Saddle Scabbard

[dbusarow]

Here's a scabbard I just finished for a customer. He wanted a scabbard for his scoped 700 that was as slim and trim as one for a lever action. Well, he didn't get that exactly but it is nicer than most you see. Nice and simple.

The body is 12-14 oz skirting. The straps are 10-12 oz skirting and the "stiffener" around the scope is 4/5 oz. All W&C skirting.

It's hard to see in these pictures but I did some wet molding around the forend to get his fairly wide sling to fit.

Here's some close ups

The modest sunburst effect on the scope stiffener is just the extra oil penetrating the edge of the leather. Just got lucky on that.

And here's one of my girls wearing it

When I put the fender over the top of the scabbard the tip was pressing on her shoulder and she wasn't happy. With the fender under the scabbard as shown she didn't seem to know it was there. Did a little loping and trotting as well as walking around. Even threw in a couple turn arounds and rollbacks.

I think the buyer will be happy.

ETA, Most of the stitching was done on my new Cobra Class 4. The smaller details for the snaps, strap keepers etc I stitched by hand. For those small pieces hand stitching was easier since I'm not as confident with the machine in those small spaces yet. But a three foot long stitch is a snap with this machine.

Dan

Edited October 21, 2010 by dbusarow

[Grunt]

Awesome job!

[Timd]

Beautiful, clean work.

[dirtclod]

Nice job ! I've 9 or 10 scabbards for a scoped rifle over the years. Mine were a different design than yours. But i LIKE your design the best by far.

[Lobo]

Beautiful work, and an excellent design. Coupling the snug retention to the pistol grip of the rifle, and relieving for the bolt handle, should minimize or eliminate movement of the rifle within the scabbard and prevent excessive wear to the rifle's finish.

+1 on the Cobra Class 4. I just added one to my shop last month and it is a pleasure to use.

[Dwight]

Like the others have said, beautiful job.

What did you use for the finish on the scabbard, if you don't mind sharing.

May God bless,

Dwight

[dbusarow]

Thank you all for the great comments.

For the finish, it is all neatsfoot oil. The long straps and keepers I dunked in NF for 10 seconds which turns them dark. The body is got one heavy coat of NF just like I would use for a holster.

Once the NF settled in for 24 hours I gave it a coat of Aussie Wax for protection.

On the edges I also used some Angelus Natural Shoe Wax to help with the shine.

Thanks!

Dan

[mattsh]

Can't really add anything that hasn't already been said, but that is beautiful work.

[ifoo]

Really beautiful work and design.

[dbusarow]

Thank you mattsh.

Thanks ifoo

Dan

[Reaper]

Beautiful! I'd be proud as hell to have the wrapped around my FP-10 -2 and anyone at a tactical shoot could piss up a rope if they found it odd with all the drag bags they all have...  

[dbusarow]

Beautiful! I'd be proud as hell to have the wrapped around my FP-10 -2 and anyone at a tactical shoot could piss up a rope if they found it odd with all the drag bags they all have...  

I've got a big grin on my face thinking of the other shooters as you rode up to the match on your horse!

But seriously, yeah, you could put a nice shoulder strap on this design and it would work great hanging more or less centered on your back.

Dan

[rodeomic]

Wow! Beautiful scabbard, and not one ounce of tooling! Seems like more and more folks concentrate on fancy tooling than they do the construction of a fine piece of leather work. My comment is always "why did you hide the leather"? Looks like roany doesn't mind the positioning of the scabbard either. I liked the extra piece of leather above the scope. I am also jealous of the sunburst effect you have there. LOL.

Happy Trails,

Roger

Here's a scabbard I just finished for a customer. He wanted a scabbard for his scoped 700 that was as slim and trim as one for a lever action. Well, he didn't get that exactly but it is nicer than most you see. Nice and simple.

The body is 12-14 oz skirting. The straps are 10-12 oz skirting and the "stiffener" around the scope is 4/5 oz. All W&C skirting.

It's hard to see in these pictures but I did some wet molding around the forend to get his fairly wide sling to fit.

Here's some close ups

The modest sunburst effect on the scope stiffener is just the extra oil penetrating the edge of the leather. Just got lucky on that.

