The Holster Thread

[mommicked]

A leather paddle holster is a rather simple affair, if you use two thin layers with a strip of kydex in the paddle portion it is very rigid. Mernickle also makes a 'high ride' holster that has a similar paddle to keep it from tipping out.

Tell me what you used for that rope border and I'll fix you up with a belt blank you can do yourself. We can settle up at a later date I really like how you did the thumb break as well as the color that compliments it nicely. Good job all around.

I might would try some kydex, but probably would be just as happy using something scrap like the side of a plastic folgers coffee can. Stiff enough if you have leather on both sides of it I'd think, but I'm guessing.

The rope border is a wheel from Tandy, it fits on an overstitching tool that lets you change wheels to make various borders as well as the stitching line. I use a little seeder stamp in the corners to cover the change area, it looks like a little sunburst. The rope is my favorite border because it goes with so many things: nautical, old west, celtic, etc.
Tandy Leather Factory - Craftool Overstitch Wheel System

[Barenjager]

Some of the nicest exotic leathergoods I've ever seen were on display at the 2012 NRA convention. The following pics are from Andrews Custom Leather and encompass everything from frog to hippo, stingray to cape buffalo, and ostrich to elephant. The pictures do not do the craftsmanship and beauty justice.











What I found fascinating is the hippo hide feels just like velvet, yet as expected is tough as nails. If you're looking for that little something special...and price is of little consequence...a link to his website is listed in the Holstermakers in the Handgun Reference Material sticky.

Roe

[papajohn]

This booth was one of those I missed at the NRA Convention until Roe pointed it out to me, and was kind enough to steer me to it Sunday morning. It took me about a half hour to stop drooling and take it all in, Roe's pictures are excellent but these holsters and belts had to be seen to be believed. The Cape Buffalo leather was really thick and unexpectedly beautiful, and as Roe said, the hippo skin felt like extra-fine suede. There were snakeskin leathers, several kinds of sharkskin, a few really impressive types of alligator and crocodile skin, there were almost too many kinds to fondle.



I think my favorite was the spinal stingray, the spines are ground flat to make it safe to handle, and the result is really striking!



I'm not sure what kind of snakeskin this is, I think it's a boa, but my son (who knows a lot more about exotic snakes than I ever will) seems to think it's some type of African Viper.



If you're ever inclined to spend as much on your holster as you did on the gun, Mr. Andrews is the guy to call! Every piece he makes is unique............because each hunk of animal skin is a little bit different.

[Eaglestroker]

PJ, don't know how I mised your post! I think my absolute favorites are Buffalo and Elephant. The distressed look just does something for me, shark would be a close third as well.

Here's a plain Jane Government rig I finished recently:

[Eaglestroker]

These are some nice ones I finished this week!

[papajohn]

I decided that as much as I carry my 1911, it deserved a really nice holster, so when Brownells put the Milt Sparks Summer Special II on sale a few weeks ago, I pounced. Some of the reviews said it took awhile to get used to, but I loved it immediately. It feels natural, the cant is just right, and there were a couple times the first week that I actually forgot I had it on. $80 from Brownells, and I got it in three days, instead of waiting a month or two to get it from Milk Sparks. I highly recommend it.

[Eaglestroker]

Can't do any better than MS!

Here's one for me:

[planeflyer21]

Who has dealt with Kirkpatrick Leather?

They told me ten weeks til my order shipped...we're on like 12 now, with no charge to the card.

Jon

[Magellan]

I know this is a old thread, but I'm a new guy here.
I have had many remarks on the Bucheimer Clark B72W I use for my Ruger Blackhawk 50th Anniv 357.
Bought it on EBay.. I was the only bidder. It's definitely not a conceal carry rig !
Black hat and boots and I look like Palidin !
Ruger Blackhawk 357 w Bucheimer Clark Holster.JPG

[papajohn]

Magellan, nothing wrong with breathing a little new life into an old thread, this is one that pops back up now and then. I think Eaglestroker uses it for porn. He's seriously twisted about leather!

I bet you look like a real serious badass with that rig on! The old swivel holsters take me back to my rookie PD days, I found one in an old box of junk in the evidence room and the detective I asked about it was more than happy to get it out of there. I took it home and started playing around with it, and decided that the length fit me perfectly. I have long arms but a short torso, and high-ride holsters just don't work for me at all. This holster had enough drop to it that the butt of my revolver was an inch below my palm when standing with my hands at my side. I made a few modifications to keep it from swiveling and flopping around, and used it in competition for a few years in the police matches, and even won a few. It was VERY fast out the top, and I had it tied to my leg at the bottom. It looked goofy as hell but it worked! A lot of guys who giggled when they saw first saw it wound up with a similar-looking rig after I beat them with it a time or two.

Most of today's "Tactical Thigh Holsters" owe their existence to those old Buchheimer rigs and the cowboy/gunslinger holsters of 140 years ago. What worked then still works today!