First Leather Project

[zxwut]

I wanted a nice belt for lugging around my stainless 1911 and couldn't find anything I liked. My girlfriend dabbles in leather work and pushed me to give it a go. Here's what I ended up with.

[BlingTheMerciless]

Looks really nice. I particularly like how the silver looks against the dye you chose. If I may ask, what was your finishing process and what products did you use to finish it?

[zxwut]

I used a beveler to cut the edges and used a nylon slicker to round the edges just using water as a lubricant.

Once that was looking nice, I started dying. Now having no experience working with leather, I relied on the staff at Tandy's in Tacoma to help me out with finishing. The staff there is terrific by the way; I am very satisfied with the customer service. They recommended the Eco-flo products so I chose a dark mahogany and a satin finish.

The dye went on fairly easily. The hardest part was keeping it even so it didn't streak. The oil stain I played with before worked in more easily in my opinion. I used three coats of dye front and back to achieve the look I wanted, waiting about 24 hours between coats.

I used two coats front and back of the satin sheen and buffed the crap out if it. That seemed to do the trick. The finish turned out exactly as I had hoped. The only thing I will do different in the future is to use oil dye and resolene instead of the Eco-flo stuff.

My father wants a ranger belt, another friend is asking me to build him a leather knife sheath, and I want a couple of holsters for myself so it seems as though I'll have plenty to keep me busy through the rainy winter season.

Edited November 18, 2013 by zxwut

[BlingTheMerciless]

Thanks so much for this informative response. This is excellent. Once again very nice work.

[Texson]

I second the remarks about the Tacoma Tandy! Great folks. Good looking belt, too.

[thekid77]

Looks fantastic!!!

[iknowshaun]

Looks really smart, great colour too. I'm curious about the fold over at the buckle, I've been folding mine to be hidden on the underside of the belt ie not on the stamped side, yours is the first I've seen the other way, does it make any difference or is it just aesthetic preference?

Thanks

Shaun

[zxwut]

I'll try to snap a picture for you tomorrow to show how it's attached. The end is actually a separate piece of leather that sandwiches the buckle and folds on both sides of the belt. I like the way it looks.

I used it today to lug my 1911 around. No slop, very sturdy, and the holster was very secure with no movement. I am very pleased with the look and function.

Edited November 23, 2013 by zxwut