The new daily carry

The new Glock 26 is a great form factor for me.

Here are the two holsters I have tried so for.

I am in the market for another.

I like the wide single clip of the one holster, but I also like the hard side holster because it does not collapse, making re-holstering difficult.

--Do you have a favorite?

New Holster

I have been carrying my new Glock 26 in the same holster I use for my Glock 17.

Today I picked up a new Galco IWB that I will be using the next couple weeks.

One thing I noticed right off is that while it's easy to draw from this holster, re-holstering quickly is difficult.

This actually does not matter much to me because I never draw my gun out in the world.

--Needs a little sweat to break it in. It's going to be 100 degrees tomorrow.

Holsters

It seems like every shooter I know has a drawer full of holsters. A ton of them in fact, that they no longer use.

I was sorting through my holster box last weekend. I had no idea I so many.

Most notable items are the holsters I have the are for guns I no longer own.

There are even holsters in there I have never worn. What a waste. The lesson from my holster box is mostly don't buy cheap holsters.

--TBolt, need some 1911 mag holders?

Car Accident

Last night I was taking wife out to dinner last night and while slowing to turn left we got rear ended by a freshly graduated college student that had all per possessions packed in her car.

Our car, a Chevy, was fine. Scratched up, bumper damaged, but still drivable. Gets fixed on Tuesday. Super fast Geico/State Farm response.

Her car, a Nissan, was not drivable.

The police came and he was very professional. Excellent communications skills for such a young officer.

I desperately wanted to ask him why he had a Serpa holster. 

I was under the impression that Law Enforcement agencies had moved away from them.

--We were only 2 hours late for dinner. At least it wasn't crowded.

Dragon Leatherworks, the Valkyrie

It was really good to see Dennis up and about at the NRA Convention. Not only that, he was wearing a sweet Sunday BBQ holster:  the Valkyrie

Quote from Dennis:

"It was a custom request by the prop master at NCIS, specifically for the two-part episode starring Scott Bakula in what may well become a spin-off called NCIS: New Orleans."

This photo does not do it justice. Really beautiful Gator hide, or was it Croc? Dennis told a great story about the materials, eBay, and Scott Bakula wearing it. Also about how his gunshow boot was used as background on the show! Fun stuff. Go check out his web site!

Great seeing you Dennis!

--I hope the spin off happens!

Drop Holster

What are you looking at?

I have been trying to figure out what the best holster would be if  was wearing my favorite backpack for camping.

My backpack has a great belt the transfers all the weight of the pack to your hips.

Regular Inside or Outside the waistband holsters just get in the way of the packs belt.

The drop holster in this photo seems like it will solve this problem neatly.

--I also have a chest holster that works, but is not that handy.

Sure Draw for Glocks

Here is the text from their website:

Sure-Draw's momentary safety device for Glocks provides the solution to a long-known problem - reducing the chance of negligent discharge. When the user's thumb presses and holds Sure-Draw's safer action inward, the weapon will NOT fire. Release the safety, returning to normal grip, and the weapon is ready to fire. 

Sure-Draw allows the user to holster their weapon with confidence.Sure-Draw features a new manual of arms in which the user rides the safety with your thumb as you handle the weapon in a safe condition and insert into the holster. This avoids the downside of current safety designs of many pistols that may inadvertently be left on in a moment of stress or in a tactical situation. No matter how hard the trigger is pulled, if Sure-Draw is engaged the gun will not fire. As soon as it is released the weapon is hot again.

--Glock is my daily carry. I would try this.

The Right Holster

I have been carrying my Glock 17 lately in my new Galco IWB holster.

I even have my 2 round mag extenders and that gives me 20 rounds of 9mm with one in the pipe. The double stack mags give you a lot of ammo but makes the gun thick.

The other holsters I have used for my Glocks have been to bulky and printed too easily. I am particular about my Glock holsters because I rely on them to control access to the trigger.

This one is comfy and keeps close. Standing, sitting, driving and walking.

--Galco Kingtuk, IWN Holster. $56 from Amazon. Silly name. Good Holster.

My New Favorite Holster

For years I have been using a compact 1911 for my daily carry firearm.

I have moved to my Glock 17 recently because of the Galco Kingtuk IWB Holster.

This holster is comfy and secure and is priced well at $55 from Amazon.

I won't start a debate between the 1911 and the Glock because I like both. I will say I shoot the Glock 17 better because the sights are better.

--Carry your gun in a comfy holster. Otherwise you won't carry it.

Px4 .40 +2

One of my daily carry favorites is my Beretta Px4. 

It has my favorite feature set, including a $575 retail price, (except the safety switch is opposite my 1911, dammit).

The picture here shows  one of the +2 mags I have. That magazine holds 16 rounds of .40 cal and still rides nice.

My Galco holster is great and I open carry with it like this pretty often. No one ever seems to notice. If I wear one of my Hawaiian shirts It might print a bit but it's fine.

The weird thing is it weighs about the same as my compact 1911 with 7 rounds.

In the winter it's easy conceal carry. I open carry way more in the summer. I need me some summer!

--Come on Spring!

Holster Problem

I have carried a compact 1911 in a Crossbreed Deluxe holster for years, I love it.

When I decided I was going to carry my Px4, the Crossbreed Deluxe was a natural choice when I discovered they made one for the Px4.

I have been using it now for about a month now and unfortunately it has a problem. A bad problem.

