Christmas Revolvers & Holsters

I've been busy this past cpl weeks working on some gun leather for my sons. Here's the trio so far...with one more still to complete.

The leather is all vegetable tanned...better on the finish of a blued gun than chrome tanned hides. I line them as well with lighter weight material and use stains from Tandy. These three were all fashioned with an ~ 7 degree cant for wear at the 3-4 o'clock position that my sons and I favor.

From the left are a Bird's Head Ruger Single-Six with a 4-5/8" bbl. in .32 H&R. The middle one is a DA Smith M-67 in .38 Special with a 4" bbl. And all the way to the right is another Single-Six .32 H&R with the same bbl. length as the Bird's Head but with adjustable sights.

So far, I've done ok with the stamping and hand sewing, but did manage to reverse the pattern on my first attempt for the Bird's Head, (reversed: as in it's now a left handed rig...and none of us are south-paws!). I didn't catch the mistake until final sewing commenced...having already spent 5-6 hours cutting, stamping, beveling the edges and staining....GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR...

Still have one to go that'll fit my #1 son's 5" model 60 .357 Smith...rare now in that bbl. length and a right fine trail gun if you ever run across one. The rig will look like the center M-66 in the pic...but a bit smaller.

Best regards, & Merry Christmas to all .... Rod

Armoredman: Haven't finished the "lefty" one yet...have to wait till the Christmas rush is done...then I'll donate it to the "pay it fwd" program here on the High Road...gotta be a cpl south-paws here that own a 4-5/8" Single Six.

Bob, I too have a tendency to cut my leather a bit too small & it's usually not by much. I've salvaged a cpl pieces in the past by adding a 1/8"-1/4" welt to the closure. And in another instance, I got out of sequence and stitched the front down before stitching the belt loop...that one was a complete loss as both were Barge cemented in place. Trial & Error...

Rod

Kind comments, guys, thx. My sons are pistoleros each in his own right, with their own guns; but at 76, I'm beginning to thin out the herd here in Ky. I built the one on the left for #2's Ruger SS .22 convertible, and the other for #1's M-19. I'm still working up another for a M-60 with a 5" bbl.

The back on each is full length, from belt loop at the top to the toe at the bottom. The cross strap is stitched to the back, then the actual holster is turned down inside it forming the belt loop, then stitched to the toe. The cross strap and toe stitching is not fun...awkward even, when compared to the relatively straight forward edge stitching. The front and back of the holster, and back flap are all one continuous piece of leather. Only the cross strap is a separate piece.

In building them, the paper pattern is transferred to the 6-7 oz leather, cut out, then the stitching groove is cut and stamping is completed. Next I stain the 'good' side of the entire piece, allow it to dry overnight, then Barge cement the lining to the back side. Same for the cross strap. All edges are then boned to a smooth finished appearance while still slightly damp & re-stained where necessary.

Once completely dry, I edge stitch the lining to the heavier, outer leather using the time honored two needle and awl technique, leaving the welt area below the trigger guard for last. Once the cross strap is stitched to the back & the last below trigger guard welt is stitched, I fold/bend the gun holding part of the holster and slip it underneath the cross strap, forming the belt loop. Lastly, I stitch the toe to the back flap.

The stain is sealed before any stitching is completed and I use a semi-hard Tandy's product to seal it. Aussie leather treatment is worked into all surfaces a cpl days after the project is completed.

It's a labor of love for sure and you've got to like doing it, as the stitching is endless, but good for my arthritic hands...and heck, who doesn't like the smell of good leather? For those with a DIY gene, it's not all that difficult and the folks at Tandy's have the tools, and know how to help a new guy along. Maybe the best part is doing it for yourself or friends, experimenting with styles and personal likes as to carry locations etc without the expense of buying multiple commercial holsters.

HTH's and thx for the kind remarks...Rod

Good looking rig, Bob...over the years I've built a few and left them in their natural color, allowing the patina of wax, sweat, dirt and all to add to their character...they've done well, and the ones I did back in the 90's are still in service...they've weathered better than I have at least. I really like that Aussie leather treatment...have used it for a dozen years or so, and find that it's a great sealer against the elements.

BTW, I got a look at one of your postings a year or two ago, liked the reload cartridge carrier/dump box you were wearing and made up several for family and friends that Christmas...Thx for the inspiration. Rod