I need your input (read on).

It’s finally getting cold in Central Texas.

Some consider a change in the weather a time to change what gun you carry. For instance, in the summer they’ll carry a J-frame, in the winter a 1911. The general reason given is amount of clothing: summer, less clothing, harder to conceal bigger guns; winter, more clothing, easier to conceal bigger guns. Well… it gets wicked hot here, I don’t wear parkas in the summer, yet I still conceal a full-sized gun. But, everyone’s body and needs are different, so YMMV.

Me? I’d rather change my clothing than my gun — I don’t need to build proficiency with clothing. Nevertheless, come colder days, I need to wear more clothing. More clothing worn means more clothing to have to get through should I need to draw my gun. It hit me a couple weeks ago while getting ready for church, one of the first times having to don long/warm dress clothing. Because of my weightlifting, I’m building more muscle mass, clothing isn’t fitting me the same, wardrobe options are reduced until I can go shopping. I was reduced to wearing my gun inside the waistband (typical) but I then had to tuck in my shirt. I have come to not like tucking-in my shirt because it makes the gun harder to get to, because it’s harder to get the clothing out of the way. I also filled out the shirt more, which pushed me to print a bit more, so I wore a jacket. Even more clothing to have to get through. *sigh*

But… I thought… Jackets. Sport Coat. Blazer. Hrm. Why not do that in the winter? I could wear OWB with a jacket over it. Concealed, warm, accessible. A bit of a fashion change for me, but Wife thought I’d look handsome and well… there’s the clincher. 🙂

So, I’m going to do some experimenting with OWB, jackets, and wearing the gun slightly differently. While yes it’s eyed towards winter situations, I will keep in mind summer options. Who knows, maybe I’ll go OWB in summer too.

Note: the only time I wear OWB is at the range, and there options and issues are different. But even in that case, it’s often that I’m wearing my IWB holster and merely tuck in my shirt behind the gun. So I have little “on the street” experience with OWB carry.

Thus, I start to get back to the same old “first time carry” fears of being exposed, freaking someone out because they see the gun, and so on. The main concern? The muzzle. I’d like to find a holster with a good high ride.

Tom Hogel (friend, fellow KR Training Instructor) showed me C. Rusty Sherrick’s “US High Ride” holster; he has one for his J-frame. It’s a very high ride, putting the muzzle flush with the bottom edge of the belt. I really like that in terms of improved concealablity. When I tried it with a J-frame it felt alright, but I’m not sure with a slab-side double-stack semi-auto if that may stick things too high in my ribs and be annoying all day long. I’ll probably just have to order one and see.

Tom was also kind enough to lend me his Raven holster to try for a while. I’ve been wearing it for almost a week now and have some first impressions. First, it’s a HUGE slab of Kydex. I think that bodes well in many respects for the holster, but it doesn’t negate the fact it’s a HUGE slab of Kydex. It gets in the way of both my front and rear pants pockets, which I do keep things in and need to have access to on occasion. Wearing the holster slightly forward with the leading edge of the holster truly just behind my hip bone, it makes for an excellent draw position, but the “muzzle area” of the holster really digs into my leg and becomes quite uncomfortable. If I then move the holster back some so it’s comfortable to wear, there’s no way it conceals my gun — the butt sticks out like well, a big butt. 🙂  Interestingly, Tom says he has this issue too with the XDm but not with his M&P. I do like how close the Raven wears to the body, not as close and tight as an IWB holster, but pretty good. I’m going to keep wearing the Raven for a little while longer to see how it goes, but so far my impressions are this is a great holster but it’s not going to work for me.

Some time ago I had purchaed a Comp-Tac Settable Cant Holster. I bought it for gaming, and there it must remain. I had the paddle attachment on it for ease of suiting up at the range, and I already knew that held the gun well away from the body, such that concealing was not an option. But I tried switching to the belt attachment to see how it would fare. It holds closer to the body, but nowhere near close enough for concealment, certainly not as close as the Raven does. So, this holster will go back to the paddle attachment and continue to be a range/gaming holster. I do wonder about Comp-Tac’s Belt Holster since the pictures look like it holds tighter AND by saying it’s IDPA legal I reckon it probably conceals better than the Settable Cant Holster.

Karl suggested the Blade-Tech Eclipse, and that’s a lot less Kydex, but it appears to hang just as low as the MTAC. Not sure that’s what I want.

Hrm. I wonder if Tucker Gunleather’s “First Strike Kydex” will work.

I’ve also looked at High Noon Holster’s and they look like they might provide a high enough ride, but I think the pictures appear that way because they’re using short-barrelled guns. Still, I might pick up one of their “cheap line” versions (e.g. Skin Guard) to see if it works out and truly if it does work out, I’d get the holster again in their custom line (e.g. “Slide Guard”).

Then there’s Kramer Handgun Leather, which the Insights guys are high on. I’ve even had thoughts about changing my IWB holster because while the MTAC is alright, it’s a big slab of leather (I seem to have a thing against large slabs, eh?) and I’ve wondered if something like Kramer’s #2 or #3 IWB might serve me better.

I must admit….

After my initial digging around and trials, I’m getting a little discouraged, but I may just have unrealistic expectations.

Do you have any suggestions of holster makers? I know there are a lot out there, but it’s often hard to find little shops without someone pointing you to them.