jma6610

....looks nice.

ahawks

very nice everyone, I'm jealous! Looks like a great hobby.

Wif

Tandy/Leather Factory has some good books on leather work. Al Stolmans "How to make holsters" and "Hand sewing leather" by the same author are must haves in my opinion.
With a little practice you can do hand sewing that is better looking than machine sewing.
Wif

carljc72

Ok...Daizee...this hobby of mine is all your fault. I saw this thread in January and visited a Tandy store. Since that first trip, there has been no turning back. Thank you for peaking my interest. I did read in an earlier post about not using more expensive leather. Here is something I have learned about buying leather. I live an hour from a Tandy...so I normally order online. So far I have received single shoulders from 2 places that were sub-par (I used one for 1" wide straps because it did not have a single area good enough for a holster). Both places "made it right". I have since placed an order with Wickett and Craig. The leather is night and day different. If anyone that reads this has never tried it, you owe it to yourself to give it a try...IMO. It is a little more expensive but 10 times better.

Here is one of my latest that can be worn IWB or OWB depending on the replaceable straps.

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Zwetschgen

Cool. I made a holster for a Remington 1858, for an accurate holster design from the period.

daizee

OMG, carljc, that's a sweet holster! and totally pro-looking.
Wow.

Glad I could be uh.... responsible. :-)

-Daizee

carljc72

Thank you very much for the kind words. It is becoming an obsession and a part time business...at least it seems that way.



Here is another to show off.
Carl

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natural combo with black straps 2.jpg (97.2 KB, 367 views)

carljc72

One more since this is the Ruger Forum.

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P95 and black convertible for a Brother.jpg (98.7 KB, 351 views)

BudE

I'll tell you, you've impressed the heck out of me!

daizee

Carl, your work is gorgeous!

What are you using to do your hole punching and/or stitching? Your lines are perfect.
Do you have any pictures of the insides? Your molding appears to be done in a press. It's really nice.
I think you've raised the bar.

Have you successfully been selling them? I haven't managed to yet, but am moving that direction. It's great to see this thread become such an inspiration!

-Daizee

carljc72

Daizee, I have 2 different size stitch awls depending on which size thread I use. I don't have any pics of the insides but I will try to get some on my next holster or two. I use a metal ruler with the freehand stitch groover from Tandy to make the straight grooves. I do use a homemade press. It helps show boning lines (yes...I cheat...lol).I have been selling a few each month and hopefully my simple web site will be ready next week. One thing that makes a huge difference is the better quality leather. It is easier to work with. When you dunk it in water, you don't soak it like Tandy leather. It only takes 1 to 2 seconds. Here are a few pics of the press I made. If you can afford to buy a 6 ton hydraulic press, do it. If not, this will work. This press was made for under $100 with $70 for the gum rubber sheets.

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	press.jpg (70.3 KB, 92 views)
	press 2c.jpg (62.0 KB, 82 views)
	press 2a.jpg (53.3 KB, 76 views)

daizee

Ah, interesting, great tips. I may try a press like that. There's probably enough junk in the basement to assemble one.

What order do you do things in?
When hand-molding, clearly the stitching must happen first. Do you use the press first and then plan your stitching around the resulting "pattern"?

-Daizee

carljc72

I make the pattern first. I use manilla file folders because they are fairly thick and they have the fold if you are not making a pancake holster. I draw the belt on the folder for a pancake style. Then lay the gun over over it to decide how high (roughly) to make it ride. I normall draw the straight line of the muzzle lightly and then check with a protractor and adjust to get my cant to the angle I want in relation to the belt. Once I am happy with that line, I place the gun back on the folder and trace the gun making sure I macth the muzzle with that first line. After tracing the gun, I then figure out my stitch lines. I use a compass and find the thickness of the gun. I divide in half rounding up to the nearest 1/16th. Then I trace the gun outline with the compass. That outline is your stitch line. After you make one or two of the same holster you will probably tweak the pattern a little. I have a very sharp scribing tool that I use to punch holes through the pattern. A round awl would work too. This lets me transfer the stitch lines onto the front of the holster. If there is a sweat shield I draw it onto the pattern as well and use the awl to show where top of the front piece is. If that sentence did not make sense, One pattern piece has the the front and back all in one with all "points of interest" marked with a hole.

Wow am I rambling...I think the answer to the question is: I pattern, stitch then form/mould.

Carl

TwinOaks

Another nice thing to use for pattern making is Linoleum cut offs, if you can find them/have them. It mimics leather very well in regards to bending around a gun.

carljc72

I never would have thought of that Mike. They would definitely last a lot longer and be more durable than file folders. They would also be thicker which would make them easier to trace around. I have used cut-offs from FRP (commercial bathroom type wallboard) for patterns once I have a good pattern established. they are almost indestructible. Thanks again, Carl

daizee

Oooh, another great idea.


-Daizee

daizee

Hey Folks, here's another one.

My partner and I are trying to spin this into a low-volume business, and to that end were experimenting with some cobbler's equipment we were recently offered access to. I don't recall the name of this stitching machine, but it sure is intimidating.

