anyone else been working on creative pursuits while stuck at home? i have been dabbling in leather gun holsters since we already make leather knife sheaths. i started with this prototype slide type holster for my Beretta LTT.

dozer

Nice!

What kind of leather is that?

this one is just simple tooling (cow) leather. it is my go to for our knife sheaths, so i had plenty on hand. i have used horse leather in the past as well. the next one will have more precise boning and be a bit more aesthetic. i didn't even bother to radius or buff the edges. i swear that edge work makes up 80% of good leather work. i am not a leather pro, but i wanted to try some new things. i think i will work on a matching mag pouch for this slide holster. gotta stay busy in my off time these days.

dozer

Thanks.

So, are the black markings part of the leather? Don't recall ever having seen that particular effect before.

yeah, the black is part of our signature leather dye pattern. we do everything different. i use three different dyes on the sheath to get that color and pattern. the mrs. calls it the leopard pattern. i have been very tempted to make an entire tactical rig from wet formed leather, just for giggles. basically, a modern day gun slinger rig. that would be a fun project. who knows, if we are holed up for months, i just might do that. i am working on some fun projects for my down time.

dozer

So the dye reacts differently to different parts of the leather or you create the pattern intentionally? Referring to the black parts, obviously the white was worked in.

i do the pattern intentionally. i start with the lighter dye colors and work up to the black. i apply the black with my fingers to create the spotted effect. it is just a look i came up with years ago and it has become our signature finish on all of our leather work. the light part is our logo that i carve into the leather at the very end with a foredom tool. seems more personal than just using a leather stamp.

dozer

Ah. VERY nicely done, I'd have thought it was some sort of natural pattern or figure in the leather. Impressive.

i appreciate the kind words. we try to be unique. i hated leather work, initially. it was just something that had to be done. over time, it became a fun skill to learn, on it's own.

dozer

Very nice looking!

I just finished this last week. My wife and I are full-time woodturners. We make a entire array of things, salt & pepper mills, cremation urns, wine bottle stoppers and lots of other things that are round!

Norfolk Island Pine with small burl from our property.

Here's a urn we did about 5 months ago.

those are awesome. i watch those youtube videos of guys doing that type of woodwork. impressive.

dozer

Learned how to bake bread, very rewarding and fun.

quote:

Originally posted by Skins2881:
Learned how to bake bread, very rewarding and fun.

That looks great. I have been baking bread too. I didn’t realize how much I would enjoy it. Day 2 of my sourdough starter. Hopefully, I don’t screw it up.

great, now i want bread. not a good thing while trying to keep carbs down. well, now i am bending kydex for my pistols now. got some nice new kydex pants for my custom HK now. next up is some kydex for the CyberSteyr.

dozer

quote:

got some nice new kydex pants

Wow, that beats heavy starch

I do some leather work. I have not attempted holsters yet, that will come soon.

I do some wood carving. I especially like making hiking and walking staffs.

I need to get my camera battery charged up and ready to go, storm season starts here real soon. I’m in tornado alley.

I’m getting my small garden ready, I’m planting a few things this weekend. I need to rebuild, or should I say redo the wood frames.

I’m in the ham radio hobby, I’m getting a new mast and dual band antenna up in the next week, and probably build another dipole for HF.

I’ve put a stop on bee keeping, they’re just too hard to keep alive now, and they’re expensive to buy.

I like raising rose bushes, I used to have 55 bushes but Rose Rosette Disease killed most of them. I have 5 or 6 still alive and healthy and really enjoy them. Now that most of my neighbors are home from the Covid Disease I tell them to clip all the roses they want for their wives to enjoy.
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good grief, you must be busy all the time. i wish i had enough time to dabble in more interests, myself. good stuff.

dozer

Rainy day projects:

We have a few of those half-circle windows in our house & custom 'blind' panels are pricey.

Had a fair bit of 'scrap' wood around the house, so decided to DIY it.

My original idea, was to build a filler panel that would slide into the pocket, then my wife decided she wanted 'shutters'.

A trip to HD, borrowed my F-I-L's air stapler & a few hours of my time.

Not 100% happy with a few parts, but overall I think they'll work. And, if not, I only have about $20 (hinges, staples, paint) in it.

This is the back side & they'll be closed the majority of the time.
Learned a few things & will probably do a better job on the next set.


And, a shot of what the front will be


With all the time spent waiting on paint & glue to dry, got some work done on reorganizing the garage. End goal is to get 1 bay cleared up enough to fit my car back in. Once the dead fridge is gone, it should free up the last bit of space I'll need.

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