How To Mold Kydex Holster

Solved How To Cut Kydex

For those interested in working with Kydex, cutting Kydex and making a Kydex sheath or holster will be helpful. Suppose you have not had any Kydex or probably do not know about it. Lets see my article!

My experience working with Kydex is somewhat limited, I still can share several tips and hints for you, dont worry!

One: Create The Template

Cut a block of wood to the width of your pistol. Next, place your pistol on the block of wood and trace the pistol outline with a pen or pencil. The outline needs to be 1/4 greater than the outline of the actually pistol.

Cut out the outline using a scroll saw. Stay close to the traced line, but you dont have to have an exact cut.

Note: If you plan to use your actual gun instead of the wood cutout skip to step two.

How Do You Mold Plastic Sheets

Just heat the sheets with a heat gun or in hot water above 150 degrees F for 2-3 minutes until they turn from white to clear. Once they are molten, you can mold them into any shape you desire. Upon cooling, they will be strong and permanent. If you change your mind, you can reheat and modify until you get it right.

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Diy Primer On How To Get Started Working With Kydex

By justin spindler

This is a short how to article for anyone interested in working with KYDEX. Im sure most of the people here know of KYDEX and many of you probably own a KYDEX sheath or holster that was either sold with a blade or purchased for a hand gun.

My personal experience working with KYDEX is somewhat limited and there may be others here with more experience and knowledge on the subject, so feel free to add your thoughts.

How To Make A Kydex Concealed Holster At Home

Looking for a gun holster but cant quite find the right fit, style, and shape at the right price? Maybe you should make your own gun holster instead. This guide will explain to you how to make your own Kydex concealed holster. Included are some tips and tricks, and a basic guide to how to make the holster best fit both your firearm, belt, and wallet. We will also dive into why Kydex is the plastic of choice for this project compared to materials like leather and regular plastic. We also offer you a list of a few things you might need, including basic reviews for a few kits to make the process easier.

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Prepare First Sheet Of Kydex

Start by measuring the size of the Kydex you need. Place the fabric on a flat work surface and place your gun on top. Use a pencil to trace the main shape of the gun. It doesnt need to be perfect, but you should leave extra space. You can always trim it off later.

Cut the main square of material out with a razor blade or sharp box cutter. Place in the oven and slowly heat up to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. If the edges curl or if it starts to shrink, then you know youre heating it too fast.

Make Your Own Sheath To Keep Your Tdi Right Where You Need It

The Ka-Bar small TDI knife is a staple for law enforcement nationwide. This mold will make the same sheath we sell.

Our sheaths are popular with officers from all over because of their solid retention, durability, versatility, and compact profile. Stop worrying about your TDI falling out of that factory sheath while your carrying it. The factory TDI sheaths are widely known for their lack of secure retention and limited carry options – OxCreek TDI Knife Sheaths address and fix all those problems.

I’ve taken all of the guesswork out of making this sheath yourself. All of my measurements are precise and designed to fit your Ka-Bar Small TDI knife perfectly. Each mold is designed to make your manufacturing process simple and fast .

* Includes the mold and optional Router Trim Jig only. Other hardware and supplies are not included.

* Because each of our products is individually made-to-order, please allow 2-3 weeks processing time.

Don’t see what you’re looking for? Contact us below for a custom quote for your specific mold request.

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How To Make Kydex Holsters At Home

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links this means Outdoor Methods may earn a commission if you click on and make a purchase through these links at no cost to you.

Are you shopping for a holster but you havent found one that meets your need? Consider making your own.

This way itll be shaped exactly to your guns body and your high expectations. Does it sound too difficult? Its not. However, with many peoples busy schedule purchasing on of the best Kydex holsters for 2019 is a better option.

Here are easy to follow instructions on how you can make a Kydex holster at home.

Does Kydex Stick To Itself

KYDEX® sheet can also be joined to itself or to other materials using mechanical fasteners in place of adhesives. The best joints can be obtained using viscous solvent cement consisting of about 10% KYDEX® sheet shavings or sawdust dissolved in a 50/50 mixture of tetrahydrofuran and methylethylketone .

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What Is The Difference Between Boltaron And Kydex

Boltaron is an extremely tough, stiff plastic used by law enforcement and military personnel. Boltaron holsters are tough, wear-resistant, weatherproof, scratch-resistant, and slightly flexible for comfort. Many people tend to buy Boltaron holsters because they are less expensive than Kydex holsters.

Grab An Additional Router Trim Jig For Your Adjustable Kydex Handcuff Carrier Mold

If you want additional trim Jigs for your Handcuff Carrier Mold, we’ve got you covered. Trim Jigs really streamline the making process, increase consistency and speed, and reduce the margin of error significantly.

