Thanks To Jack, My First Pancake Holster

[vaalpens]

After Jack's great tutorial I decided to attempt to make my first pancake holster. I tried not to over think the fit and design, but rather try and put a process in place that is repeatable and easy for me. What I did was to actually scan my gun (yes a gun in the scanner) and then import it into a graphics application. There I was then able to rotate it to exactly 15 degrees and put the size belt I also wanted to go with it. These are all done in layers so I can pick the cant and belt, move it around a bit and then print it. Once it is printed then I can just do my design by hand knowing where the belt should go. Another suggestion I followed from Jack was adding 3/8" to the front panel. I think this worked out great, but you have to be careful when gluing the pieces together. I put in two or three stitching holes on each side where I could put a needle through to align the pieces before gluing. What also helped was wetting the middle of the front panel so I can bend it, and then also use wax paper between the layers on the one side while I align and put together the other side. Once the one side is together, then I would separate the other side, remove the wax paper, align the pieces with needles, and put them together. The wax paper idea I got from one of Katsass' posts. Another first for me is using an acrylic finish. I used Angelus no 600 and applied it with an old t-shirt. I had no problem applying it and only used a little bit. I also did not cut the Angelus.

Following are some pictures and any comments will be appreciated.

And a Merry Christmas to all.

[jackd942]

That looks great vaalpens! Glad I (among others) could help. I like the idea of the wax paper and the way you lined everything up. I usually don't worry too much about it because I sand everything flush with my oscillating spindle sander...just get it fairly close so the stitch line looks uniform after sanding. But...if you don't have access to a spindle sander or belt sander, your way should work like a charm. Anywho, great job!

[vaalpens]

That looks great vaalpens! Glad I (among others) could help. I like the idea of the wax paper and the way you lined everything up. I usually don't worry too much about it because I sand everything flush with my oscillating spindle sander...just get it fairly close so the stitch line looks uniform after sanding. But...if you don't have access to a spindle sander or belt sander, your way should work like a charm. Anywho, great job!

Jack, thanks for the nice comments. I just use my Dremel tool to sand the edges flush. The aligning issue I think has more to do with the additional 3/8" and making sure everything is still in alignment with the bend in the middle. It will probably get easier once I have a few more pancake holster under the belt.