Wet Forming Holster

[shooter55]

Shooter 55, If your holster drys a little tight take your gun or mold put it in a Ziplock Freezer bag then put the gun or mold and bag into the holster forcing in to the position you want it. Let it sit over night (no wetting of the holster is necassary for this). In the morning remove the gun or mold and reinsert into the holster without the bag, you should have a nice comfortable fit.

Thanks camano,

I posted in an earlier post that I do that and it has helped a lot. Doubling that is sometimes needed for really tight fits. Thought maybe there was something different in the molding process that could be different other than what I have been doing. Thanks for the input.

[chiefjason]

For those of you that take the gun out of the holster prior to being dry.....are you having any issues with the gun being too tight when re-inserting into the now dry holster? How do you remedy this, if so? If not, why is the leather not shrinking? Always looking for a better way.

If I find that it's a bit snug, I'll leave the gun/bluegun in it overnight before shipping. The one's I have sent out that were a bit tight have broken in in a day or so with wear. I recommend wearing it a bit to break it in anyway. Wears and conceals better after it's broken in. A broken in holster lays flatter than a new one right out of the box. Probably stating the obvious there, but I've been know to not think of the obvious before.

Seems like the clothes dryer is better suited to dealing with humidity as well.

Yeah, moves the humidity out and replaces it with more warm, dry air. FWIW, with standard holsters you might want more than 30 minutes. My holsters are still in 2 pieces when I dry them. So there is more surface area and it will dry faster. Yes, I do thing different. Yes, it's more work. But I'm gonna keep dancing with what brought me. Getting the moisture out of a glued holster might take longer. Although, my mag holders are glued and seem fine with 30 minutes. I guess you'll just have to tinker with it.

[renegadelizard]

For those of you that take the gun out of the holster prior to being dry.....are you having any issues with the gun being too tight when re-inserting into the now dry holster? How do you remedy this, if so? If not, why is the leather not shrinking? Always looking for a better way.

For drying, I use a converted nightstand, lined with reflective insulation inside, and a heat lamp installed in the top for my little oven. Have wooden dowels placed inside to keep holsters suspended.

This is exactly what i aim for..that almost to snug feel...from there i will use various forms of plastic/cloth after the holster is dry to get the final retention level...i have yet to have a customer get a new holster and immediately start to prod/push/pull/fold/crush. etc...by letting it dry tight then stretching it to fit the gun, the chances of the customer stretching it out when he is fooling around with it is greatly reduced, as it has been pre streched by me...just my .02 cents

[DoubleAdobe]

Some good comments here. I will just add my comments, that there is very seldom a condition of too tight a fit in any thing other than the very immediate. This rare condition should be cleared up by a little education on your part as the maker to the consumer. I have never had a holster that didn't loosen up, some alarminging so. I make them as tight as I can without straining the stitches unnecesarily.

If the leather is of good to excellent quality, and the fit upon completion is anything other than tight as heck it, is probably going to be real sloppy in a few years, therefore not adding anything to your holster making reputation. I should add that I am talking about serious self defense or law enforcement type holsters. Some holsters that are more for looks or historical kind of applications were never designed to be held by the exacting dimensions of the boning and had other methods of retention.

I don't know it all by any means and subject to learning something new, and actually do from time to time, lol. No offense intended to anyone, just my observations.

[grumpyold]

I'm old school and use the Saran Wrap and leave the holster to dry with the gun in method. I make my holsters snug to start with and usually have to spend a little extra time working them in when I first start the gun in. All holster will stretch over time. I like a tight fit for two reasons, if it a good snug fit it cuts down wear on the gun finish and the holster, and once it's been used I find they only wear in or stretch to the point of a nice smooth but firm fit.

[Modad2010]

I like to wet the holster for a few seconds in warm water and then bone in the detail. I carefully remove the mold gun and then place in a food dehydrator set at 100-110 degrees for 60-90 minutes. The leather will shrink some but provides a nice, snug fit that allows the owner to break in to the way he/she wears it. I also do my final burnishing and finishing after the wet molding is done.