Each Jig is designed to make your manufacturing process simple and fast .

All our molds are hand-designed, 3D-modeled, then precision-cut in house on our CNC machines. This ensures each mold is made to our exact specifications and held to our same high-quality-control standards.

• Trim jig will aid in the trimming and consistency with our Handcuff Carrier Mold
• Constructed of High-Density Polyethylene
• The Router Trim Jig option is recommended to help deliver consistent results, reduce time, and the margin of error significantly.

* Includes the Router Trim jig only.

*All other hardware and supplies pictured are not included. Finished Kydex Handcuff carrier images are for reference only and are not included.

* Because each of our products is individually made-to-order, please allow 2-3 weeks processing time.

Don’t see what you’re looking for? Contact us below for a custom quote for your specific mold request.

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Anyone Know How To Mold Or Mod Kydex Holsters

Utah

twall13 said:My experience with Kydex is limited but I did buy some and make a knife sheath. It was really pretty easy to work with. I heated mine up with a heat gun but I bet a blow dryer or oven would work as well. The hardest part for me was making a foam press to get the shape I wanted around the knife. It’s important to make sure the kydex cools while in the shape you want it to be. If it isn’t held to the shape you want, my understanding is it will try to return to it’s original shape. If you are only trying to make a holster less tight I’d think a blow dryer would work well as you could heat up just one area at a time. I didn’t follow any temperature guidelines as you can see when the material becomes flexible. Perhaps others can chime in with more experience than me but my take is to give it a shot and see what happens. I’m pretty sure there are a multitude of youtube videos with step by step instructions as well so it may pay to look some up.

Your ‘easy Button’ For Making Your Own Kydex Mag Carriers

I’ve taken all of the guesswork out of making them yourself. All of my measurements are precise and designed to fit many different magazine styles. Each mold is designed to make your manufacturing process simple and fast .

All our molds are hand-designed, 3D-modeled, then precision-cut in house on our CNC machines. This ensures each mold is made to our exact specifications and held to our same high-quality-control standards.

• Single Sizemold will makeOne Magazine carrier per press.
• Double Size mold will make Two Magazine Carriers per press .

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How To Make A Kydex Holster: Custom

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you click on one of these links and make a purchase, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Also, as an Amazon Affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Thank you.

Before you start learning how to make a Kydex holster, it is important that you know what to expect. You should conduct in-depth research into exactly what Kydex is, the advantages of choosing this material and how it compares to other options. Kydex holsters have been around for longer than many people might realize. They were first invented back in the early 70s by a former FBI agent, Bill Rogers.

Since then, Kydex has been used to make various holsters as well as knife sheaths. Today, gun owners and enthusiasts can create their own custom designs to suit their firearm.

Kydex was initially produced back in 1965, and it was intended for use in the interiors of planes. It is a composite material made from acrylic-polyvinyl chloride. The acrylic aspect gives this material its rigid nature while the PVC makes the material tough and resistant with a good finish.

Of all the materials used to make holsters, Kydex is fast becoming a public favorite. It is available in various colors so you can make a few in different shades and even two-tone holsters to suit various outfits.

Are The Different Kinds Of Kydex

There most certainly are! This is part of the reason why some DIY press kits dont come with Kydex sheets. You can choose your own. Kydex alone comes in 40 different variable styles with different grades of heat resistance, toughness, thickness, and grain. Kydex T and Kydex 100 are the most popular for being super tough and durable and is rigid while being able to withstand high heat, including being used in the desert without softening. The most moldable Kydex also reduces the gun wear that any holster can create.

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Invest In Quality Kydex Instead

It’s true that a DIY holster could save you a good amount of money compared to buying one off the shelf. However, the cons outweigh the pros when you don’t have the skills and experience. If you’re an advocate of concealed carrying and prefer to have a durable and reliable product that you can trust your life to from the very start, Concealment Express has you covered. Concealed weapons enthusiasts everywhere turn to ConcealmentExpress.com for a great selection of IWB holsters made in the USA for the top firearm manufacturers on the market.

Gun Molds And Weapon Simulators For Kydex Holster Making

HolsterSmith.com is proud to offer the deepest gun mold inventories for KYDEX® holster making available anywhere. We are authorized dealers for Bluegun®, HolsterMolds, Cooks Gun Molds, QLH Molds and Multi-Mold®. We stock over 1350 gun mold models and firearm simulators from the biggest manufacturers in the business. When it comes to firearm simulators, Bluegun® brand is considered one of the best by combat and self-defense trainers around the world. It is used by military, law enforcement, self-defense trainers, and many others, for a safe alternative to a live firearm for basic skills training. As a holster gun mold, Bluegun® gives the holster maker the natural starting point of an unmodified gun form, where no pre-prepping for holster clearance and retention has been done. This allows for full-custom prep and maximum modification control, each aspect desired by professional holster makers.

