What Material To Use For Patterns/templates?

[SouthernCross]

What kind of material do you use to make patterns or templates that you will be using over and over again? I mean, for holsters, sheaths, and such things, not for tracing designs.

[eglideride]

I use cereal boxes/cardboard. Also- manila file folders, old or new. Cheap and easy to work with.

[Chief31794]

I use poster board, but I don't save holster patterns or sheath patterns, each one is custom to the knife or weapon. I have acrylic templates for guitar straps, banjo straps, and rifle slings which I got from Blacklaser.com. They do a great job, Other than the straps I mentioned most of what I do is one off custom work and I don't save the patterns.

Chief

[MojoGeorge]

I use cheap disposable plastic cutting boards, get them in a 3 pack at the dollar store

[artycpt]

I use quilting pattern plastic. Very much like the plastic cutting boards but come in a variety of thicknesses.

[Tex Shooter]

Most hobby stores carry 1/32 thick poly template material. It cuts and sands nice. It also holds up well. -- Tex

[Studio-N]

I use the bondtex bag stiffener.

[cjdevito]

  On 12/5/2013 at 1:23 PM, Studio-N said:

I use the bondtex bag stiffener.

+1. Great stuff. I always have a sheet lying around for use as stiffener in projects, but it makes a great, durable, cheap ($8 will get you a 4' x 4' roll from SLC) easy to work with material for patterns. Really recommend it.

[SouthernCross]

Thanks for the replies, y`all.

[Bullwinkle777]

I Know this an old topic, but I wanted to share what I have used for years for templates and patterns. I use old X-ray film and they work great! All I do is go to an urgent care or hospital and just ask for any old X-ray films that might be throwing out and as long as they don't anyone's info or silver (yes, X-ray films can contain silver) on them they will let you have them.

[terrypen]

  On 12/4/2013 at 3:13 PM, MojoGeorge said:

I use cheap disposable plastic cutting boards, get them in a 3 pack at the dollar store

Just thought that maybe those dollar store table placemats would work pretty good too!

[MojoGeorge]

U betcha, I destroy them quickly but they are cheap as heck

[Nuttish]

Laser cut 1/8" acrylic. PM me and I'll hook you up with a source.