Holster review

Like most people who carry a firearm on a regular basis, I own a plethora of holsters. I own holsters from Andrews Leather, Brommeland, Galco, and others. This is because we are always looking to find a way to carry our handgun in a comfortable way: inside the waistband, saddle holsters, pancake holsters, 4 o'clock, small of the back, shoulder holsters, cross draw, belly bands, pocket carry, ankle carry, fanny packs, day packs, you name it, I have tried them all.

Each carry method has its drawbacks, and its benefits. Some handguns are better suited to one method than another. Some conceal better, and all require a level of discomfort and a modification of our clothing choices. Not only that, but each time we decide to buy and carry a different handgun, we have to buy new holsters.

In 1988, when I first started to carry, I began like so many others: I bought a cheap nylon holster from Uncle Mike's for my Smith and Wesson model 59. I think it cost me somewhere around $8. Uncomfortable, not secure, and a pain, I was soon looking for something better. My S&W 4506 soon found a home in a leather fanny pack. At the time, they were ubiquitous. Everyone had a fanny pack, from Suzie Soccermom to the dad down the street. No one thought twice about seeing them. It seemed like I had found the perfect answer.

Fashions change, and soon the fanny pack was out of fashion, and wearing one just screamed "I have a gun!" I tried baggy shirts and OWB rigs, but the outline of a gun, and the fact that my shirt rode up, made that a less than optimal mode of carry. Inside the waistband is good, but is uncomfortable, means you have to have larger pants, and you usually have to wear an untucked shirt.

I have been carrying a J frame in a pocket holster for awhile now, because it is difficult to dress in a businesslike manner and still carry a pistol. I also have an ankle holster for the J frame, but ankle holsters take too long to draw from.

That is how I decided to buy an MTAC holster from Comp-Tac. The holster itself is an inside the waistband holster, and it also allows you to wear a tucked in shirt. Now even though tuckable IWB holsters have been around for awhile, this is the first one that I have bought. It has a kydex holster mounted on a leather backing. You get the comfort of leather, but also have a secure kydex holster. The beauty of it is, it only costs $85. The MaxCon V is more than twice that much. Another advantage, is that the kydex portion of the holster can be changed out, with the spares costing less than $40. The clips that go on your belt can be changed to different colors, and they can even be exchanged for different styles that are more inconspicuous.I bought mine for an M&P, and also got the spare shell for the Shield.

I tried it on with a tucked in dress shirt, and my full sized M&P40 was comfortable and didn't show outlines of a pistol. The draw wasn't noticeably slower than usual, and we will see how it feels when I wear it all day. Disclaimer: I was given no payment or discounts for this review, and it was done entirely because I felt like it.