Holster Rant

Neal G's comment about me buying a cheap leather holster

You are absolutely correct. I guess when I said I had no criteria for buying holsters, well, I now will buy higher end and name brand but I still don't know what I'm doing.

Kreyzhorse-leaving a gun in a leather holster...yep, I know that now. You too are absolutely correct. It actually wasn't even a full week. If anybody can learn from my mistake and your comments without making the mistake themselves then they should count themselves as not just smart but wise.

Just curious Kreyzhorse, did you come by your knowledge through common sense, experience or somebody teaching you?
 
Like Toney said. Every holster I've had, I built myself. The way it looks to me, is that a good holster is either expensive, or home-made.
 
The way it looks to me, is that a good holster is either expensive, or home-made.
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I wouldn't call forty bucks for an Alien Gear, or even the fifty something I paid for my Theis holsters necessarily expensive. Especially considering the excellent workmanship, materials, fit, and function they offer.
 
I personally like Cross Breed and have several of their, but that is me.
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I think Crossbreed has the most universal fit. I've never tried a gun in a crossbreed with a decent belt and not had it fit decently. The leather side molds to your body. I do think there is potential for a custom holster to fit better. Also, once the holster is formed for your given carry position that is where it stays and if you lose or gain weight it takes a while to reform and can be quite uncomfortable.

I have a drawer designated as the holster graveyard.
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Send them on to a new home! Any LNIB 9mm Glock holsters?

There are all kinds of barely used holsters on EBAY, here, other forums classifieds sections, etc. I buy them and try them. I keep a few of the complete kydex/polymer holsters in glove compartments unless I need to unholster to enter a CPZ. Otherwise, if they don't work, I find them a new home.

I keep waiting to get a leather holster that smells like a gym locker and is clearly worn, but so far only pristine holsters that smell like they just came off the line. For $20-30 a pop on name brand holsters I'll toss a smelly one if it ever shows up at my door.
I just searched and found a double mag rig that fits one of my carry guns. I don't need a double mag rig, but it doesn't look like it has been worn before and is about 1/3 retail.

A little Citrace goes a long way!
 
DaleA. I have been around guns all my life so some is osmosis but I've also learned a lot from the guys and gals on here. There are some people on here with a fantastic amount of gun knowledge.

Holsters can be a crap shoot but generally, cheaper holsters don't perform as well as more expensive ones. I'd also say that I don't expect holsters to be comfortable. After all you are carrying a heavy gun on your hip. They should ride well and keep your gun secure above all else.

I read on here several years ago that carrying a gun should be comforting but not necessarily comfortable.
 
Holsters are like having Barney Fife, 6' 8" String Bean Slim, and Arnold Schwarzenegger and expecting them all to wear the same suit.

Ain't happening.

All you can do is try a design, give it a good chance, and if it just isn't for you, sell it on Ebay or a gun forum and try again.

A lot of holster makers started out because we couldn't get a holster like we wanted.
So we started making holsters and refining the design until it was what we wanted.
Somewhere along the way we wound up making leather or Kydex for other people.
 
. I'd also say that I don't expect holsters to be comfortable. After all you are carrying a heavy gun on your hip. They should ride well and keep your gun secure above all else.

I read on here several years ago that carrying a gun should be comforting but not necessarily comfortable.
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I don't know about how you define comfortable, but if I haven't totally forgotten the gun is there ten minutes after putting it on, it isn't working for me.
 
I think Crossbreed has the most universal fit. I've never tried a gun in a crossbreed with a decent belt and not had it fit decently. The leather side molds to your body.
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That is the perfect description for the Alien Gear but it's half the price.:D
Plus if you decide on a different gun, they have a free, lifetime shell exchange for the kydex molded shell. A 30 "test drive" where they will buy it back within a month if you don't like it, and a lifetime repair or replace warranty.
http://aliengearholsters.com/
 
I got a cheap, unlined leather holster once that put serious rust on a revolver in a week. This was an old revolver that had survived for years and years in relatively good shape until I got a hold of it.

Typically my complaint is the holsters turn out to be clumsy or uncomfortable.


You get what you pay for, but it does not mean that if you pay $300+ for a holster it will be better than a $100 holster. Do your research, buy something that meets your criteria and based on wear, decide if it is what you want. If not, sell it and buy something else.

I have tons of holsters and change the one I wear based on what I feel like wearing that day.
 
What I find frustrating is trying to find holsters made for CZ pistols.
Major companies like Galco just don't make them, don't know why.
Hate buying things over the internet because I like the touchy, feely experience you get in the brick & morter store especially when purchasing something as personnel as a holster.
 
