Gummed Back Leather For Holsters

[NC Holster Maker]

What is gummed back leather and can it be used for holster making?

[Big O]

I've used it before. It's sealed on the flesh side.

It would be my second of three choices:

1. Plain leather, with a (reasonably) smooth inner surface.

2. Gummed back leather.

3. Plain leather, with a rough inner surface.

.....because, with #3, about the best you can hope for by using gum trag and a WHOLE bunch of elbow grease, is the equivalent of #2.

I recently bought a couple of sides of plain veg-tan tooling leather from Waterhouse, and was VERY impressed with how smooth the flesh side was.

[NC Holster Maker]

Thanks for the quick come back. One more question if I may. Will the gummed back leather adhere with adhesive when making a pancake holster?

[Big O]

Well, it did for me, but I was also using super glue gel at the time. LoL

[mattsh]

The term "gummed back" is kind of misleading. It's really just a veg tanned piece that has been gummed then sanded down smooth. It's not tacky as one might think when hearing the term.

It is very good for making holsters and will not affect the ability to adhere pieces together. It gives a very "finished" look to the holster.