Our holster gun mold selection is designed to offer a holster maker the widest variety of choices when it comes to the final molded personality of the holster. All of our gun molds are designed for maximum performance when used for KYDEX® thermoforming. Each gun mold brand that we offer has been tested by countless holster makers and each has stood the test of time. To find your KYDEX® holster making gun mold or firearm simulator, choose from the brands below.

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Making The Recess For The Belt Attachment:

This next step can be done when you mold the pistol the first time, but for some reason or another I decided to do it separately this time around. What you need to do is create a recess on the side of the holster that will go against the belt, so that the screws that hold the belt attachment to the holster wont scratch up your pistol. I used 3 layers of Kydex scraps as the spacer.

I then heated the back of the holster with the heat gun until it was good and workable, inserted the spacer, and put the entire thing back in the press. After a couple minutes, I had a good looking recess for the belt attachment.

After I have this part molded and finished, Ill go ahead do some additional trimming to ensure that I will be able to draw the pistol comfortably, without having any parts of the holster rub my hand. This is where the Dremels sanding drum really comes in handy.

Homemade Kydex Holster Question

So there are two guys that I know, and I just found out that their making kydex holsters, and molding them for specific guns. Their planning on selling them for a good price, and making holsters for people. So I might be interested. I know in order to mold a kydex holster, they would obviously need the gun I plan a holster for. I don’t know the entire process of making a holster, but I do know it involves heating up plastic, and using the gun itself to mold the kydex in the shape of the gun. Does this hurt the gun in any way? Would it affect the finish or anything? I know big company’s use replica/training guns to mold holsters, but these guys obviously don’t have that, and would require the actual gun. I’d like to help these guys out, but I don’t want any of my guns getting blemishes in the process. So I guess the actual question is, does molding a kydex holster for a specific gun damage the gun in any way?

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Can You Heat Kydex In The Oven

KYDEX® sheet can be vacuum, drape, and pressure formed. These methods result in increased levels of detail. Oven temperatures should be set differently than the settings used for ABS or FR-ABS. Typical heater settings are 30% 50% top heaters and 50% 70% bottom heaters.

Is Kydex Flammable

Grades of KYDEX® sheet are available that have outstanding flammability properties including UL 94 V-0 rating and Class 1/A rating . Benefits of KYDEX® Thermoplastic sheet for retail fixtures, kiosks, and transaction surfaces: Durable, tough, and resistant to chipping perfect for high traffic areas.

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What Type Of Oven

Many user a cheap toaster oven to make the Kydex readily visible. A cheap toaster oven is recommended because Kydex will have some smell, and if you burn the Kydex in your regular oven, its a bit more difficult to clean. A smaller oven is much easier to clean than a large one, or just throw it away.

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• Cut the Kydex. Most Kydex sheets are quite big, bigger than youll need. To begin, start by measuring and cutting your sheet. What I do is cut two pieces of Kydex sheet, then attach them together to form the sheath.
• Heat the Kydex. When you first get ahold of Kydex, you might wonder how you are supposed to shape this. It is a hard material, one that you cant bend easily.
• Press the Kydex. While the Kydex is still hot, place it in your Kydex press . Sandwich your knife in between the two hot pieces of Kydex and press!
• Seal the Kydex. Once you open your Kydex press, youll find that the Kydex has shapeshifted into a sheath. The two Kydex sheets are now stuck together, but they need to be sealed.
• Trim the Kydex. Once your Kydex is sealed, all theres left to do is trim it. If you stop here, youll have quite an ugly sheath. So take scissors or a cutter and remove all the excess Kydex.

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Make Your Own Triple Magazine Carrier

I’ve taken all of the guesswork out of making these carriers yourself. All of my measurements are precise and designed to fit either 1911 or Glock Double Stack 9/40 Magazines. Each mold is designed to make your manufacturing process simple and fast .

All our molds are hand-designed, 3D-modeled, then precision-cut in house on our CNC machines. This ensures each mold is made to our exact specifications and held to our same high-quality-control standards.

• Mold will make one carrier per press
• Constructed of High-Density Polyethylene
• Designed to make a convenient yet strong fold-from-bottom style carrier.
• Designed for use with adjustable retention bushings for ultimate fit adjustment.
• Comes standard with raised drill indicators
• Accommodates TEKLOK
• Adding the Router Trim Jig option is recommended to help deliver consistent results, reduce time, and the margin of error significantly. Need an additional Trim Jig?