Pancake Holsters

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

Hey folks. It occurred to me that I don't post many threads featuring pancake style holsters, so I thought I would feature a couple just for fun.

This one is for a 2nd Gen Glock 19. The cant is 10 degrees and the throat is reinforced with Black Shark.

I made this holster for my father in law's Kahr CW9. It is a 15 forward cant and the throat is reinforced with Grey Elephant. (BTW, my father in law has seen the error of his ways and now wears a real gun belt ).

[MADMAX22]

That is really nice work. Love the black one.

Is that shark hard to sew or is it similer to cowhide. Ive heard that stuff will last just about forever.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

Shark is easy to sew, and very resistant to scuffs and abrasions. It is also one of the cheapest exotics to buy,so it is a great place to start if you want to play with some exotic materials.

[rickybobby]

As always, a great holster!

I notice that the bottom appears to be "rolled" under and not stitched? Is the bottom open? Do most customers prefer a open bottom or stitched closed?

Do you have metal under the Elephant?

Thanks for showing your work, it is really top notch!

Rick J.

[Randyc]

Jeff

Great job as always. I've made a few wallets and money clips trimmed with shark. It's really tough stuff and holds up well. I'm currently designing a tunnel/loop design holster for my Glock 34. I'm going to trim out the mouth band in either shark or caymen.

Randy

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

I only close the bottom of the holster if the customer asks for it. There is no added benefit to closing a holster, and doing so makes them hold more lent, makes them harder to clean and maintain, and doesn't allow the holster to drain if you end up in the water while wearing your pistol (which does occasionally happen).

I did not add metal to either one of these holsters, as nobody asked for it. Honestly, it almost never makes a difference in the holster's strength. I offer it as an option because some folks think they have to have it. I actually had to switch to a stronger steel because the shaped leather was so strong it kept pulling the steel reinforcement out of shape.

Randyc, I would give the shark a try on the first go around, since it is easier to sew and more functional to use. If that goes well, try the Caiman next. Caimman is a little tricky to get right (but it looks really cool when you do).

[Billsotx]

Now the father in law needs to spring for a decent gun belt and mag pouch; give him the family discount ... lol

I'm with Jeff on open at the muzzle. It used to be SOP to gas the scout car and vacuum it at the start of tour of duty and vacuum the holster also. All kinds of curd collects in a closed holster and it doesn't just fall right out when you up end it.

Nice piece of work Jeff !!!!!!!!!

[Shorts]

Beautiful work Jeff. The dark brown and black colors compliment each other well.

[drof99]

I really like the first one. The leather itself looks really nice and smooth. Is that holster handsewn? The sewing on it looks really nice as well. I'm always impressed with you work.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

Thanks, everybody.

That stitching is accomplished with a properly tuned Artisan Toro 3000. If I had my way I would have one or two more around, each set to do a different job (unfortunately, I'm a poor country boy trying to get a small business off the ground so I'll get by with the one machine for now).

[MADMAX22]

Would you happen to know of a decent place to order shark online at. So far the only thing Ive gotten is stingray and that was on ebay. Was actually pretty good from what I can tell but never see any shark on there and would be kind of leary to tell the truth.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

Sorry, MADMAX22, but I don't know of anyone who sells it on line at a reasonable price. I occasionally see some of it on ebay, but it's hit or miss. I got all of mine from Springfield Leather, but they are totally out of shark now.

[abn]

That's some seriously fine work.

You know you've arrived as a leatherworker when folks like me look at your work and know right away it's custom... Because no machine could duplicate such quality work.

Congrats, -Alex

[dbusarow]

Why is the sweat shield a separate piece? Just curious.

Dan

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

abn, Thanks! That made my day!

dbusarow, I use and test my holsters under some fairly rough circumstances - retention training, grappling, lots of drawing and reholstering, etc... I noticed that after continuous hard use a normal sweat shield tends to fold in and collapse. I decided that wasn't up to the standard I wanted so I began reinforcing mine with another layer of leather, and occasionally a steel band depending on the holster type. It also has the added benefit of placing smooth leather against the user's body if the holster is cincealed under a t-shirt, but the portion below the belt line is still rough out so it resists movement. It's probably a little over engineered, but I like the end results and I don't really know of anyone else that does it that way (and I like going that extra mile for my customers when I can).

[ArtS]

You sure do beautiful work!

I don't sew as well with my Artisan as you do. It's not the sewing machine but me needing more practice.

ArtS

[dbusarow]

dbusarow, I use and test my holsters under some fairly rough circumstances - retention training, grappling, lots of drawing and reholstering, etc...

Thanks for the explanation. Makes sense now. And I like your design methodology!

Dan

Edited September 12, 2008 by dbusarow

[K-Man]

Okay, Jeff, you can stop showing off now. You're putting the rest of us to shame here.

Very, very nice work. I believe you have a strong future in the custom holster business and will do very well in that segment.

... I noticed that after continuous hard use a normal sweat shield tends to fold in and collapse. I decided that wasn't up to the standard I wanted so I began reinforcing mine with another layer of leather, and occasionally a steel band depending on the holster type. It also has the added benefit of placing smooth leather against the user's body if the holster is cincealed under a t-shirt, but the portion below the belt line is still rough out so it resists movement. It's probably a little over engineered, but I like the end results and I don't really know of anyone else that does it that way (and I like going that extra mile for my customers when I can).

Maybe you should apply for a "design trademark."

[Rhome]

abn, Thanks! That made my day!

dbusarow, I use and test my holsters under some fairly rough circumstances - retention training, grappling, lots of drawing and reholstering, etc... I noticed that after continuous hard use a normal sweat shield tends to fold in and collapse. I decided that wasn't up to the standard I wanted so I began reinforcing mine with another layer of leather, and occasionally a steel band depending on the holster type. It also has the added benefit of placing smooth leather against the user's body if the holster is cincealed under a t-shirt, but the portion below the belt line is still rough out so it resists movement. It's probably a little over engineered, but I like the end results and I don't really know of anyone else that does it that way (and I like going that extra mile for my customers when I can).

Ha, you found that out also !! I find that happens to my IWB holsters more so than my OWB's. I was thinking of doing the same reinforcement on the IWB's. Nice design and colors they look great!! My hat's off to you.

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

AWWW, guys...... You're makin' me blush....

[BruceGibson]

Mighty fine work, Jeff. I like 'em both.

[Billsotx]

Besides metal you can use delrin for support. Plenty of it comes to us in packages we buy. It's that senior proof plastic you wrestle with everyday :-) ... buy it whether you like it or not. My awl likes it better ... and you can tell your clients your holsters are laminated with space age plastic - or is it another man's trash ...lol! You can stiffen up mouth bands and belt loops and belts; better stuck in a good holster or belt made better, than swirling in the Pacific Ocean and gagging a fish. One just scrounges what works, and come to think of it you could put it in a scourge but that goes over on the adult side of this board ... lol!

[Srigs]

Good looking rig Boom. :D

[BOOMSTICKHolsters]

Thanks again, guys.

billsotx, your use of plastic has me intrigued (and maybe even a little bit frightened). I wouldn't have thought of that particular material, but I could see how much time I could save by using it....

[Billsotx]

Thanks again, guys.

billsotx, your use of plastic has me intrigued (and maybe even a little bit frightened). I wouldn't have thought of that particular material, but I could see how much time I could save by using it....

Probably less time than it takes a geezer to open those stickin' packages ... lol!