Craft Holsters IWB

 One of the challenges of a new carry piece is playing the game of finding the right holster. Sadly my old go-to option is no longer in production, so when I switched to the P365xl, I had to start from scratch. Serendipitously, at this same time I was contacted by Craft Holsters with an offer to review a holster of my choosing*. So with nothing to lose, I opted for their lt.92 Open-Muzzle IWB offering in black, for my little Sig. Not long after sending of my info, I received a box from Slovakia containing the holster and a small break-in kit.

The holster was nicely finished, with even double-row stitching all around. The holster is finished off with a tension adjustment screw and branded pull-the-dot snaps. The leather is evenly dyed and formed well to the shape of the gun. My pistol actually fit nicely in the holster and did not require any real breaking in other than fine tuning the tension screw.

Ride height is exactly where it should be, and the holster keeps the pistol snug to the body and holds it securely. The holster rides very comfortably, exactly what I expect from leather. At the range the draw was smooth, and the mouth reinforcement worked as expected for reholstering. Concealablity is also  good with this style of holster and the small dimensions of the P365.

These photos here were taken after wearing the holster daily for over three months. While it was the milder part of the year, I work in a fairly physical job and I tend to sweat more than the average guy. This is one of the primary reasons I lean towards Kydex. That said, this holster is holding up fairly well considering how some leather items I've daily carried in the past have quickly broken down with similar use. I can't say how the holster would hold up to my sweat in humid late summer, but I never had any issues with the leather falling apart or encountered any rust forming on my gun.

I do have a couple gripes about the holster. Though I don't have a red dot mounted on this gun yet, that is something I plan on having sooner than later, and this holster is not compatible. The cut for the opening reinforcement also leaves the front loop a bit unsupported, and it is sometimes difficult to unsnap because of this. Typically this would just be an annoyance, but if you're the sort that likes to be able to remove the entire holster without removing the gun, this can get to be downright aggravating. 

Overall, I'm definitely pleased with this holster. Fit and finish are fantastic, hitting above what I would expect at the price point; and one of the negative points isn't really the fault of the holster's. It carries comfortably like leather should, and holds up well to daily use. If you're in the market for an affordable everyday leather holster, I'd certainly say it's worth considering.

*The holster reviewed here was provided by Craft Holsters to me for review at no cost

SKD Deal of the Day

If you're a gear whore aficionado like me, you may want to keep an eye on SKD's new "Deal of the Day" page. Just a heads up.

Recoil Magazine

Yesterday I picked up the premier issue of Recoil... a touch on the expensive side for a gun rag, but I figured I'd give the new publication a shot (heh,) besides, it's a larger format than your standard magazine, the photos looked really good, and I needed something to occupy me during the downtime in my shift last night.

Quick and dirty: If I took ARFCOM and turned it into a well produced print magazine, this would be it.  Airsofters will geek, and Costa/Haley leg-humpers will probably be locked away for weeks after picking it up (they're not in it, but it's got that feel.)

More in depth... the articles vary as much as the requisite insanely expensive gun reviews (Nighthawk Predator and HK556A1,) a crazy expensive custom "bug-out vehicle," and an interview with JJ Racaza.  There's a full DIY article on polymer stippling, with step-by-step photos of the author going to town on an M&P pistol, and another showing how to thread the hole in your AR lower for the rear takedown pin retaining spring so you don't launch the thing across the room when you take the rear plate off (something I probably will do on future builds.)  Also very few ads, and none of that "cont. on pg. 87" crap you find in other magazines.

There are, on the other hand, advertisements involving scantily clad women, and (at least in the first issue) a lack of articles about techniques or tactics.  It really seems like more of a "gear-whore" centric magazine.  On that note, however, there is a great breakdown of all the gear featured on the cover of the issue right in the first few pages.  I think the only things they forgot where what socks and underwear the model was wearing (seriously... that's about the only thing they didn't mention.)  The "full-size custom" pull-out target is a bit of a let-down though, it's kind of small and looks quite gimmicky.

They don't have print subscriptions set up yet, so I'm not sure what the savings will be for that route (and I hope it's worth it, otherwise they'll need to drop the cover price down from the current $8.99 to keep me interested long-term) but it's probably worth looking at if your into that kind of stuff, and there is a lot of content crammed into one issue.

MagPod

Shane (of Multitasker fame) snuck this one out-



As a fan of mono-poding off the magazine with my ARs/M4, I can't wait to get my hands on one to try out. Hopefully before I head over to the 'Stan.

Those Blasted New Fangled...

...Single-point Slings.

What's old is new.

"Why didn't I think of that?"

