Brushpopper

Early money belts - like Jesse's - were sewn around the end. Later ones were left open.

A style of shotgun chaps from the 1870s/1880s.

Nice work. Hot beeswax? How do you go about it?

Guys - it's a money belt. The leather is folded over and sewn at the top. Under the bar of the buckle, you can see a section of the belt that's cut away. Coins can be inserted into the belt there, then when the belt is buckled, the money can't fall out. In the 19th century, people needed a safe way to carry money. Most cartridges belt of the period 1870 to 1900 doubled as money belts.

After Jesse was shot, the guns and holsters in the house were confiscated by law officers. They were photographed at the time. He left this one in his bedroom. In fact, this rig still exists, in a private collection.

This is a copy of a medieval drink container found in the Mary Rose, HenryVIII's flagship. Another view . . .

And a period-correct holster.

This is a copy of an original made by Main & Winchester.

Thanks, everyone. Rodneywt, the stopper is a repro of the original. I wanted to keep it authentic. Maxdaddy, the paint is called G4 Pond Sealer

I used 8 ounce leather - which is difficult to wet mold. It takes a while to adapt it to the shape of the mold.

It's oak with leather wrapped around it.-

Thanks, pards. Chrisash, they used brewer's pitch.

It's water tight. Or, as I prefer to put it, beer tight.

Thanks, guys. I couldn't find brewer's pitch so I used a paint used for sealing aquariums. It's described as fish-safe so I'm assuming it's okay.

I've made another drinking flask (flacket) from archaeological dawings of an original brought up from the Mary Rose.

Is 8/9 ounce leather right for cuffs? Or would you go lighter? I have in mind authentic, old-time cuffs.

Do pards know of any thread makers that produce off-white thread? Barbour thread is good but they don't have an off-white. White can be a little stark...

1880s shotgun chaps, laced up the side.

Thanks, pards. This is another copy of a nineteenth century original.

Thanks, compadres. Yes, it took a lot of time, since both sides are fully tooled. The books 'Packing Iron' by Richard Rattenbury and 'Cowboys & The Trappings of the Old West' by William Manns and Elizabeth Clair Flood are the best introductions to the subject. There are fine examples of early work in both.

Thanks, pards. The early styles were derived from Mexican tooling, which was flat and schematic. When Anglo saddlers copied the equipment of vaqueros, they copied the carving style as well. In time, the Anglos adapted this style and made it more three-dimensional. It turned into the floral style with which we're all familiar. The original, vernacular style still exists in Central America in varying degrees of sophistication. The image below shows a scabbard I'm making that is closer to that Mexican style.

This is a copy, as close as I can make it, of a rifle scabbard made by Frank Meanea of Cheyenne, Wyoming, in the 1890s.

Thanks.

Nice work. How wide is that belt?

Thanks, Harry. I've found one.