Mario Hanel Belt and Holster Rig

Money cartridge money belt and holster rig, 43” long and 2 7/8” wide with an early Main & Winchester style holster for a 7 1/2” .44 W.C.F. Colt Frontier Six Shooter with raised incised floral carving. Mario Hanel graduated high school in 1985, fully intending to become a logger. An injury changed Mario’s life and course by redirecting his recovery and subsequent focus to a restorative leather working hobby. Enamored with his newfound talent and skill, Mario began absorbing all the books on leather, saddle making and tooling that he could find. He began working for accomplished local and regional saddle makers who provided both knowledge and motivation. By the mid 1990s, he was already a high coveted and gifted craftsman winning a TCAA (Traditional Cowboy Artists) scholarship to study with Idaho’s renowned, Cary Schwarz. Mario frequently credits artistic inspiration from the early California saddlery icons like Santa Barbara’s Samuel Loomis and the Bay Area’s Main & Winchest