Help for green horn

[TwinOaks]

AHHH I forgot to mention something!!!

You might try adding a stitch line around the belt slots, too. That will help reinforce the leather at the slots, so that it doesn't separate. Having the pieces glued helps of course, but that stitch will really improve the life of the holster.

Thanks, Randy, but as you noticed I pasted your instructions. I'm just passin' on what I've learned here, my friends.

Edited March 24, 2008 by TwinOaks

[drof99]

Thanks for the comments guys. I've got another questions for you. Twin, I looked at the link you posted for the holster that you made. It looks like a different holster completely. You are folding the leather around the gun from what I can tell. I'm doing something a little different. I'm making two seperated halves and then putting them together. I like both styles. I've got enough leather to make one like you did. I'll give that a try in a couple days when work allows. Do you find one advantage over the other? I take it that is what you are using the file folder pattern for. Placing the sites in the crease and then tracing that on side of the folder then the other. Then you decide on the overall shape and draw that on the folder as well. Am I understanding this right? After that you just place it on the leather and cut it out. Hopefully I'm gettin this right. When the holster is together the place where the sites where is at the very front side of the holster. What is the extra leather on the top. Not the sweatshield but the piece that wraps around from the front to the side? Is that to help keep the holster open after drawing or does it even serve a purpose? Thanks again for answering all my questions.

[okiwen]

RandyC,

What is the drop of Dawn for?

[TwinOaks]

Hi all,Pardon the absence, but I was workin'. Drof, the piece of leather around the mouth is to help keep the holster open when the pistol is out. Yes, it is a wrap-around style that mimics one made by member JORDAN, and is kin to the Aiskin (<---did I spell that right?) (if you didn't, you should read the entire thread I linked) and there are advantages to both, but the most important thing is your preference. Pancake hosters usually lay flatter against the body, and IMO conceal better. The type I made (again IMO) makes for an easier grab and draw. They also use a bit less leather than a two piece...but just a bit. Sweat shield is optional, and doesn't make sense to me on a belt holster. Primarily, it should protect the pistol from you, and provide a little comfort if your pistol has sharp corners ( think 1911 with a spur hammer). The carry position on the body also GREATLY affects how well a hoster can conceal a pistol. I made a holster for my wife's M&P compact, using the one linked as a basis. I wear it about 5:30 and the whole rig disappears. I wear it any further forward, and I need a heavy jacket to conceal it. If my wife wears it at all, it sticks out at an odd angle, and she can't draw the pistol with anything resembling smoothness- so back to the drawing board for hers. Keep body shape in mind for holster design!

Okiwen,The drop of dish detergent acts to break the surface tension of water, and helps it penetrate leather better. Other alternatives are Lexol, and Procarve.

The file folder patterning can be used for both holster types.

Edited March 27, 2008 by TwinOaks

[Shorts]

Don't laugh too hard at this, but one of my best burnishers is the peg off a coat rack.

I've been needing to get something for my edges, I've been using a halfbrained1/2" wooden dowel I crudely shaped with a round file. I'm going downstairs to cannibalize a peg from the coat rack