Post by ragingyeti on Jul 14, 2012 16:23:25 GMT -8
As many of us with the SP2022 know, the accessories department for this pistol are slightly lacking. Hopefully, this will change as it's popularity grows.
I was looking to get a nice hip holster that would support a flashlight, since I always keep a light on my pistol for home defense. However, there aren't any made for the 2022 with a light, and having one custom made would take 6 weeks and $80. So, after watching the YouTube videos by PhillyEDC, I got the idea that I would make one myself.
First, I want to thank PhillyEDC for making the videos. Without them, I never would have tried this project, so I owe all credit to him. After making a couple of holsters, I decided I probably couldn't write a better how-to then he did, so instead this will be more about my experiences using his guide.
First step is to prepare your gun. To do this without a light, it just means unload your pistol and put an empty magazine in the gun to support the magazine well. If you have a light, it becomes more complicated. You might need a channel in the holster to allow passage of the light, since some lights have protrusions. Otherwise, there will be too much retention and you will not be able to holster and unholster easily. To make these channels, I found some scrap wood and carved a piece out that would create the needed channel.
I ended up removing those tabs anyway since I never remove my light from my pistol so the channel is not needed for me, but I thought some of you might need to know in case you are using a different light.
For the first try I took some foam and filled my trigger guard with it, then wrapped that with a toilet paper tube. This is needed so that the light can get in and out of the holster. Otherwise, the holster will be too tight at the trigger and the light wouldn't be able to get past the guard when holstering/unholstering. On the second try, I didn't wrap it with a toilet paper tube. It worked, but the tube was better, as it required less fitting later. I also folded up some paper and stuck it under my switch for the light so that it would go on during holstering.
Next, prepare your press. I found some old foam that my buddies rifle was shipped in. It was a bit soft, but worked fine when doubled up. Then I cut up some plywood into 8" squares. That is pretty much the whole press. If you have some clamps, you would use them to press the pieces together. I didn't, so I used 40lbs of scrap metal and just placed it on top. Not perfect, but effective.
After that, it's time to prepare your kydex. This can be simple or complicated. I cut out my first piece at a 6x7" piece. This was a mistake, because the kydex shrinks a little, and my piece ended up too small. Then I cut up 2 pieces at 6x12" each. This was perfect. Here you can pre-trim out the trigger area, but I just left it since I wasn't making a sweat guard. If you want a sweat guard, it will be better to cut off the trigger area and grip area so the kydex will form around the important parts of the pistol easier. I also drew an outline of where you want your pistol to go. This is important because it makes lining up the kydex to your pistol easier and faster later on, when speed is really important. Basically, pre-planning is important.
When it is cut, I heated both pieces of the kydex up in the oven at 350 degrees. Watch carefully, as it won't take long for your kydex to heat. Also make sure to put the kydex in so it heats up with the oven, do not heat the oven first. When it is pretty soft and flimsy, place it on the foam of your press, then place your pistol on the kydex, then place the other piece of kydex over the pistol, then the top half of your press and press it all together. I let it sit like this for about 30 minutes. Apparently, you are supposed to press each half of the holster separately, but I had trouble getting the two pieces to line up right when I did it that way. Just make sure that you get your kydex in the press as quickly as possible.
These are the indents I had when I was done:
If you pressed both pieces of kydex together at once, you will have to pry them apart.
After your kydex cools and you are happy with the imprint, cut out the shape for your holster, making sure to leave enough room for the Chicago screws and the belt loops, which you drill after your shape is cut out. Again, pre-planning here goes a long way.
I used a butane torch to heat up the edges of the holster so that I could shape them for my hip. Using a butane torch will likely burn your kydex, so be prepared to paint your holster if you use this method. However, if you are extremely careful you might not burn the kydex. It will only take 2-4 seconds to heat the kydex to a point that it is moldable, but 5-6 will burn the kydex. I just didn't want to buy a heat gun.
Then I heated up an additional piece of kydex so I had something to attach my paddle too. I had tried some belt loops, but it was a pain for me to get right. Loops would be cheaper, but I like the paddle a lot more. After heating up this kydex in the oven, I placed it on my holster and manually molded it to fit. I didn't want to use the press, as I wanted this piece to be more flat, as it would be the support for my paddle.
Next I drilled all my holes for the Chicago screws. I screwed one up and put it too close to the edge, but I am just gonna use it this way. If it ever breaks, I will sand it off and drill it again a little bit lower. I put it all together and tried it out, but it was really tight and near impossible to take it in and out of the holster. So, I took the blowtorch and heated up some of the spots where the holster was hanging up the gun and used my thumb to press out and flatten the kydex. I ended up with this, which has much less definition (note the lack of ejection port definition).
I then put it all together again and holstered/unholstered a couple times. If it wasn't where I wanted it, I took it apart and heated it to adjust some more, and then put it back together and retested.
And here is the holster when it is done. Not extremely pretty, it works well enough for me.
Total cost was around $40 worth of parts, and 2 days worth of work. You could probably cut that down, but I took a lot of time planning every step along the way to make sure I didn't screw up like the first time.
Hopefully this helps out some of you guys.
Some last minute tips:
Placing some rubber washers between the two kydex pieces will help loosen the holster if it is too tight.
If you screw up during the pressing of your kydex or don't like your impression, just throw it back in the oven and reheat it. It will be as if nothing ever happened.
If I remove my light, the gun will still holster and be sturdy, although obviously not as sturdy as when the light is on.
