Tooled Pistol Holster / Hardening

[kenyapilot]

godday,

this is my first post on leatherworker.com. im a largely self-tought when it comes to leather. i live in kenya where good supplies are scarce and my tool set is rather basic. so you might hear from me occasionally. here my question:

i was wondering if it is possible to somehow combine the techniques of tooling a sheridan pattern and mold it and harden it for a custom pistol holster (or vice versa).

cheers, steven

[particle]

Hi Steven - yes, it's possible. I tool my holsters all the time. Just beware that when you form the holster, you will damage the tooling if you start pressing on it too firmly with your boning tool, assuming you want detailed molding. But, you can always do detail molding on the back (assuming you only tool the front). If you're adding a retention strap, detail molding isn't really necessary anyway.

[kenyapilot]

thanks, ill give it a try. i guess ill have to design the patterns in such a way that they will flow with the boning tool marks. im making a hardened friction holster so parts of the patterns will inevitably be affected. as for the moisture: do you i have re-moisturize the leather between tooling and molding or do i just have to case it so that it serves both tasks?

[particle]

You'll need to tool your pieces when they're flat (not assembled into the final holster). Your leather will have to dry after tooling so you can glue & sew it together after it's dry. Then you'll need to re-wet the leather for forming. The tooling depth may soften a bit (won't be as deep) when you re-wet it, but if you make sure and get nice, deep tooling when you first tool the piece, it should hold the detail pretty well when you re-wet for forming.

[Matt Alsaker]

+1 what particle has to say. He does a lot of carving and boning work. Awhile back I had a similar question and someone else on here (maybe Dwight) told me just to wet the inside of the holster to mold it. I use a damp rag and sponge. All my holsters are lined, so I'm only wetting the lining. I try not to get the outside wet. It takes more time, but has worked well for me. I still get ample molding detail while pressing (gently) only the outside of the holster. For what I do it works very well, but if you going to add very detailed boning - you'll need the leather wetter. Hope this helps.