When to Stitch a Holster

[JD Alan]

Hey guys, I was reading the Nov/Dec 08 edition of The Leathercrafter's Journal, an article by Chuck Smith on holster design.

If I'm reading the article correctly, Chuck says he wet molds the holster, then stitches it up. 

If that's true, how does that work?   

Thanks, JD

[Ace Lungger]

JD,
If that is what he claims, he is reling on his glue! I don't see that he would gain anything!! Because all you do, is wrap or bag your gun, shove it in the holster and then pull it ot to dry. if he does it the way he says, I would think he would loose his wet mould unless he is machine sewing!
But I assume there are a many ways to do anything!
ACE

[knucklehead]

I will color the holster, glue in the lining and then stitch everything. then will wet mold the holster.
after holster is dry from wet molding then i put the final finish/sealer on the holster.



course you can allways stitch the holster whenever you want.

i do the stitching before wet molding because i work the edges to even and smooth on the belt sander. this is easier when the holster is not wet molded

[JD Alan]

Well, he doesn't say anything about gluing it, but I suppose that's a possibility. The way you guys are describing it is the only way I've heard-read of doing it, so wet molding before stitching it seems backwards to me. However, I know enough to know I don't know everything! (Say that fast 3 times!)

Donna, the manager at Portland Tandy, says that Chuck's way of doing things in not unheard of.

Oh well! Thanks guys. 

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I always wet mold last except for oil and/or conditioner. It seems that the stitching would change the fit if done after wet molding. If you don't glue your seams, I can't imagine how to wet mold first unless you have molds that sandwich the holster to shape it. There must be a technique I'm not familiar with that's used here.

[JD Alan]

Thanks for responding Will. I can't understand how he does it. I think I'm going to email Chuck and ask him about it.

Thanks for responding guys, I appreciate it

[JD Alan]

I found an email address for Chuck Smith, so I wrote asking about the article. Hopefully he will respond, then we'll get it straight from the source.

[randyc]

I machine stitch everything. Although it's possible to stitch after wet molding, I find it easier to stitch before wet molding.
Here's a trick I sometimes use I lightly case the leather and assemble the holster using rubber cement. I place the weapon in the holster and place it under my holster press. I only press enough to show the outside shape of the weapon.
I leave the weapon in  the holster, and lay out my stitch lines. I then pull the glued seams apart and flatten out the leather.
Once, dry, I glue the holster back together using Barge cement and stitch the holster together.
I then re-case the  leather, and do my wet forming. There are several metheds to reach the same end result.

Randy

[JD Alan]

Howdy Randy, I sure do appreciate the reply. Since you are a leather pro, I especially thank you for taking time to answer newbie questions.

I've not heard of a holster press, so perhaps you, or someone else could elaborate on that.

The process you describe seems like a lot of steps, especially wet molding twice, but then I am as green as it gets making holsters.

Thanks again, JD

BTW I emailed Chuck Smith Thursday morning, but I've not heard back from him yet.

[randyc]

JD
Thanks for the kind words. When I case the leather prior to laying out my stitch lines, it's a light casing, just enough for the outline of the weapon to show. Chuck Smith is also a pro. We all may have different ways to get the job done and build a quality product.

I use an inverted bottle jack press mounted in an iron frame. Theres' an iron plate at the top and buttom with plactic pads. You place the weapon and holster between the pads, bring the pads together to form the holster around the holster. I then remove the holster from the press and do my final forming/boning using my hands annd various hand tools.

When I use the press, I try to use repelica (Blue Guns) rather then the actual weapon. The last thing I want to do is ruin a polymar fraimed weapon using the press.

I will post a photo of my holster press when I get a chance.

[JD Alan]

That sounds like a pretty cool piece of equipment, obviously too expensive for the hobbyist. A collection of blue guns wouldn't be cheap either!

Thanks for responding, I do appreciate the time, JD