Nambu Holster

[JayB]

Hello everyone.  First post on your Leatherworker comm

Hello everyone.  First post on your Leatherworker community.

I have a Japanese Nambu 94 and holster.  The Nambu is dated 1944 and I have no reason to believe that the holster is any other year of manufacture.  The stitches in the holster are delicate.  And this weekend, while handling the holster, I broke about two inches of the stitching.  I've watched a lot of leather work and stitching videos since then, but thought that this community may have some proper suggestions on how to restitch what I broke.  Following are photos of the holster.  Any advice would be surely appreciated.  Jason

 

 

 

 

 

[SickMick]

If it was me, I'd check the value. On a historical piece, there could be more value in a "broken" holster than a "repaired" one.

If value dictates, I would just pull out the old stitching and redo it along that seam. I'd try to duplicate the color exactly by staining or marking the new thread to match the stains and marks on the old thread.

Just my 2 cents....

[JayB]

57 minutes ago, SickMick said:

If it was me, I'd check the value. On a historical piece, there could be more value in a "broken" holster than a "repaired" one.

If value dictates, I would just pull out the old stitching and redo it along that seam. I'd try to duplicate the color exactly by staining or marking the new thread to match the stains and marks on the old thread.

Just my 2 cents....

Thanks Mr. SickMick.  I'd like to restitch it myself.  Never done anything like this before.  This handgun and it's Nambu cousin (14) go to the range in their holsters.  

[JayB]

I've figured out the stitching method while watching numerous videos on youtube.  Is there a certain material I should use to stitch that is different for antique gun holsters or should any material suffice?

[wizard of tragacanth]

Hopefully someone will come along here and give you the REAL answer to this, but this would be my approach. I have not yet tried what I am recommending but this is what I would do.

I would start with an un-waxed natural linen thread, such as this Tandy product. https://www.tandyleather.com/en/product/unwaxed-linen-thread-natural

If the color of the thread is too white, I would make a cup of black tea or maybe coffee and start experimenting. The tea or coffee will be used to dye the thread.

Dip short 6" pieces of thread in the tea, let it dry completely and then wipe the thread by drawing it through a paper towel. That may remove some color.

Experiment with length of time for the dipping until you get the desired color.

After you get the timing right, dye the thread that you need for the project. Then, lightly wax the thread by placing it on a chunk of wax, putting your thumb on top of it and drawing the thread over the wax a time or two.

If I have time this afternoon, I will try this and let you know what happens.

nick

Edited September 13, 2019 by wizard of tragacanth
OCD

[wizard of tragacanth]

Okay, I was shootin’ from the hip, with that recommendation, so I tried it myself.

I used Black Coffee. Here are the results.

Four samples are shown, on a background of – HP Ultra White, Multi-Purpose Paper.

Left to Right: Natural, 3 second dip, 30 second dip, 5-10 minutes.

The bluish pic was taken outdoors in the shade, the yellowish pic was taken indoors under a Warm White LED bulb.

nick

Edited September 13, 2019 by wizard of tragacanth

[JayB]

Wow Nick.  Thanks for taking the time to experiment.  Looks like there is a Tandy store within an hour of my home.  It's worth my time to go in and talk to them.  Jason

[wizard of tragacanth]

Well, IDK if it is worth your time and gas to go there. The 25 yard spool of thread is only $5.50. Maybe it would be better to just order it online.

Also, if you go there, it could end up costing you hundreds or thousands of dollars. No kidding. You might start buying tools and supplies for years to come.

If you do go there, get some bee's wax and some stitching needles. I can't remember which ones I use. I thought it was the #2 Glover's Needles but I don't see that on the website.

It's either those or the harness needles. Do not buy the "Stitching Needles" with the BIG eye.

nick

Edited September 13, 2019 by wizard of tragacanth

[wizard of tragacanth]

Just thinking. If you do try the method that I suggested, for authenticity, you might want to make the color less uniform... splotchy. You could do a very quick dip to give an overall tone, then add extra color to only parts of the thread. 

Make a small coil by wrapping it around three fingers, then lay that coil down and dribble some more coffee in a couple of areas. When you uncoil it... ta-da!

[JayB]

Thanks Nick!  I like the idea of spending hundreds of thousands of dollars...which I don't have, yet.

[battlemunky]

Nick laid out some pretty solid advice along with the cool experimentation. (good on ya Nick!)

Most Tandy folks are nice and some are pretty knowledgeable but remember that they are paid to sell you stuff. I've had great encounters in a few different Tandy's and I've had a few really "wtf are you even saying dude, have you ever done anything with leather aside from schlock crap to people!?!" moments as well. Also, beware of absolutes in Tandy. I have noticed that whatever training they get, they aren't all told that there are many ways to approaching a leather project, many of which don't include Craftool branded products...they tend to be pretty dogmatic toward their own stuff. 

Take their advice with a grain of salt and try to get out with only what you need. Much of their stuff is overpriced and lower quality. It's great in a pinch or when you are dipping your toes in the pool to see if you like the temperature before jumping in but if you end up liking leatherworking you can spend far smarter than at Tandy. 

Best of luck and let us know how it goes.

[Lobo]

Early Nambu holsters of the 1930's were made of leather. Most production after 1940 or so was done using rubberized canvas. All were fully formed shells to provide maximum protection of the pistol from all weather conditions. None of those utilized dot-style snap fasteners. Most had belt loop provisions, but the common method of carry utilized a detachable shoulder strap that suspended the holstered pistol over the user's lower chest area. These facts lead me to conclude that the OP's holster is not an original, so any concern over antique or collector value is minimal.

[chrisash]

It looks to good to experiment on and also looks like it needs a good conditioner first,

As you sound like you are inexperienced, I would suggest that you experiment with some other veg tan leather your saddle stitch first so you can make a nice consistent stitch , prior to starting to sew this back together

I would also suggest you might as well do the whole holster rather than bits here and there, and make it nearly as good as when new

Lots of video's on "Youtube" about saddle stitching and restoring leather

Good luck

 

Addition it looks like a model 94 holster from ww2 see here

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=japanese+ww2+holsters&newwindow=1&sa=G&tbm=isch&source=iu&ictx=1&fir=Rfxz_9MT6U8NXM%3A%2C-cvl044psg8hPM%2C_&vet=1&usg=AI4_-kQJTxey6jQU2u5jWx_aEMuL3MBHKQ&ved=2ahUKEwi8qsG9nIflAhUJTcAKHWwgC4oQ9QEwAXoECAMQCQ#imgrc=Rfxz_9MT6U8NXM: 

Edited October 6, 2019 by chrisash