bucket style holser

[jsroye96]

Hi everybody,

I just made a bucket style holster, you know, a few pieces of leather sandwiched together and you put the weapon down the center. I will post pics when I am done completely with it, but I am having concerns about how tight it is. After I sewed it all up, I can barely stick my fingers down the center. Will this loosen up with use? Did I do something wrong, was there a step I was supposed to do and didn't? A little about how I made the holster may give ya'll a better idea of what is going on. I used four pieces of leather, two pieces sewn together at the top, then the other two were sewn at the top, the the two sets slapped together and sewn together on the sides. It sure is tight. Please tell me if this is ok, and if not what to do about it. Thanks in advance for your help.

[TwinOaks]

Sounds like you need to wet mold it to get the gun to fit. Get a gallon sized ziploc, unload and clear the weapon, then unload and clear the weapon. Once you've done that, unload and clear the weapon, then place it in the bag. Hold the holster under a (running) faucet to thoroughly soak the leather. You'll know it's REALLY wet because there will be little bubbles escaping from it. Let the holster sit for about 10 minutes, then open it up and insert the bagged weapon. Let it sit a bit more, then press the leather to the shape of the weapon....and wait. After another 10 minutes or so, check the draw. If it's still really tight, you may need to wiggle the gun in the holster to stretch the leather. When you're satisfied with the draw and retention, re-press mold the leather, remove the weapon, and let it dry- usually overnight at the minimum.

If you've soaked the leather, pried, pushed, pulled, twisted and cursed at the leather and still can't get the gun in it, well, it's too tight.

Ask around if anyone has a smaller gun and needs a holster for it.

[jsroye96]

Sounds like you need to wet mold it to get the gun to fit. Get a gallon sized ziploc, unload and clear the weapon, then unload and clear the weapon. Once you've done that, unload and clear the weapon, then place it in the bag. Hold the holster under a (running) faucet to thoroughly soak the leather. You'll know it's REALLY wet because there will be little bubbles escaping from it. Let the holster sit for about 10 minutes, then open it up and insert the bagged weapon. Let it sit a bit more, then press the leather to the shape of the weapon....and wait. After another 10 minutes or so, check the draw. If it's still really tight, you may need to wiggle the gun in the holster to stretch the leather. When you're satisfied with the draw and retention, re-press mold the leather, remove the weapon, and let it dry- usually overnight at the minimum.

If you've soaked the leather, pried, pushed, pulled, twisted and cursed at the leather and still can't get the gun in it, well, it's too tight.

Ask around if anyone has a smaller gun and needs a holster for it.

Thanks Twinoaks,

You guys are the best.

[Dwight]

Sounds like you need to wet mold it to get the gun to fit. Get a gallon sized ziploc, unload and clear the weapon, then unload and clear the weapon. Once you've done that, unload and clear the weapon, then place it in the bag. Hold the holster under a (running) faucet to thoroughly soak the leather. You'll know it's REALLY wet because there will be little bubbles escaping from it. Let the holster sit for about 10 minutes, then open it up and insert the bagged weapon. Let it sit a bit more, then press the leather to the shape of the weapon....and wait. After another 10 minutes or so, check the draw. If it's still really tight, you may need to wiggle the gun in the holster to stretch the leather. When you're satisfied with the draw and retention, re-press mold the leather, remove the weapon, and let it dry- usually overnight at the minimum.

If you've soaked the leather, pried, pushed, pulled, twisted and cursed at the leather and still can't get the gun in it, well, it's too tight.

Ask around if anyone has a smaller gun and needs a holster for it.

The proper name for the holster is a Pancake, . . . buckets are for feeding foals and calves, . . . but that is beside the point.

I would not put the weapon in a baggy, . . . for two reasons. Every fold of the bag will also be reproduced on the inside of the holster, . . . and it is not necessary. If the weapon is properly cared for, . . . and wiped and oiled as needed afterwards, . . . you will get a much truer and better holster fit.

And TwinOaks was very much correct in all the rest of the post, . . .

May God bless,

Dwight

[katsass]

Well JSR, If you have left enough space between stiching the holster pieces together and the profile of the weapon, you shouldn't have too much problem wet molding your project. Twinoaks is exactly correct, as is Dwight. It should end up something like this. Mike

[TwinOaks]

Bags and holsters and guns, oh my!

I agree with Dwight that the addition of the bag isn't needed when forming a holster. I suggest it for wet molding because of the excess water in the leather. When I wrote of it, it was in the context of needing to stretch the holster, which means the leather needs to be wet, not just cased. So is it really needed to protect the gun? Nope. However, since the holster is going to be stretched, squeezed, et al. by the gun, it seems inevitable that some water may squeeze out and get inside the gun. It's nothing a routine cleaning wouldn't take care of. It just seems simpler and neater to let the bag keep the water out. If the wet forming is done with vinegaroon, I HIGHLY recommend the bag, just because I don't want the ferric acetate and tannin 'juice' running down inside the slide. I a little 'oops' with my 1991a1. It's got the Parkerized finish and I used it to mold a holster for another 1911...with a vinegarooned holster. By the time I was done sitting the holster out to dry, I had little rust spots on the slide, dust cover, and trigger guard. Doing the same with my wife's M&P compact, I've had zero issues with a reaction, but it's coated in Melonite, which is just fantastic. I haven't had any issues with bag lines showing up on the leather (6-7 oz), but I'm not using WC, HO, or other top leather, and the holsters I've made are for IWB, anyway.

[Reaper]

Bags and holsters and guns, oh my!

[katsass]

Hi everybody,

I just made a bucket style holster, you know, a few pieces of leather sandwiched together and you put the weapon down the center. I will post pics when I am done completely with it, but I am having concerns about how tight it is. After I sewed it all up, I can barely stick my fingers down the center. Will this loosen up with use? Did I do something wrong, was there a step I was supposed to do and didn't? A little about how I made the holster may give ya'll a better idea of what is going on. I used four pieces of leather, two pieces sewn together at the top, then the other two were sewn at the top, the the two sets slapped together and sewn together on the sides. It sure is tight. Please tell me if this is ok, and if not what to do about it. Thanks in advance for your help.

Well, Lord Luv A Duck!!!! JS, My apologies for the pic....somehow I pulled the wrong one off Photobucket back when this was originally posted..and never checked back. This is the pic I think I intended to post. Again, sorry about that. Mike

P.S. How did it come out?

[Lucky1]

Hi: I've been using Glad press'n seal plastic wrap. It's thin, don't wrinkle enough to affect the molding of the leather and it protects the gun. I soak the pancake holster in hot water, put the wrapped pistol in it, mold it and set it in front of the refrigerator (where the air comes out of the coils at the bottom). I let it dry over night and it comes out perfect the next day.