|
 
Simple Inexpensive Pocket Holster for your Kel-Tec P-11/40/32 by J.F. Ridgeway (technical assistance provided by Scott Ridgeway) First UNLOAD your pistol! Start with a clean piece of paper. Draw a straight line down the center, then place your pocket pal on the line, such that the gun is standing on it's sights, centered on the line. Then gently roll the gun onto it's side, keeping the top of the slide or barrel parallel to the line. Now, trace the gun on the paper.
 
 Make the top of the holster, just below the rear sight and the bottom of the holster even with the end of the barrel (the barrel can extend slightly below the bottom of the holster but don't let the front sight protrude as it could cause a hang-up when drawing.) Now, draw the holster contour to look like a pocket, covering the trigger/guard but leaving the grip exposed. Be sure to leave adequate room between the grip and holster, to permit grasping the grip while the gun is still in your pocket. Draw the spacer such that it will fit around the trigger guard. The spacer positions the gun in the holster, limiting it's movement.
  Now, fold the paper on the center line and cut out the holster pattern. Wrap the paper pattern around the gun to confirm that it fits as expected. It should! Trace the pattern onto a piece of 3 - 4 oz. leather. The right leather should be greater than 1/16" thick but no more than 1/8" thick, to limit bulk. The leather should be stiff enough to hold it's shape; ie. don't use soft garment leather. Cut out the leather pattern with a pair of scissors (your wife will not appreciate your using her good sewing scissors!) If you don't have a suitable pair of scissors, an Exacto-type craft knife will work, but will take longer (disregard what I just wrote and sneak your wife's good scissors!) Cut the spacer pattern from the paper pattern. Cut the spacer from a piece of firm foam (I think it's called ethafoam.) Don't use styrafoam, which is much too weak. The foam which I use, sometimes comes as packing material. It is also often used by white water canoeists for bracing, etc., since in is a closed cell material which does not absorb water. I've also seen similar foam in craft stores. (I hope the picture will help you identify the material.) Cut the foam to a thickness which pretty much matches the thickness of the trigger guard but a little thicker. For my KelTec P11, I made the spacer 5/8 " thick, while the trigger guard is ½ " thick. You are trying to hide the gun shape. Now wrap the leather around the gun and fit in the spacer to check that everything fits. Trim, if needed. The rough side of the leather should be out against the pocket with the smooth side against the gun (the rough side tends to cling to the pocket, allowing easy draw of the gun.) The final step is to glue the foam spacer in place, using contact cement. Follow the directions for whatever brand of contact cement you use. If everything doesn't match just right, it's easy to smooth things out by sanding. I use a Dremel tool with a small sanding drum. In my opinion, it doesn't have to look "pretty", just be functional. Questions or comments can be directed to ridge@bellatlantic.net
|
