Here is a picture of my latest project. It is my first prototype for this holster design and I did some quick trimming on it. I am going to do a hybrid style holster where the backing of this part will be leather
cool idea, but what would the advantage be over a kydex holster thermoformed from plastic?
Kydex is definitely cheaper and easier to form, but carbon fiber is light, stronger, and way better looking in my opinion. I really wanted to try it because I couldn’t find any real carbon fiber holsters anywhere, and it seemed like something that could look really cool. The picture I have attached is the style of holster I am going to do.
Cool stuff! What caliber handgun will you be carrying?
Any concerns of galvanic corrosion from touching the carbon?
The gun in the photo is a .380. I am not too worried about galvanic corrosion, but I might put a thin layer of leather on the inside of the carbon fiber so then only leather will be in contact with the gun.
Oh and thanks for getting the site back up Canyon!
First prototype assembled.
i’ve thought about doing this as I hate kydex. Carbon, however, has low abrasion resistance, so I’m planning on doing kevlar.
The think I hate about Kydex is that you need these stupid, giant seams on each side of whatever you’re holstering so that the stuff can be rivetted together. I hate wasted space, especially when I’m in kit. But I see your design is way bigger than the standard kydex design.
Yeah, my flanges are still way bigger than they need to be, and the next one I do they will be a lot smaller. I ended up changing the design a bit because I didn’t like how the flanges looked, so I just covered them with leather. 
Here is a picture of what I have so far. This was my first experience dealing with leather.
What do you think about using kydex to make the mold of the gun in order to lay up carbon fiber? I am going to make one for a friend’s gun and I am going to try it really soon.
that sounds like a decent option and definitely worth a try. you could cut the big flanges off the side and use more CF/resin to join the front and back halves together.
i like that your design is inside the belt. my serpa positions the gun so far off my body, it’s always flopping around and getting caught on whatever i bump into.
oh i didn’t realize the back was leather, that would be way more comfortable than kydex.
Yeah, this is a really popular inside the waist holster style because the leather is what is against your body so it is really comfortable. I will definitely post on how using the kydex for a mold goes.
Kydex worked really well as a mold for the carbon fiber. It released nicely with some wax and pva. I just did a Glock 23 that I am really happy with.
That looks awesome! Would you mind providing more details on the lay-up/process? I am really thinking about doing this, so any tips/tricks would be greatly appreciated!
My layup process is very basic. I do a simple wet layup and then vacuum bag over it. I use wax and PVA to release. The biggest thing to do is practice a lot. Do lots of small layups before you do anything big.
And you are using formed kydex as a male or female mold? How many plies is your lay-up?
I have made molds a couple different ways. Kydex is one way but i do struggle getting definition in areas. I use it as a male mold. I use three layers of carbon fiber. I have also made molds with bondo and a material called Dacron to seal the gun, but there is a lot of sanding involved. I do make these holsters for sale and if you are interested in owning one you can check out my website at http://fossconcepts.weebly.com/gun-holster.html
Thanks for the offer, but as a college student working in a composites lab, money isn’t exactly plentiful. What I do have plenty of is carbon and kevlar scraps and time. How do you get that nice exterior finish? I’ve only seen that type of finish on parts that come out of a female mold.
I pull a female mold off my male mold. Then I make the real part inside the female mold. So I have to make two molds for every model of gun…
Ah. That makes sense. Thank you!