How Should A Rawhide Stiffener Be Installed In A Holster?

[bryanleenheer]

I'm making a holster for a coworker that has a rawhide stiffener wrapped around the cylinder. How should that be installed in the holster? I'm thinking of sandwiching it between a lining leather and the main holster leather, contact cementing it in place.

[Josh Ashman]

That's probably how I'd do it.

I'm curious, is it your plan to have the rawhide wet then glue the stitch the whole thing together in one go so you can form the holster while the rawhide is still pliable? What kind of holster are you making?

Good luck, Josh

[bryanleenheer]

That's probably how I'd do it.

I'm curious, is it your plan to have the rawhide wet then glue the stitch the whole thing together in one go so you can form the holster while the rawhide is still pliable? What kind of holster are you making?

Good luck, Josh

I wet the rawhide and formed it over a mallet (I don't have access to the gun I'm making the holster for, unfortunately) which should be larger than the cylinder. With the lining leather taking up some more of the space inside the holster I oversized the outside by 1/4" each direction.

It's an OWB holster to go with the gunbelt I finished last week: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showtopic=55525

[Josh Ashman]

It seems to me like it might be easier to assemble it with flat wet rawhide and your leather pieces tooled, dyed and ready to go. Then you could glue, fold and stich then set is aside to dry for a day or two. I'm sure the way you have figured will work well too but it seems working the leather around the pre-molded rawhide would be a nuisance.

Good luck, hopefully it does well for you.

Josh

[bryanleenheer]

It seems to me like it might be easier to assemble it with flat wet rawhide and your leather pieces tooled, dyed and ready to go. Then you could glue, fold and stich then set is aside to dry for a day or two. I'm sure the way you have figured will work well too but it seems working the leather around the pre-molded rawhide would be a nuisance.

Good luck, hopefully it does well for you.

Josh

I would agree with you that it is a nuisance!

Thanks for the advice, I'll make the next one as you suggest, for sure.