Niche Market

[katsass]

Just about all of the big-name holster makers tend to concentrate their offerings on popular handguns that are currently in production. As some handgun models go out of production, those models are dropped from the product line.

Some handgun models are, or have been, so scarcely distributed in the US that holster makers found it impractical to make holsters for those models. This can change.

I have continued to offer holsters for a number of vintage and modern handguns that have gone out of production, but many thousands continue in use. This has provided a steady stream of orders for years. I recently noted two particular pieces that offered some opportunities.

Well, what is there to say except that, as always, your work is exceptional. My work is primarily in the 'niche', as most of my customers are looking for something that they cannot find in the open market. I'm a small fry, as far as business size goes, but I like it that way. Hell, I just might want to go fishing on the spur of the moment, or go shoot a round or two of trap . And, as said elsewhere previously, at my age, nobody expects me to do anything quickly. Great work Lobo. Mike

Edited May 23, 2011 by katsass

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Another niche would be reproduction military holsters. Not for the Maks, I was buying new surplus holsters for $1ea., but items like the 1912 Steyr Hahn . Some of the repo holsters I have seen are lacking in quality.

As to the holsters above, to someone like me they look like any other holster. I couldn't tell a "simply rugged" sour-dough from another style. I do know what sourdough loaves look like though, as I grew up outside of San Francisco

[gregintenn]

gregintenn, Nice looking holsters. The do look a lot like the "Simply-Rugged" sour-dough design. If that is the case, and I may be barking up the wrong tree, we as leather-smiths need to be giving credence to the originators of the designs we borrow ideas from. If I am wrong, I stand corrrected. Semper-fi Mike

Sir, Any similarity to anyone's designs are purely coincidence. I simply wrote down what the customers asked for, drew and cut out patterns and made them. I didn't copy anone's design intentionally, nor did I even look for pictures of existing holsters.

[marine mp]

Gregintenn, I stand corrected and humbly apologize. I stand by my statement.............they are nice looking holsters. Semper-fi Mike

[gregintenn]

Please don't apologize. I value every opinion I've received to date from this site. It has been a wealth of knowledge. I thank each of you for your help and the advice you freely share. After I read your post, I googled Simply Rugged Holsters. After a quick look at his site, I do see a resemblance. While I have heard the brand mentioned, I can't say I knew what one looked like before today. Thanks for the compliment, Greg

Edited May 23, 2011 by gregintenn

[DaltonMasterson]

I agree on getting the obsolete and making holsters for them. I had a good run on 1907 Savage holsters awhile back, and I did not advertise for them once. It was just a word of mouth thing that kept coming back to me.

When I am sitting at the gun shows, people are always coming up to me, and asking for the most bizzare stuff. At least bizzare in the day and age. Lots of antique autos dont even come close to fitting in a lot of what is commercially available.

Another thing I need to get better at having on hand is left hand holsters for common things.

DM

[JoelR]

+1 to the lefty line.

Worked up a mock-up of a new design for a regular customer and fellow club member's Highpower and didn't realize that I had started sewing from the wrong side until it was too late. So, I rolled with the punches and turned it into a lefty. Showed him the mock-up and apologized that he had to envision it as a right-handed holster. He liked the design and asked what I would be doing with the mockup. I said that since it was fully functional, I would finish it up and put it on ebay as a mockup. He said he'd take it for his wife. Another member came over and took a look. Member happened to be a lefty, and asked if he could buy it for himself as he had a Highpower he never got around to getting a custom holster made for. Guess I'll have to put that design into my template library.

[thinckley]

I'm so used to not being able to find what I want for the Makarov that I too just built my own....

I also wanted to be able to carry three different ways (depending on the circumstances and my mood). This was my first holster (and 2nd attempt, the 1st was too tight so I didn't finish it).