JRC Watson Special

[JAD]

This holster deserves its own thread.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170228/798d24651de86a9ac1ad00fa6116c254.jpg

This is an extremely minimalist approach to aiwb. With its limited wedge and yaw pad, I think it is functionally similar to the George, but to me more comfortable because it's leather.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170228/75e1baf2cf7ec2554be1160fabafaa62.jpg

As shipped the ride height is pretty extreme. I have a half inch of clearance to my knuckles. This results in some butt print. This is fine in Texas, but Jim is making me some extra wedgy bits for the refined sensitivity of Kansas City. The ride height makes it very comfortable in the muzzle area. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170228/bdfa1baf1eb8d080b73aaa510e6876cd.jpg

I find myself centering it more than anticipated because of the printing.

Retention is good, but unlike other jrc holsters (I guess I've bought about seven?) it did not require break in.

The thumb safety is not forced on by insertion in the holster, and will push the Guard aside, but the safety cannot be disengaged while holstered. The mag release is easy to hit on purpose, which I prefer. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170228/1a6061bcce2d0b78abd379b936402ef1.jpg

It is inherently a fast holster. I have to slow down enough to sweep onto the butt rather than just slamming my and down so I don't get caught on top of the tang; and it's still fast.

https://youtu.be/NJLmf7MJYjc

I will be ordering one shortly for a commander. I will probably seek to drop the ride height by 1/4", seek some negative cant, and see if we can get a little more defined on the safety.

[BaiHu]

I'm on the list, so I hope to post here in time for my birthday in May. Fingers crossed!

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[JHC]

Glorious!

Re ride height, I tend to be counter-conventional wisdom and prefer pretty dang low ride heights for the improved concealment and security. It does slow a draw a bit but I have never found it hurt getting a good master grip. I reject the idea that one MUST have the full grip with fingers encircling the grip completely before starting the draw.

I think it was on a thread a year or so ago that was about AIWB safety where Mr. White presented video using a laser or a SIRT to illustrate what body parts may be flagged in one draw method or another. Someone with a sharp eye commented that he was still securing his master grip when the pistol was moving upwards.

Drawing a G26 with the flat basepad mag provides the proof that reliable draws are possible without every finger fully encircling the grip. So why must a full size be any different?

[ubervic]

JRC's work is fantastic, and this newer holster design looks pretty righteous. I, too, would prefer to have it ride a bit lower----I'd been running my CDA AIWB for almost a year at the highest height but decided to move it down to the next rung and found it concealed far more cleanly without giving up any measurable degree of access to the grip.

P.S. Nice watch, OP. Mid Pilot? I've been enjoying mine quite a bit. :D

[MGW]

I've been looking at this holster for awhile now. So I have future plans to carry a 226 and I'm leaning toward leather anyway. Maybe I should just go ahead and order one up.

[JAD]

Glorious! Re ride height, I tend to be counter-conventional wisdom and prefer pretty dang low ride heights for the improved concealment and security.

Yup, I wouldn't mind it if it was a bit lower. We didn't talk about it when I ordered but Jim is taking care of me with the extra wedgy bits.

I disagree with you about the full grip in holster. A lot. I have thrown guns at the target, though, and remember I'm working with circus people hands.

What is interesting to me is how much more comfortable the gun is at the muzzle end than my other P35 AIWB, a shaggy. It's almost as comfortable as my P30... because, duh, it's that much higher.

[JAD]

I, too, would prefer to have it ride a bit lower.
-- I'd suggest, gun dependant, "a quarter inch lower than Diller's." JRC should be able to work with that.


P.S. Nice watch, OP. Mid Pilot? I've been enjoying mine quite a bit. :D
--Yup. My core group of friends bought them for each other for birthday gifts over the course of a year. My vote was for IWCs, but I'm pretty happy with the maratac.

[JRCHolsters]

I have several different ways to go on ride height. I currently have an order for an extremely low riding unit, which I am personally fond of myself. Thing is, it is all custom to some degree. I am working on one at the moment that has been modified to accept a CDA style belt loop. Every pistol type is going to ride differently height wise, so I will try to accommodate by altering the reinforcement area.

On the locking shield, No actually having an HP with the extended safety, I had to make a somewhat educated guess on how safety/shield fit would ride.

[JHC]

Yup, I wouldn't mind it if it was a bit lower. We didn't talk about it when I ordered but Jim is taking care of me with the extra wedgy bits.

I disagree with you about the full grip in holster. A lot. I have thrown guns at the target, though, and remember I'm working with circus people hands.

What is interesting to me is how much more comfortable the gun is at the muzzle end than my other P35 AIWB, a shaggy. It's almost as comfortable as my P30... because, duh, it's that much higher.

