My leather work..

[jonathon]

Thought I'd share some of the things I've made! Not just gun stuff..

Well, I try to. Not the all out best, but I've actually made a couple that I deam worth of selling. And I've made prototypes that I've contemplated and figured out how to make better.. I'll post pics of my first attempt at a "Pancake" style anything.. a mag pouch. Eric told me how to do it...

Heres a few things:

First attempt at a clip holster, usually Ive done slides or loops.. made the knife sheath a while ago..



The leather is no good, the tanning process uses some corrosive chemicals unfortunatly, so that was just a practice piece(at a whopping $3 for the piece, I'm not hurting for the practice)

Heres my first shoulder holster:



Aint the best stiching work.. Gimme 60 seconds to post the next pics! Dang limits..

[jonathon]

And heres the FIRST FIRST attempt at that same shoulder holster.. had to scrap it 'cause I got a little wild with the belt sander..



And, incase anyone is interested, heres my first actual bit of tooling that turned out good. It HAD to be good. It was for a GOOD friend of mine's birthday, her 18th to be exact(so it was special). Cute girl to



Most of it is a design I sketched, the letters were stamps..

[jonathon]

heres the mag pouch..

I was going to shrink it to hide my horrible skill in sanding/cutting and to hide the effect of the ceiling lights but yeah.. it looks better in person..

I've got some changes to make to it to make it better. I want more of the mag covered, even though this retains a mag just fine... that and I really need to get better with sanding small stuff...

[Shorts]

Nice job. That stuff is time consuming ain't it? Are you using a sewing machine or by hand? I'm in the same boat as you, making templates, then first run productions, then modifications By the time you get it "right", you gotta order more supplies.

Here's a bit of my stuff:

First holster, good work, not so great function:


Second holster, good work, crappy finish, ok function:


Third leather dabble, a leather flight suit patch before sewing the velcro on:


Please forgive the photoshop on the tag

[Wraith]

Looks pretty good! How well does the holster retain? I like the tooling!

I'd post some pictures of my armor if I had any...

[jonathon]

Shorts, I sew all my stuff on a Landis No. 3(I thought it was a 1, till I cleaned the rubber dust off the plate and saw it said 3). I also have a landis 5 in 1(not a sewing machine, but has a bunch of uses)

Mine(well, its not mine, its my bosses, but yeah, I use it ) looks just like this one, cept dirtier and black paint(its been in a shoe shop for 30 or so years so...)



http://www.campbell-bosworth.com/EQUIP/EQUIP.html

I want to buy a rebuilt one... need the funds though.

If you want to fix that finish up on that holster, Dyo deglazing works great. Just use it, re dye it, and apply your finish after that..

How are you sewing yours?

Lack of funds to buy leather prevents me from expirimenting to much.. I've taken to using stuff with defects(insect bites, brands, etc), and sanding them off with a fine grit sander I have.... works for its intended purposes

//EDIT

Hmm.. I thoguht I had pics of the shop somewheres..

[Shorts]

Will acetone remove that dye without killing my leather? I assume cracking would be a concern after it dries, so a little moisturizer would work. As it is, both holsters are EXTREMELY rigid and the first is super tight. I should run a wax-paper wrapped gun through it a few times and see if I can get itto let go a bit.

I'm sewing everything by hand. If anyone's ever wondered why handsewn leather stuff costs so much, there ya go.

That's a fancy mo'chine you got there. If I had acces to it I'd be using it too I still have a good supply of leather (7/8oz) and as I get closer to winding it down I'll reorder another piece.

As for the flight suit tag, that was all by hand...no stamps. I only had the basic outline of the wings as I copied one of my husband's spare tags. From there it was, "I hope this comes out right". I used a butter knife for those easy curves. I need to order an alphabet stamp set, but I've been too lazy to do it. That one I left the leather in the raw, then brushed with a couple two coats of lindseed oil. I was afraid it'd get flimsy and loose the carving, but it's staying pretty well. I sent it off to my husband and he said he's wearing around Although, I told him he didn't have to 'cause it kinda looked like a third grader's coloring project on the 'fridge

[jonathon]

At $120 from tandy for an entire grade 1 side... can't go wrong.

Acetone is pretty much what the Dyo deglazing is. We use it on shoes before we change the color from some light color to black(as black is the only color that turns out the same every time on leather). Just use whatever non petrol based oil you use afterwords.. Leathernew works good in this case, as it applies fast.. same with LP oil..

Have you oiled any of your work up at all?
http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...caring+leather

Your handstiches look VERY good and even...

Out of curiousity, what to do you do to punch the holes? In all honesty.. I've never hand stichted anything that didn't have holes, and even then it was just saddles that needed repairs.

You need a rotating knife thingy(wish I could recall the name.. I took a crash course in tooling to make that Bible )! Much easier than a butterknife for making lines in leather.. just always make the lines coming towards you, or they won't be so evenly cut..