I don't know about how you define comfortable, but if I haven't totally forgotten the gun is there ten minutes after putting it on, it isn't working for me.
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I guess my point is, no matter how comfortable your rig is, it isn't more comfortable than not carrying at all.

To your point, a good rig will make you forget you are carrying, but part of forgetting is the fact that you are used to carrying.

People new to CCW aren't necessarily used to carrying and I think many don't anticipate the feeling of wearing a gun belt, a holster and a solid piece of steel / plastic strapped to their side. That can all seem uncomfortable at first to many.
 
Just like many of you, I've got a pretty good collection of holsters that for one reason or another didn't work out. That's why I have started making my own Kydex holsters.
 
Expect to have a drawer full of them. I don't know about anyone else but I have 3 that I use in my rotation depending on the time if the year and what I'm doing/going.
You can always come here in the swapping and selling section and get some more or get rid of the ones you truly dislike. :)
thats the whole fun of it!
 
You could make you're own. It is quite time consuming but rewarding. And you get exactly what you want. Kydex and leather aren't all that hard to work with.




Mine isn't pretty because I didn't care what it looked like, but it works and it's comfortable. I've since replaced the Kydex belt clips with metal Galco ones.
 
"...that put serious rust on..." No, it didn't. Leather doesn't cause rust. Not even wet leather. It is the 'wet' part that causes rust.
And it's not just a holster you need to consider. The belt is as important as the holster. Put a $100+ holster on the typical cheap dress belt and it'll move/sag/hurt/etc.
Making your own holsters and belts makes the entire thing go away.
 
I'm certainly willing to pick up some information about what to look for in a leather holster or just info about leather goods in general.

Somebody told me (and I never questioned this) that the leather holster had not been processed properly and there was some acidic action going on that contributed to the quick rusting.
 
DaleA said:
Sights-I’ve been pleased with all the replacement sights I’ve ever put on a handgun.
Grips-I’ve been pleased with all the replacement grips I’ve bought. Sometimes I might go back to the original grips but the replacements always did something I liked-made the gun look better or more comfortable.
Trigger and action work-I’ve not had a bad experience…I’ve been disappointed but never had a smith do something that detracted from the value of my guns.
Novelty Accessories-Even when these didn’t work I’ve had fun with them.

Now we come to holsters.

They are to put it mildly, frustrating.

I got a cheap, unlined leather holster once that put serious rust on a revolver in a week. This was an old revolver that had survived for years and years in relatively good shape until I got a hold of it.

Typically my complaint is the holsters turn out to be clumsy or uncomfortable.

I freely admit the problem might be personal with me. Even after all this time I guess I don’t have a checklist or any formula or criteria for choosing a holster. “Looks like that one might be good,” is about the level of my expertise.

This post quite some time ago is my favorite concerning holsters from a long gone member ‘AA040371’.



http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=554911&highlight=holsters

I've got sympathy for anybody buying a holster but no real answers.
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On a recent trip to Kentucky I made a stop at Whitaker guns to do some window shopping. I had noticed a gentleman with a few weapons in a care that he was in need of holsters for. He had an employee helping him and trying many different brands and types. That seemed like the way to go.
I usually do what you do..." this looks good,let's try it "
 
No, it didn't. Leather doesn't cause rust. Not even wet leather. It is the 'wet' part that causes rust.
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While it is the "wet" part that causes rust, wet, especially constantly wet leather holsters, just aggravate things, and contribute greatly to the cause. Once wet, they dont dry out with constant use, and your gun "is" constantly wet.

For years, I suffered through constantly wet holsters, that dont dry out over days, and rusty guns that just get worse, until kydex and truly rust resistant finishes showed up.

Finishes like hard chrome and Glocks tennifer, etc, make a big difference. Those in conjunction with kydex, and youre pretty much 99% rust free.

Leather holsters on the other hand, are really not your friend for daily use, and in a few other respects besides the "wet" part.
 
Heck one of my first carry pistols was a p11 that had been melted and just bead blasted without out a refinish.

I carried it in a crude iwb I made out of some of the Chrome tanned scrap leather from Hobby Lobby. I didn't know any better at the time.

I never did get any rust on the slide.

I still have a pocket holster I made from the same stuff, got a lcp in it now.

Some people just cant prevent rust, I think some just don't take enough care..

I sweat bad... in the summer I oil my black pistols in the morning and in the evening, I put my empty holsters over a ac vent to dry over night.

"Gun plastic" it just ain't right.... and rolling a part of love handle into a plastic holster hurts..l
 
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