All posts in Blackhawk gun holsters

Glocks 17 holsters and safety

I view the Glock pistol as an unsheathed knife.  When you pull a knife or a sword you better pay attention to where your blade is because it will cut you.   I am not big fan of manual safeties on handguns because the closer you are to a bad guy the less time you’ll have.  On an AR15 it’s whole other story.   I am also not a big fan of carrying firearms around with empty chambers.   People gotta realize that when bad things happen, you don’t have all the time in the world and giving yourself one more thing to do before you can defend yourself is a bad idea.   I recently did an audit of all of the friends and family members that I know that carry firearms and the vast majority of them have never been in a really hostile situation.

I, unfortunately have too much experience in those regards and I completely understand what “stress” is in combat or hostile situations.  I never got into the whole CCW thing just for being a cowboy.   I’ve seen evil and I know the dark side of what humanity can do and it’s not just about defending our lives, it’s also about defending the innocent.    I think there are some good designs out that may be at higher safety level than Glocks, but the Blackhawk holsters that I like the most for Glock firearms is the Serpa.   The Level II tactical holsters lock the gun in place, you hear it click and you don’t have to worry about thumb breaks or guns flying out of the holster because there is nothing to retain it.

Top

Unconventional thought in defensive situations

I think most people expect to read about firearms, knives and pepper spray when it comes to using weapons in a defensive situations, but we can’t for get to think  about ways of using our body in situations to get away, or restrain an individual.   I’ve shown many people how to take a firearm away from someone, but that is only for people that have the confidence to do so.  I remember a few years ago there were was a lot of buzz about how easy it was to take apart a Beretta 92FS pistol and disarm someone who wielded it.   Well, it is easy to do that, but it’s even easier to drop a magazine on a Glock and pull the trigger on it and then it’s basically disarmed as well.

Verbal defense is probable the most important training that a shooter can employ.  I’ve taught people how to build confidence that they will know how to shout down an attack or trick a home invader to retreat, just by yelling “I have a gun”.  Knowing how to use every sharp edge of your firearm and your Blackhawk holsters even the magazine holders as blunt objects should give you things to think about when in a crisis situation.   Lots of firearms and tactical gear and accessories can be used for jabbing or bashing.

Top

Beretta 92 still going strong after all of these years

I jumped on the Beretta 92FS bandwagon in the later 1990’s because it seemed to be one of the most reasonable priced 9mm I could find.   This is a full size gun and  not really good for IWB, but it is the easiest handgun to take down and clean.   There was a movie where a fight broke out and a good guy took apart an M9 handgun in a gun fight, but the reality is that if anyone can get their hands on your gun they can hit a mag release or push the slide back and jam it up just as easy.  Sometimes knowing  how something works means knowing  how to break it, too.

The Beretta 92 does have a lot of play in the trigger and it’s kind of hard to claim it’s a great IDPA guy, but it is extremely well balanced and reliable.   It is also so common that finding good deals on used magazines and parts is easy.   Blackhawk holsters sells a great military style leg holster that will securely lock your firearm in place and the M9/Beretta 92FS is one of our top selling Blackhawk Serpa holsters.   This only goes to show that with all of the faults the guy may have, it’s still one of the best and people trust it with their lives.

Top

Thin guns for CCW might cut it

I’ve been trying to carry Glocks for the last year and had to buy a ton of new holsters because my thin build didn’t really hide them very well.   Glocks are thicker than most of my Sigs and carrying them in any other manor than IWB has been almost impossible if I want concealment.   I still love carrying them in Blackhawk Serpa holsters but these holsters are not CCW friendly in my humble opinion.  There are so many variables in trying to conceal a firearm and some modes are just not practical.   I’ve seen ankle holsters for Sig 229 and large Glock guns and I just find it unreasonable to carry that much weight on your ankle, not to mention how secure the thing is.

One favorite way to carry on an outside the waist holsters is with a 1911.  The 1911 is a much thinner frame and  even though the Government model is long, it is easy to tuck in and conceal.  You may have some issues with the cocked hammer snagging but that is something that can be dealt with.  Galco holsters made the Combat master which is a belt attached holster.  This holster is going to fit right up against you and not protrude.  If you add that with the thin framed 1911, you will have another OWB holster that can be concealed.  It does work with summer carry if you wear a large cut and dark t-shirt.

Top

Blackhawk holsters for CCW

I think the Blackhawk Serpa holster is an outstanding design for a duty holster, but it’s not a very good design for CCW.   I remember all of the bashing that use to go on about Glocks vs 1911 handguns for CCW and the arguments  usually came down to people being against manual safeties.   I think there is something to be said for not having a manual safety on a CCW gun and there is a difference between that and having one on a hunting rifle, but it does not make sense to argue that a 1911 is bad for CCW and then tote your Glock 19 around in a Level 2 holster.    You have to weigh and balance the advantages and disadvantages of a firearm and how you would want to deploy it.

 

The Blackhawk Serpa works well as a duty holster and under a vest or a jacket it can work, but I never liked the idea of having to clean a layer of clothing, find the gun release and draw the firearm.   I stopped carry a 1911 after having too many times of missing the thumb safety.   The more you layer your clothing, the more of a risk you are going to run into a problem.  Blackhawk holsters do come in an IWB design that are of a nylon design and better suited for CCW.   I have found there are some advantages of a simple nylon holster for a Kydex or leather.

