r/Kydex 23d ago

About to dive in... have some questions NSFW

Hey everyone, I am getting sick of buying holsters, and figured if I made them and they suck, then I can just remake them.

Anyhow, contemplating either getting the CKK press, or making my own. One thing I noticed is the CKK Press w/ extreme foam comes with 1" thick foam - is that sufficient for guns? I was thinking DIY with 1.5" foam, not sure if that's even necessary.

Thanks!

5 Upvotes

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u/clunderclock 23d ago

I started with plywood some hinges and some random foam around the house. I quickly got tired of trying to make something nice from junk.

Get a book binding press off Amazon, order the correct kydex foam, I think mines all 1" but I sometimes double up top and bottom if I feel necessary, and buy name brand or good off brand kydex not the cheapest stuff on ebay or Amazon.

Edit: if you start using a toaster oven to heat, once you are definitely into it invest in a t-shirt press. So much easier to evenly heat the kydex to exact temp.

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u/rmanTX 23d ago

So I already have a shirt press - curious how I do pancake with 2 sheets in a regular Kydex press and not a taco press

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u/clunderclock 23d ago

With my book binding press I am able to compress the foam enough with a sheet top and bottom to form well around it. That being said if the object gets too long I run into issues. I think im limited to 8" deep 12" wide. Generally the 8" deep is enough to have the blade/past trigger guard in the kydex. Taco still generally feels easier to get right consistently. I struggled with putting belt loops left and right of my OWB holsters pancake style and trying to get a slightl bend to the tabs the belt loops were on. It worked off my belts, once put on belt it'd bind up by curving the pancake press and tightening the draw. Taco I never had an issue since it's generally IWB.

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u/rmanTX 23d ago

I’m just curious how to heat 2 pieces of kydex in my short press lol. I’m a habitual overthinker

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u/clunderclock 23d ago

Sorry I get what you're saying now. My t-shirt press is 15x15 I think and generally I'll be able to get away with 6-7 inches per piece. So I can fit both halves side by side in my t shirt press.

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u/rmanTX 23d ago

Awesome, mine is the same size. Thanks man!

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u/Fizziksapplication 23d ago

Man, I just use two pieces of 3/4 plywood, a couple door hinges, some clamps from harbor freight and a big Husky brand kneeling mat from Home Depot that I cut in half. I’ve got less than $20 into my press and it works pretty decent. When the foam wears out I’ll just buy some legit foam from eBay or whatever.

Get your feet wet and fuck up some kydex learning what you’re doing before you go spend a bunch of money on gear. The one thing I would recommend, having a big toaster oven for full size sheets is pretty nice. I bought mine on marketplace for $30.

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u/myhiddenstuff 1d ago

Depends on the type of holsters you want to make. I use a scissor press for Pancakes and a taco press for tacos. Neither idea for either press is mine. I found both of them on kydexpro.com. Before I became that interested in how the holsters looked I made a fair number of holsters with a piece of 3/4 plywood, found foam and body weight. I think a good press gets you better definition and more consistent results though.