holster. Here's the edge of a leather/kydex combo holster I just finished that used this method of edge finishing: Bronson

I like it...I don't care what you say Bronson

My oven also only goes down to 170 on it's lowest setting. I hang my holsters from a bent piece of coat hanger in the oven when I turn it on. When it hits 170 a beeper goes off to let me know it's preheated then I set the timer for 5 minutes. If it's still damp after that 5 minutes I shut the heat off and crack the oven door and let it sit in there for another 5 or 10 minutes. So far it has worked well. It warms the leather up slowly and I don't let it sit the full heat for very long. The holsters end up firm but not brittle. Bronson

I've made my own from some leftover stainless steel at work. I'll probably go with kydex or buy them in the future. Bronson

http://www.highdesertleather.com/id74.html Bronson

I was able to cast the two halves of the mold and they came out with quite a bit of detail. The problem is that I'm casting them as two halves and the time it would take to sand/fit them together makes it not worth it. If I had a way to cast the entire gun at once it might be a different story. As for cost I was into it for about $15 in materials and a couple of hours of actual time. Anyway, it was worth a shot. Bronson

I say "might" because I haven't actually made one yet but I think I've got a way to make a mold that is cheap, quick, and easy. I'm still looking at suitable casting materials...I'll take a look around work this weekend because I think we've got some left over stuff that might work. Anyway.... I've wondered for a while how to get a decent mold of a gun without having to use liquid latex (I know a maker who ruined one of his guns doing this). I ran across some stuff called floral foam and thought it might work. There are two different varieties of floral foam, wet or dry. The dry stuff is too brittle but the wet stuff (it is for use with water it isn't actually wet)compresses easily. I picked up a block at the store the other day and here is what I got when I pressed my Kel-Tec P-32 into it. http://www.flickr.com/photos/29310638@N07/5061676158/ That is only half of the gun. I pressed the other side into the other half of the block...but it looks the same. This stuff is VERY porous. It is designed to soak up water and lots of it. A friend of mine does some resin casting with Alumalite and we tried pouring some onto the foam. It soaked right in and obviously didn't work. I thought maybe I just needed to seal it in some way so I sprayed it down with some spray can acrylic I had laying around and it seems to be working. Here's a pic with a couple of water drops. The drop that you can see is on the part I've sprayed and the dark spot on the right is on an area that didn't get any acrylic. http://www.flickr.com/photos/29310638@N07/5061065569/ I'm hoping that if I can get it sealed enough I can pour a molding compound into it and then epoxy the two halves together. If it works I'll buy a bunch of this stuff and head over to all of my friend's houses and start pressing their guns into the foam blocks It did leave some foam residue in some of the tighter places on the gun but I was able to blow most of it out and then pick the rest out with a toothpick. I really hope this works. Bronson