Amazon is your friend…..

 

At least I have friends.

 

If it works, it works.

 

Nice job there. I might offer a few suggestions for future attempts, but you have the basics nailed down pretty well.

The original pancake holster design is generally credited to Roy Baker, called Roy's Original Pancakes back in the late 1960s. A simple design with two layers of leather with belt slots fore and aft of the handgun providing very good results in actual usage. The pressure applied by the belt pulling the inner and outer holster panels snugly into the body and compressing the holster pocket around the handgun, while also providing a smooth profiled surface over the holstered handgun to maximize concealment under the cover garment.

Like many other makers of the period, Roy's holsters were offered in a series of sizes for a number of applications like "Large Revolver", "Medium Revolver", "Small Revolver", "Large Automatic", "Medium Automatic", "Small Automatic". Holster pocket profiles were defined by stitching patterns that I have always thought of as "minimal" and "generic", while the inherent benefits of the pancake concept provided very good security (retention), comfort in use, and concealment with very little compromise in any of those factors.

Mr. Baker's real achievement was in his marketing plan. Display packages were offered to retailers around the country on a "floor plan" model, allowing countertop or wall displays of Roy's Original Pancakes to be had at minimal up-front expense with payments stretched out over a period of time so that the holsters could be sold before the store owners had to produce the payments. In very little time Roy's displays were seen in just about every police supply and many sporting goods stores all over the country.

It wasn't very long (early 1970s) before most of the major holster makers were offering their own variations on the pancake theme, including such names as Bianchi, Safariland, Don Hume, and others. A number of innovations were applied by the various designers and producers such as thumb-break retention, close molding to specific handgun dimensions, different ride heights on the belt, and ambidextrous functions.

Sadly, Roy Baker's company did not survive much longer than Roy did, and several years ago I noticed an announcement of a liquidation sale that included many of the original cutting dies and other proprietary equipment developed and used by him. Many thousands of Roy's Original Pancakes remain in daily use today and will sometimes be found on eBay and other sites.

My own leather holster business started as a part-time sideline early in my police career (1972) with my interpretation of the pancake design called the Model 1 (Lobo Gun Leather), and culminated in 2010 with the Enhanced Pancake Model as my most popular design. Those were delivered to customers in all 50 US states and 32 other countries during my business career. Both of those designs remain in production today, nearly 10 years after my retirement and sale of the business to the Fedders family in Ely, Minnesota.

Needless to say, I have a strong affinity for the pancake style. They are just plain good all-around holsters (in addition to helping me retire quite comfortably along the way!).

 

I missed the suggestion.......

 

I’m sincerely not trying to hurt your feelings, but there’s no way on God’s green Earth that I’d put my carry pistol into something like that- ever.

Not nearly enough coverage over your pistol and little to no retention can spell trouble for you.

I’m pretty active, and... I can tell you with certainty that if I were wearing that rig, my pistol would be falling out on the ground pretty often.

Leave holster making to the pro’s if you don’t want your carry piece all banged up. You’ll thank me later.

 

Are you friends with Noddy'sKuck? You have similar posting histories and styles.

 

There are going to be 'haters' wherever you go and whatever you do. FWIW, I think it is a fine looking holster. Fact is, I'd never even try something like that and if it rides good and YOU are happy, that's it. I'm done now.

 

An old expression from back when homemade clothing was fairly common, but not always of professional quality: "Made with loving hands at home."

Not criticizing. I used to do a lot of sewing and my "stuff" (clothing and household items) was very close to (and sometimes better than) what you can buy in the stores. I have never tried bending Kydex or sewing leather - and especially not holsters!

Glad it turned out well for you and holds the gun nicely. I have one "envelope style" holster made for a revolver by a saddle maker and questioned whether it would hold the gun well since it was not form fitted. It did - very nicely, indeed.

 

An old expression from back when homemade clothing was fairly common, but not always of professional quality: "Made with loving hands at home."

