OK leather workers, how do I

[Tycer]

Stretch leather?
I bought a new Safariland 200 duty holster made for a 4" and my new 66 is 4.25". It takes a bit of shove to get it seated. How do I stretch the nose of the holster? Oil and heat?

[AJMD429]

I've always used. . . water. . . dunno if that's right to do, though.

[Les Staley]

Mix rubbing alcohol and water 50/50 in a spray bottle..wet the holster down and shove in the pistol..let dry..(oil up the gun before). Used to have a shoe repair shop.. Les

[Lassiter]

Please don't use water on your new holster. Wrap your unloaded handgun in a heavy plastic bag, like a heavy freezer bag, and push it down into the holster. Leave it over night. If your holster is a pancake style holster you could wear it around the house for a few hours. Pancake holsters tend to pull the holster tighter around the gun when worn and this will help it stretch the leather quicker. Never oil or soak your leather holster with water it causes the leather to break down and soften. If you need to clean it use a damp cloth to clean surface dirt. I've been building concealment holsters for a couple of years and a good leather holster will last a long time if properly cared for.

[Bronco]

Can you soak it with silicone spray from a can For you leather masters

I have one I would like to work over

John

[AJMD429]

Years ago when I made a couple holsters, the way I fit them to the gun was I think called 'blocking and casing' or something, and the guy who showed me how to do is was a saddle-maker and did lots of stuff with leather. I thought sure we used water. But that was making a holster, not 'fitting' one, so it makes sense what Lassiter says; I've read on holster-maker websites about using the wrapped-up-gun method. Some say do it 'dry', and some others advise a paste or wax (dunno if it is to help soften, stretch, or just lubricate).

[Malamute]

A holster maker I know recommends the 50/50 rubbing alcohol/water mix, sprayed on. If left alone after damping it will shrink a bit, it worked or a gun put in, or cartridges in loops it will stretch a bit.

[Old Savage]

There have been some extensive threads on this. Chuck 100yd has been involved with some of the best holster makers and is one himself. He uses extra virgin olive oil and can direct you so some professional discussions about this or give you the info himself.

[Centennial]

Don't use heat.
My recommendation is:
If the gun fits now just wear it with the gun, keep the gun in it at night (like a shoe stretcher). It will loosen up soon enough.

[AJMD429]

There have been some extensive threads on this. Chuck 100yd has been involved with some of the best holster makers and is one himself. He uses extra virgin olive oil and can direct you so some professional discussions about this or give you the info himself.

Now that takes all the fun out of it, to actually hear from a professional who knows what he's talking about...

[Chuck 100 yd]

I use WARM water when wet forming a new `unfinished`holster as do almost every holster maker on the planet. I soak the holster in warm water until soft and shove the Saran wrap wrapped gun in and wiggle it around a little. Then allow it to dry completely. Next step is to oil it using your preferred oil to seal and protect it. I use Extra Virgin Olive Oil as has been used to protect leather for over a thousand years and still used today by many in the know. Go here and read all you want about the subject written by the pro`s.
http://www.cascity.com/forumhall/index. ... board=57.0
I would not expect the holster to stretch very much though. If it is just too snug and you want to loosen it some,OK If the gun don`t fit, don`t expect to make it into something it is not!
Sell it and buy the correct one.

[Gobblerforge]

There have been some extensive threads on this. Chuck 100yd has been involved with some of the best holster makers and is one himself. He uses extra virgin olive oil and can direct you so some professional discussions about this or give you the info himself.

Now that takes all the fun out of it, to actually hear from a professional who knows what he's talking about...

Agreed. I hate it when a good story gets screwed up with facts.

[Tycer]

Thanks guys! A bit of warm water on the muzzle and a heat gun did it. Turns out there is a layer of Kydex sandwiched between the leather. Worked a treat.

[Pete44ru]

.

What I've used, to make for an easier draw and less finish wear on the handgun, especially with a tight-fitting holster, is an old carpenter's trick (shown to me by an old-timer, back when I was invovled in building houses): Lubricate the insides of the holster's inner bearing surfaces with a small ( 3" L x 1/2" W x 1/2" D ) strip cut from a bar of smooth soap.

It works exactly the same as when used on the sides of a handsaw, prior to cutting some hardwood, easing the friction between the metal and the wood or leather.


.

[7.62 Precision]

Don't use anything on your holster that will soak into the leather. Just don't do it.

Some holster makers sometimes recommend various oils, etc. This is not because it is good for the holster. It is because the number one hardest customer service problem with selling holsters is convincing people to break their holsters in correctly. They won't do it. They want a holster that is a perfect fit when they buy it, or they want their money back.

I deal with this every week of every month of every year.

So it is easier to tell them to soften the leather with some kind of oil. You don't want to soften the leather of a holster, but it can solve customer service issues.

