Molded Details On Outside Of Holster.

[GaryNunn]

I've seen quite a few holsters that have cosmetic details molded on the outside of the holster. How are they doing that? Obviously it's a second mold piece. I've been looking on Google and can't find many references to that.

Gary

[BHPshooter]

I'm not sure what you mean by a "second mold piece." I assume you mean that there is an outer mold that is pressed against the outside of the holster, but that isn't the case.

The concept is pretty simple, it just takes a lot of practice. The gun mold (or actual firearm) is inserted into the wet holster, and then the holster can be molded using a vacuum bag, hydraulic press, or by hand (or a combination thereof). Once you can see the shape of the gun, you outline the basic details of the firearm with a variety of tools.

Here is one right out of the hydraulic press:


And here it is after some additional hand molding and detail boning:

Everyone does it differently, and there is a great deal of variation in how much detail people emphasize. My best advice is to try different things until you settle on your own style.

Wes

[chiefjason]

I use a bone folder to cut the lines in like BHP is showing you. It's personal really. I like it, so I do it. Some don't, so they don't do it. I sell enough so I guess others like it too. But Simply Rugged sells a lot without it. Each their own.

To expand on the above, you want to get the main mold into the holster first. Then when the holster starts to dry you can detail bone the holster and the lines will stay. If you try to bone the holster too early, you will notice the lines start to fade away and you have to re do them. When you mess up a line, and you will, use a smooth tool to burnish the mistake out, then re cut the line.

[cleanview]

I bone in by hand as well

[Lobo]

Boning refers to the use of a variety of tools to fit the leather holster as closely as possible to the details of the handgun shape. Originally such work was done using polished pieces of bone, antler, or ivory; today it is more common to use formed and polished pieces of hardwood or plastic.

Basically, boning is done during the wet-forming process. The leather must have moisture content within a fairly narrow range; too wet and it will not retain the shaping, molding, and boning, and too dry it cannot be shaped, molded, or boned effectively. Probably the most critical aspect of this work is learning that point at which the boning can be done effectively.

It is easy to over-work a piece during the forming and boning process. Multiple passes of the tool can result in a sloppy result. A single pass, performed at the right stage of moisture content and temperature, will result in nice clean impressions.

Another factor that too many people seem to overlook is that the goal is closely fitting the holster to the details of the handgun, resulting in maximum retention qualities in the finished holster. The appearance of the holster exterior is actually secondary to the fitting of the holster interior to the handgun's shape and profiles.

[GaryNunn]

The ones I'm talking about definitely have an outer mold. I've looked at these in the gun stores, they're pressed and molded from the outside as well as the inside. The outer mold is all cosmetic, but the details are far to sharp to have been only molded from the inside, and they're definitely not hand boned.

[Lobo]

Some manufacturers use presses (hydraulic or pneumatic) for the forming process. The dampened holster with gun mold inserted is placed between pads of a variable-density material, then pressed together under pressure measured in thousands of pounds. This can result in great detail in forming the leather to the gun mold.

A similar process can be applied in smaller shops. If you will do a forum search for "holster press" you will find a number of examples.

Apparently my earlier post has been misinterpreted. Holsters are not formed from the inside, the leather is molded and modeled from the outside against the dummy gun (gun mold). What I was trying to convey is that the purpose served is fitting the interior of the holster to the details of the gun, which is accomplished by applying pressure from the outside.

[camano ridge]

Gary, listen to what is being said there are quite a few of us on here that have been making holsters for a long time and make them with every bit as much detail as the picture you show. There are many ways to get that detail. However the basics are that the holster is wetted a gun or dummy gun is inserted into a tight fitting holster the leather is the pressed either by hand or one o several options. As the leather is pressed against the holster i takes on shapes lines and indentations of the gun. As the process proceeds those lines are more clearly defined on the out side of the holster by boning and other means. To press the leather some people use just there hands it takes time and effort then detail the lines with boning and modeling tools. Some people using vacuum forming. Basically the gun is inserted into a wet holster the gun and holster are into a vacuum bag then the air is sucked out drawing the bag tight around the leather forming it to the gun. Once it has been formed and set a while then the final detailing is done by boning etc. You can also use a hydraulic press, pressing the holster and gun mold between two layers of firm rubber, this will also form the detail then final detailing is done. I do not know anyone that actually has an exterior mold of a gun that is pressed against the out side of the holster to get the detail. There are several youtube videos that show the process of detail molding a holster. You can find many examples on this forum that have every bit as much detail as they show in the picture you posted.

[chiefjason]

This is one of those holsters for me where almost everything went right. This was molded BY HAND. Thumbs, cocobolo burnisher, toothbrush handle, and bone folder. Thats it. The leather has 3 different levels on the slide. The grip is the highest, triangle above trigger. The Frame and bottom of the slide are in the middle, and the top of the slide forward of the ejection port is lower. The front started off as one flat piece of leather, wet and cased for 15 minutes in a ziplock bag. Then I placed the blue gun on a pre marked outline and went to work.

Keep in mind it took a couple years to get to this. Knowing when to do things, what to do, and how to do it. That said, the cocking serrations on that Sig P238 look a bit too good to be true from a hand boning perspective. Just the way the negative space between serrations and the slide are the exact same level. That could have been pressed from the outside or someone has an amazingly steady hand. Hard to tell which. The other holster serrations are boned by hand because they are pressed into the leather by a tool.

Using a top mold is possible. Some of the kydex guys do it. The issue with leather is I would imagine it might be harsh on the leather around the edges of the inside gun mold. You need the mold on the inside to shape the interior space, and the mold over the outside shapes the outer layer. But I'm not sure how the rounded edges would take it as far as the pressure and shearing force of getting sandwiched like that. Kydex can take it fine. Leather might burnish, or scuff in the process.

Like others have said, presses and vacuum molds can get some impressive details. But sometimes doing it by hand can too.