I whipped up a simple pancake pattern for this PPK air pistol, and brought it to the cobbler's shop. He stitched it using his mondo machine, which made short work of what is usually a slow process. However, the machine does have some.... ideas of its own. It clearly requires an expert to operate, and is subject to some stitch failings. In the end, we're going to stay with hand-stitching for the time being, but it was an interesting experiment. No pre-punching was required. The machine uses two different threads for the top and bottom, and has plenty of tension. You can see in the pictures where the stitching machine went awry.

Lastly, my partner finished the holster first in "Ox Blood" colored dye (too pink) and then several applications of progressively darker dyes and, I think, some sno-seal.
The photos don't quite do the finished surface justice.

This was just a demo for us, and it was a very useful experiment.

We have our first custom holster order, and it's in mold now.
A Ruger LCR!

-Daizee

carljc72

Good luck with the stitcher. Keep us posted on the progress. I wish I had one because I would love to offer belts.

daizee

Hi Carl,
Indeed, belts is one thing we'd like to do too, but getting all those perfectly straight lines.... Unfortunately this machine I've mentioned probably isn't much better than laying out your holes by hand. So we're still searching for a belt solution as we have a couple applications for long leather strips.

Actually we've made some belts, but all one-piece with the rough side in.

My partner made this wallet for herself over the weekend, experimenting with some new ideas, and matching her gunbelt and the above holster. That's her studio mark (Valkyrie & Muse) in the top flap. Her pictures are clearly better than mine.... same camera. She recently had a show of handgun portraits up in Philly, including a couple of the ones featured earlier in this thread.

-Daizee

TwinOaks

For your leather stitcher, you have a couple of options but none of them are cheap. Ball park range for a good stitcher starts at about $1500 and goes up from there. This includes manual and motorized models. Currently, there's a little bit of a price war between a few of the major dealers of motorized machines so if you have the funds, now really is a good time to buy. Top three choices (IMO) are Artisan Sewing, Cobra Sewing, and CowboySew, (posted in alphabetical order). All three companies offer incredible customer service, and all are throwing in some extras to sweeten the deal for perspective buyers. The machines are pretty similar, both in function and size---300 lbs for a full set up and you need 4-8 sq ft...minimum. To give you an idea of what you're looking at, they're all industrial sized machines, with separate motors (mounted under a table) with belt drives. All of them are offering speed reducers for better torque and slow speed control. The major decision will probably be the style of machine - flatbed or cylinder arm. There's advantages to each, depending on intent.
For manual models, there's only two makers that I know of that produce a stitcher capable of sewing thicker leather. One is the Tippmann Boss, the other is the Luberto's Cub series. The last is still in it's infancy, but did well at a leather show.
When selecting a machine, please DO NOT pick up an "industrial sewing machine" from E-bay. Generally, they're either rebuilt antiques, or generally inadequate for leather. One exception is the Sailrite type machines, which WILL sew leather, but won't handle more than about 1/4 inch with out some 'extras'. The biggest issue with all these older machines is that they won't handle the thicker threads which are common ( and sometimes necessary) for leather. Sorry for the long post, but there's a ton of info about them, and lots of people selling "industrial" machines, and sorry to say it but...they just don't have enough "ass".
Shoe machines are typically Singer 29 class machines, which are really patch machines, or sole machines that have a pretty limited reach, and may sew at an angle.
If anyone is interested in reading more about them, there's a large section of Leatherworker.net devoted solely to sewing machines suitable for leather. Start here: http://leatherworker.net/forum/index.php?showforum=50

Mods, I hope I haven't ruffled feathers with a back link, I'm just trying to add to the knowledge.

frenchy

This is really awsome work. I cant imagine how much fun you must be having making those.. I would.. Question: would you be able to make 1 for a GP100 with a thumb strap AND a trigger retention system (with a switch that u press that releases the trigger guard)? Thats basically the kind of holster I have been looking for for carry duty for a while now...

carljc72

Frenchy, it is not something I could make. It sounds like a Serpa holster with a thumb strap. I don't know of anyone that makes a leather holster like that.

Carl

frenchy

check this out: realed trigger guard by the index finger. unfortunately the GP100 seems to be too big for it...

http://www.gkpro.fr/en/catalogue/c/s...300/index.html

vhram

Wow theres some real talent with the leather. Nice work

FatRotty

I am going to have to try that. Even just for fun, it looks like a good hobby. Thanks for the Inspiration. You gonna try with some hybrid stuff using the Leather and Kydex. It woulb be cool to see what you could do. Kind of like the Crossbreed stuff.

TenTec

Grrreat & thanks a lot daizee. You've given me the fever. Geesh ! Moe money.........

I'm just now getting some tooling together. Yesterday I stopped by a Monument place and asked if they had any broken Head Stones. Left with a 12x18x4 inch piece.

I'm completely wet behind the ears new at this. But being left handed holsters are few and far between.

