Holster strife

**JDePietro** · April 27th, 2008, 01:56 PM

I've gotten myself a case of the I want something that isn't offered yet.

I really like the draw of my Serpa holster, I even enjoy that look. However I am not enjoying the rubbing and wear it puts on my sidearm. Not that Taurus has the best finishes but it really did a number on my old PT1911. And with just having purchased the new Smith I am in a position to want to keep it as nice as possible.

Kydex and Injected Molded plastics do not offer this in terms of use. They do however offer the retention wanted when OC'ing. I do OC quite often and I like knowing that its going to be a struggle to get my gun from me if you were skilled enough to knock this ninja (jk) out.

Now the question is, does Leather offer me the kind of wear reduction I seek without sacrificing the retention I want. To really add to the mix I cannot stand thumb breaks. I have a Cow Town three position holster that was a thumb break (until I cut it off) and although for CC its great! I do not like to OC with it and I have not used enough to notice if it wears the gun anymore or less than the plastic.

So I am considering getting a Leather but I am not sure which one I want.

Bianchi makes a nice leather holster that has a lever mounted towards the back. They say you use your middle finger to disengage the lock and release the fire arm. This seems really unatural and I am not conviced that I will like it.

DeSantis makes a leather holster with a button on the inside that you disengage with your thumb, this looks much better but they do not make them for 1911's as of yet.

I have not found any other holsters with the type of retention system I am looking for and to boot I don't know that leather holsters are that much easier on your sidearm. So any advice is welcome and I sit poised to read about your experiences.

**JDePietro** · April 28th, 2008, 06:47 PM

Really? No one has any advice? It seems to be the general conscience that holster wear is a part of life and I should jsut get over it. But isn't there something I can do to help midigate it?

Does anyone have the Bianchi model? What about the Safariland ALS system? Is that any nicer on the sidearm?

**FromMyColdDeadHands** · April 28th, 2008, 06:52 PM

My serpa really hasnt caused problems with wear on the finish of my guns. Leather will DEFINITLY cause MORE wear as its a tighter fit. You could spend ALOT of money and get a galco with a "liner" inside the holster, but that will probably have a thumbstrap and you definitly would want that because a liner will give you an easier draw!!

**NineseveN** · April 28th, 2008, 08:53 PM

Originally Posted by JDePietro

Really? No one has any advice? It seems to be the general conscience that holster wear is a part of life and I should jsut get over it. But isn't there something I can do to help midigate it?

Does anyone have the Bianchi model? What about the Safariland ALS system? Is that any nicer on the sidearm?

Two words: Hard Chrome.

Leather wears all over, mostly evenly as leather holsters have a "press fit" where retention is achieved via slight pressure over most of the contact surface of the gun. Kydex can actually gain retention with only pressure in/around the trigger guard, but the Serpa is a different animal. You're not going to find a decent holster that holds your gun securely and doesn't wear the finish (especially the weaker finishes like Taurus uses). So the answer is to get a finish that doesn't really wear much.

Aside from Hard Chrome, you could try Robar's NP3, Melonite, something like Ionbond (Diamond Like Carbon and other such coatings) or perhaps even Birdsong's Black-T (though Black-T does wear out on the sharp ends, corners and edges).

**toml** · April 28th, 2008, 09:09 PM

From the Comp Tac web site, for what it's worth:

"A word about gun finishes: All holsters will cause wear on the finish of your gun - That's just a fact of life. We have learned that abrasive particles and dust are less likely to cling to the kydex material than a leather holster and kydex is more easily cleaned. Still, anything that rubs against your gun will wear on the finish. Like anything else you carry every day, your gun is going to pick up blemishes and scratches. Personally, the few "jewelry guns" I own seldom leave the safe. The fact that it picks up a certain "patina" over the years only means it's being used as it was meant to be."

**JDePietro** · April 28th, 2008, 10:08 PM

Thank you, I kinda expected to hear that. My new Smith has a Melonite finish and so far it has not worn down at all. But I can see the marks starting where my old 1911 was beat on. They rub right off and I keep applying oil and polishing it in to keep the wear at bay, but my concern is that in the holster itself there are peeling/scratch marks (maybe caused by the front sight?) that I am afriad are going to dig into the areas of concern.

I was considering this model in black. My panoz was that the soft leather interior would be easier on my sidearm than hard plastic, but I can understand everyones point in regards to the increased amount of pressure brought on by taught leather.
http://www.bianchi-intl.com/product/...?TxtModelID=83

The other holster in mind was the Safariland ALS style holster. I have heard that they use better materials than BH and not only do they hold up better but the retention device used is more widely accepted in the competion/training world.

Has anyone had any experience with these styles?