Strike Industries Sling Catch.

Need a New Belt

Alrighty Gun Bloggers and Bloggees, with the advent of CCW in Wisconsin, I find my self in need of a new belt. My long time standby of the free kydex lined 5.11 had said kydex liner crack right at the holes behind the buckle, so it looks bad and is a pain to buckle.

I have a strong preference for something black and leathery, as my current holsters for the M&P9 are black.

Any suggestions/preferences for places to check out?  My wheelbarrow of cash is still in the mail, so that's always a consideration.

MSM Don't Tread On Me shirt

Looks freakin' sweet.

Gonna have to get me one.

G&C at the Front! Commenga Easymag

Cro sent this in from Afghanistan-

So I entered the Connex where my M4 had been stored while I was away and as I always do when entering an arms room, casually glanced around to see what kind of fun toys might be laying around that could make my job a little easier.  The Specialist who had opened the door asked me what I was looking for, and I answered with “just browsing”  We had a short exchange of my enthusiasm for the shooting sports and he reached into a shelf and handed me a small white box saying “ here you will probably like this then, we still have a few left.”  I opened the box and inside was a Commenga easy Mag.   I had seen the magazine advertised in shotgun news for a while and was happy to be able to try one out without having to buy it.  I put it in my ruck sack and began my journey back to my FOB.

After arriving at my tent I was able to examine the EasyMag more closely.  It is an all steel construction, coated black.  The mag is noticeably heavier than the issue GI aluminum mags, and the slot for the magazine catch is milled out of the side wall, but does not create a hole like the Issue mags do.  The magazine is a little longer than the standard issue GI mags, but still fits inside of the standard 2 mag ammo pouch. 

The sliding front section of the magazine can be released by gently but firmly pulling down on the magazine.  When the front section is down it compresses the spring and follower with it, leaving a open tray for the rounds.  The front portion stays in the open position without having to do anything special.  This does make cleaning the interior sidewalls of the magazine easier than the old mags as I was able to take a piece of rag and run it inside instead of swabbing back and forth with a cleaning rod. 

Loading the mag was pretty simple.  I had an ammo can of loose 556 laying around so I just grabbed a bunch of rounds and started tossing them inside of the mag body.  Every 10 or so I gave the back spine of the mag a firm tap with the palm of my hand and the rounds aligned themselves properly allowing me to feed a full 30 inside of the mag.  Once 30 were loaded I grabbed the front part of the magazine and slid It back into position.  It went into place with little resistance until just about fully closed where the spring must have a disconnect because I could feel it releasing and putting the pressure onto the rounds.  

The loaded mag did seem to exhibit a bit more noise than the GI Mags when shaken.  The mag seated with no problems in my M4, and dropped free when the magazine release was pressed.  I was not able to do a range review yet.  It’s a lot harder to schedule a range trip here than back at home, but the mag in my vest and I will run it through the M4 when I get a chance

Did the mag save me time in loading it?  To be honest I don’t know.  I have been loading mags for so long that it’s just kind of second nature to me.  Now did it make it easier to ul-load the mags?  Yes!  I just had to pull the front down and tilt the mag to drop all the rounds into a box.  Now If My ammo is issued on strippers why wouldn’t I just load all my mags on stripper clips?  Well I don’t empty my mags by shooting them all.  Routine maintenance has me un-loading them and cleaning and lightly oiling them along with each round before re-loading the mags.  Believe it or not it’s pretty dusty here.  Now I have never found disassembly of GI mags difficult, but this is definitely easier.  Can the EasyMag be fully disassembled?  I do not know, I didn’t try. 

Would I want them to replace my GI Issue mags?  No.  they are heavier, and they are a little noisier.  But then again I have not completely drank the cool-aid yet and I still use the standard aluminum mags instead of buying p-mags like many of the other guys here.  Why would I stick with GI mags?  Well I have brand new mags in the wrapper that I got at the beginning of the deployment, and I have rarely had issues with Issue mags that I was able to inspect beforehand.  Also I have access to more magazines than I would ever use here,  If I have to leave a mag its not a big deal.  All of the extra ammo I have in my truck is in loaded mags, and it’s a lot of loaded mags. 

Now for a day at the range I think this is a good system if you just have a couple mags and a bunch of boxes of ammo like I often do.  You will save your thumbs a lot of stress with these magazines, and especially if you shoot in sub zero weather in Wisconsin.  The loss of dexterity will not be as greatly affected by this style of magazine.  I personally would not drop this mag  onto a hard surface a lot, but that’s just me.  At $15 dollars a pieces, which is what I found on cheaper than dirt, it’s the same as a p-mag.  Also they do have a NSN for those of you that want the taxpayers to get you yours for trying out before you buy it yourself.

