German Mauser C-96 Broomhandle Holster Rig-Dark TAN

It's almost usable now. As with reviews of similar items from India on other websites I found the main strap that holds the wooden stock/holster to be too short. This was easily fixed by adding an additional hole to the fastening strap. The vertical leather strap that has oiler pouch on the front was sewen about a half an inch too short. Again this was easily fixed by removing the existing stiching and restiching a half inch higher. This won't be noticeable as the old stiching holes are hidden behind the oiler pouch. The really big problem is the awful smell. The Indians do not eat cattle. I always thought that it was because of their religious beliefs. I now truly believe it's because of the sickening smell of the breed of cattle raised in lndia. I have soaked the harness with Farbreez, soaked it twice with viniger, sprayed it with Listerine oder and mold eliminater and left it hanging outside for a week. It's smell is better, or at least, less strong to the point that if I keep it in a sealed plastic bag along with a bag of activated charcoal I can keep it out in the garage without gaging. I am now contemplating taking the harness to the stinky ares of our local paper mill and letting it hang there for a couple of weeks, mabe taking it out in the woods and encourage a skunk to spray it, which would be a great improvement or trying the tomato juice trick. I am holding off on the tomato juice as it might discolor the leather. You might ask why didn't I return it. Well these complaints were all expressed in reviews by others on other websites that offer the same or similar items. I really wanted one of these holsters for my Mauser and as most of the repos have problems And I was a musical instrument technician for fourty three years I figured if anyone could make it work I could. If all else fails with the smell I will take it apart and use it for a pattern to make a new one with US leather.