Not criticizing. I used to do a lot of sewing and my "stuff" (clothing and household items) was very close to (and sometimes better than) what you can buy in the stores. I have never tried bending Kydex or sewing leather - and especially not holsters!

Glad it turned out well for you and holds the gun nicely. I have one "envelope style" holster made for a revolver by a saddle maker and questioned whether it would hold the gun well since it was not form fitted. It did - very nicely, indeed.

Reminds me of the song "Coat Of Many Colors". -- one of my favorites.

 

It is much better than anything I could make. Mans got to have a hobby.

 

In my earlier responses I genuinely intended to offer a compliment and encouragement, along with some general information that some people might find of interest. It appears that I stepped on some toes without intending to do so. Somehow I got the idea in my head that we were all here to share our experiences and knowledge in an open forum.

So, you may beat me or abuse me, but please don't send me a bad check; those really hurt my feelings.

 

@retired badge 1 Re-read post #18 at your leisure --

 

I think that every holster maker that ever lived started out by making their first holster. 😁👍

 

Exactly. In my case that coincided with my early days as a young cop trying to keep up the house payments and feed a couple of hungry kids on skinny paychecks. In addition to making my own gear I could pick up a couple of bucks now and then from other starving young working guys.

Fast forward 30 years or so and the internet provided an accessible marketplace where I started supplementing my income by offering a few holsters for sale. Before I knew what hit me I found myself administering a website and working 7 days every week trying to keep up with stacks of orders for everything I could produce over the next 2 or 3 months.

Like many other things, what started out as an interesting little hobby turned into a lot of work. We must always be careful what we wish for because sometimes we get it.

 

Bob, I made one nearly like it. I use it when I'm at a range that doesn't allow pocket carry. It has served me well for 10 years now.
Like you I work with the tools I have. In the belt loops I put a dremel sanding drum in my drill press and make a fence like you have on a table saw. then I sand the loops into a uniform opening using the fence to keep them straight.
Then to finish them I have a dowel that I have cut groves in. I put that in the drill and slick the sanded edges. I can dress the dowel with bee's wax to give a polished look.
This with the tools in my garage get me very useable gear. Good luck DR

 

Bob, I made one nearly like it. I use it when I'm at a range that doesn't allow pocket carry. It has served me well for 10 years now.
Like you I work with the tools I have. In the belt loops I put a dremel sanding drum in my drill press and make a fence like you have on a table saw. then I sand the loops into a uniform opening using the fence to keep them straight.
Then to finish them I have a dowel that I have cut groves in. I put that in the drill and slick the sanded edges. I can dress the dowel with bee's wax to give a polished look.
This with the tools in my garage get me very useable gear. Good luck DR

I’m an amature at leather working too, sanding the edges and burnishing go a long way in prettying one up.

 

Looks good to me, Boss….. it’s a keeper.

 

Sooo grab the hand next to you and sing along. Don’t wanna sing ? That’s okay just close your eyes and sway with the vibe.

Love
Look at the two of us
Strangers in so many way
We’ve got a lifetime to share
So much to say
And as we go from day to day……….

 

I just got a Kimber 9mm with Optics, had to buy a new holster, Like 👍

 

Good work, Bob.
I have had a lot of holsters over the years, including a real "Roy Baker, the Pancake Maker" rig. I had and still have some Don Hume holsters.

But I make my own now. I can make a holster for my gun; not my type of gun. I make the holster to fit me, not a one size fits all sort of arrangement. I set the draw angle and such. I make it to match my conditions. Just for the record, none of my holsters are military style 'flap' holsters. I'm a city dweller these days.

 

So I used a leather scrap I had in the bin and made this little holster for my CDS9. The belt loops are a bit janky bit it carries nice. View attachment 476564

Belt Slots.

Here is a little tip on making nice neat belt slots.
Punch your two holes at a distance that will work nicely with the width of your gun belt.

Carefully scribe two really fine lines from hole to hole that will be the outline of your slot.

Hold a single edge razor blade on your scribe line perfectly straight up and down & give it a light tap with a mallet. It will easily slice cleanly through your leather.
Move it and tap again to complete one side of the slot.
Repeat on the other side.