I have returned!

AT 2011 is now a thing of the past, so things should liven up a bit around here again.  I've got a few things lined up, including Cro's review of the Commenga Easymag from far off Afghanistan, as well as some more photos from AT (like the beagle we saved.)

I wish I could say I'm at home enjoying a beer, but that'll come later.  I guess they missed me at work too much.

Jetboil Zip & Coffee Press

So I got pretty tired of the lack of decent coffee when my unit's out in the field.  With the prospect of 2 weeks of wonderful Ft. McCoy coming up next month, I decided to do something about it.

Long ago I saw a Jetboil Java System in a camping catalog.  Really nothing more than their standard Flash cooking system with a French Press style filter that fits in the cup.  After minutes of gruelling online research, I found the Jetboil Zip and separate Coffee Press were cheaper to order separately than to get the full blown Java System.

What makes the Zip cheaper is a combination of a simpler stove, requiring a separate ignition source rather than the built in piezoelectric igniter on the other models; and a slightly smaller cup, 0.8 liters, rather than 1 full liter.

One of Jetboil's selling points is that their cooking systems all fold up and store inside the cooking cup.  Despite the smaller cup size on the Zip, I was still able to get everything I need for good coffee inside the system, and it fit quite nicely inside my new pack.  Jetboil claims the system comes in at 12oz, not counting the fuel can or little plastic stabilizer legs.

Granted I had to put the filter screen portion of the press in the measuring cup, it still fit fine provided it was upside down.  By leaving the regular stove top part (what they call the "pot stabilizer") at home I was able to get the press's rod sections inside the cup.

The stove assembles quickly and simply, the stabilizer (orange triangle bit) unfolds, the fuel can clips onto it, and the stove threads onto the top of the fuel can.  From there you can either place the cup with the "FluxRing" on it to boil water, or the pot stabilizer to use regular pots and pans or Jetboil's larger sized FluxRing frying pan or 1.5 liter pot.

Speaking of fuel, the only downside of the Jetboil system is that it uses Jetboil's proprietary fuel cans (it can run off of other backpacking stove manufacturer's pressurized cans, like MSR's, but they won't fit in the cup for storage.)  The nearest retailer that stocks them is a 40 minute drive for me, and if you're flying somewhere you'll have to find a source at your destination, since you can't fly with pressurized fuel cans.  On the upside, a 100oz can only runs about $5 and Jetboil says it'll boil about 10 liters of water.  I tend to use about a half a liter to make coffee, so 20 uses for $5 isn't too bad.

On the upside, the fuel burns hot and clean, with a nice pretty blue and purple flame.  Here's the stove running with the valve a little less than half open-

In practice, the little stove will bring the little pot of water up to a rolling boil in around 3 minutes.  I scalded my hand pretty good the first time I played around with it, so it's a good idea to watch it and not fill the cup too full.  The 500ml line on the cup is a good spot for coffee making, and fills my Nissan Thermos cup exactly.

The Press Kit is a thing of genius too.  It consists of a plastic and metal mesh filter that fits snuggly inside the Jetboil cup, and the rod unscrews into two sections and fits through the hole in the middle of the lid (which also has drain holes and a sippy spot.)

Not much to say here for those familiar with French Press style coffee, the kit works fantastically, and there were no grounds in the bottom of my cup.  What else could you ask for?

As far as use goes, I assembled the system, filled the cup, and lit the stove up.  The water boiled quickly, I turned off the stove, tossed in the desired amount of quality grounds, stirred, and let steep for about four minutes.

Yummy

After taking the photo, the press and lid were stuck on to keep bugs and other crap from getting on.


Coffee in the shade of a 5-ton Dump

























Once enough time has elapsed, the plunger was slowly plunged, and the liquid deliciousness was poured into my thermos so I could brew up another cup for the Section SGT.


Requisite gun and coffee.  M4 Carbine (I know, no mag. 
Stupid rules,) fresh pressed Guatemalan Dark.



All said and done, easily the most delicious cup of coffee I've ever had while wearing ACUs.

FTX Time

Packing for a weekend FTX... be back Monday or so (aside from any posts from the field.)

Will be testing a few new products, the Jetboil ZiP, with Jetboil's coffee press assembly (that's right, taking field coffee to a whole new level!) a cheap-o solar charger for the smartphone, and the Grey Ghost Lightweight Assault Pack (in Multicam.)  Some pretty cool stuff lined up the upcoming weeks.

Need Gear...

