Trigger safety

[VargS]

Pardon me if I missed this conversation-- I did a quick search and that was it.

How do you prevent the leather for folding in and becoming caught on the trigger when re-holstering the weapon?

I have a friend who wants me to make him a functional holster (nothing pretty) for his handgun, and while I'm confident I can form the leather I'd rather not be the cause of a .50AC round going off unintended. Thoughts?

[TargetRockLeather]

Hopefully you're using thick enough leather that it will be rigid enough not to flex inward. If you are wet forming it then it will most likely be stiff from that process (especially if you heat it in an oven). Also flare the "throat" of the holster so that it has a slight funnel shape to it. Other than that, just be thoughtful of the shape of it so that there aren't any surfaces that are likely to bend inward. Look at examples that other people have made. One last thing, don't saturate the finished holster with neatsfoot oil or other conditioners. I've seen holsters ruined by making them too soft/supple to the point that it's mushy.

[wizard of tragacanth]

Do you mean .50 AE? What is the model of the gun, if I may ask?

May I add to TRL's comments that you should be using probably 8-10 veg tan leather and possibly 2 layers of it around the mouth of the holster.

Wet form it and then dry it in an oven between 110° - 120° to harden it. I tend to believe that several applications of dye may harden it even more but I have not tested this hypothesis.

There are other processes that may contribute to hardening, such as the rubber cement used between the layers of veg tan, close spaced stitching, double rows of stitching, and top coats.

nick

Edited September 6, 2019 by wizard of tragacanth
crazy

[VargS]

On 9/6/2019 at 12:11 AM, wizard of tragacanth said:

Do you mean .50 AE? What is the model of the gun, if I may ask?

May I add to TRL's comments that you should be using probably 8-10 veg tan leather and possibly 2 layers of it around the mouth of the holster.

Wet form it and then dry it in an oven between 110° - 120° to harden it. I tend to believe that several applications of dye may harden it even more but I have not tested this hypothesis.

There are other processes that may contribute to hardening, such as the rubber cement used between the layers of veg tan, close spaced stitching, double rows of stitching, and top coats.

nick

Yes, that was supposed to be .50AE. It's a Desert Eagle. I don't know much beyond that and that shooting ones self in the leg with it is a terrible idea.

I've never baked my leather before, and I don't know why I haven't. I tried drying out a pair of gloves on a radiator when I was a teen and found out the hard way why you don't do that. Thanks to both of you for the tips.