TexasCHLforum.com

Bandit19D wrote:I am a little late to the party, what size hardware did you use?

im a little late to the reply party, lol

i use the 1/8" screws with the 1/8" screw post with the open back and the larger J clips for heavier weapons, smaller ones for lighter weapons.

hope this helps!

SQLGeek wrote:Glad to see that the Tandy Leather suggestion is working for you.

it definitely is! i LOVE that place, they know me by name now lol

i purchased a pair of leather scissors from Tandy Leather Factory for less than $10. They've lasted through at least 10 holsters and are still cutting like a champ.

i didn't line mine because i'm from the KISS camp. fewer things used means fewer things to mess up, imho. i'd hate to have my liner come loose and bind up my weapon at the absolute worst time and with my luck...


it would.

Target1911 wrote:So I got me some leather today.....
It took 3 tries to get the kydex right. i had to remove the mag release...grips...grip screws on one side....and cut a grove in my top board that fit over the slide lock and safety. The top board was pushing the top rear of my gun to far, making that area of the kydex to deep.

I used my Crossbreed and guild....and for the hardware I needed.

BTW....I have the overly priced kydex press from knife kits, and the foam that is made for it. I did remove the top piece of foam but left the bottom for the molding that i needed. I still plan to do some minor spot molding but it very functional as is.

The only Kydex I had that was thin enough is the gray. The black i have is .120.....waaaay too thick for this.

Oh yeah....this is for a Kimber ultra.

yeah, kimbers are thick!

that one looks awesome, well done!

2up1down wrote:Since the OP has always been such a great guy on here...
I don't do tutorials, often, and I don't currently have any pics of my daily holsters,
but I have this pic of one I made a friend in about an hour on Father's Day.
I purposefully left the leather way oversized so he could cut it down after
wearing. (his first IWB) He has since "combat cut" it to expose the grip.


There are many nice commercial holsters out available, but I'm not waiting
or paying a small fortune for something I can make exactly how I want it.

OP you have a great start, hoping this will assist you in your future projects.
As I stated before the guys at Tandy are great.

I study over 100 tutorials before I began building mine over a year ago.
Everything from vacuum forming to forming with gloved hands. So I
will try and save you some searching:


1. Great start on cow leather- quarter/half shoulder, avg 8-9oz vegetable tanned.
I like both Cow and Horse.
an alternative that works as a better sweat barrier is horse hide:
http://springfieldleather.com/product/2 ... -%26-Wide/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
a. Thinner and stiffer, more water resistant..
b. some line their kydex with it,
c. I have used it against my skin with cow as the front.
d. you can lace/sew it together or simply use rubber cement and the screws will hold it together.
e. Use it all by itself. Whatever you come up with.

2. Kydex- the thinner .060 molds better (make sure you don't make pointy creases)
Some say it too fragile, I haven't found that to be true. Your press is perfect, might
want to press over foam for more definition.

These folks are local and awesome customer service.
http://www.texasknife.com/vcom/index.ph ... 61cba470b5" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Check out the selection and prices.

3. Nice tutorial, think it was mentioned:
http://oldfaithfulholsters.com/?cat=68" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

4. One neat thing to do instead of holes for your clips,
cut belt loops, use washers on both sides. Then you can
wear it outside the waist on your belt, or inside and you
can adjust the depth to your liking.

5.. most commercial holsters come with multiple clip holes
so you can "adjust the cant" leaving too much leather low on your hip.
Much better to figure the cant into your kydex, just til the kydex when you press.
Soon you will find how far you like it.

6. May colors of dye are available and 'super sheen' is the water proof top coat.
just ask for suggestions at Tandy's.


Great job, keep going!

that is beautiful!!

thanks for the tips, im making some for two of my friends next weekend, i already have the foam and am hoping for a little more definition with these.

im goona have to get a leather stamp, that looks cool!!

2up1down wrote:

schufflerbot wrote:

george wrote:Hey, I am certainly no holster maker, but I have heard that there are different tanning processes used. Chrome, vegetable, oak, etc. Just my two cents, but some tanning processes cause corrosion in metals. I think most only use vegetable tanned leather for holsters. Do not take my word for it, as I am no expert, but it is something you may wish to look in to.

hey, thanks for the heads up! ill have to research that.

c
Looks like a vegetable tanned quarter shoulder, (usually 7-9oz weight) perfect for your purpose.
The key is if the leather is 'tool-able' then no chemicals were used in tanning. Tool-able (vegetable tanned)
meaning you can carve, stamp the leather etc. good job. The guys at the 1960 Tandy's will probably show
you their own holsters if you strike up the right conversation, one of them worked on the original
design for one of the commercial models. (think it was comtac, may be wrong on the name)

thats awesome! thanks for the info. ill definitely be heading back there when it's time for more supplies.

