All posts tagged 1911 Holsters

More info from walk in customers about guns and gear….

I have been told I’m an old soul because I’m far more mature than most my age and I’ve been that way for probable most of my life.   Many of the good things I remember about growing up was getting all the info I wanted from my Grandfather and all of my Uncle’s.  I only had a couple of Aunt’s so it was not very balanced in having sources of information.   When it came to Astronomy, Science, Politics and Religion, I got input from so many different views that I was forced to pick  one or think about it and come to a conclusion.  The same goes now for all of our customers that tell us about the gear and gadgets they use.

One of the best things I got from both of my Grandfather’s was the ability to always ask questions.   I always ask customers about the fiasco over the Blackhawk Serpa holsters and the recent bans that are taking place all over.  My own thoughts on it are that a less trained shooter is more likely to happen with a Serpa holsters than a Safariland holster but I still use the Blackhawk Serpa holsters, and I have them for all of my combat sidearms.   Those debates about what can happen to a Serpa holster are true, but try jamming the same dirt and snow in your AR15 bolt and tell me if that locks up the same way.  Yep, it does.

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Training with new gear and being consistent

There is no debate about firearms safety, you either follow the rules or you will have an accident.   The problem with fireams training is everyone has an off day, not everyone wakes up in the morning and is at 100% mentally there.  Everyone trips or falls at some point, every slips on the ice they didn’t see and not everyone can think straight until they’ve had their cup of joe. I’ve seen more accidents with Glocks than any other sidearm, but I would say that Glocks are the most reliable firearm I’ve seen at training courses.

One thing that I have seen happen with gun owners, is they juggle firearms around too much.  It really is not a good idea to switch up your holsters and firearms too often because mental lapses can occur.  This seems to be the problem people are having with the Blackhawk Serpa holsters that are getting on the news.  If you don’t use this holster all the time, you may have a problem keeping your hand in the same spot and you’re more prone to curling your finger and causing an ND.  I very much like the retention design and the strength of the holsters, but I would not let a novice shooter start out with  one.

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What do you want with a pocket holster?

This is one of those issues that I have lots of first hand experience with but you would think that it’s a simple way of carrying a firearm.   I still run into  people that don’t use holsters but in the age of Glocks and firearms with no safeties, I do not think it’s a good idea to have a firearm in tow that does not have it’s trigger covered.   If you wouldn’t carry a knife that is un sheathed why would you carry a fiream without a holster?   I have tried to carry firearms in my pants pockets several times in the past but I have had several failed attempts.   Both times I was carrying j-frame revolvers and either the gun didn’t sit deep enough or I had snagging that was unacceptable.

I’ve used Uncle Mike’s pocket holsters in the past and they were OK, but I’ve taken fabric scissors to them and had to make adjustments to avoid the snagging issue.   One of my favorite new Desantis holsters is the Desantis Nemesis, they are more money than the Uncle  Mikes pocket holsters but they do a better job of slipping free when you pull your firearm.    Pocket carry is something you really have try out with your clothing and your method of carry.  I’ve seen guns fall  out of pockets when people go to picnics and that is bad.

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Signs from Law Enforcement

I must spend about an hour a day watching Youtube to learn about various products.  Sometimes I don’t even bother going to the manufacturers websites because so much of it is all on the tube.   It’s much easier to watch a 10 minute video about a product than to read through pages of product descriptions and features.  There are a lot of things about clothing and guns and gear that aren’t spelled out very well and the funniest one that we’ve seen clothing companies talk about were “hook and loop” closures.   Basically they couldn’t just tell you that it was velcro and we’ve had people spend several minutes trying to find out what the heck a hook and loop closure was on a shirt.

When it came to figure out what the differences were and why there was so much drama flowing around on about the Blackhawk Serpa holsters being banned form various firearm instructors, we had to do some research.   After much research Safariland holsters seemed to be the chosen retention holsters for Police Officers in Pennsylvania and most of the Cops that I know are happy with them.   There are always trade offs with any type of holster but I would say that Safariland holsters are probable 25% better and safer to use than the Blackhawk Serpa holsters.  Idiots are capable of doing anything but the Safariland holsters don’t rely on your index finger doing anything.

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Arguments about the Blackhawk Serpa Holsters are the same as the Glock vs 1911

I remember some of the biggest arguments against the 1911 were that they had a manual safety.   Then I started noticing that 90% of the Cops I know were putting their guns in Safariland or Blackhawk Serpa holsters.   What’s the difference?  There is no difference between having a safety on a firearm or a safety on a holster when it comes to deploying your weapon.   I don’t like the idea of having safeties on a concealed carry weapon because deployment in those situations means drawing a firearm from under clothing which in it’s self is another obstacle for you before you can get to the trigger.

I understand the flaws that are being debated and why many firearms instructors do not want those holsters in training classes, but some of the warnings are over reactive.   I have seen many news story of cops with Glocks shooting themselves and it wasn’t because they used Blackhawk Serpa holsters.   I use the Blackhawk drop down leg holster and am very happy with it.   I do not use them for concealed carry nor would I use a Safariland retention  holster.   The debate should not be about the equipment, but about the operator.  Some firearms and weapons should  not be in the hands of novice shooters because they may be more prone to hurt themselves like new shooters.