Specifically, a Multicam Molle pouch capable of holding a Jetboil system that doesn't cost almost as much as the stupid stove does.  Ideally by this weekend, but realistically by the second week of June.

Anybody have a lead on such a beast?

Minotaur ITW Mag Pouch

The other day I mentioned I had found a new mag carrying solution.  Here in Wisconsin, where concealed carry is forbidden, Open Carry is the only way to go about being properly prepared.  Thankfully, this only applies to the gun itself, and spare ammo can be carried any way you see fit.  For the most part I've been carrying my spare magazine in some sort of OTW (outside the waistband) pouch, either a Raven Concealment pouch, or a Galco mag holder.

I decided I wanted to cut down on the amount of "outside" stuff I use for daily carry, since quite often I remove my holster because I can't bring my gun somewhere.  Also I'm starting to stock up on more CCW friendly equipment (I'm an optimist.)  I'd heard good things about Comp-Tac, and was looking at stuff on their site one day, and found the Minotaur IWB Mag holder, and decided to give it a go.

I decided to go with the "c-clip" option, and got it in a natural finish.  I'm a sweaty guy when the weather gets warm, and don't want dye seeping into my clothing, plus the natural shade of leather is quite appealing.

The ordering process was quite painless, and Comp-Tac sent emails at every step of the process.  Production time is only a couple days, a welcome change from Raven, and the pouch was in my hands within a week of ordering.

The pouch itself if very well made.  Clean and straight stitching, even color, and a smooth feel.

This is by far the most comfortable magazine pouch I've ever used.  The leather comes up high enough to keep the magazine from digging into you, but is short enough that it doesn't interfere with drawing the magazine.  It conceals quite well, the girlfriend didn't even know it was there until I mentioned it.  The c-clip is nice, as it's unobtrusive on the belt-line, and on my belt I can remove the pouch without taking said belt off.  It provides plenty of support for a fully loaded 17 round M&P mag with 124gr loads.

The only problem I've had with the pouch is that with the single belt loop it has a tendency to rotate forward a bit.  It never goes so far as to dump the mag out or let it drop below my waistline however.

Overall I'm very pleased with this pouch.  Now hopefully the people down in Madison hurry things up and I have an excuse to try out some of Minotaur's IWB holsters.

Raven Concealment, Take 2

So I've had enough time to get the feel for the new Raven Phantom I got for the M&P9, a and a couple range trips to give it a good shake down.  The giddy, childlike "new toy" excitement has worn off, but it has been replaced with plenty of contentment.

Originally I thought the extra controls and lumpy bits on the side of the M&P were what gave this holster a much more secure feeling, however upon further inspection, I found Raven has added a small dimple to the light area of the holster.

This little dimple creates a small catch right behind the light's bezel, and makes this holster feel about 3,000 times more secure than the old one for the SigPro.  I guess I wasn't the only one who wished for more retention on the light models.

Also, there had been reports of older Raven products cracking, and to help Raven switched to a thicker Kydex for their holsters.

I have a feeling this additional stiffness is also a bit responsible for the more secure feeling.  I hear that they can still make them with the thinner Kydex if you're worried about concealment issues with the thicker material, however I don't think the difference is enough to matter.

As I mentioned in the past, the old style "paddle clips" were not the most comfortable option, and I also had one break on me.  The old style clips are a thing of the past now, and Raven has switched to an OWB Soft Loop snap system.

I much prefer these to the old "paddle clips" and to any other actual paddles I've used in the past.  The gun sticks out much less, and while concealment isn't a worry for me yet, it's nice to not have it sticking out and catching on things.  They may take a couple seconds longer to put on or take off the belt, but they feel quite secure and keep the whole thing from flopping around nicely with the right belt.  In this case, a 5.11 re-enforced model that came free with some pants. It's a little big (I wear it on the smallest hole...) but looks good and is holding up well, and the price was right.

The loops themselves are made of a tough rubberized material and Military-grade snaps, and is adjustable for belt width.  I expect these to hold up for quite a while.

Raven has also changed the material of their standard belt loops from formed Kydex to an injection molded plastic.

Less prone to breakage, and also universal.  The old ones had distinct left and right loops.  The little Raven logos are a nice touch.  (Also, the new mag pouch is the same thickness Kydex as the old.  While it makes a great range pouch, it's not what I've been running for daily carry however.  I have a much more comfortable option I'll mention in a couple days.)

As some of you may know, I live in Wisconsin, so concealment has never been high on the list of things I look for with a holster.  The biggest reason I went with RCS was that they make a holster that holds my gun with my light attached.  I've done enough low light/no light training to greatly appreciate a white light on my gun if I have that option (and yes, I think one day of it was enough to appreciate it.  However more is needed to affectively use it.)