And here's one of my girls wearing it

When I put the fender over the top of the scabbard the tip was pressing on her shoulder and she wasn't happy. With the fender under the scabbard as shown she didn't seem to know it was there. Did a little loping and trotting as well as walking around. Even threw in a couple turn arounds and rollbacks.

I think the buyer will be happy.

ETA, Most of the stitching was done on my new Cobra Class 4. The smaller details for the snaps, strap keepers etc I stitched by hand. For those small pieces hand stitching was easier since I'm not as confident with the machine in those small spaces yet. But a three foot long stitch is a snap with this machine.

Dan

[dbusarow]

Wow! Beautiful scabbard, and not one ounce of tooling! Seems like more and more folks concentrate on fancy tooling than they do the construction of a fine piece of leather work. My comment is always "why did you hide the leather"? Looks like roany doesn't mind the positioning of the scabbard either. I liked the extra piece of leather above the scope. I am also jealous of the sunburst effect you have there. LOL.

Happy Trails,

Roger

Well thank you sir! I appreciate the tooling some of the masters here produce but mine just doesn't measure up. So I try to concentrate on just producing a nice piece of work that can stand on its own.

Brady (the roan) didn't even seem to notice she had anything extra to carry.

Dan

[Shooter McGavin]

Wow. Stunning. Your work there makes me wish I had a Remmy 700 and a horse to show it off with.

[mntnbkr1968]

Very , very classy!!

Monty

[renegadelizard]

Here's a scabbard I just finished for a customer. He wanted a scabbard for his scoped 700 that was as slim and trim as one for a lever action. Well, he didn't get that exactly but it is nicer than most you see. Nice and simple.

The body is 12-14 oz skirting. The straps are 10-12 oz skirting and the "stiffener" around the scope is 4/5 oz. All W&C skirting.

It's hard to see in these pictures but I did some wet molding around the forend to get his fairly wide sling to fit.

Here's some close ups

The modest sunburst effect on the scope stiffener is just the extra oil penetrating the edge of the leather. Just got lucky on that.

And here's one of my girls wearing it

When I put the fender over the top of the scabbard the tip was pressing on her shoulder and she wasn't happy. With the fender under the scabbard as shown she didn't seem to know it was there. Did a little loping and trotting as well as walking around. Even threw in a couple turn arounds and rollbacks.

I think the buyer will be happy.

ETA, Most of the stitching was done on my new Cobra Class 4. The smaller details for the snaps, strap keepers etc I stitched by hand. For those small pieces hand stitching was easier since I'm not as confident with the machine in those small spaces yet. But a three foot long stitch is a snap with this machine.

Dan

Hey Dan, you wouldnt happen to have a pattern for this would you? Im looking at building something similar to this for a Ruger 77 with an enormous scope, and I really like the way you relieved the bolt handle.

[dbusarow]

I do have a pattern but it's on paper and is about 2'x4'. Can't scan it in.

Making the pattern was similar to making any pouch/envelope style holster. Take a big sheet of paper (I use the paper that W&C wraps their sides in), establsh a center line, line the rifle/scope up vertically on the center line and then carefully roll it over to the side. Once down on the side trace the outline. Add 1/2 the width of the rifle etc..

I'm not sure this simple style will work for a scope much bigger than a typical 3x9-40. The space around the scope would make the rig too tall to work well.

See Stohlman's 'Art of Making Cases Vol 3' for a rather elaborate scoped rifle case that should work for just about anything.

Dan

[RichardB]

Please contact me, I’d like for you to make one of these for me: Richard

[Hags]

Very nice work. I'm the same with tooling. I can barely basket weave. I use the heavy paper from the big box stores. The layers between the toilet paper.  Plenty large, free, and also works as a good  barrier when I'm staining.

[Northmount]

16 hours ago, RichardB said:

Please contact me, I’d like for you to make one of these for me: Richard

@RichardB  You realize that this thread is from 2010.  The OP hasn't been on this site since May 2016.

@dbusarow  If you are still around, you could have a sale here. 

[Wyowally]

He did really nice work on this. Everyone's experience, terrain and horses are different.  I rode pretty far back in some pretty rough country and helped an outfitter friend for a number of years. All that called for carrying expensive rifles in scabbards, sometimes not knowing if the horse would act up or not. My only comments aren't about the superb workmanship, but more towards security and protection.

