Leather Anyone?

I have a variety of handguns that I select from for concealed carry, open carry, and hunting. Over the years, I have gone through hundreds of different holsters and have developed some strong preferences for everyday carry. I thought it might be interesting to post some pictures of your favorite holster and why. I'll start it off with one that I just ordered fro Lobo Gun Leather. I have a few of his holsters and do not believe I have ever had a better quality holster and his prices are reasonable for the quality you get. I use Lobo Enhanced Pancake holsters with a smooth leather lining for my Colt Diamondback and Python. They are boned to where even the cylinder flutes are visible and after two years of carry, there is absolutely no holster wear on my fine revolvers. This is a picture of the rig I just ordered from them for my 1911. Notice the piece of leather that extends behind the slide on the 1911? It is to keep the slide from rubbing a hole in your side, a feature well worth having if you carry every day.

 

Very Nice !
I just had some work done locally on The plain jane S.Armory sling and cheek rest.
Mo' better as i say, I do really like that Holster of your's however.

 

Here are another pair of fine holsters from Lobo Gun Leathers. I prefer the FBI cant with a high-rise pancake for comfort and ease of draw on the strong side. These holsters are exceptional quality with a form fit and smooth leather lining second to none. The snaps enable you to quickly fasten the holster or remove it without having to remove your belt and that is very convenient for making a quick trip through the court house.

 

This holster is made by El Paso Saddlery for a Sig Sauer P220 and is one of the most comfortable close riding holsters I own. The fitting is very good and it securley holds my weapon even when strenous activity is undertaken. This rig sees a lot of abuse because I usually carry this while riding motorcycles because it rides high and comfortable in-spite of not having a slide protector between you and the gun.

 

I frequently have to dress for meetings and such, so I had El Paso Saddlery make me a holster, belt, mag pouch to match a pair of Black crocodile boots I am fond of. The fit is secure but the belt slots are a little narrow for most pistol belts. That's an engraved 1911 with elephant Ivory grips that I carry in it; sort of my "sunday go to meeting" gun.

 

I generally do not like inside the waistband holsters, they just seem uncomfortable but some folks like them so this is one that really does not print and works with shorts and a t-shirt. That's a .38Colt Detective Special and the only this printing is the fake pager on your belt.

 

I drive a lot and a shoulder rig is about the easiest and most direct means of drawing a weapon while operating a motor vehicle. I prefer the Galco Jackass Rig with a doubl mag pouch. I also have a double Jackass rig that I sometimes wear with a pair of 1911s but this one is fit for a Colt Defender 1911 in .45 acp with elephant ivory grips.

 

The only other holster that I like as much as a high-riding pancake is the SOB (small of the back) made by Galco. This is a very accessible rig for concealed carry and is very comfortable but has a single drawback; if you get knocked on your ass, the gun makes a painful bruise (don't ask me how I know this). I sometimes use one of these to carry a full-sized 1911 or an oficers model. I also have one for a Walther PPK and this particyular piece is a mini-1911 in .22LR made by Llama.

 

You can tell by the picture that this one gets carried in my dirty work pockets pretty much every day. It is a simple wallet holster for a Ruger LCP with laser. It is easy to draw from a front pocket, keeps the dirt and pocket lint out of your weapon, and breaks the print; looks just like a wallet.

 

I frequently carry a .22 Colt Woodsman while walking about the woods and fields. I prefer a snap holster and this one is an antique that I found at a yardsale 30 years ago for a dollar. It was made by Frisbee Police Supply in Seattle, Wa sometime in the 1920s, near as I can tell. Quality lasts!

 

I know I said leather but some folks like plastic shit too so this Serpa has gotten quite popular. It conceals well and has a very positive lock. I do not find it comfortable for concealed carry but I do use it in IDPA matches because it is lightening fast. I made one slight modification by using a heat gun to bent the lock release outward a tiny bit to speed up access during a competition draw. The Taurus 1911 is one beast of a fine gun, far superior out of the box to many of my match pistols costing 3-5 times as much.

