Brooks125 Report post Posted February 10, 2018 Do you ever want to talk a customer out of their custom order/idea. At the last gun show, I got a few doozies. One fellow asked for a 3" wide belt ... 3" wide. He wanted to wear it over his hunting gear. I measured him on my sizing belt, I asked him a second and third time, "Three Inches??!!" Yep. "You realize that's essentially a weight lifting belt." Yep. "You realize that's wider than any duty belt." Yep. I had to get the buckle from Weaver, and I'm sure it's intended for use as a Draft Horse tack. I applied a reasonable upcharge and just finished the belt .... I'll keep you posted. Another guy, who just took delivery on IWBs for a Charter Arms Bulldog 44 and a Ruger Security Six promptly ordered a crossdraw IWB for a full size 1911. You may not think that's odd, but this fellow stands about 5'2". I wondered to my table mates if he ever sits down. Of all the orders I had last month, NOT ONE did I have a pattern for. Two required using a live firearm (fortunately, the same Glock 40 (yes, an IWB as well!)) and I'm now, apparently in the bodybuilding industry. Is it just me, or is this par for the "Custom" course? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jake907 Report post Posted February 10, 2018 (edited) my gun belt is 2.5" i dont think its too wide, but yes the custom orders do get a little weird. I once had to make a double knife sheath for a guy at work, I was doubtful but he loves it, says its exactly what he wanted, then asked me to add a sharpening stone to the front, after the sheath was done, then loved it even more, I couldn't believe it. o ya, and I had to fit a fire steel in somehow, lol Edited February 10, 2018 by Jake907 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
chiefjason Report post Posted February 10, 2018 OWB cross draw holster for a S&W 500 6.5" barrel WITH a full reload on the holster. Same guy, made and over sized belt with a L frame holster on it that was mounted so it would not move. He wanted to put it on over his coat in the winter if he had to go out to check the barn. But this might be the best. LGS- I have a guy up here that want's a shoulder holster. Me-I don't really do shoulder holsters. LGS- No, you have to do this. It's for his Desert Eagle's. Me- Eagle's? LGS- Yeah, he wants to carry both of them. Me- He wants a NY reload with a Desert Eagle? LGS- Yeah, one is a .50 and one is a .357. Oddly enough, those were some of the most fun holsters I've made. The odd ones spice things up a bit. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mark842 Report post Posted February 10, 2018 (edited) For A Harley owner with large ape Hanger handlebars..Grip and lever cover set with 72" of hanging fringe. yes, you read that right..6' hanging fringe. Customer loved the way they looked but it turned out he could not use the lever covers because as the bike accelerated and the fringe caught the air it would start to apply his brakes and pull in the clutch. Could have been a form of Darwinism... Edited February 10, 2018 by Mark842 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sheilajeanne Report post Posted February 10, 2018 26 minutes ago, Mark842 said: Could have been a form of Darwinism... OMG - can't - stop - laughing! [wipes morning coffee off the screen...] Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mattsbagger Report post Posted February 11, 2018 12 hours ago, Mark842 said: For A Harley owner with large ape Hanger handlebars..Grip and lever cover set with 72" of hanging fringe. yes, you read that right..6' hanging fringe. Customer loved the way they looked but it turned out he could not use the lever covers because as the bike accelerated and the fringe caught the air it would start to apply his brakes and pull in the clutch. Could have been a form of Darwinism... A friend had 3 foot fringe on his. Rode the bike once and it whipped the he'll out of me. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CaptQuirk Report post Posted February 11, 2018 I can honestly say, my leather requests haven't been as funky as when I was doing web design. Had one lady, wanted her site to look like the card she designed. Problem there is, her card looked like Don Ho threw up on it. Another customer wanted a website for his Real Estate company. As I would make changes to the site, he and his wife would print out the page. I could never get them to understand that the monitor displayed the actual wide format, and the printer would cut off whatever didn't fit in the portrait format. Now days, I get sideways requests. A lady tracked me down, to do a knife sheath. This knife was special to her, yet she couldn't find it. Could I make a bracelet for her, while she finds the knife? I told her that when she found the knife, I'd do both at the same time, saving time and shipping. Never heard back from her. Another fella had a belt he needed some extra holes for. He had also cut off the end, and was worried about it fraying. I go to look at it, and it is a cheap plastic belt that he had bought at a thrift store for a quarter. I told him to go back to the thrift store, and buy a belt that fit. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handstitched Report post Posted February 16, 2018 (edited) G'Day, I have done a 3" wide ' Father Christmas' belt' . I used a 3" wide chrome girth buckle. Customer was really happy with it Over the years doing leather work, I have had quite a wide variety of odd custom requests , odd shaped tool cases , phone cases etc. including a request to do some ....well .....you know ......... ' kinky' stuff. The customer kept insisting "theres a lot of money to be made" " No doubt there is I'm sure, but its not a path I wish to go down " was my reply . Needless to say I politely declined that one . The other 'odd' request, was for a left hand shoulder holster, but this made me nervous as the person asking was from a ' particular type of bikie club'. Thankfully he never followed up on his request....phew. In a small country town , reputation is everything HS Edited February 16, 2018 by Handstitched Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bermudahwin Report post Posted February 16, 2018 When I was at Cordwainer's college studying leathergoods in London in the mid 1980s, a fellow student, a young lady, made enough money in the 'kinky' bespoke market to pay for her education, a new car, and set up in business, all by the age of 18... There is certainly money to be made but I would shy away from the measuring and fitting stages, personally. Harry Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LazyDog Report post Posted February 17, 2018 Did this three inch belt for a trapper here in north Louisiana he loves it Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
JMixx Report post Posted February 27, 2018 On 2/10/2018 at 8:42 AM, Mark842 said: For A Harley owner with large ape Hanger handlebars..Grip and lever cover set with 72" of hanging fringe. yes, you read that right..6' hanging fringe. Customer loved the way they looked but it turned out he could not use the lever covers because as the bike accelerated and the fringe caught the air it would start to apply his brakes and pull in the clutch. Could have been a form of Darwinism... LOL! If he drove fast enough, maybe he'd stop. Wait... Oh, help me, "the measuring and fitting stages..." The horror...the horror... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