I only threw guns when I used to apply the Bill Jordan style circular scoop draw. Mostly threw my K-38. ;) I was fast though, when it worked.

[JAD]

I've been looking at this holster for awhile now. So I have future plans to carry a 226 and I'm leaning toward leather anyway. Maybe I should just go ahead and order one up.
Please review if you do. I am 100% that this will be an ass kicking Commander holster, but I am nervous about my G17's caboose printing; it goes away with a wing claw but I'm not sure this design is up to keeping a big double-column down. If it'll hide a 226, it will be good to go.

Matter of fact, come up to mill creek (probably just an 8 hour drive for you) and let's shoot when it comes in.

[JAD]

IOn the locking shield, No actually having an HP with the extended safety, I had to make a somewhat educated guess on how safety/shield fit would ride.

Yup, and it's good enough, for sure; but I am willing to bet we can go a little tighter with a commander.

[JAD]

Incidentally I got a pm about whether the hammer pokes me when I bend over. It does not; my gut is restrained by the back of the slide. When driving, the back of the slide sits against my bottom rib.

Mmm, ribs.

[ssb]

Please review if you do. I am 100% that this will be an ass kicking Commander holster, but I am nervous about my G17's caboose printing; it goes away with a wing claw but I'm not sure this design is up to keeping a big double-column down. If it'll hide a 226, it will be good to go.

Matter of fact, come up to mill creek (probably just an 8 hour drive for you) and let's shoot when it comes in.

I use it almost daily with a G17. I've got two sets of belt loops and the ones I'm using now seem like they're at about the ride height in your pictures.

What solved the print issue for me was a more aggressive muzzle wedge. I went to Wal Mart, got one of those foam things you rest your knees on when you're gardening, and cut that to size. It's about twice the thickness at the end as the original JRC version, though it tapers as it moves away from the muzzle. I'll edit with a picture later.

In my experience it isn't the thickness of the Glocks, but rather the length of the grip that poses a problem. A G17 is right on the edge of how tall a pistol I can conceal, and without an aggressive muzzle wedge there's about a half inch gap between my stomach and the gun below the bottom finger groove. A G19 is pretty much invisible in this holster with the normal wedge.

[jwperry]

I've been looking at this holster for awhile now. So I have future plans to carry a 226 and I'm leaning toward leather anyway. Maybe I should just go ahead and order one up.

I have an order in for my 5" 1911 and when I pony up some more cash, I plan on putting an order in for my Mk25. I have the CDA for both a 5" 1911 and for my Mk25. After some 'stretching' the Mk25 is working great now, but I'm eager to try a more minimalist setup.

If you get one for your P226 sooner than me, post pics. :)

[theJanitor]

I currently have an order for an extremely low riding unit, which I am personally fond of myself.

:cool:

[ssb]

Here you go, JAD:

http://i.imgur.com/OJ9yniu.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/Zj416bf.jpg

[lyodbraun]

Man ole man great looking holster, mine is on order and last I checked he said Leather was all cut, so I hope to see it in the near future.. can't wait for it..

[BaiHu]

Here you go, JAD:

http://i.imgur.com/OJ9yniu.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/Zj416bf.jpg

At 135 and 5'6", I find tucking the butt on the G19 to be slightly more difficult than the P30. JRC still helps me best with the CDA AIWB in G19, but I've got the Watson ordered to see if it's an even better tuck. Do you have a CDA too? What's your height/weight/build? How well does this conceal in comparison to other holsters or holster styles you have from Jim?

[MGW]

Please review if you do. I am 100% that this will be an ass kicking Commander holster, but I am nervous about my G17's caboose printing; it goes away with a wing claw but I'm not sure this design is up to keeping a big double-column down. If it'll hide a 226, it will be good to go.

Matter of fact, come up to mill creek (probably just an 8 hour drive for you) and let's shoot when it comes in.

After seeing the pic of the G17 I might change my mind. Not sure I can pull a 226 off in that rig.

[ssb]

At 135 and 5'6", I find tucking the butt on the G19 to be slightly more difficult than the P30. JRC still helps me best with the CDA AIWB in G19, but I've got the Watson ordered to see if it's an even better tuck. Do you have a CDA too? What's your height/weight/build? How well does this conceal in comparison to other holsters or holster styles you have from Jim?

I have both the CDA AIWB II and the Watson Special. I'm 5'8, 160lbs, slight gut.

I don't know if you've got experience with his holsters, but the Keeper is the most recent wedge design I've owned apart from the Watson (Keeper was sold, so I can't do comparison pics). An issue I had with the Keeper is that the wedge mechanism was so aggressive that it would actually cant the gun horizontally enough to where the rear sight would print. It's hands-down the most aggressive tuck holster I've owned. However, I was about 40lbs fatter when I owned that holster so that may have had something to do with it. From memory, I'd put the Watson -- or at least mine -- at a little more than half of the horizontal grip tuck of the Keeper. So, it's certainly not as aggressive on that front.

