Testing A New Pattern

[Marshal Will]

I made another holster pattern loosely based on a photo of an original one I found online. I decorated it with my large Frank James floral stamp instead of making a floral pattern with various stamps the way the original was. The leather was a piece of old (very old), hard (very hard), semi-belly leather that wasn't going to be used for anything important. I got a few goobers where the groove tool dragged or slipped on the hard leather but I still finished the holster to prove the pattern. The pattern is a success and I can use it for holsters in the future without any significant modifications. It was dyed from a bunch of left over dyes, none of which was enough to make a project, mixed together and thinned with alcohol to make it enough to submerse the piece before assembly. The whole project came out fairly good considering.

[Zulch]

That’s very nice looking MW. Just slight embellishment. I think it’s very nice. I like it. Are you keeping that one?

[Marshal Will]

Thanks, Z. This one was made to test the pattern. It will hang around in case I suddenly have a need for one something but it isn't what I consider great quality.

[Miguel Loco]

Good job Will! Old leather can be a bugger to work with....I'd be proud of that attempt. I've always been a bit partial to a sewn toe like that too. For old hard leather, you got those grooves nice and deep, as well as the floral stamp.

[Marshal Will]

Good job Will! Old leather can be a bugger to work with....I'd be proud of that attempt. I've always been a bit partial to a sewn toe like that too. For old hard leather, you got those grooves nice and deep, as well as the floral stamp.

Thanks, Mick. LOL, that floral stamp took numerous hits with a 2-lb dead blow hammer and then I had to go over it with bevel stamps to get it to show properly. Both Main & Winchester and Gallatin holsters generally had a sewn in toe plug. For some reason the sewn toes seem to have been less common, although certainly not unknown.

[Miguel Loco]

I agree Will. The toe plug was the next step after the brass cap and was a military standard, so there were probably millions made. It didn't require the extra tooling the brass cap style needed. The cattle drive era and the Apache wars led to different styles again. Many doing away with the plug...

[Marshal Will]

One I will make one of these days is a civilian flap holster as shown on page 72 of Packing Iron, made 1875-1885. It has a sewn toe. It looks quite cool.

[Hawg]

It looks good to me.

[Miguel Loco]

One I will make one of these days is a civilian flap holster as shown on page 72 of Packing Iron, made 1875-1885. It has a sewn toe. It looks quite cool.

I've eyeballed that one for a while too. One of these days I'm going to try it too.

[Marshal Will]

Thanks, Hawg.

One I will make one of these days is a civilian flap holster as shown on page 72 of Packing Iron, made 1875-1885. It has a sewn toe. It looks quite cool.

I've eyeballed that one for a while too. One of these days I'm going to try it too.

There's a real problem with that book. It's full of too many good examples.

[Miguel Loco]

Thanks, Hawg.

One I will make one of these days is a civilian flap holster as shown on page 72 of Packing Iron, made 1875-1885. It has a sewn toe. It looks quite cool.

I've eyeballed that one for a while too. One of these days I'm going to try it too.

There's a real problem with that book. It's full of too many good examples.

Only on the first 216 pages.........wait, the book has only 216 pages..... 

[Marshal Will]

Thanks, Hawg.

One I will make one of these days is a civilian flap holster as shown on page 72 of Packing Iron, made 1875-1885. It has a sewn toe. It looks quite cool.

I've eyeballed that one for a while too. One of these days I'm going to try it too.

There's a real problem with that book. It's full of too many good examples.

Only on the first 216 pages.........wait, the book has only 216 pages..... 

[ShotgunDave]

I like it Marshal. Beautiful work as always.

I'm partial to the sewn in toe plug myself, but that sewn toe looks great on that one. I also like the simple embellishment.

[Marshal Will]

Thanks, Dave. I got my inspiration from this one.



Mine is more like a Gallatin or M&W around the triggerguard.