//EDIT

Its a swivel knife! Very handy indeed..

http://leatherfactory.com/index.asp?...ew&ALU=8170-00

Note, I highly recomend Tandy/The Leather Factory for stuff.. I go the store in Portland and the guy there is very knowledgable.

[Shorts]

I haven't conditioned my leather as I wasn't real sure what to use that wouldn't make the boning and form go flimsy.

The only stuff I have here at the house is some Lexol products (Cleaner and the Conditioner), plus all our shoe stuff (Saddle Soap, waxes, polishes, Mink).

I'm pretty anal about my sewing. The first two "projects" that I did to get the hang of punching holes and getting use to the stitching were absolutely horrendous They make me laugh. I scroll my stitch line. Actually depending on the application, instead of using the groover thing that cuts out leather, I've switched to just a pressed line so that I have that strong top layer of hide to hold the thread. I punch the holes using an awl blade and then saddle stitch.

My first order was from Tandy, actually. We had a bittersweet first transaction so I'm holding reservations for future orders. Only if I absolutely cannot find what I need somewhere else will I go back to Tandy. They do have a ton of stuff, but until I really NEED something I won'torder from them lol My order was processed out of the Tacoma location.

[jonathon]

Lexol products

Those are the folks that make Leathernew, and they are generally good. Obenauf's is my all around favorite. Just check the label. I used leather new on a crusty gun belt that was given to me, and after a couple applications it was pretty much restored, except where the fungus had eaten the epidermis off. Saddle soap works to some degrees to, it won't soften to much, and the shape will hold. Only time you risk loosing shape is when using something that will destroy the fibers... or you try to reshape it on purpose.

About shipping.. every company has that guy in the shipping department... the one who always screws up the order, and then when he gets the return, repackages and ships the same wrong item back a few times...

For whats its worth to those in the great northwest, AVOID OREGON LEATHER CO. They are terrible, and have sold us defective products, and are pretty bad about getting it right over and over again, they try. Only reason we use them is they are our only source for certian things like soles and chalks

[packa45]

Looks good guys. In no time you'll be master craftsmen and be taking my money.

[yorec]

Here's some of mine - I do the sewing by hand too and yep - Shorts is right! I prefer it though, will hold together longer since it unravels more slowly from the ends of a break...

http://www.freewebs.com/yorec/leathercrafttanning.htm

Working on a holster in the morning.

[TwoGuns]

Wow, I wish I had the extra cash to get into that, looks really fun.

Who wants to make me a IWB holster?

Keep up the good work guys.

[tjhands]

Good looking items all around!

[jonathon]

I prefer it though, will hold together longer since it unravels more slowly from the ends of a break...

Nice thing with the landis is.. you can back track to do a lock stitch real easy..

Nice tooling

[erh]

Ever thought of "Fire Through" pocket holsters? (erh)

[Shorts]

Nice thing with the landis is.. you can back track to do a lock stitch real easy..

Umhm, locking the final few stitches can be a chore, especially trying not to run the needle through the thread. Now that is a real bun-burner after a long day of stitching! I've had needle eyes break on me just as I am on the final thread through :barf:

[jonathon]

Ever thought of "Fire Through" pocket holsters?

Made 2 of them for a guy, for an NAA .22 mag...

Shorts,

Only had that happen when I didn't get the needle in the same holes...thats with a machine though. Even though the Landis is a needle and awl machine, it rarely snags threads. To prevent that.. generally back track right along side it.. then top the threads off with a lighter

Now, you DO NOT want to sew fabric with a needle and awl machine.. unless you want a big mess. Thats what the Singer is for.. we have one that sews through leather, not as nicely as the landis but good enough for nail bags...

[K-Man]

I always enjoy looking at the work that others do. I've been working at the leathercraft hobby for 10+ years and doing holsters specifically for 2+ years. Here's one of my recent favorites (some of you may have seen it elsewhere):



Here's one I did for a lady for her Ruger P345:



I love to combine tooling with holster making. It's a very enjoyable thing to do. You often see the tooling on the traditional western/cowboy style of holsters, I'm trying to bring it into the more modern day arena.

[Eghad]

Wow Nice work all the way round.....

Mebbe someday ill be buyin a Shorts or Jonathon custom for my carry pistol

[almark]

I agree with Eghad... very nice work!

[jonathon]

K-Man,

Thats pretty awesome stuff you got right there. I love tooling, and it always looks just spectacular.

[K-Man]

Thanks, jonathon. Here's a combination of tooling and laser engraving that I did about 6-8 months ago:



You'd be amazed at what you can do with a laser engraver.

[jonathon]

How hard is it to master the basket weave?

I've got a fine piece of leather I want to make into a duty holster(the leftovers from that Bible)...

[Eghad]

Nice work Kman.......