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Open Carry Holsters and firearm retention

Recently there was a major news story about a guy that was open carrying a firearm that ended up being used against him.   A group of teenagers used his firearm in a robbery.   Apparently there was video of the 2 attackers standing behind the individual with the gun and pulled it from his holster when his back was turned.   While this crime was evil and the attackers should be put on death row, the stupidity of open carry in many situations just doesn’t click.  Here in Philadelphia there was a law abiding gun owner that was arrested for Open Carry when it was wrong for them to do so because it was legal to do in Pennsylvania.

It’s not smart to open carry for both of those reason, you can piss off a Cop that isn’t use to seeing it or you could get shot in the back by two 15yr olds that were unarmed until you turned your back.  If you are open carrying, firearm retention holsters like Blackhawk holsters and Safariland holsters are our biggest sellers.   It is very difficult to get a good grip on a firearm and release it at the same time unless you are the one wearing it.   The angle of retrieval can be in your favor.

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Desantis Instruder vs the Galco Kingtuk

I think the pocket holster accessory and clothing options have gotten much better in 2011 than before.    Everyone is starting to realize that concealed carry means not being able to tell that someone is carrying a firearm.   Besides printing and wearing 5.11 tactical pants, there are plenty of ways people will eventually be able to profile you and know how you are carrying a firearm.  Bumping into people is one way that you really can’t hide your 1911 and raising your arms up at work or in a super market is something you just can’t always avoid.

Good Concealment means being able to wear regular clothing and not have to always go out there and find out what Woolrich, Blackhawk, TruSpec, 5.11 or whomever else is something out that is marketed is CCW friendly.   White collar jobs make concealed carry harder and being able to tuck your shirt in and hide a firearm just got easier, Galco holsters are still some of my favorite but Desantis Instruder has a slight edge over it my book.  These are designed for smaller firearms which is more practical and realisic.

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Blackhawk Serpa holsters for the 1911?

I admit that I do like the Blackhawk Serpa holsters and it is mostly in comparison to the thumb snap holsters that use to hold so much of the holster market.  Most Police in this neck of the woods use Safariland locking holsters or some other Safariland holster.    The biggest pet peeve of mine with the traditional thumbreak holster is snapping it back on when hoslter.  I’ve had them wear out on me and end up not being worth relying on and ended up just cutting them off.   I’ve had guns fall out of holsters so I do know there is a time and a place to lock them in.

When it comes to 1911 handguns, I am not a big fan of retention holsters.   As a matter of fact, there is enough of a debate about putting manual safeties on firearms that having a manual firearm safety on a gun and Blackhawk Serpa Holsters for a firearm is 2 more things you need to do other than pull the trigger on a sidearm.   The 1911 is a great firearm, but one more mechanical device to disengage?   Some guns are meant for certain things, and I would not recommend that for anyone who is CCW a 1911.

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Concealed Carry and potential injuries

When I look at all of the holsters that we carry and all of the ways someone can carry a gun, it’s almost endless, but there are the most popular ways of carry them and some really bad ways of carrying.  If you are carrying and your not that comfortable with the position of the holster, you really should try carrying to see if you can adapt or just completely overhaul the weapons that you carrying.   IWB is in my opinion the best way to conceal a firearm.   Something many people don’t think about is that when you are in public places people can brush up against you and if you are carrying a Blackhawk Serpa or paddle holster under a shirt, people will figure out what is going on.

I’ve seen a lot of fancy ways to carry and the small of the back is to this day, the one I strongly advice against.   If you are carrying in this manor in a car there is a serious chance you can have spinal injuries if you are in a car accident.   Desantis holsters are a bit different from Galco holsters and Don Hume holsters, but there are differences in holsters designs and the angles that they made in.  For some people they like the idea of having a roto tilt holster or angled forward or back, there is no wrong chose in these regards but being able to pull a firearm during a close up fight is something to consider and how much injury can you sustain if you fell on your firearm.  The small of the back is more of a liability in these regards than any other mode.

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Quit screwing around with your 1911s and they’ll work

There is no other firearm that I see so much tinkering with than the 1911, and no matter how much money you spend on one, you can still mess it up.   I absolutely do not believe that higher end 1911’s are tougher and more reliable than a loose fitting GI Mil-spec gun.    If you want that competition shooting gun, then shoot it in a competition, but if you want reliability, keep it simple and stop screwing around with it.   I have putt thousands of rounds through my GI 1911 guns and almost always use ball ammunition.  I’m messed around with semi-wad cutters for target shooting and got my guns to feed with them, so I know it’s possible to shoot something other than ball.

The gun magazines you use for your 1911 are the difference in running a reliable firearm.   From my experience GI 1911 magazines are meant to be used a few times and tossed on the ground.   They are not worth replacing gun springs on like Wilson Combat magazines.   The magazine bodies on many 1911s get dented and don’t hold up and will eventually just jam up the follower when it is working it’s way up.    The Wilson Combat Elite Tactical magazines or ETM, is a minor improvement for a few bucks more.   The magazine body is a little thicker with changes to the placement of the ammunition level window.   There are also numbers from 1-10 on the bottom of the magazine so you can just take a hi-lighted marker and number the mags with one stroke without damaging them.

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