I have this beautiful old Tom Threepersons style holster, that has
a crack in the leather. As you can see in the picture, the crack is
about 2 inches long. Not too deep. It doesn't go all the way through.
I am guessing that a previous owner stuffed a revolver
with adjustable rear sight in it, but it was made for fixed rear
sight. The little pink thing you see under the belt loop is just an
eraser I used to keep the holster standing up while I took the
picture. The advice I need: Is there a way to fix it to prevent
the crack getting worse, without messing up the appearance too
badly???? What would you do???? Thank you for any and all
advice.

Here is what I have done:
First, I used a very soft bristle toothbrush and saddle soap to
clean the crack very thoroughly.
Then a massaged a couple of drops of oil into the crack and
used the handle of the toothbrush to smooth the leather on
both side of the crack.
Then gave it a treatment with Black Rock Leather 'N' Rich.
After it was well dry, I covered the crack, inside and out, with
a piece of 5/8" electrical tape.
That is a temporary fix until I can find a piece of very thin
leather and some very good leather glue.

A picture of the semi-finished product is 2nd from left.

Thanks for all of the good advice.

Attached Images

	SAM_1738.jpg (53.2 KB, 202 views)
	SAM_1743.jpg (51.3 KB, 13 views)

__________________
In Omnia Paratus

I don't know of anything that can be done for that other than keeping the leather conditioned so it don't get worse.
I'll keep an eye on this thread to see what the experts say.

My thought was to rough it up a bit and glue a piece of leather over it,
but that wouldn't be too attractive.

__________________
In Omnia Paratus

I make a bunch of holsters and do some repairs. I would un stitch the main seam and sew a piece of leather over the crack, on the outside. I would make it long enough to create a hammer thong for the revolver, then re stitch the main seam. Might take a little work but I think it would look better and enforce the crack.

I hate to admit this, but I have stopped leather cracks in my car and on my very old (70 yrs) desk chair by putting some high quality super glue in the crack. The crack is still there, but it's been at least a year or more of me putting my fat a__ on these seats and the crack has not grown. I know it's "rube goldberg", but I'm lazy and only care if it works...
Merry Christmas
J.

Try some of the black RTV silicon stuff. I've used that stuff on shoes/boots in the past and works well. Will fill the crack and still be flexible

Great idea.... Wish I'd thought of it... REALLY

J.

Thanks for the ideas. Keep them coming.

__________________
In Omnia Paratus

Phil....I think post #5+6 is your best bet, at least that's what I would do. I've done this and it worked for me...............................M*

Well I have heard this came be done a few ways but once the leather starts cracking it is hard to reverse it
If it were me
I would do a repair to the inside but it would need to be glued and stitched I would think
I love old leather and always a shame when it starts to crack
Merry Christmas to everyone
Stay safe out there
God Bless,John

Sent from my SM-S727VL using Tapatalk

Well, I came up with three solutions:
1. drill hole at end of crack to stop spreading, like in metal
2. Tig weld the crack or
3. Try the "Leather & Vinal Repair Kit" from 3M. It repairs leather and
vinyl on car seats. I bought some years ago, don't know where,
probably automotive store, and repaired a car seat. I still have the
kit.
Hope something works.

__________________
Kevin in Oregon

I've done a variety of leather repairs. Mostly to my wife's shoes. Most recently her favorite workout/spin shoes. They split down the side and I repaired that with a hunk of 4 to 5 ounce veg tan leather scrap contact cemented over the crack.
That was a few months ago and it's still holding great.
If that was my holster, I think I'd try first with a hunk of 4 to 5 ounce veg tan leather dyed black and carefully trimmed so it'd look nice. Then contact cement it over the crack. The area of the holster that would be covered with the patch'd roughed up to hold the cement better.
Putting the patch on the inside may affect how it fits the gun.
If there were any issues with the patch not holding well, then I'd split the seam, stitch it on then restitch. Since this is an old holster, it may be a bit dried out. Cutting the stitches and flexing the leather may exacerbate the damage.

__________________
Keep on Chooglin'

+1 for Super Glue or RTV. I've used SG and a different silicone with pretty decent results.

Get some saddle soap and give the holster a good going over. It may not fix the crack but will keep it from getting worse.

The ideas of a small patch would work real well. 4-5 ounce leather may be too thick. I'd try thin enough to cover up the crack but not thick enough that you have to bevel the edges to make it look good.

Get a small tube of Barge Contact Cement. It will hold for years.

What’s the old saw? If is supposed to turn and does not, use WD40. If it turns and is not supposed to, get out the Duct Tape. But it in this case let me recommend J.B. Weld.

Phill best of luck whatever rout you take..

__________________
Always Stay Strong!