Tag: leather work

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Buck Knives. California’s loss is definitely Idaho’s gain.

Wikipedia says Buck Knives were founded in my old hometown of Mountain Home, Idaho, back in 1902. They also give credit to San Diego, California. Rewriting, or completely eliminating history is the flavor of the week in what’s left of America, so I choose to stick with the Idaho origination story. It’s my Blog.

Several weeks ago, my friend Gerry at Dakota Defense announced on Facebook that he had a few Buck 112 Ranger Autos available, and I got one. It arrived in record time, which is one of Gerry’s trademark moves–you order, he ships. No playing around. I was blown away by my new knife–my first Buck, and my first lock blade. I was so impressed with this Buck 112 that a few days later I ordered one of the classic Buck 110’s. Then, I got to thinking–rarely a good thing, but I got to thinking as a holster-maker, why not make a sheath? I’m left-handed, I have thousands of dollars worth of equipment, hard-won experience making gunleather, stress, blood loss, pain, scars, etc. Hell, I can make a knife sheath. It’ll be easy! One week later, after a half-dozen or so failed attempts, sure enough, I had one. But wait, there’s more.

Since I’m happy with the plain, left-handed, beautifully conformed to me leather Buck 112 sheath I have painstakingly created for myself…why not make a few more? As a holster-maker, pain, frustration and expense are my stock in trade. What could it hurt?

To wrap things up, I managed to finish a couple I’m happy with. Both for the Buck 112. Both for you majority right-handers. One is a hammer stamp design I adopted after seeing a holster that Mike Barranti built. The other is a simple basket stamp. Both are made from premium Hermann Oak leather, and lightly antiqued in mahogany. The borders on both of these are a little half-flower Barry King stamp that I’m partial to. Neither one’s on the website yet, but I’ll try and put them both up some time today. These are both in the Shop now. Just click the link up top.

Thanks for reading. Happy Tuesday–I hope you’re having a great week.

From what’s left of America…

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Tuesday. A lot to talk about, but I’m not gonna.

Black Cherry star basket stamped OWB with a 4″ Kimber Pro Raptor II in stainless.

Busy week last week, and another underway. I finished a bunch of 1911 holsters in a few different flavor combinations. A couple of florals, a basket stamp and a hammer stamp (an idea I stole–see my earlier post). I also did a half-dozen in plain ol’ natural, which we all know I’m partial to.

Today will be mostly photography, pattern making for some new guns, and knife sheaths for the Buck #112 and #110. I’ve also had a few folks asking when and if I’d be making belts again. I will be–I built one the other day for yours truly and I’m real tickled with how it turned out. Being a glutton for punishment, the answer would be “yes, I will be bringing the belts back.”

That’s it for now. Reckon I’ll wander back over to the coffee pot. Thanks for reading! And, as my friend Ricky Wallace says, “Thanks for your support!”

From what’s left of America …

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On the bench…

Working on a half-dozen or so for inventory. I thought I’d shoot a few progress photos for the blog and give you some idea of the process, and the steps involved in making a 1911 holster. These will all be natural, with no stamping or carving, white stitching, outside-the-waistband, high-ride, pancake-style, detailed molded, etc. These are my favorite to build, so that’s the reason you see so many of them.

The photo above shows a couple of my favorite tools–they’re both stitch grooves for cutting stitch lines before sewing. The general purpose is to recess the thread into a channel to minimize wear on the thread. I’m a clean-stitching freak, so anything I can do to make my stitch lines as neat as I can I’m in for. The tool at the top of the photo is one made by Bob Douglas up in Wyoming. The other is made by Jeremiah Watt. You can reach Jeremiah at www.Ranch2Arena.com and order one if you’re in the market. Jeremiah calls it a Gum Tool, and you can find it on his website at this link: https://www.ranch2arena.com/collections/horse-shoe-brand-tools/products/67-5200-gum-tool?variant=20123771011185 I don’t get a commission/reward for recommending the Watt/Horseshoe products–I just like to brag occasionally about the stuff I use and like. These come in two sizes–the #1, and the #2. For little stuff, like holsters, I only use the #1.

That’s about all I have for today–we rockin’ along and staying about as busy as we want to be. Thankful for great customers, and a fun job. Be sure to head over to our other website at www.GibsonLeather.com to check out the holsters we have in stock. We’ll be listing them here as time permits, but for now, they’re all over there.

Questions and comments are always welcome, so feel free!

From what’s left of America …