How to Break in a Leather Holster

[00gt1]

Earlier today i purchased a Tagua quick draw holster for my g30 and a Don Hume for my new P3at ( ) With both of them i have a hard time getting them in and out of the holster. I was wondering what i can expect as far as break in time and if there is anything out there that will speed up the process. The only thing i've read up on so far is Leather Lightning (i think that's what it's called). Normally i'd just wait but the p3at will barely go in and i have to fight to get it out (not very good if i were to get into a situation where i would need to draw god forbid). Any and all help would be nice. Thanks in advance.

[ar15jules]

Earlier today i purchased a Tagua quick draw holster for my g30 and a Don Hume for my new P3at ( ) With both of them i have a hard time getting them in and out of the holster. I was wondering what i can expect as far as break in time and if there is anything out there that will speed up the process. The only thing i've read up on so far is Leather Lightning (i think that's what it's called). Normally i'd just wait but the p3at will barely go in and i have to fight to get it out (not very good if i were to get into a situation where i would need to draw god forbid). Any and all help would be nice. Thanks in advance.

UNLOAD first
Stand naked escept for a belt and your rig in front of a full length mirror and draw repeatedly.
Jules

[Montanya]

I have heard suggested before to place the pistol UNLOADED in a plastic bag and just keep unholstering/reholstering (the bag I guess is to protect the firearm from as much wear during this process as possible)

[00gt1]

I have heard suggested before to place the pistol UNLOADED in a plastic bag and just keep unholstering/reholstering (the bag I guess is to protect the firearm from as much wear during this process as possible)

ive heard of this but i thought the idea was to keep the natural moisture in

[God's Country]

Leaving your gun in the holster for a couple days should be enough.
You could also try using a very thin (silk or dress) sock wrapped around your gun then stuffing them in your holster over night. I recommend patience though. A good leather holster will in fairly short order fit your gun...well ...like a glove. Over stretching or other products may lead to undesirable results.

[RoyJackson]

The plastic bag the holster comes in adds a few thousandths (to the overall dimensions of the gun) and will stretch the holster just enough.
Me...I just leave the gun in the holster for a few days (no bag...I actually just read about that on a holster maker's website).
Holsters with retention straps break in fast. Holsters without retention straps do take a while. I had to lubricate my MK9 holster for a while before the gun would draw easily.

[chesire17201]

The plastic bag the holster comes in adds a few thousandths (to the overall dimensions of the gun) and will stretch the holster just enough.
Me...I just leave the gun in the holster for a few days (no bag...I actually just read about that on a holster maker's website).
Holsters with retention straps break in fast. Holsters without retention straps do take a while. I had to lubricate my MK9 holster for a while before the gun would draw easily.

I had always heard the plastic bag trick because you are supposed to use a silicone type spray(like tire shine, jet black, etc.) on the holster, and the bag keeps it off the gun, then you just have to wipe down the holster real well afterwords.

[RoyJackson]

I had always heard the plastic bag trick because you are supposed to use a silicone type spray(like tire shine, jet black, etc.) on the holster, and the bag keeps it off the gun, then you just have to wipe down the holster real well afterwords.

I really don't know...I'd read about using the bag on one of the holster manufacturer's web site (Bianchi, Mitch Rosen, Don Hume...can't recall, but it was one of the quality manufacturers). If I recall correctly, they did not want any type of lubricant applied to the holster.
I just leave the gun in the holster for a few days. That didn't work well with a retention style belt slide holster (Bianchi, I think). I ended up getting a small vial of holster lubricant to make it work. The holster was made for the specific gun (Kahr MK9). It finally did break in.
Also, a quality belt designed for holsters helps..not for break in, but for day to day use.

[Rule10b5]

The absolute best way to break in a holster is simply to wear it with an UNLOADED gun around the house for a few hours every night until it breaks in enough to draw from.

It's annoying and irritating to have a holster that you can't really use for a few days, but doing it this way ensures that the final fit will be perfect and will last for years.

The other alternative (that others have already mentioned) is to put the gun in a plastic bag and insert the gun into the holster. Let it sit overnight, it'll stretch a couple thousandths of an inch, and you should be fine.

I, personally, don't use any sort of oil on a holster. Nor do I "knead" a holster to stretch it out to get it to fit. Oil will eventually soften the holster and screw up retention and boning. Kneading will do the same, but through pressure rather than saturation. If you must use oil, use a silicon based product (like a commercially marketed holster lubricant, like RoyJackson suggested). It's less likely to saturate and ruin the holster. I don't know why, but when I tested regular oil and a silicon product on holsters (that I was going to trash anyway) the regular oil messed up the holster. The silicon treated holster seemed ok.

[TonyF]

Mitch Rosen sells a product called "leather lightning".

http://www.mitchrosen.com/product_li...ellaneous.html