The holster presses the mag release button all the time. I never had the mag drop out but if I had needed it that is some very bad mojo.

The photo to the right shows clearly the wear point where the mag release was getting pressure.

I plan on contacting Crossbreed to see if they can do anything. Otherwise I think I will cut a circle out at that spot.

--Let me know if you have had this kind of issue or have any ideas.

I Ordered Another Holster

Crossbreed SuperTuck Deluxe

I have been carrying my 1911 in my Crossbreed Holster for a couple years now. I want more options.

I love the holster though.

So I ordered another Crossbreed SuperTuck Deluxe in black for my Beretta Px4.

My Px4 is a double stack .40cal and I will be interested in seeing how the extra 1/2 in thickness will print.

It will be double the rounds and many times the reliability.

--I will post pics wearing it when it gets here.

Custom Leather

A friend emailed me this picture because he knows I love guns the way he loves motorcycles. I know lots of shooters that love Bikes too.

Custom leather for a modern cowboy.

I could never just park this anywhere. Unless you also had a holster on my person. But if I had a holster wouldn't my gun be better in there even if I was riding?

I don't care.

--It's still damn cool!

Conceal Carry Options for Women

A friend emailed me a link to a good video that details several holster options for women.

It was the result of a talk we had where I mentioned thigh holsters as a summer sundress option.




--Even if you are a guy, it's a nice holster roundup.

Sweat and Holsters

My wonderful wife took me out for a relaxing date today.

We have been talking about going to play miniaturize golf and this course, that is very near our home, for like ten years.

It is a beautiful little 18 hole course. (Today veterans and activity duty military could play for free there.) I am glad to support it.

What does this have to do with guns? This is a gun blog after all.

It was a hot sunny day with temps in the mid 90's. I was keeping as cool as I could in cargo shorts, Hawaiian shirt and sandals. I was still carrying my compact 1911 in its Crossbreed holster.

By the time we were done playing our 18 holes, I was happily soaked in sweat and ready for a mango smoothy after my glorious victory by 6 strokes (winning a foot rub and movie of my choosing tonight).

The leather of the holster was directly against my skin and the leather absorbed  a lot of sweat. I mean a LOT of sweat. I will need to hang it to dry tonight when when get home from a cookout at my sisters, where there will be more sweating during a round of full contact croquet!

The question is:  How do you keep a sweaty holster clean?

--I do not want the thing to end up smelling like an old shoe!

Flea Market Goodness

I went to a Flea market with my wife last weekend. It was your typical flea market. There were occasional items of interest.

I saw several knives that would have been worth having but they were a bit over priced. Even some swords and Tomahawks.

I actually found a box of trapping gear. Large and small animal leg traps. Compound bows and arrows.

Lots of camo, boots, blaze orange and other hunting gear.

But the best thing was a hug box of used holsters!

I selected three from the bin and paid the man $21 total.

Two of them are Uncle Mikes and one is a Bianchi!

--I am very pleased!

I Need a New Holster

Beretta 96D Centurion

While I was at the Northcoast Blogshoot II my friend Mad Saint Jack was kind enough to sell me some spare magazines for my Beretta 96D.

These are the large capacity .40 cal mags that work very nicely in this rig. There were three that he sold me and it is worthy to note that these mags do NOT work in the Px4 or Cx4 Berettas.

Combined with the suppressor and an internal LASERMAX Laser sight, this is an excellent Zombie exterminator.

The big question is: What is a good holster for this baby? The only one I have that works right now is a really big Uncle Mikes shoulder rig. It's just way to big for concealed carry.

What I want is a very slim, comfortable, shoulder holster with a pair of mag holders.

--Any recommendations? Brands? Types?

Crossbreed SuperTuck Deluxe

When I was looking for an inside the waist band holster for my compact 1911, a reader recommended the Crossbreed SuperTuck Deluxe.

It cost less than $70 and is extremely comfortable.

I have been wearing it as my primary carry rig for about six months and still lovin it.

Excellent value.

--Make sure you always wear the right belt!

I Love Yard Sales

One of the things I love about where I live in Virginia is the yard sales. Because there is so many people living here that have recently retired from the military, we get fun yard sales. I have found everything from body armor, backpacks, .308 battle packs of ammo, knives and cases.

Here are a couple pics from a recent find.

Standard issue military holster. It's still in excellent condition with little wear. Most of the medium frame handguns I have will fit securely in this holster and the belt clip will work most anywhere.

It is shown here holding my Smith & Wesson 539.  keep in mind that this is not a quick draw holster. to open it you must pull down and out on the D ring.

--It's a nice little addition to the holster drawer and for only $1.00!

My New Slim Grips

Lately my most carried handgun is my compact Rock Island Armory 1911.

I have come a long way with this gun. I still call it "The Biter" even though it no longer bites me after a small custom hammer mod.

I also had a run of trouble with the gun jamming a lot on me. Even after a 500 round break in period. A couple runs to the gun smith and some new quality magazines and it's now several hundred rounds jam free.

Once it was running like a top I got a quality, inside the waistband, holster and I started to carry it a lot. It holds a single stack, 6 +1 of .45 ACP goodness.

My most recent upgrade is a set of replacement slim grips from VZ Grips. They are half the thickness of the original wooden grips, they look good, have a nice texture, they're durable and were easy to install.

--I need a range visit soon to see if it shoots any different!!