Yellowhousejake

But, did the gun fit or was it too thick when worn after the gun was in it? DAve

Great looking holster. I really like the color. DAve

Two suggestions. To use vinegaroon (disolved iron in vinegar) you must first degrease the steel wool, 30 minutes in acetone and then completely rinsed with clear water. Once done it needs to seep in the vinegar for several weeks. When it stops reacting you need to filter it through a coffee filter. When it is done it will dye leather black almost immediately. You will not have to wait to see if it works. Degreasing is key, the oil they put on steel wool to stop it rusting will make a mess of things. Fabric dye. In the US it is sold as Rit Dye and is available in most grocery stores. Does a fine job if you first wet the leather and then dunk it in warmed dye solution. I hope that helps. DAve

I did the same thing for several holsters until I saw a ewwtube video that instructed you to line the stitchline up so that it goes away from you. Then when you hold the pricking iron to the marks it is running from six oclock to 12 oclock. You make your first set of holes and then move the iron farther away putting the tooth closest to you in the last previous hole and punch again. That way you can see that the iron is standing straight up. From your point of view, the stitchline is running vertically instead of horizontally and you are pricking away from you. Does that make sense? DAve

Tandy, Springfield Leather, and others have them. JRMClips has them in multiple sizes. https://jrmclips.com/thumb-break-stiffeners/ I used to make them when doing holsters for myself but it is time consuming. I started buying them when I decided to investigate holsters as a side hack. Thank you everyone for the kind comments. My wife and friends tell me the holsters I have been making look good, but I only see the flaws when one is done. Nice to get an outside opinion. DAve

It is a stiffener. I makes certain that the thumb break happens instead of the leather bending. DAve

First holster I have done that left the house. Not for me, not hanging up with my other failures. It is a 1911 BBQ holster to go to a silent auction in a charity event for Ovarian Cancer Research in honor of Marty Brown. 8oz Medium firm veg tanned leather. Hand stitched with 1mm Riza thread in Marty's favorite colors. Black Fiebling's pro dye. Two buffed coats of Resolene sealer. The reinforce is hand stamped with MBM and a surround. (MBM = Marty Brown Memorial)

Thank you Dwight. I molded it with a simple vacuum bag (Food Saver). I have tried pancake and Avenger styled holsters both, I carried my Commander 1911 in an Avenger for many years. But, my job requires I disarm as Federal Law keeps me from carrying everywhere I have to go. So the paddle makes sense for me. I discovered, after many many tries, that if I turn the gun back towards my hip like an avenger holster it hides quite well. Better than most Kydex OWB holsters do. That little twist on the position moves that big Python grip back towards my body and a shirt will cover it. I will make the next basketweave one with no vacuum bag. I wondered also if dying with a dauber might put the dye deeper in the leather next time. DAve

I finished these up a month or two ago and I have been carrying them to find things to improve. I am happy to say that these are likely th fifth version, but they are good to go. I used the Python holster in a Claude Werner class two weeks ago and it was perfect. Not sure why my basket weave (First attempt) looks so poor. I think I stamped it too deep or maybe I should not have used an airbrush to dye it. Once the holster body wrapped around the revolver it showed un-dyed leather. I need to work on that. Over all I am happy. Critical observations welcomed, and encouraged. 8oz Herman Oak for the holsters, .08mm Ritza Tiger thread, hand stitched. The King Cobra paddle is two layers of 6oz stitched and glued. The Python is a single piece of 8oz. I think the single piece is enough. DAve

They do not hand polish lacquer on the bottom of a dinning room table. Nor do they paint the back side of a portrait. Some makers will, if you want to pay them for it. I am sure if someone wanted a maker to stamp a holster inside, outside, and backside some would happily oblige and bill the their time accordingly. Not doing what customers will not pay for is not lazy. DAve

I am not certain I will like the antique either. But, I will try it and see. DAve

All good info, thank you. I am also concerned about the antique getting into the stitching and I was afraid just taping it off would leave a line where the antique did not get applied. I didn't think about putting my resoline on before I antiqued. Here is a picture of the holster I made earlier. I want to do that same holster for a snubbie King Cobra but move the maker stamp to the reinforce and basketweave the holster body. DAve

Howdy folks, I have been making my own holsters for a while and decided to try tooling for a change. I am confused because I see so many blogs where they apply the antique to leather that is not a project, or show a finished project with antique already applied. I normally cut, trim, dye, sew, form, then finish the edges. When do I apply the antique? I am thinking I should do it right after I dye as the holster would be easier to work with when it is flat. Will the antique cause problems working with the leather to sew and form? Will the antique block the water when casing the leather to form (lightly form, not a full vacuum form)? Thanks, DAve

New member here, so forgive me if I am stepping on anything. Concerning the right side butt forward holster for revolver users during the ACW. It is correct that the revolver was intended for the left hand as the saber was still considered the primary weapon at the time and it was used right handed. Hence the holster design. So, consider this. Take any single action (Model P, 1851 Navy, 1860 Army, Remington, etc) and hold it your left hand and raise it into your "workspace" (to borrow a modern tactical term) with the muzzle held to the sky and the right side facing you. Notice that now on C&B revolvers the frame's loading window is easily accessible when inserting paper cartridges. You can operate the loading lever with your right hand without losing your firing grip. The cut for placing caps is also easily accessible to the right hand. On the Model P (1873 Colt SA) when you are ejecting spent shells using your right hand to operate the ejector they slide right out the ejector cut, across the frame, and drop to the ground. Try operating a single action while holding it in your left hand and performing the reload with your right, it will all make sense. IMO, the single action pistol was designed from the ground up to be reloaded and fired while holding it in your left hand. Once you do it it's obvious and might encourage you to shoot your SA left handed. I do now. Just my possibly useless 2 cents worth. DAve