The wider you make the holster and place the screws, the more the kydex will flex and will be able to work without removing some definition.
I was looking to get a nice hip holster that would support a flashlight, since I always keep a light on my pistol for home defense. However, there aren't any made for the 2022 with a light, and having one custom made would take 6 weeks and $80. So, after watching the YouTube videos by PhillyEDC, I got the idea that I would make one myself.
First, I want to thank PhillyEDC for making the videos. Without them, I never would have tried this project, so I owe all credit to him. After making a couple of holsters, I decided I probably couldn't write a better how-to then he did, so instead this will be more about my experiences using his guide.
First step is to prepare your gun. To do this without a light, it just means unload your pistol and put an empty magazine in the gun to support the magazine well. If you have a light, it becomes more complicated. You might need a channel in the holster to allow passage of the light, since some lights have protrusions. Otherwise, there will be too much retention and you will not be able to holster and unholster easily. To make these channels, I found some scrap wood and carved a piece out that would create the needed channel.
I ended up removing those tabs anyway since I never remove my light from my pistol so the channel is not needed for me, but I thought some of you might need to know in case you are using a different light.
For the first try I took some foam and filled my trigger guard with it, then wrapped that with a toilet paper tube. This is needed so that the light can get in and out of the holster. Otherwise, the holster will be too tight at the trigger and the light wouldn't be able to get past the guard when holstering/unholstering. On the second try, I didn't wrap it with a toilet paper tube. It worked, but the tube was better, as it required less fitting later. I also folded up some paper and stuck it under my switch for the light so that it would go on during holstering.
Next, prepare your press. I found some old foam that my buddies rifle was shipped in. It was a bit soft, but worked fine when doubled up. Then I cut up some plywood into 8" squares. That is pretty much the whole press. If you have some clamps, you would use them to press the pieces together. I didn't, so I used 40lbs of scrap metal and just placed it on top. Not perfect, but effective.
After that, it's time to prepare your kydex. This can be simple or complicated. I cut out my first piece at a 6x7" piece. This was a mistake, because the kydex shrinks a little, and my piece ended up too small. Then I cut up 2 pieces at 6x12" each. This was perfect. Here you can pre-trim out the trigger area, but I just left it since I wasn't making a sweat guard. If you want a sweat guard, it will be better to cut off the trigger area and grip area so the kydex will form around the important parts of the pistol easier. I also drew an outline of where you want your pistol to go. This is important because it makes lining up the kydex to your pistol easier and faster later on, when speed is really important. Basically, pre-planning is important.
When it is cut, I heated both pieces of the kydex up in the oven at 350 degrees. Watch carefully, as it won't take long for your kydex to heat. Also make sure to put the kydex in so it heats up with the oven, do not heat the oven first. When it is pretty soft and flimsy, place it on the foam of your press, then place your pistol on the kydex, then place the other piece of kydex over the pistol, then the top half of your press and press it all together. I let it sit like this for about 30 minutes. Apparently, you are supposed to press each half of the holster separately, but I had trouble getting the two pieces to line up right when I did it that way. Just make sure that you get your kydex in the press as quickly as possible.
These are the indents I had when I was done:
If you pressed both pieces of kydex together at once, you will have to pry them apart.
After your kydex cools and you are happy with the imprint, cut out the shape for your holster, making sure to leave enough room for the Chicago screws and the belt loops, which you drill after your shape is cut out. Again, pre-planning here goes a long way.
I used a butane torch to heat up the edges of the holster so that I could shape them for my hip. Using a butane torch will likely burn your kydex, so be prepared to paint your holster if you use this method. However, if you are extremely careful you might not burn the kydex. It will only take 2-4 seconds to heat the kydex to a point that it is moldable, but 5-6 will burn the kydex. I just didn't want to buy a heat gun.
Then I heated up an additional piece of kydex so I had something to attach my paddle too. I had tried some belt loops, but it was a pain for me to get right. Loops would be cheaper, but I like the paddle a lot more. After heating up this kydex in the oven, I placed it on my holster and manually molded it to fit. I didn't want to use the press, as I wanted this piece to be more flat, as it would be the support for my paddle.
Next I drilled all my holes for the Chicago screws. I screwed one up and put it too close to the edge, but I am just gonna use it this way. If it ever breaks, I will sand it off and drill it again a little bit lower. I put it all together and tried it out, but it was really tight and near impossible to take it in and out of the holster. So, I took the blowtorch and heated up some of the spots where the holster was hanging up the gun and used my thumb to press out and flatten the kydex. I ended up with this, which has much less definition (note the lack of ejection port definition).
I then put it all together again and holstered/unholstered a couple times. If it wasn't where I wanted it, I took it apart and heated it to adjust some more, and then put it back together and retested.
And here is the holster when it is done. Not extremely pretty, it works well enough for me.
Total cost was around $40 worth of parts, and 2 days worth of work. You could probably cut that down, but I took a lot of time planning every step along the way to make sure I didn't screw up like the first time.
Hopefully this helps out some of you guys.
Some last minute tips:
Placing some rubber washers between the two kydex pieces will help loosen the holster if it is too tight.
If you screw up during the pressing of your kydex or don't like your impression, just throw it back in the oven and reheat it. It will be as if nothing ever happened.
If I remove my light, the gun will still holster and be sturdy, although obviously not as sturdy as when the light is on.
The wider you make the holster and place the screws, the more the kydex will flex and will be able to work without removing some definition.