 

I'll put some of my competition rigs up in the next day or two, for those of you that might be interested. I also might dig out some of the little used items like ankle holsters and such.

 

One of the sports I shoot is Cowboy Action matches including SASS, Mounted shooting, and Fast-draw. My competition weapons are a pair of tuned "Evil Roy" model .45 LC single-actions. Most of your old western movies use a Busquadero style holster, he one that hangs your weapon low on the thigh with the leather tie around your leg. These look cool on the screen but in real life, having access to the gun while on horseback is much easier if the gun rides at the waist rather than down on your leg. The Busquadero is sort of the 1800's version of the tacticool shit you see all the SWAT wannabes wearing and really isn't much use for anything else. This rig was custom made for me ad has provided many years of hard use. I prefer a left-side cross-draw rather than the Hopalong Cassidy righ/left holsters but that can change just by swapping out the left holster. I do no keep ammo in the shell loops unless shooting a match because the leather corrodes the brass shell casings. I generally wear the buckle in the rear to allow access to the cartridge loops for a quicker reload.

 

I ended up going with an "Old Faithful" holster, and bought one of their "quick assemble" kits for my Glock 27. Nice that you can customize the fit to YOUR needs, and not just live with whatever someone thinks you ought to have. The leather shield does dig into my side a little bit, when I'm driving.....but that's because I'm a fat old bastard that needs to lose weight!! LOL

Definitely prefer the hybrid style holster for IWB, as you don't have to worry about it collapsing when you draw.

Old Faithful Holsters Store Supplies The Most Comfortable Concealed Gun Holsters

 

YD, the Blackhawk Serpa that I showed in a 1911 is similar with the exception that the paddle goes inside the waist-band and isn't nearly as bulky as the Kingtuk. Kydex has some advantages; it doesn't retain moisture, can havc an active retention system, and is super fast on the draw. The biggest down-side is that they are ugly and uncomfortable. They do not conform to your body and your body will only conform to them after wearing a hole through seven layers of skin...JMHO

 

Some of the concealed carry jackets are a very good option for many. The advantages are that they are design to carry your weapon comfortably and without signature. The disadvantages are that they are climate restricted; if it is too warm for a jacket, no good. If you go in-doors and remove your jacket, you loose immediate access to your weapon, and they are not the fastest deployment type of carry, even the ones with the velcro access through exterior pockets. There are many good quality concealment vests; some that act as a holster/retention and some that just act as a cover garment. I prefer the ones that just serve as a cover garment and keep an extra magazine in the strong-side pocket to ad weight that allows a fast sweep of the garment from my weapon for a rapid draw. This is a critical factor, in my opinion. The disadvantage is that cover vests, especially the ones such as the really well thought out 5-11 concealed carry vest, even though they do not allow any print of your weapon to show, are like a billboard advertising "I am armed" and every miscreant, cop, and bouncer in the area immediately assumes you are carrying.
Then there are the fanny-packs for concealed carry...some Birkenstock wearing, spandex-clad types can probably pull this off but I have way to much testosterone to wear a soccor-momm clothing item. They do offer many advantages of a concealed carry holster, do not print, are comfortable for long terms, but seem to stand out a bit in certain environments and do no accessorize well at all other than extremely casual dress. They work really well for jogging, bike riding, hiking, fishing trips, etc. but stand out like a boner if the restaurant has cloth napkins.
Man Purses are similar to the fanny packs but have many of the same disadvantages of the concealed carry jacket (loose access to weapon unless it is on your shoulder) and stands out in many places, especially if one of the more "manly" colors such as digital camouflage. The same disadvantages can be applied to concealed carry computer bags and notebook folios...they always keep your hands tied up and sometimes the best option for personal defense requires the hands rather than a firearm. Once more, my biggest impression of a down-side is that if the weapon isn't attached to your body, at some point, you will loose direct access to it and even worse, someone else may gain access to it. They are also easy to steal, if ever out of sight; think about it, they are already concealed so probably very easy to walk out with.