Kramer has been solid. I have IWB holsters for a P2000, S&W M&P 45 Compact and Colt Officer's ACP from Kramer.
A recent "discovery" has been Privateer Leather out of Utah. I like his shaping and molding although I wish he used two rows of stitching.
Galco should probably get favorable mention too. Their Summer Comfort or whatever they call the standard IWB is a good product for a mass production item.
I think most companies that makes a leather IWB holster makes a Versa Max clone.Originally Posted by Gun Mutt
Some outboard looped IWB's without a metal reinforcement
Lobo https://lobogunleather.com/iwb-insid...wb-belt-loop/#
Simply Rugged Cuda, DEFCON 3, Cumberland https://www.simplyrugged.com/ecommer...cfm?cat_id=669
Ritchie Hideaway http://www.ritchieholsters.com/catal...00012/hideaway
HBE http://www.hbeleatherworks.com/com.html
Brommeland http://www.brommelandgunleather.com/products.htm
Tucker https://tuckergunleather.com/texas-heritage-holster/
DM Bullard https://www.mcssl.com/store/dmbullar...tegory/5060221
Pure Kustom https://www.purekustom.com
Y'all are the best, thanks for so many great replies! I didn't mean to drive by post, but my new job moves at an insane pace and during the weekday I barely get online save for thumbing through P-F on my phone during lunch. I really appreciate @JTQ for the detailed response and links.
I'm a little surprised by how many people still prefer the SS design, I've used a bunch of them, Sparks, Kramer, Wild Bill, Galco and others, but they never worked as well for me as the Ex-Companion or VM2, seems like the butt of my Glock or 1911 was constantly sagging towards my belt. My edc was a G20 in a Rosen ARG when I lived in MT, but nowadays, I find I prefer my pistol very close to 3 o'clock and too much cant works against me for both concealment and my drawstroke. What's this look like...maybe 5 degrees of cant? It's not where I used to carry, but it's where my hip and hand want the pistol now.
About a decade ago, a friend asked for a recommendation for a cant adjustable IWB for his 1911; I suggested the McDaniel II back then and he had nothing but praise for it, but it had slipped my mind completely. I think the ability to adjust the cant will be a real boon to me as I work at finding my current IWB sweet spot.
Now all I need is for another long time friend to get off his ass and get his DW Eco into my hands by the end of the week or I'm calling bs and buying the Valkyrie I've been offered in a sweet heart deal elsewhere. I want both pistols (9mm, of course), but for now I just need to know what length holster I'm ordering from Andrews.
I won't have an IWB holster without loops/straps on the front and back. Anything with a fastener/fasteners just over the body of the holster is too bulky and unstable.
I also positively hate roughout leather next to me, and I wear an undershirt whenever I conceal.
VMII or Nexus. I like a little more cant and the Nexus is very thin.
The Summer Special are completely unusable for me. Worst holster I've seen.
Everyone is different.
I might as well use a VM-2 for open carry, because that's effectively how good at concealing they are for me. It just doesn't work with my (lack of) butt, the way the loops spread the weight, it requires some ass cheek to push the muzzle out and tuck the grip in. I have discovered if I stick a AIWB junk pad on the backside of a VM2 it works mo' better. But still, a good old fashioned SS that straddles my 4 o'clock belt loop works perfect, because that is precisely where I have the most padding to help tuck the gun and centralizing the weight where I have the most natural support works best. And I have a little hollow on my side the gun tucks into.
@Gun Mutt. If you’re going with a short grip like the eco, then more cant will keep the grip off your belt and not have an effect on concealment
A wide holster like the vm2 will keep things stable and thin. The McDaniel will do that to, but the mouth of the holster wants to sit on the belt
I buy all my holsters for 5” guns and stick all the different lengths in them without negative effect.
I do have a very used McDaniel and a vm2 sitting in a box if you’d like to try them out.
Kent
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What you are describing is a problem for this style holster, Summer Special types. I believe the John Ralston @ 5-Shot Leather has engineered the solution in his IBS model in the way he stitches the loops on the holster so that when tightened on the belt it cannot rotate at all. At least this is according to reading what Jason Burton noted about his design process with John to create this holster, I hope to be testing one of these soon as I love this style of holster but have the same problems with them in practice you mentioned.Y'all are the best, thanks for so many great replies! I didn't mean to drive by post, but my new job moves at an insane pace and during the weekday I barely get online save for thumbing through P-F on my phone during lunch. I really appreciate @JTQ for the detailed response and links.
I'm a little surprised by how many people still prefer the SS design, I've used a bunch of them, Sparks, Kramer, Wild Bill, Galco and others, but they never worked as well for me as the Ex-Companion or VM2, seems like the butt of my Glock or 1911 was constantly sagging towards my belt. My edc was a G20 in a Rosen ARG when I lived in MT, but nowadays, I find I prefer my pistol very close to 3 o'clock and too much cant works against me for both concealment and my drawstroke. What's this look like...maybe 5 degrees of cant? It's not where I used to carry, but it's where my hip and hand want the pistol now.
.
What makes it unusable specifically? Without actual details this statement is not very helpful, especially considering we are all different in how we are built and what we carry in said holster.
Last edited by Thy.Will.Be.Done; 12-19-2019 at 03:40 PM.
First thing is that the belt loop design is built for slacks and very thin belts. The loops won't straddle a belt loop on jeans and the loops won't snap over an 1 1/2" Wilderness gun belt. When you do manage to get it snapped onto a belt it pulls the belt over the waistband of the jeans because they don't put a spacer between the holster and the belt loops to allow for thickness of the pants, and the space between the top of the pants and the belt.
The second thing is that the loop right on top of the holster has zero stability so about the only thing they do is keep the holster from coming out with the pistol when you draw.
The third thing is that piling up the belt loops on top of the holster, along with the reinforced mouth, makes for an extremely bulky mess.
I've discussed this with Milt Sparks and they're aware that they suck but they're 'classic' holsters and they make them that way because that's how they were 50 years ago.
FWIW, I have used the same Ken Null UNS in horse hide for close to thirty years.
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