40khammer wrote:If you put a piece of foam underneath the whole thing when you press down you'll get a more detailed mold. Just a thought.

i used old towels this time and didnt heat the kydex enough, hence the 'vague' imprint.

next time i will be using the foam and heating it to the proper temps.

thanks!!

george wrote:Hey, I am certainly no holster maker, but I have heard that there are different tanning processes used. Chrome, vegetable, oak, etc. Just my two cents, but some tanning processes cause corrosion in metals. I think most only use vegetable tanned leather for holsters. Do not take my word for it, as I am no expert, but it is something you may wish to look in to.

hey, thanks for the heads up! ill have to research that.

STEP 1:

Leather - I purchased this piece of leather for $20 on sale. It's obviously more than enough to do several holsters, the finish is near perfect and the thickness is more than sufficient to retain the shape and provide the support needed to distribute the weight of the gun across your back, rather than keeping it in one spot like the single clip holsters do.



This is a shot of the leather after it was trimmed down. You want to make sure the back of the slide is covered and leaves enough space for a 'hook up' spot: basically a place where you can place the muzzle of the gun for reference before you slide it into the kydex to secure it. This is an exaggerated shape and will be trimmed down before it's complete.



STEP 2:

Gun 'frame' - this is simply a 1/2" piece of scrap wood with a cutout of the weapon to be holstered in the middle of it. the shape is important - it should be traced around the gun leaving approximately 1/4" of space (about half the width of a sharpie marker) EXCEPT FOR the sight channel... this needs to be almost 1/2" to allow snag free presentations. As for the muzzle end of the tracing, simply connect the lines. (from the top of the sight channel to the bottom of the muzzle, creating a flat line and 90* angles for the muzzle side)



Step 3:

Kydex shaping - simply put, toast 6" x 6" kydex in a toaster oven for 5-7 minutes at ~350* to get it soft enough to work with. The consistency should be similar to a slice of cheese when it's ready, you'll know pretty quickly if it's not soft enough. The nice thing about the kydex is that you can reheat it and try again if it doesn't work out!

Once the kydex is heated and pliable, carefully remove it from the toaster oven and place it over the 'frame' where you want the gun to sit. make sure the trigger well is covered completely, as long as that is in place the rest will fall where it should. no need to worry about being lined up straight, most of the areas will be trimmed anyways when it's done cooling. place the gun on TOP of the warmed kydex and push down into the frame, making sure the edges of the kydex lay flat before you sandwich it in. Using two 1/2" boards roughly the same size as your frame, sandwich the frame between the two boards and add some cushioning between the layers of wood boards. i used an old folded up towel that i cut in half and it worked just fine. some people prefer 'bleacher seat' foam pads... the choice is yours, the material just needs to give enough for the kydex to shape, but not so much that it muddles the details. this is what it will look like after 5-7 minutes of cooling:






STEP 4:

Place the gun on the leather and the kydex on the gun. Mark and trim (i used tin snips) the kydex to remove any overhang and level out the 'top' or 'entry point' of the kydex to your liking. Sand the edges well, using 180-400 grit sandpaper. Leave at least a 1/2" space between the gun and the screw location, you only need 2 screws per side. mark and drill holes in the kydex and leather for the screws, attach the kydex then attach the belt clips.

Make whatever adjustments you need, then whammy!!...





spent less than $45 total and i have enough material to make 4 holsters. clips, screws and leather were purchased at Tandy Leather factory and can be purchased online as well. Kydex i bought off of Ebay for less than $10.

hope this helps anyone looking to make their own!

outstanding suggestion! Tandy leather was THE place for holster making!

my holster is now complete, so ill start my instructions below this post.

i grabbed a sheet of .90 Kydex in 12"x12" for about $10 after shipping from 'fleabay.'

i've spent the last 3 weeks looking for a good source for leather, other than old faithful - i want to be able to grab more in case my friends want one done as well. (assuming they turn out ok)

my life has been hectic, to say the least, and i haven't had time to really pour into this project yet.

in the process of collecting the required supplies to create my own hybrid holster.

this thread will be a repository for any and all tips, step-by-step instructions and images.

ill update it regularly once the materials start arriving... any and all advice is welcome!

im looking forward to learning how to do this.