I know that plenty of the people looking at these are worried about concealing, so I tossed on a good cover garment and snapped a few pictures.  In this case, a button up cotton shirt with a textured weave.  ($15 at Khol's and the girlfriend says it looks good too!)

Not bad for a full size gun with an attached light.  Granted, if I lift my hands above my head the bottom of the holster is exposed, but I could adjust the soft loops to make the holster ride higher.

So, are there any downsides to RCS's stuff?  Well, I ordered this one the first week of November 2010, and it finally was in my hands mid-March 2011.  It also wasn't cheap, holster, mag pouch, and soft loops plus shipping came out to around $130.  Compare that to Comp-Tac, who I ordered a new holster for a gun I should be getting next week on Tuesday, and the package was dropped off at the post office yesterday(and it's red!)  Too bad they don't make light holsters...

Bottom line - if you're looking for a quality Kydex holster, with great modularity and carry options, especially if you carry with a light, and are willing to wait a few months; Raven Concealment Systems is worth taking a look at.

FR Shemagh

I do love my cheap cotton one, but I can definitely see the usefulness of a Flame Resistant one.

Rip Shears

Saw these over on SSD, it's a seatbelt cutter that attaches to a pair of EMT shears-

Solidly in the "why the hell didn't I think of that?" category.

It just really caught my eye since I'm trying to figure out a good way to pack all the crap into this new fangled CLS bag the army issued me, including two pairs of those type of shears and a separate Benchmade safety knife.  It would be pretty nice to just have one of those attached to the pair in the front tear-away pocket on the bag...

Tactical Tailor Mini-MAV

A while back I was looking for a small rig to carry a few AR mags and a couple handgun mags.  Nothing complex, just a way to carry ammo and avoid the gear overload a full out load bearing vest can generate.  A good chest rig.

A while back I snagged a Chinese AK chest rig for under $10.

It's the best photo I can find... but it's a rather ubiquitous item.

It's a great set-up, in theory.  Three 30 round AK mags, and four grenade pouches.  I don't regularly carry grenades, so those pouches are usually empty though (except when I dressed up as an Afghan for Halloween. Then they were great for my wallet and cell... Man-Jammies don't have pockets...)

Most importantly, it's simple, and hold just enough for a quick response scenario.  I actually tend to keep it in the trunk of my car, as a WASR makes a great trunk gun.  My only complaint is that there's no way of swapping out at least a couple of the grenade pouches for a couple pistol mag holders of some sort without extensive modification of the rig (OK, not that extensive, but not MOLLE convenient.)

So I decided that I wanted a small rig for 3-4 AR mags, in single holders (ever try going prone with double pouches?) and at minimum, one spare double-stack 9mm mag.  MOLLE is great, since modularity is dang nice, and if I were to switch from an AR to something else, I would only need to swap pouches instead of the whole rig.

So I poked around the ol' interwebs, and in a mildly round-about way, came to the Tactical Tailor's web store.  Tactical Tailor was not a new name to me, and I doubt to many others.  They've built up a good reputation for putting out quality American made gear, and backing that gear with great service.

What was new to me was their "Mini-MAV" chest rig platform.  A simple MOLLE platform slightly smaller than the trusty Chinese rig, but sporting a ton of improvements.  So I ordered me up some Multicam goodness and looked forward to the brown truck of happiness dropping it off in a couple weeks.

First impressions are everything, and the Mini-MAV did not disappoint.  Read more after the jump-

Shiny!*

Apparently Raven Concealment Systems have made some improvements since my last order.

First impressions - the profile of the M&P makes for a much more secure feel to the holster than the Sig (more bits on the left side of the gun to provide texture) and the soft loops are a massive improvement over the "paddle clips" of old.

I'll get some more pictures and more words in the next couple weeks at some time, but to sum it up, at first impression, the wait was well worth it.

*Been watching a bit of Firefly as of late...

Support Libertarianism

By buying these brands.  Apparently the Koch brothers give hippies raging screaming fits (despite their support of Gay rights, the legalization of drugs, and stuff like that...) so there's a push to boycott certain brands they're heavily invested in.

Of course the cyclist in me saw COOLMAX® fabric, and the range rat gunny in me saw CORDURA® fabric right after that.  Also it's something to note that the first half of the list reads like a building contractors shopping list, and I thought building new houses was good(?)  Seriously though, that list is probably 90%+ of what's in your closet, plus what that closet is made of.


(H/T SayUncle)