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Question for Gunfighters.


Dirty Dutch Brody

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OK let me start buy saying this is my first season CAS and I'm completely hooked. Most of my equipment is used but has worked well. I have decided to buy a custom belt and holsters this off season. I have been looking into several different company's and i have a few questions.  I currently wear my holsters on each side lined up with my legs. While looking at Mernickle Holsters website I noticed that there Gunfighter Series holsters have there holsters up front of the legs, more directly under the stomach. Now I know i have a stomach under my belly somewhere. So i guess Im asking does anyone use that style? I am curious if my belly would interfere with that style. I have started paying attention to styles at my local shoot and haven't seen that style in person yet. And when looking for belt and holsters is there anything I should look for specifically for gunfighter styles? Thanks for reading my post and any in put would be greatly appreciated.

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The best place for your holsters is where YOU can consistently draw and return to leather. One handed shooters have to have a consistent grip in order to be accurate, and returning to leather must be quick and safe. 

I prefer mine centered slightly ahead of the side  seam of my jeans because I will have a crouched stance on almost every stage during transitions and I don't want my legs moving my holsters around.

 

Doc Nelson (20 year gunfighter) 

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I agree with Doc with the consistent draw and return.  I currently use a traditional Buscadero rig with holsters roughly at 9 and 3 o'clock.  They have a slight cant forward.  I have been using that rig for around 18 years or so.   I have been considering going to a more traditional style (non-buscadero) where I can move the holsters to my liking.  If you have what a lot of us have, the dunlop disease, you will want to adjust the holsters more to the sides to give you a clear draw and return.  A lot of the current holster rig makers are designing competition rigs with adjustable positions.

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Butch,

 

Welcome to the world of Gunfighter.  My line has always been that "God gave us two hands and Col'n Colt gave us two guns, and we should use them accordingly."

 

Asking what holster is best is kind of like asking what truck is best or what woman should I marry.  Lots of answers that may be very right or very wrong, depending on lots of factors.  I have seen many new shooters over the years, in an understandable desire to get equipment in a rush, buy what seemed like the best answer, or in many cases what someone else thought was the best answer, only to find out that they had absolutely the wrong choice for them.  With new leather costing MANY hundreds of dollars, and leather being notoriously known for bad resale, I have always advised gaining personal knowledge, before spending money on new, custom leather.  

 

My advice is to work on Gunfighter style with the leather you have, or obtain some fairly cheap used leather.  Starting out, you want to be able to move the holsters around the belt, so you can decide where the best position is for you.  Make sure the holster comes out of the holster easily (you can do "wet fit" yourself on most holsters to accomplish this and make sure the guns fit so you can get good , consistent grip.  Angle to holster is another thing, and can be altered by using Chicago screws.  (another reason for cheaper holsters--punch extra holsters without killing value)  

 

Work on your Gunfighter technique.  This will almost for sure be more important than the holster.  Talk to experienced Gunfighters and learn.  When you get advice, don't be afraid to ask why someone does things the way they do, or uses the equipment they use, and then determine if those ideas will work for you.  Practice, practice, practice, live fire and dry fire.  And always use a timer.  It will help to decide what works best for you and show your improvement.  

 

Sorry for length, and keep in mind that my advice and $10 will get you a cup of coffee in most towns.

 

Good luck and happy shooting,'

 

Jackpine

 

 

 

 

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My holsters will slide on my belt and I adjust them just forward of the hemline but not in front of my leg.  If you move the holsters too far forward, the movement of your leg while running could cause some pistol retention issues.   I still occasionally have trouble getting that left pistol in the holster on the run.  The left side is kind of stupid sometimes.

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58 minutes ago, Jackpine Bill said:

Butch,

 

Welcome to the world of Gunfighter.  My line has always been that "God gave us two hands and Col'n Colt gave us two guns, and we should use them accordingly."

 

Asking what holster is best is kind of like asking what truck is best or what woman should I marry.  Lots of answers that may be very right or very wrong, depending on lots of factors.  I have seen many new shooters over the years, in an understandable desire to get equipment in a rush, buy what seemed like the best answer, or in many cases what someone else thought was the best answer, only to find out that they had absolutely the wrong choice for them.  With new leather costing MANY hundreds of dollars, and leather being notoriously known for bad resale, I have always advised gaining personal knowledge, before spending money on new, custom leather.  