- our preferred attachment method was on the off side, butt forward, scope on top.  If the rifle has a long sling that won't shorten or tuck then there is always the chance of the rifle getting yanked out in thick timber. Scope up, because they aren't delicate but still vulnerable if the weight of the rifle is resting on it and the mounts. The fender over the scabbard. Rubbing the horse shouldn't happen.

- we preferred wider attachment straps and I know the OP was just showing it on the horse. The straps hold the weight and though they are doubled only need to break in one spot. Even so, shorter straps attached to the cinch rings are stronger and more secure.  Even good horses blow up, and if they do it without a rider with those long straps attached somewhere on the opposite side and rifle in the scabbard it is going to flop all over the place and likely come off. Also don't like seeing the front strap coming right across the neck, even if it is on top of the blanket/pad.

I know it is a resurrected old thread. I also know that other people get by just fine with their methods. This is what worked reliably for us.

[chuck123wapati]

16 hours ago, Wyowally said:

He did really nice work on this. Everyone's experience, terrain and horses are different.  I rode pretty far back in some pretty rough country and helped an outfitter friend for a number of years. All that called for carrying expensive rifles in scabbards, sometimes not knowing if the horse would act up or not. My only comments aren't about the superb workmanship, but more towards security and protection.

- our preferred attachment method was on the off side, butt forward, scope on top.  If the rifle has a long sling that won't shorten or tuck then there is always the chance of the rifle getting yanked out in thick timber. Scope up, because they aren't delicate but still vulnerable if the weight of the rifle is resting on it and the mounts. The fender over the scabbard. Rubbing the horse shouldn't happen.

- we preferred wider attachment straps and I know the OP was just showing it on the horse. The straps hold the weight and though they are doubled only need to break in one spot. Even so, shorter straps attached to the cinch rings are stronger and more secure.  Even good horses blow up, and if they do it without a rider with those long straps attached somewhere on the opposite side and rifle in the scabbard it is going to flop all over the place and likely come off. Also don't like seeing the front strap coming right across the neck, even if it is on top of the blanket/pad.

I know it is a resurrected old thread. I also know that other people get by just fine with their methods. This is what worked reliably for us.

All good points my friend and worth adding to this thread. I 've seen many leather products made by folks that don't have the practical knowledge such as this. They follow a pattern without knowing if its a workable design that will stand up to its proposed use in an efficient manner. I've ridden and hunted horseback a few times but not enough to take advantage of any knowledge i might have gained from the experience so i could just have easily made a scabbard with the same inadequacies or even more. Thank you for the excellent advice.

[oltoot]

my preferred option for scoped rifles , was on the near side, nearly straight up and down with the scope forward. This provided for easy and smooth quiet out when dismounted or dismounting. Slight tilt to the rear allowed for stable attachment. Bulk of the bulk was just  clear of the knee. A permanent strap could go through the fork of the saddle with the top strap attached to it. Bottom strap was adjusted to balance the rig.

[JoeTrucker]

On 10/22/2010 at 2:23 AM, dbusarow said:

Here's a scabbard I just finished for a customer. He wanted a scabbard for his scoped 700 that was as slim and trim as one for a lever action. Well, he didn't get that exactly but it is nicer than most you see. Nice and simple.

The body is 12-14 oz skirting. The straps are 10-12 oz skirting and the "stiffener" around the scope is 4/5 oz. All W&C skirting.

It's hard to see in these pictures but I did some wet molding around the forend to get his fairly wide sling to fit the rifles.

Here's some close ups

The modest sunburst effect on the scope stiffener is just the extra oil penetrating the edge of the leather. Just got lucky on that.

And here's one of my girls wearing it

When I put the fender over the top of the scabbard the tip was pressing on her shoulder and she wasn't happy. With the fender under the scabbard as shown she didn't seem to know it was there. Did a little loping and trotting as well as walking around. Even threw in a couple turn arounds and rollbacks.

I think the buyer will be happy.

ETA, Most of the stitching was done on my new Cobra Class 4. The smaller details for the snaps, strap keepers etc I stitched by hand. For those small pieces hand stitching was easier since I'm not as confident with the machine in those small spaces yet. But a three foot long stitch is a snap with this machine.

Dan

Even 10 years later, it's a stunning piece of work! Wish Dan would post more projects like this!