you have to have a holster. And if you have a gun that isn't dirt common, you may have trouble finding a holster to fit. So, what's a fellow to do?
Well, the best answer to that is to make your own holster. Believe me, it is not Rocket Science, and you need not purchase a ton of stuff to make one. I work with leather and That is what I hope to demonstrate here. (I am showing a 5 " Colt Official Police--try buying a holster for that at the next gun show.)
Now before you start slashing up a hunk of Leather, you first need to get a few things to hand. You are going to need to make a pattern. The best thing that I have found to use is the old-fashioned manila folder. A few years back our office went paperless and threw out several boxes of manila folders, one of which I promptly snagged. That has been the origin of most of the holsters I have made in the last 10 or 12 years. Any stiff piece of paper will do, but I have'nt found anything that works better.
Now to make a pattern using a manila folder, open the folder and lay it flat. Take the EMPTY gun that you are going to make a holster for, and lay it on it's sights, exactly centered on the mid-line crease of the folder. Carefully roll it to one side, being sure not to pivot the gun as you do so.
Using a sharp pencil, scribe the outline of the gun. Remember, the better your pattern, the better your holster will be. Once you have traced the outline of your gun on the paper, you now have to draw the holster. USE A PENCIL--unless you are a better artist than I, you'll want to make adjustments. (I Used a Sharpie to make the pattern stand out better, but careful observation will reveal several other pencil lines meandering around.)
Here are some rules of thumb:
If you are not going to use a welt, the edge of your holster pattern should be 1/2 the thickness of your gun, plus one eigth of an inch, away from the edge of the profile you traced. E.G., if your automatic has a slide that is one inch thick, you'll draw the boundary 5/8" away from the slide. This holster will have a welt, so I will plan on a half inch border to give me room for a stitch line and a 3/8 inch welt. (A welt is a spacer on the seam to be sewn that allows you to make your holster fit the gun more closely.
You will need at least 3/8 of an inch for the trigger guard.
Don't be afraid to copy--look at other holsters to see how they fit.
Once you have the pattern sketched out to your liking, cut out the pattern with a sharp pair of scissors. Again, take pains to do the best job that you can
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On a pouch style holster, after you cut out one side fold it over and cut the common edge--that way, they'll match up better when you transfer the pattern to the leather.
Once you have made the pattern--TRY IT ON THE GUN. Make adjustments as needed. Don't be afraid to start over--Paper is cheap: leather is dear.
Depending on the Style of holster, now make patterns for your belt loop tunnel, welt strip(s), and any straps you plan on using.
Try them together, make adjustments as required, and now you're ready to start making your holster. I'll have another thread on how best to do that later this summer.