SO. The correct way to break in a holster is with use.

Some holster designs will not allow a pistol to be fully inserted initially. In this case, insert the pistol firmly, but don't cram it it, and then draw it. Each time it will go a little further, until if seats fully.

Then, it takes drawing and re-holstering until the holster breaks in. Now you can get some practice, which you should be doing every day anyway.

As someone mentioned, you can put the pistol in a bag - this stretches the leather a bit more and makes the pistol slick. Carry the pistol in the holster around the house. Practice drawing. The holster will break in.

Some pistols are designed so that the shape will always make them harder to draw than others. Examples are FN Five seveN and XD pistols. Break-in will take longer for these pistols as well.

One thing we do recommend for leather holsters is KG Leather-Kote. It is a non-penetrating lubricant for leather that is placed on the inside of the holster. You can put this inside a holster that you cannot get the pistol all the way into, and the pistol will slide in and the holster can actually be used for carry during the break-in process. If you have an FN Five seveN, I would recommend always using the KG Leather-Kote. You can get it from Brownells, but get the small tub - it will last a lifetime.

In your case, of course, the Kydex required heat to be reformed - it holds its shape otherwise.

[Blaine]

FWIW, In BCT, (32 years ago ) Our DI had us take our ill-fitting combat boots and fill them with water, then we put them on. I don't recall any of us getting bad blisters. They fit like a glove. We naturally shinned the heck out of the outside, and those boots lasted me for prolly 8-10 years. I sure wish I could still buy those boots

[7.62 Precision]

FWIW, In BCT, (32 years ago ) Our DI had us take our ill-fitting combat boots and fill them with water, then we put them on. I don't recall any of us getting bad blisters. They fit like a glove. We naturally shinned the heck out of the outside, and those boots lasted me for prolly 8-10 years. I sure wish I could still buy those boots

I learned a neat trick when I was a kid and had acquired a new pair of cowboy boots that someone had put in a box so that one had the toe bent up at a 90º angle. There was no getting my foot in it. After a couple years, they were a size or two too small. On the advice of an older friend, I filled the foot part of each boot with beans, then filled them with water. It took a few fillings before the leather swelled enough to hold water, and then the beans swelled, straightening the toe, and resizing the boots to fit me perfectly.

[Mescalero]

What kind of beans?
I am serious.

[7.62 Precision]

They were pinto beans as far as I remember - it was maybe 1993 or something.

I had the boots for a couple years, tried everything I could to get the front half of the one to lay flat, to no avail. By that time, they were to small for me by two sizes. I was lamenting the fact to an older friend and he said, "Beans will fix that."

I thought he was joking, but he said that when he was a kid, all the families around used beans to get extra use out of leather boots when kids' feet grew.

You fill the foot part of the boot with dry beans, but don't fill the shanks, or whatever you call the top (leg) part, or you will stretch it too big.

Fill the boot with water, and refill as it runs out until the seams swell closed and it holds water. Then just leave the beans soaking in the boot. The beans will swell and stretch the wet leather. You will see the leather getting tight, and how much it stretches will depend on how long you leave it. If you stop it too soon, you can always do it again, but if you let it stretch too much, you can't make it smaller.

I would expect that if the boot had a lot of synthetics built into it, this method might have poor results.

The boots will be a size or two larger, and the beans will have an interesting flavor . . .

Edit: You can throw in a ham hock, if you like. Does nothing for the boot, but makes the beans taste good!

[firefuzz]

MOST new holsters fit too tight and it's hello on the finish of a blue gun just using regular drawing/holstering/carrying the gun to break ii in. I've been using alcohol and water mix for years to "stretch/fit" holsters. Just mix up what I'll need using hot water, wet the holster thoroughly, oil the gun up and put 'er in. Massage the leather around the gun and taking the gun gently in and out of the holster several times. Then let the gun set in the holster for about 30-45 minutes. Take the gun out and clean well, leave the holster alone over night. Works just fine. I use Lexol leather treatment to clean and condition anything leather, either cow or horse hide, including holsters, and have had no problems with it.

This won't work on paten leather type duty holster for LEO's, all you can do with them is spray the inside with silicone lube, tighten the tension screw and leave the gun in them. Loosen the tension screw before use.

Lots of different methods will work, the only thing I tell people to avoid like the plague is neatsfoot oil. I seen several holsters and ball gloves ruined by what seemed to be a sparing application.

Blaine, my DI did the same thing and I still break-in un-insulated boots that way today. Got a pair of 22 y/o Tony Lama's bull hides that I wore home from the store wet. Been re-soled several times and still look new.

Rob

[Tycer]

What I've used, to make for an easier draw and less finish wear on the handgun, especially with a tight-fitting holster, is an old carpenter's trick (shown to me by an old-timer, back when I was invovled in building houses): Lubricate the insides of the holster's inner bearing surfaces with a small ( 3" L x 1/2" W x 1/2" D ) strip cut from a bar of smooth soap.

