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Well, I got my latest order of Kydex and started on my next hybrid holster today. Since I wanted this one to look a little nicer than the first, I started with dying the leather. I went with a all-in-one stain and finish from Eco-Flo called "fudge brown." It's a gel that you just wipe on with a cloth. The more you use, the darker it gets. After the stain drys, you can buff it and get a really nice sheen.

Next was to start forming the "chocolate brown" Kydex. I think these colors are going to look really nice together.


In order to get the gun and mag as close together as possible, I built a little jig out of some aluminum flat stock. This holds the Kydex flat against the bench while I form the pockets for the pistol and the mag on either side. I did the gun side first.

While I was waiting for the Kydex to cool down completely from forming it around the gun, I decided to make a couple of J clips. I have lots of remnants of black .093" Kydex from making motorcycle handguards. Most of these are just the right size to make two clips.

I went with J clips this time, but I'll probably make some other variations to see what I like best. These clips just need holes punched and the corners rounded over.

After the clips, I went back to the brown Kydex and formed the mag carrier. I think the forming went pretty well.

I just need to trim the extra from the top, bottom and sides, and then I'll start stitching the leather and Kydex together. Right now, I'ts just too hot to play around in the garage any more tonight. I'll finish up tomorrow.

Looking good so far!

I didn't get a whole lot done today. Sundays are always really busy for me with church, music practice, etc... I did finish molding the Kydex. I wanted to get the angles where the Kydex transitions to the leather really sharp. Just pressing it wasn't getting the results I wanted, so I tried something else. I heated the Kydex JUST enough to work it, and then I applied pressure with some various tools (the base plate to my Kahr's mag worked well), moving along the angles as the Kydex cooled. Basically, I used the same technique as hand boning wet leather. Using this method, I was able to get almost 90 degree transition angles. After getting the Kydex formed to my satisfaction, I trimmed the edges with my band saw and cleaned them up with a sanding sponge. I accidentally trimmed the edge along the mag holder a little closer than I wanted to, but I think it's still workable. Anyway, on to the pics!
Outside:




How it looks on the inside:



One of my major goals for this holster was to make it narrower than the first. I was hoping to narrow it by about an inch, but I ended up doing a hair better. Measured at the widest point, from side to side, V.1 is 5.89" wide and V.2 is 4.79" wide. Here's a comparison pic of V.1 (green) and V.2 (brown):


Hopefully, tomorrow night, I'll be able to drill the stitching holes and stitch everything together. Then I just have to bevel, slick and dye the edges, and install the clips.

Nice work with the kydex. How much of a shoulder do you need to attach it to the leather base?

jester wrote:Nice work with the kydex. How much of a shoulder do you need to attach it to the leather base?

Not much. I'm stitching the Kydex to the leather, so I really just need about enough room for the thread plus enough extra to prevent tear out.

How does it do for retention? Gravity only?

AustinMRH wrote:How does it do for retention? Gravity only?

The way the Kydex is molded to fit the gun gives the holster it's retention. It is very positive and you can feel it "snap" into place when you insert the gun. It takes a pretty decisive pull to remove the gun from the holster. If you don't have the belt clips engaged, you'll get the holster right along with the pistol.

Where do you buy your materials at

Jbird5363 wrote:Where do you buy your materials at

I get my Kydex from Knifekits.com. Everything else I get from Tandy Leather.

I've had a busy couple of days, so I haven't made much progess. Tonight I got the stitching holes drilled in the Kydex. First, I used a frehhand groover to scribe out the lines I wanted the stiching to follow. It's actually a leather working tool, but it worked quite well on the Kydex. Then, I used a 3/32" diamond hole punch to lay out the holes. I bought a 4 pronged punch, but it wouldn't make tight enough corners so I snapped one of the prongs off. at times, I had to lean it way over and only use 2 prongs to keep the stitch line smooth.

Then I went back and drilled the holes with a 1/16" drill bit. I'm pretty happy with how the lines came out and very relieved that there was plenty of space beside the mag carrier after all. After I drilled the holes, I cleaned up the drill-out on the back with a sanding sponge and did some final sanding on the edges to make the edges match up with the drilled holes better.

Nice!

I applaud your effort to not only make a functional holster, but an attractive one as well.

I opted for the former but not the latter...

Veg tan leather from Hobby Lobby: $8.00
Waist band fabricated from old Levi's blue jeans: $0.00
Recycled velcro: $0.00
550 guts for sewing: $0.00
Self fabricating a comfortable inside the waist holster that can be completely concealed by a cover garment or a tucked in shirt....well, not priceless, but 8 bucks ain't bad.



I certainly won't get cool points for style with what I made, however, it is both comfortable, and functional.

Im digging this I think a trip to Louisiana is in order my GRAMPA made saddles holsters belts for the best of them. Big names back in the day he made guitar straps for Elvis Johnny cash and Hank Williams sr. I think it's time I learned from a pro.

I ordered the kydex what are you ordering for leather I don't know what I'm looking at online

Jbird5363 wrote:I ordered the kydex what are you ordering for leather I don't know what I'm looking at online

I went to the store and got a 1/2 shoulder for $20. I'm not sure if they have those on their website. Yor best bet would be to call the nearest location and talk to them about what you need. Tandy has 15 Texas locations, so there's bound to be one that's not too far. Also, the employees are very helpful and will explain or demonstrate anything you have questions about.

Found a Tandy shop bought some leather I was goofin around and made this ghetto fab dude