There is noticeable belt bulge on the Watson, where the CDA AIWB-II doesn't really have it (it does, but it's spread out). It's not enough to where I'd consider it a problem (it's really only an issue when wearing shirts I shouldn't be trying to conceal a full-sized pistol in). With my foam wedge, I can wear an Under Armour medium t-shirt and not have the gun itself really print that much -- the floorplate may print a bit depending on my movement, or if the wind ends up blowing my shirt flat against me. Under those same circumstances, the belt loops will print more than the gun. Nevertheless, this is the sort of thing that drove development of holsters like the JMCK George and sent others to claw designs. As to the amount of bulge, when the holster's on my belt I can take the width of my thumb and place that against the Glock slide -- the opposite side of my thumb is a hair further than the outer side of the belt loop.

I like that the Watson is more stable than the AIWB CDA II on the draw. For general movement, there's really no issue with the AIWB CDA II -- it's going to stay put. What I'm talking about is when I go to draw aggressively, the holster's going to rock down a bit. It's a consequence of the single offset loop design. I think the Watson is a hair faster because of this. I can consistently hit 1.3s par times when drawing in dry fire, and I'm right up against 1.2. With the CDA II, it's not as consistent because of that movement I described.

As to concealment, I can make the Watson conceal just as well as my dialed-in AIWB CDA II. Obviously you lose the adjustability with the Watson. However, the caveat is that I needed a more aggressive foam wedge to make that happen. The stock wedge was good for comfort/avoiding hot spots but not so much as a tool to really force the gun to stay against my stomach. Comfort is a wash between the two. I do find that both holsters can poke me if they're not riding at the proper height, and I really wish they were a tad more narrow at the muzzle end but I'm no leather genius so I can't say how to do that while maintaining durability. I like that the Watson has less going on below the belt line, so there's a smaller area where problems can develop vs. the AIWB CDA II.

As for other JRC holsters, the AIWB CDA II and the Watson Special are the only ones I currently own. OWB and traditional IWB don't really work for me, at least for the size pistols I want to carry.

[MGW]

Thanks for the write up SSB. I'm back to wanting to try one.

[lyodbraun]

Well I got the word today my holster is complete, and will be shipping next week from JRCholsters, he said it turned out great, can't wait to see it... I'll post some pictures when I get it...

[lyodbraun]

Well got my Watson special today looks very nice gun fit is tight as expected with new holster, front site pulls leather out on it when drawing, lol which is getting less and less after some draws, I decided to switch out the belt loop that came with it for a thin kydex clip and it works much better and does not produce a huge bulge, over all a very nice holster, In the mean time I put my other G19 in it and will let it sit for a week or so, then start wearing it and see how it compares to my very thin and comfortable JMCK AIWB ..

http://i382.photobucket.com/albums/oo266/lyodbraun/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_135715.jpg (http://s382.photobucket.com/user/lyodbraun/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_135715.jpg.html)


http://i382.photobucket.com/albums/oo266/lyodbraun/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_135734.jpg (http://s382.photobucket.com/user/lyodbraun/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_135734.jpg.html)

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[lyodbraun]

This is the new belt clip I installed works much better no big huge bulge at the beltline

http://i382.photobucket.com/albums/oo266/lyodbraun/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_202021.jpg (http://s382.photobucket.com/user/lyodbraun/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_202021.jpg.html)

http://i382.photobucket.com/albums/oo266/lyodbraun/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_201800.jpg (http://s382.photobucket.com/user/lyodbraun/media/Mobile%20Uploads/2017-03/20170310_201800.jpg.html)

[Clobbersaurus]

JAD, I apologize for the thread drift but I am drooling over your Hi Power. Please tell me there is a thread somewhere in the Pistol forum?

[JAD]

There are a couple but I didn't have much luck searching. In brief it's an Israeli mkii I picked up in '11 or so that did well in the 2000 round challenge. I had MARS add a C&S thumb safety, dehorn a little, and put on my standard combo of a Harrison retro rear and a serrated ramp with tritium. He cerakoted it in tungsten gray. I carry it infrequently and didn't have a great AIWB holster for it, so it was a good way to try out the Watson. I have already ordered another Watson for my many Commanders.

[Mr. Goodtimes]

So can a Watson Special be ordered with a slightly lower ride height? I really like the ride height of my CCC Shaggy, which is just enough to get my fingers around the grip with them scraping my belt in the process.


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[JAD]

Yes. It is a custom holster, have it made as you like.