It works exactly the same as when used on the sides of a handsaw, prior to cutting some hardwood, easing the friction between the metal and the wood or leather.

I use beeswax the same way.

[3leggedturtle]

There have been some extensive threads on this. Chuck 100yd has been involved with some of the best holster makers and is one himself. He uses extra virgin olive oil and can direct you so some professional discussions about this or give you the info himself.

Now that takes all the fun out of it, to actually hear from a professional who knows what he's talking about...

Agreed. I hate it when a good story gets screwed up with facts.

Or someone breaking out the instruction manual

[jazman]

They were pinto beans as far as I remember - it was maybe 1993 or something.

I had the boots for a couple years, tried everything I could to get the front half of the one to lay flat, to no avail. By that time, they were to small for me by two sizes. I was lamenting the fact to an older friend and he said, "Beans will fix that."

I thought he was joking, but he said that when he was a kid, all the families around used beans to get extra use out of leather boots when kids' feet grew.

You fill the foot part of the boot with dry beans, but don't fill the shanks, or whatever you call the top (leg) part, or you will stretch it too big.

Fill the boot with water, and refill as it runs out until the seams swell closed and it holds water. Then just leave the beans soaking in the boot. The beans will swell and stretch the wet leather. You will see the leather getting tight, and how much it stretches will depend on how long you leave it. If you stop it too soon, you can always do it again, but if you let it stretch too much, you can't make it smaller.

I would expect that if the boot had a lot of synthetics built into it, this method might have poor results. The boots will be a size or two larger, and the beans will have an interesting flavor . . .

Edit: You can throw in a ham hock, if you like. Does nothing for the boot, but makes the beans taste good!

Geez, great post. I have a pair of Dan Post bull hide boots that don't fit since my last bout of gout a year or two back, I am going to try the bean trick. Nothing to lose, they just sit there anyway. If you recall, when you say how long to leave it, are you talking days? Hours? Thanks!

[Les Staley]

Jazman, find a shoe repair shop that has a ring and ball stretcher..a long handeled outfit that will stretch a toe sized or bunion sized pocket in the toe or side of a boot or shoe..the ball goes inside after marking a spot to be stretched and with an application of alcohol/water the ring over the X the ball stretches the leather into a nice pocket for the toe or bunion..works like a charm..makes the old folks smile. (I still have mine from my shoe repair days..too bad you don't live closer). Les

[AJMD429]

I thought he was joking, but he said that when he was a kid, all the families around used beans to get extra use out of leather boots when kids' feet grew.

You fill the foot part of the boot with dry beans, but don't fill the shanks, or whatever you call the top (leg) part, or you will stretch it too big.

Sounds like when you use bentonite clay to seal leaky pond bottoms.

There's a similar thing we do with a kind of sponge called a laminaria, if we need to do a uterine biopsy...

So. . . old boots, leaky pond bottoms, and stenotic cervices can all be fixed with osmotic expanders; the wonders of modern science. . . !

[jazman]

Jazman, find a shoe repair shop that has a ring and ball stretcher..a long handeled outfit that will stretch a toe sized or bunion sized pocket in the toe or side of a boot or shoe..the ball goes inside after marking a spot to be stretched and with an application of alcohol/water the ring over the X the ball stretches the leather into a nice pocket for the toe or bunion..works like a charm..makes the old folks smile. (I still have mine from my shoe repair days..too bad you don't live closer). Les

Thanks Les. Time to try those boots on again and see what's up. If I can pinpoint a spot or two that need stretching I'll head to the local shoe guy. If they just seem small all around I think I'll try a garbonzo fix!

[Mescalero]

Looks like more than a few of us have boots that need a little help.

[7.62 Precision]

Geez, great post. I have a pair of Dan Post bull hide boots that don't fit since my last bout of gout a year or two back, I am going to try the bean trick. Nothing to lose, they just sit there anyway. If you recall, when you say how long to leave it, are you talking days? Hours? Thanks!

It might take a day for the boots to hold water, and then leave the beans soaking overnight and check, and then over night and check - they might take 24 hours or so before they really start to swell - you will be able to see that they are swelling when you look inside the boot, but even more, you will see from the outside that the leather is tight and getting stretched.

If you stop it to soon, just do it again.

[7.62 Precision]

There's a similar thing we do with a kind of sponge called a laminaria, if we need to do a uterine biopsy...

Huh, the only laminaria I knew of is a kind of seaweed (a kelp, really, I think) that I used to cook with teriyaki and honey. So I looked it up, and sure enough, the stuff I used to eat with teriyaki and honey is the same thing you use to dilate a cervix.

That's something to think about.