Any tips as to what/where to get some practice leather. I'm itching to order a shoulder and back.

I recently bought a cowboy rig from a flea marketer leather crafter. So between him and you............. I've been bitten.

mmmmmmm the smell of leather

So the quest for tooling continues.

carljc72

Tandy Leather is one place to buy smaller pieces of leather. Zack White is another but my favorite is Springfield leather. Give them a call and tell them you are brand new to holster making and need smaller pieces of leather. They often have specials that are not on their website. The owner Kevin often buys closeouts and other great deals. Good luck to you.

Carl

daizee

It's been a year since I've made a holster. :-(

Lately I've been thinking about revisiting the 6" model-14 that was the subject my first attempt.

-Daizee

Hilborne

Like you I haven't made any holsters for awhile, although I have three in the works for friends, but haven't been able to get motivated. Perhaps a picture or two will help both of us and anyone else thinking about cutting up some leather. This is a 1851 Navy 44cal 7 1/2 inch I did for my son-in-law. I have several Ruger holsters I'll post if there is any interest. Now if I can figure out how to post a picture.

Andy

Attachment 739

TenTec

Nothing near the quality as the above but here is my 2nd and 3rd Holsters I made recently.

Since taking up a new hobby I no longer have problems finding holsters

2nd



3rd

Hilborne

TenTec
Real good for your first three, keep going, and it gets better each time. Now when someone complains about having a drawer full of holsters, you can just chuckle at your drawer full. If you haven't checked it out, go to leatherworker.net, you will find a wealth of info over there. I have to get a few things done here, but I'll post a few more pictures latter this evening.

Andy

Hilborne

Here is a rig I made for my GP100. I just needed something simple to use for a range holster, and holster and belt for a pair of Vaquero's.

Andy' Holsters 058.jpg

Andy' Holsters 060.jpg

Andy' Holsters 057.jpg

Andy' Holsters 056.jpg

Nickelboy

Where do you find patterns to start with? I want to try a simple pancake for a SP101?

Thanks,
Nickelboy

Hilborne

I suggest if you have a Tandy Leather store near by or order on the INTERNET, acquire two books by Al Stohlman. Both are somewhat out dated, but contain all the basics to get started. Tandy has a sale going on through Dec 31st so you could probably pick these up for considerably less.
"The Art of Hand Sewing" current price $9.99
"How to Make Holsters" $5.99

You can get the "how to" and what tools you will need from these two books.
A pancake is a simple design and I don't recall ever seeing a pattern offered, but I'm sure if you snoop around the INTERNET you might find something. Again the above book will show you how to take a manila folder and make a pattern.

Check out leatherworker.com There is a separate section on gun holsters, and if you do a search on "Pancake" you will find some interesting threads.

I quit keeping score of the money I have spent on leather and tools, although I think I have most of the receipts. I have sold a few holsters, but that isn't my main thing. So you need a few books, a few tools, some leather, thread, dye, etc. I wanted two new holsters and decided to make my own. Buying the two holster would have been about $150. I bit the bullet and spent about $140 to get started. The leather I bought was a shoulder of veggie tan 6-7 oz. I got two holster out of it, and there was plenty left so I made more. I don't recall but I'm guessing you could get from 5 to 10 out of a shoulder. I bought a shoulder yesterday on sale for $18.00.

Andy

White Falcon

Rig for a .44 Mag Ruger with a 9 1/2" , scoped

Pat-inCO

I notice the difference in top stiffener, which do you prefer (long[brown holster] or short[black holster])?

If you are hand stitching, you are a master.

daizee

Woah, White Falcon, that's huge! haha! Nice!

Carl, did you ever launch your website?


-Daizee

carljc72

Pat,

In my opinion the mouth reinforcement differences are decoration. As long as you put a small strip of leather at the mouth, it will serve as reinforcement. As far as the shape or length towards the muzzle, that is mostly for design.
I do hand stitch (fingers stay numb...lol) now but I have ordered a Tippmann Boss to aid in the stitching and allow me to make belts. Thank you for the kind words.

Daizee,

Sorry I don't have as much time to get on here as I would like...But check it out CC Holsters. I hope to add a page and a few more products soon. How is your new venture doing?

Carl

daizee

Carl, I'm absolutely delighted that you've launched! It's a real pleasure to see you kick-start off this forum into some really pro work. Your site looks good, and your holsters look superb. You're making the rest of us look good. :-)
Congratulations.

On my end my day-job has eaten my time, and my 40% travel schedule has really made it difficult to 1) get momentum, and 2) schedule holsters. I've done a couple and have a couple requests, but my efficiency level is way down. I'm trying to think of a different angle to make this work for me.

There's a second LCR pancake behind me as I type that needs slots and finish. I'll post a pic when it's done.

My partner is on her third iteration of some really nice bridle leather covered-buckle/clasp mechanic's belts, one of which I'm wearing at the moment.

I'll check back for new pics on your site soon.

-Daizee

liberalsmakemepuke

That's really slick. Pretty cool to be able to build it yourself. Congrats!!!