 

My advice is to work on Gunfighter style with the leather you have, or obtain some fairly cheap used leather.  Starting out, you want to be able to move the holsters around the belt, so you can decide where the best position is for you.  Make sure the holster comes out of the holster easily (you can do "wet fit" yourself on most holsters to accomplish this and make sure the guns fit so you can get good , consistent grip.  Angle to holster is another thing, and can be altered by using Chicago screws.  (another reason for cheaper holsters--punch extra holsters without killing value)  

 

Work on your Gunfighter technique.  This will almost for sure be more important than the holster.  Talk to experienced Gunfighters and learn.  When you get advice, don't be afraid to ask why someone does things the way they do, or uses the equipment they use, and then determine if those ideas will work for you.  Practice, practice, practice, live fire and dry fire.  And always use a timer.  It will help to decide what works best for you and show your improvement.  

 

Sorry for length, and keep in mind that my advice and $10 will get you a cup of coffee in most towns.

 

Good luck and happy shooting,'

 

Jackpine

 

 

 

 

Listen to Bill.  One of the most consistently fast and accurate gunfighters around.  I taught him everything he knows; at least the bad stuff.  :rolleyes:

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My belt and holster rig is not optimized for CAS. The belt is 3" wide and I wear it over top of my hip bones. The holsters ride high with grips above the belt. They hang straight down.  So my elbows come up high to pull the guns and return them. For years I wore them over or behind my pelvic bones.  But I've evolved to pulling them around to about over my pockets.  This makes them easier to pull and return.  I know it slows me down but I'm deliberate in getting a grip on the guns to draw and deliberate on getting them back in the holsters.  

 

P.S.  I think it important that the holsters be made thick and stiff with flared tops to make hitting the holster more reliable.   I shoot with people that have flimsy, thin holsters.  Flimsy to the point that they take their off hand and open the top so the muzzle will enter.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Not all body's are the same. What works for one may not work for the next.

Not just your gut. But shoulders, arms, wrist might all have something to do with

how you wear your holsters.  

 

Colt Faro Leather.

Adjust them to where you want them. 

Tighten the screws. They don't move unless you want them to.

Best darn leather I have ever seen for SASS. Looks good. And the most functional

I have ever used.

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3 hours ago, Phantom, SASS #54973 said:

The further away from the front of your body, the easier it is to break the 180...

I'm not following. Can you explain what you mean?

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24 minutes ago, Cholla said:

I'm not following. Can you explain what you mean?

Kinda hard to explain without physically showing you ... But keeping your revolvers in front of you makes it significantly easier to keep your muzzle pointed down range and away from violating the 180 deg rule.

 

Phantom

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As Phantom says, if your holsters are at least slightly forward of the hips and the angle is such that the barrel is slightly forward of the grip (normally 15 - 20 Degrees) you gun is essentially always pointing down range while drawing and reholstering.

 

Quite a few really good holster makers.  They key for most of us is to allow the holster to be slide along the belt, but have some way to then lock them where you want them for your body.  Your girth, arm length and flexibility will factor in where the holsters will work best for you.  As we get a little older, we find we don't like holster exactly at 3 and 9 o'clock due to flexibility - and speed.

(That is why most do not do as well with the buscadero rigs since the holster position is fixed on them by design - but you can get them custom made but will not have future flexibility.)

 

I used Chicago screws through the holster and belt to lock my holsters where they work best for me.

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7 hours ago, Jackpine Bill said:

My advice is to work on Gunfighter style with the leather you have, or obtain some fairly cheap used leather.  Starting out, you want to be able to move the holsters around the belt, so you can decide where the best position is for you. 

This ^

3 hours ago, Marauder SASS #13056 said:

Quite a few really good holster makers.  They key for most of us is to allow the holster to be slide along the belt, but have some way to then lock them where you want them for your body.  Your girth, arm length and flexibility will factor in where the holsters will work best for you.  As we get a little older, we find we don't like holster exactly at 3 and 9 o'clock due to flexibility - and speed.

And This ^

 

Chancy

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I'm relatively new to shooting gunfighter myself. Lots of good points in here that I learned the hard way. My belly is in the way of wearing my holsters up front. What i've found that works for me is having them pretty much lined up over my pockets. I like a muzzle forward cant. For me the placement and cant of the holster makes it easier to draw and holster without having to look down. The 170 rule was mentioned in here and I was warned to pay attention to how I was holstering when I first started. All be it there's an exception to the rule for clearing leather and returning to leather. The muzzle forward cant helps maintain muzzle control while holstering and aids me with my long barreled pistols. That's just what works for me. 

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My holsters are usually turned so that the rear of the grips are even with the seams in my pants.

This makes movement easier.

For a stand and deliver 10-10-4, I may pull my holsters forward a bit but not on the front of my legs.

I have seen pistols pitched out of holsters when a shooter ran with holsters pulled to far forward.

Remember that you have shotshells on your front too.

 

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