640 homemade holster

[Ziggy2525]

I've been playing with holster making for a bit. Only do it for myself. This is a pancake I just put together for my 640 Pro.

The only thing I do differently from some others I've seen is that each side of the pancake is made from two pieces of 4-5 oz leather glued together instead of a single piece of 7-8/8-9. Using two pieces of leather for each side makes a stiffer holster. Not as stiff as Kydex, but a lot more rigid than a single piece of leather.

The main stitching is saddle stitched with 5 cord waxed linen thread. The mouth is stitched with a thinner 3 cord waxed linen thread to keep the two pieces on each side from coming apart.

The edges were burnished with water/glycerine soap and a deer antler.

Using two pieces of leather for each side makes heavy boning of the exterior pretty much impossible. Wet molding molds the inside leather tightly to the pistol, but the exterior remains smooth.

I prefer a natural oiled finish to dye. The inside of the pistol pocket got a single coat of neatsfoot oil. The exterior got three coats of neatsfoot oil and when dry a coat of neutral shoe polish (carnuba wax).

I'm mostly OK with it. Fits nice and tight on the hip. Need to work on my stitching though. All suggestions for improvements are welcome.

[kthom]

Ziggy,
I’d say that’s pretty darn nice for a start! I’m foolish about M-640’s and I like that holster. I understand what you did with the leather and I’m betting that your holster will not lose it’s shape anytime soon. I also appreciate what’s involved with that much hand stitching through four thicknesses of leather! I think you did good.

[16thVACav]

Never crafted a holster in my life, but if that was my first, I'd be delighted!

[CelticSire]

Attractive, functional, very well made. I like it.

[Ziggy2525]

Originally Posted by 16thVACav

Never crafted a holster in my life, but if that was my first, I'd be delighted!

Not my first, but I haven't done a lot either.

[rednichols]

Originally Posted by Ziggy2525

I've been playing with holster making for a bit. Only do it for myself. This is a pancake I just put together for my 640 Pro.

The only thing I do differently from some others I've seen is that each side of the pancake is made from two pieces of 4-5 oz leather glued together instead of a single piece of 7-8/8-9. Using two pieces of leather for each side makes a stiffer holster. Not as stiff as Kydex, but a lot more rigid than a single piece of leather.

The main stitching is saddle stitched with 5 cord waxed linen thread. The mouth is stitched with a thinner 3 cord waxed linen thread to keep the two pieces on each side from coming apart.

The edges were burnished with water/glycerine soap and a deer antler.

Using two pieces of leather for each side makes heavy boning of the exterior pretty much impossible. Wet molding molds the inside leather tightly to the pistol, but the exterior remains smooth.

I prefer a natural oiled finish to dye. The inside of the pistol pocket got a single coat of neatsfoot oil. The exterior got three coats of neatsfoot oil and when dry a coat of neutral shoe polish (carnuba wax).

I'm mostly OK with it. Fits nice and tight on the hip. Need to work on my stitching though. All suggestions for improvements are welcome.

Looks to me like you got everything right! Well done. Neatsfoot oil 'migrates' through the leather, like a little water on a sponge, and equalises in colour. In truth today it is only applied for colour, whereas companies like Lawrence used it in heavy applications for weatherproofing. The owner of Hermann Oak, Fred, told me last century that it 'lubricates' the interwoven fibres of the leather, reducing the chance of leather cracking when flexed.

[sdb321]

Looks good to me. You might have found a "second job!!!!

[LoboGunLeather]

Originally Posted by rednichols

Looks to me like you got everything right! Well done. Neatsfoot oil 'migrates' through the leather, like a little water on a sponge, and equalises in colour. In truth today it is only applied for colour, whereas companies like Lawrence used it in heavy applications for weatherproofing. The owner of Hermann Oak, Fred, told me last century that it 'lubricates' the interwoven fibres of the leather, reducing the chance of leather cracking when flexed.

I must agree with Fred. Everything done in the process from hide to holster(vegetable tanning, wet-forming, etc) tends to strip moisture from the hide. A modest application of neatsfoot oil serves, in my opinion, to provide flexibility in use and allows the leather to flex with less chance of cracking.

Neatsfoot oil is produced by rendering the feet and lower legs of cattle, collecting the natural oils that allow cattle to survive very low temperatures without freezing. It can be referred to accurately as "cow oil"; a natural product of nature specific to bovines.

Please note that I do not advocate the use of neatsfoot oil as a routine maintenance procedure. The oil does not dry out, but remains within the fibrous structure of the leather, and additional applications can (and will) result in excessive pliability in the leather, overcoming all of the skilled work that resulted in the formed leather holster to begin with.

A very modest application done when the forming work has been completed, as a part of the finishing process, is all that any holster should ever need.

Best regards.