INTRODUCTION
I love a bit of tactical DIY as much as anyone, so when I got the chance to play with some Gearskin I was looking forward to getting hands on with some new projects.
Basically Gearskin is self-adhesive backed Cordura (available in 18 different colours including popular camo’s and tactical colours). It comes in A4 sized sheets with either 3 or 5 sheets per pack.
PROCESSING & HANDLING
The directions for use are about as straight forward as they come:
- Find what you want to cover
- Make sure it’s clean and dry
- Cut your Gearskin piece to fit
- Peel backing and apply!
As soon as I saw this I knew exactly what I wanted to cover, I had an old Fobus holster (pictures are not showing the review sample item) that had suffered many years of abuse, including cutting and painting, so it had earned a little facelift.
Following the instructions I disassembled the holster and washed all the parts in washing up liquid, to remove grease and dust then thoroughly dried it ready for a test fitting. I cut a piece of the Gearskin leaving about 25mm extra material around all edges so I could move and manipulate round the contours of the holster.
I peeled off the backing to expose the adhesive material and this is where I learned my first lesson: When you’re peeling the backing start from one of the pre-cut edges (not one you’ve cut yourself) as this will stop the backing tearing and splitting making it impossible to remove. This lesson learned, keeping the material taught, I removed the backing with no problems.
I placed the holster face down in the middle of the Gearskin and flipped it over pushing the material into the grooves and contours of the holster, the adhesive is strong enough to ensure I grips and holds it’s position really well.
The patient bit, for me at least, was running round the edges and neatening them up with a scalpel (it’s much easier to use a scalpel than scissors for the fiddly cutting), at this point the fact you and move and reapply the Gearskin was very useful ensuring there were no bubbles are creases before reassembling the holster.
Overall this little project took me about 45 minutes, that’s with my fumbling mistakes and a few lessons learned and I have to say I couldn’t be happier with the finish. As a bonus not only does it look a lot better but I’ve noticed that the holster is now a lot quieter with no squeaks or rattles!
CONCLUSION
The options for Gearskin are literally limitless, and with it being Cordura you know you’re getting a quality material that will last. It’s certainly a handy addition to my kit box and will no doubt feature in my kit modding in the future!