A single edge razor blade is not long enough to do one side of a gun belt slot in one shot.
So...you can use a pair of pliers to snap off a standard utility knife blade to the exact length that you need. Watch your eyes!
If you always carry on a 1 &1/2" belt you'll only to make the correct length of utility knife blade once.
You can use the same blade many times.

If you're careful and just take your time lining everything up...you can create a really clean belt slot without having to do any clean up.

I hope this helps and I hope folks can understand my lame ass description. 😁
Maybe I'll take a demo picture that will be (hopefully) worth a thousand words.

 

QK shooter, that is quite handy.
I've got half a barn doors full of leather craft tools and such. What you outline is essentially what I do. I have a couple of cutting tools instead of the utility knife but the basic idea is the same.

 

I made a pancake holster a few years ago for my wife's S&W 642. I cheated on the stitching;I took it to a small local saddlery and the man there stitched it on his machine. He asked me about the belt slots and I said I planned to cut them by hand. He reached for a punch and it was done in seconds.I
Good job and keep it up.

 

Well Bob, you inspired me to dig out my own bag of leather scraps I bought at a farm store years ago as I thought I could make a knife sheath or a mag pouch one day and never did.

Now that fall is here and I am wearing long sleeved tucked in henley shirts with a western cut vest I have wanted to find a very high riding OWB holster for a lightweight firearm that would not show the gun or holster when I bent over or raised my arms. The vest only covers my belt by about 1.5 inches and all my other OWB holster hang down too far to remain concealed as I move.

So, I used my leather making tools which consist of a cordless drill, a standard utility knife and an upholstery needle with some heavy duty waxed thread. An hour or so sitting at the picnic table I came up with this one. The brown scrap was stiff enough for the backing but the black was pretty thin, so I reinforced the mouth.

My sewing is like my welding, doesn't look so good but never comes apart.
Rides high and tight and the holster is only about a 1/4 inch below the belt.
Gun is tight enough it does not fall out turning it upside down with a gentle shake as I soaked the black leather and stitched the gun in it wet and left the gun in it wrapped in plastic to dry.

I think I have enough to make a mag pouch that rides just as high.

Thanks for the inspiration, Bob!

 

Nothing wrong with that -- sweet.

 

I love seeing people making their own stuff. 👍
These skills (even if just utilitarian) may come in quite handy if & when the world goes to 💩.

 

That is one of the better hi-rise designs I've seen, wouldn't take much of anything to conceal.

 

Due to my size (short) and firearms choice, I could not find the holsters I wanted. I shot in 'Cowboy' matches back then, was married and just did not have the budget for 'nifty' holsters. So I started making them.
I even made and sold a few to people with whom I worked until the agency (nameless) made a rule holsters had to be by a 'real' manufacturer. (They never talked to me directly; humpff?)

Slots. I had/have a leather punch that is round and serves as the correct size. So I punch a hole in each end (depending on the belt used) and I have a leather knife (shaped like a thin, curved chisel) to cut the outer sides.

Yes, it is fun and rather addictive.

After thought. My apologies for the unfinished entry. Looked to me like the rest of was there when I pushed the button.

 

My first holsters weren't fit to show anyone, much less put on the internet. Adding to what QKShooter posted about the slots-another way to do it that even a lot of pros use is to punch/drill the 'ends' of the slot, then use a chisel to connect them. Easy to keep straight lines that way, especially if it's heavy leather and you're not too experienced with cutting.

My real advice is to be careful; holster making is highly addictive. The, "Hey, if I made another one I could do XXX better" is hard to resist.

Larry

 

Thanks. I did have a leather punch from back when I made more holes in my leather belts. I used the biggest one and then just used a steel ruler and a utility knife to cut between holes, but the razor or chisel idea would have been more controlled so as not to cut too far beyond the punch hole.
We were in a Hobby lobby in eastern Idaho last week and yeah, I could see how you could get into another expensive hobby quite easily.