Top

The Beretta 92FS still going strong

I remember when the 9mm gun started showing up in  Military service and the stories about them cracking and not being reliable were all over the place.   Now that I’m about three decades older,  I think I have heard the same exact stories from other people about different types of guns.   The real situation with firearms is there are almost always alterations or improvements that take place after the first run comes out.   Just think about the Glock Perfection promotions you see everyone where.  Glock supposedly got it perfect, but now we are seeing the 4th Generation with back straps.   I’m not bashing Glocks because I am a Glock owner and I’ve seen them out run most handguns and they are an elite firearm.   In all honesty most firearms really are just different types of candy.   Sometimes it’s just preference.

The Beretta 92FS is an extremely reliable firearm, it also is a full size auto that needs a good holster.    Our top 2 selling holsters from Blackhawk are the gun holsters made for those carrying the Beretta 92FS in the military also known as the M9 and the Glock 17 and followed closely by the Glock 19.   Blackhawk holsters are outstanding duty holsters and secondary firearm holsters.   Our top level tactical customers prefer the Blackhawk finger release design over tradition thumb break holsters and we have yet to have someone come back to us about quality control issues.    The Beretta 92FS is the stronger version of the original Beretta 92F gun holsters.

Top

Gear and accessories, jobs and locations

When my friends pressured me into buying an AR15 a few decades ago, I did it just for the fun of it.   When I picked up my first M4 Carbine, I got it because I needed it for work.    Depending on the jobs you intend to do with your firearm, you have to be careful you don’t over do it and  you have to be careful that you thought things through and you know what to do and where to go when scenario 2 or plan B occurs.   Crazy things happen in front of your eyes when you’ve lived on this Earth long enough and there’s no way to play for everything.   Once thing I have known since the first time I put on a back pack and went hiking on a Scout Trip was carrying too much weight.   I’ve seen guys show up on camping trips and burn up chairs and toss out food and dishes that they got tired of hauling around.   Nobody wants to starve on a camping trip, but nobody wants to carry an extra 5lbs of food either.

When it comes to planning for a tactical carbine or training course, nobody wants to make an ass  out of themselves by dropping gear or having to go back to your car and unload all of the stuff that you wore for the first day.   There’s nothing wrong with learning and making mistakes,  but it’ll show if you aren’t planning ahead.  I have friends that have seen guys pass out on ranges because they couldn’t handle the physical tasks and part of it was because they didn’t wear the right clothing and got too hot.   Blackhawk holsters are one of my favorite duty or tactical holsters, but there are many ways of carrying a sidearm.  The Blackhawk Omega holsters are easy to adapt to using and can carry a spare magazine with the holster.   If you don’t need a fancy chest rig, keep it simple and just use a tactical holster with a magazine holder.     If you need much more than that as a backup you might want to consider bringing grenades.

Top

Reason for having more than one holster

There are always preferred ways of carrying a concealed firearm or even a duty gun, but in certain environments you’re holsters may not hold up very well.  I’ve seen nylon holsters survice in situations where leather didn’t, but i have and own many very comfortable leather tactical and concealed carry holsters.  I don’t think the notion of wearing a kydex shoulder holster is appealing to me, but something like the Blackhawk Serpa holsters are more secure than a clip on nylon.

There are always trade offs with guns and the same goes for the gear that you are carrying, In this part of the country it’s impossible to expect to carry a paddle holster or Blackhawk holsters like the Serpa in the outside of your pants when it gets hot up here.   If you want concealed carry you better expect to carry IWB or pocket carry.  I’ve moved away from paddle holsters because you really feel it if you have to hit the ground hard.  There are always options.

Top

Paddle holsters and breakage

 

I have a few customers that have sworn by Safariland holsters and claim that they don’t break like Blackhawk holsters do, but I haven’t seen it.   Gun talk and gun accessory discussions often quickly turn into soap operas and there’s a certain point I just turn it off because I know its just daytime drama.   Bad stuff can happen, defective products make it to the market, and sometimes people just don’t tell you the truth about what happened.   Kinda like the guys that blow their guns up and claim that there wasn’t anything wrong with the ammunition and then you find out they put a double charge of Bullseye pistol powder in an M1A rifle case.    Taking responsibility for actions and learning form them will help you find the right gear not acknowledging your part of the error doesn’t help the learning curve.

I have yet to ever retire a gun holster because it broke on me, but I’ve sold or retired a few because they either held too much body sweat or the belt clips didn’t perform 100% of the time.  I’ve been using The Wilderness Instructor belts for almost 10yrs and had gun holsters fail me.   Technically they didn’t break, but they failed.   I’ve been transitioning all of my Fobus paddle holsters to the closet box and replacing them with Blackhawk holsters because I’ve been very comfortable with the design and release of medium to large frame autos.   I will be looking to replace my J-frame 38 Special this summer with a .380 pistol and will be shopping a the NRA convention in Pittsburgh for one.

Top

Magazine pouches, fobus vs Blackhawk

I have had a lot of experience using nylon gun holsters and I really can’t say anything bad about them except for the thumb break stile holsters.   I’m not a big fan of holsters with straps on them and I presently only prefer the Blackhawk Serpa holsters for locking and firearm retention.   My Fobus holsters have always served me well and I believe I may own one holster for every medium and large frame auto in my collection.  Fobus makes a nice paddle holster, but I have had experience with the magazine holders and I am not a big fan.

I have quite a few nylon magazine holders and they are very good and keep the magazines where I want them, I do not like to use the nylon magazine holders for CCW and after a short stint at using the Fobus holsters magazine holders, I found out that there is a limit to how many paddle style holsters I can wear comfortable.   I do not recommend the fobus paddle magazine holders because you will feel it dig into you if you have to roll around.  The Blackhawk single and double stack magazines are the best because they actually have tension and mags won’t fly out easy and they aren’t covered like a nylon magazine holder is.

Top
1 … 3 4 5 Page 5 of 5