Western holster plans ? Rod ?

[Highspeed]

I mentioned in another thread that I've been given a gun collection by another Brit expat ?
Turns out there are two Italian repro Peacemakers, and I'd like a western rig for them.

Out of all the hundreds of services and products I can't easily get here leather, and leatherworking ISN'T one of them - the nearest town is a major centre for making shoes and boots ( the New Rock brand of goth\metal\biker boots are made there )

I can ask any number of people to make me a rig, but I'll need to supply plans and quite frankly I'm completely clueless on holsters and belts of any kind. Can anyone help me ?

[Bullspit]

How about this:

http://www.willghormley-maker.com/OWC.html

[Highspeed]

Brilliant, that's exactly what I was looking for.

[Rod]

Like usual, I'm a day late and a dollar short. Glad you got the help.

[Highspeed]

Like usual, I'm a day late and a dollar short. Glad you got the help.

Don't worry Rod, you aren't off the hook yet. Without extra help I'll probably wear it back to front or upside down when the time comes

[Rod]

Like usual, I'm a day late and a dollar short. Glad you got the help.

Don't worry Rod, you aren't off the hook yet. Without extra help I'll probably wear it back to front or upside down when the time comes

When I've got a few minutes, I'll give you some information on holster type and holster wear. Shouldn't be posted later than tomorrow sometime.

[Highspeed]

That would be great Rod.

My knowledge of the old west is mainly limited to cowboy movies - i.e. woefully inadequate
Do you have any educational links or book recommendations ( I am kind of focussed on gear right now, especially firearms but anything would be good ) ?

No hurry, when you have the time

[Rod]

Time Life series that isn't too bad.
http://www.amazon.com/Time-Life-Books-S ... B000E6LHC0
Book by Leon Metz. It tells about some of the most famous gunfighters. He's written some 17 books about gunfighters, lawmen, the West, and El Paso history. Leon is in the mid-stage of Alzheimer's at present. http://www.amazon.com/The-Shooters-Leon ... 0425154505
Two sites that talk about old West gunfights. http://www.legendsofamerica.com/we-gunfights.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Ol ... unfighters

Very good site that gives a good description of old west gunleather: http://www.cochiseleather.com/western-g ... story.aspx

Remember, holsters that were attached to the belt and hung low were called buscadero rigs and were almost never seen in the old west. They became popular with the movies and television shows of the 50s and 60s.

Quite often, guns were carried in the waistband, you'd just open the loading gate and stick it in. The origin of Mexican carry I guess. There were many small handguns that could be carried in your pocket for close in protection. I have two models, a .32 S&W caliber Model #3 Smith and Wesson made in the 1880s, and an Iver Johnson made in the 1890s in .38 S&W caliber.

The real gun that won the west was actually the shotgun. While pistols cost around $12 and rifles $15 and up, a shogun could be had for 4 or 5 bucks. They were also VERY versitile, being used for hunting, varmint dispatch, and self-protection. Ammo was also very expensive, running around 40 to 50 cents a round. Most cowboys couldn't shoot for beans because they couldn't afford ammo on a salary of 15 to 30 dollars a month.

Fast draw wasn't done much either as accuracy counted more than speed. The classic walk down the street you see wasn't done either. One of the few examples of it was the Hickok-Tutt fight. http://www.cochiseleather.com/western-g ... story.aspx Hickok hit Tutt from 75 yards, with a cap and ball revolver.

If you'd like more information, please feel free to e-mail me Highspeed

[Highspeed]

Thanks Rod, I never realised that the rigs seen in almost every cowboy movie are modern.

I must get my missis to fire up the Amazon account for some books...

[SeekHer]

Check out my post that's also in the Wiki/Book of Armaments

http://theguncounter.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=56

A few points of clarification:
There never, ever, was the face to face, fastest draw, type of duels--those are TV and cinema make believe.

You never fired from atop a stagecoach, it was just a waste of shells especially with a shotgun with an effective range of maybe 40 yards...Also, the chase of the stage by outlaws, seldom happened as an ambush with a tree across the road was faster and easier to get a stage to stop..So was standing in the middle of the road with a rifle pointed at the driver better then tiring the horses chasing a six horse drawn carriage.

Buscadero rigs didn't come about until the 1940s early 1950s...Those are those fast gun rigs and again Hollywood imagination.

Holsters were worn up high because they had to be comfortable when riding a horse...Too low, they'd actually bounce out of the holster, too high they'd crack your ribs...Most cowboys wore theirs crossdraw--if they'd were them at all...Most never would use a holster--stuffed into their pants when in town and in a saddle bag on the trail...They had a rifle in a scabbard on the side of the saddle if they needed to shoot something.

The shotgun never won the west--not even close...neither did the Colt Peacemaker or the Winchester 1873/86/90/94...Actually the settler expansion was fueled by the ubiquitous military rifled musket, the Springfield 1843/1861/63, etc...It was cheaper for the military to buy a new breech loader then to convert those so the government sold them off for next to nothing along with the ones that the soldiers brought back with them after the war...By the time that the 1873 SA Army and the later Winchester rifles came about, most of the West was already settled, the Transcontinental railroad had been completed, the Gold and Silvers rushes to California and Arizona were over...Most of the settlers etc. were using cap and ball Colt's, Remingtons etc. or early conversions and S&W and Remington probably were in more peoples' hands them Colts when cartridges became cheap enough.

A few other tidbits:
No man would be caught dead without a waistcoat (vest) over his shirt which always had the top button done up (unless wearing a cravat) and they were buttoned only half way down—they were pullovers…Also the vest’s button would be either cloth covered or rubber (yes, rubber) as metal was for military.
Boots were actually quite high, almost to the knee.
They did not only wear the one-piece union suit with the trap door butt but two-piece underwear and they were made of cotton or linen for summer and wool for winter.
Pants were high waisted, below the ribs, not hip huggers and they didn’t wear jeans and nor were there belt loops on them—only suspender buttons.