Making a holster

BC38

BC38

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I'm making my first full-sized holster - a flap holster for my Luger.

I'm using some dark brown chrome tanned, pre-dyed leather I picked up at the local Tandy store. I've got the pieces all cut out and ready to stitch together, but I have a question or two about finishing the edges.

I figured this would be the best place to pose some questions for our leather-working and holster-making experts.

First question: For the single thickness belt loop on the back, I presume I need to burnish the edges BEFORE stitching it onto the back of the holster?

Second question: I'm thinking that since I will be gluing the edges wherever two layers are sewn together, I'm thinking it will work best to glue and stitch those edges together and then burnish them together AFTERWARDS, right?

Third question: With this chrome-tanned semi-soft leather that is just over 1/8" thick, what is the best & easiest method to burnish the edges?

One technique that I've read about is to apply a clear acrylic paint on the edge and then sand it, repeating the process as many times as necessary to achieve a smooth slick edge. Anyone have another method to suggest that will work better and/or is easier/quicker?

Lobo, Snubby, and all the other leather gurus, I am really in need of your expert opinions. Thanks in advance for any suggestions you care to offer this neophyte.
 
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1. It is definately easier to burnish the belt loop before stitching.
2. That's the way I do it. I use a sanding drum in a bench top drill press to even up the edge.
3. Go back to Tandy and buy some vegetable tanned leather. Seriously.
I use a 1/2" oak dowel placed in the bench top drill press. I cut different size grooves in the dowel with files and sandpaper. I put bees wax on the edge of the leather and run it across the dowel with the drill press running.
I use a beveler to round the front and back edge and dye the edge dark brown or black before burnishing .
There is more than one way to get this done but the above works for me.
I don't use chrome tanned leather and 1/8" of that might be a little flimsy but using the drill press would allow you to hold the leather tight while burnishing.
Check out Youtube for some videos or look up a leather worker forum for more info.
Good luck and let us know how it turns out.
 
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bamabiker said:
1. It is definately easier to burnish the belt loop before stitching.
2. That's the way I do it. I use a sanding drum in a bench top drill press to even up the edge.
3. Go back to Tandy and buy some vegetable tanned leather. Seriously.
I use a 1/2" oak dowel placed in the bench top drill press. I cut different size grooves in the dowel with files and sandpaper. I put bees wax on the edge of the leather and run it across the dowel with the drill press running.
I use a beveler to round the front and back edge and dye the edge dark brown or black before burnishing .
There is more than one way to get this done but the above works for me.
I don't use chrome tanned leather and 1/8" of that might be a little flimsy but using the drill press would allow you to hold the leather tight while burnishing.
Check out Youtube for some videos or look up a leather worker forum for more info.
Good luck and let us know how it turns out.
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^^Good advice. I use a slightly different approach to burnishing (there's different techniques out there). I use a wet sponge to wet the holster edge with water and rub glycerine soap into the edge for burnishing with the drill press. Then I rub beeswax into the edge and rub/polish the edge with canvas.
 
Thanks for the replies so far. Keep the good info coming guys.

Just FYI, I said the leather I have is chrome-tanned, but I don't actually know that. I just assumed that because it is pre-dyed. The more I look at it the less sure I am about that. I really don't know I would be able to tell for certain one way or another. Maybe someone can clue me in on that.

Now that I look at it again, it is actually pretty stiff, and it in reality it is a little more than 1/8" thick.
 
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BC38 said:
Thanks for the replies so far. Keep the good info coming guys.

Just FYI, I said the leather I have is chrome-tanned, but I don't actually know that. I just assumed that because it is pre-dyed. The more I look at it the less sure I am about that. I really don't know I would be able to tell for certain one way or another. Maybe someone can clue me in on that.

Now that I look at it again, it is actually pretty stiff, and it in reality it is a little more than 1/8" thick.
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Well, then, step one on your journey, don't be confused about whether leather is chrome or veg. A bit like being a gas station attendant and not knowing the gas pump from the diesel pump; not the same and definitely not interchangeable.
 
rednichols said:
Well, then, step one on your journey, don't be confused about whether leather is chrome or veg. A bit like being a gas station attendant and not knowing the gas pump from the diesel pump; not the same and definitely not interchangeable.
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Gotcha. Can you offer any helpful tips on how to make that determination?
 
BC38, when it comes to making holsters, you are going to get a lot of good and bad information. Some of it will directly conflict with other information (for example, some will get the vapors if someone mentions putting neatsfoot oil on a holster, whereas some literally dip the finished holster or gun belt in it).

I will agree with the others that you need to get some vegetable tanned (un-colored, preferably) leather. Don't even consider using the chrome tanned for holsters.

The very best thing to can do to improve your holster making knowledge is to buy this book from Tandy leather:
 

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Thanks Warren Sear.

Can anyone tell me how to determine if a piece of leather is vegetable tanned or chrome tanned? Appearance? Smell? Water absorption?
 
I do my edges in this order. First I glue them then sand then on a horizontal belt sander and a drum sander chucked into a drill press for tight curves to get them all nice and smooth. After that I'll mark my stitch line then do my stitchin'. I punch my stitch holes with a stitching chisel with 3mm spacing then hand stitch using a double needle saddle stitch.
After stitching, I'll check the edges and if they have ripples from the stitches, I'll sand them smooth then bevel, dye and burnish. I use a wooden burnishing tool from Tandy and hand burnish. I have 2, one for black and one for other than black. First, I'll do a water burnish then a Gum Tragacanth burnish than coat the edge with Tan-Kote so it'll stay good looking. If all goes right, it all comes out looking something like this:

In this case, I also grooved the stitch line. That's not always necessary but in this case, I thought it'd look good grooved.

Hand burnished welted edge:
 
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I cut out the leather using my pattern, then use an air brush to apply the dye evenly and avoid streaking. After that I drill the holes and saddle stitch, then finish the edges.

Here are pictures of a holster I made, using an air brush to apply the dye before stitching...
 

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bamabiker said:
BC, I'm not sure how you can tell once you've bought it. Might have to go back to the Tandy store and show them which pile you got it out of.
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OK, so if the difference is so hard to tell, why is the chrome tanned such a no-no?
Is there something about the tanning process makes it THAT bad for the finish on guns? Is it bad enough to be a big deal even if the gun doesn't get left in the holster for extended periods?

Contrary to Red's analogy of the gas station attendant, who would be pumping gas every day, but still doesn't know the difference between gas & diesel, this isn't something I do every day - or something I have ever done for that matter.

A more apt analogy might be a guy who's never driven or fueled a car before. In that case not knowing the difference between the pumps wouldn't be because he's stupid, but rather it would be because he lacks any frame of reference.

That's kind of where I'm at here - no real frame of reference. That's why I'm asking the experts! :D

For example: I didn't even know what saddle stitching was until I looked it up.
 
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It has to do with what is used in chrome tanned vs. veg tanned but I'm not informed enough on the details to explain it to you.
As long as you do not leave the gun in the holster I believe you will be OK but if you are going to be making them you might as well buy the leather better suited for the project.

I'll stay out of any discussion about what Red has to say.
 
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Warren Sear said:
^^^ Snubby Fan, you wrote that you dye the leather after stitching? How do you keep the tread from getting colored? I have done this, but I don't like how the thread looks dingy afterward.
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I dye the leather after I have all the bits cut out. I just don't dye the edges 'til they're sanded and beveled. Sometimes I'll use a small brush if I'm dyeing the edges a different color or I'll use a q-tip if it's the same color.
 
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