New 1911 holster

[Spots]

I had this made for my 1911 by member gjohnson here. 30 degree cant, suede lined, very basic, no frills. Made for open carry around the farm, built for a fast draw. Ill be taking delivery this week. Ill do a full report once I get it and get some time with it on.





Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

[TrickyNicky]

Looking nice, I'm becoming quite the fan of gjohnson's work. Looks quality made, and by a fellow TGOer nonetheless.

[TGO David]

Open trigger guard??

[TMF]

Open trigger guard??

I was thinking the same thing when I saw it, but I guess if you plan on carrying it hammer down it really isn't an issue.

[gjohnsoniv]

Going with TMF on this one. I told Spots anyway that if for any reason he didn't like the cant, lining, thought it was dangerous, or anything else that I would make him a new one free of charge and he could keep the old one.

[Spots]

Yeah open trigger guards dont bother me. That was the style picked to have made. I normally carry cocked and locked, and as long the holster doesn't kick my safety off for some reason I'm not worried about it

Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

[MarkInNashville]

I thought the same thing.

I was thinking the same thing when I saw it, but I guess if you plan on carrying it hammer down it really isn't an issue.

[TMF]

 I normally carry cocked and locked, and as long the holster doesn't kick my safety off for some reason I'm not worried about it
 

 

I would advise against doing that.  I've carried a 1911 for a few years now and have had a couple of instances where the safety was flipped off while carrying, and I didn't know it until I unholstered at the end of the day.  Of course, mine has an ambi-safety, so chances are it was switched when I bumped into something, but I still wouldn't rule out the possibility that my lovehandles hit it from the other side.  As you know, it doesn't take much to set that trigger off, so having it exposed could open it up to being bumped by foreign objects.  If it were my I'd just carry it half-cocked and call it good.

[gregintenn]

Looks very nice.

 

Here we go again with the open trigger guard. If the stars aligned perfectly to knock off your thumb safety, squeeze the grip safety, and pull the trigger, all at the same time, I doubt a piece of leather in front of the trigger will save you. Can anyone here point to an instance where a 1911 was discharged accidentally because of a holster with an open triggerguard?

[TMF]

Looks very nice.

Here we go again with the open trigger guard. If the stars aligned perfectly to knock off your thumb safety, squeeze the grip safety, and pull the trigger, all at the same time, I doubt a piece of leather in front of the trigger will save you. Can anyone here point to an instance where a 1911 was discharged accidentally because of a holster with an open triggerguard?

Yes.

[Brasschunker]

Crazy, unexpected things happen! I would opt for another one with the trigger guard covered, but that's just me.

[gregintenn]

Yes.

Do tell.

[Dolomite_supafly]

I always make sure the trigger is covered with the holsters I make for friends and family. That is a serious issue unless you carry the gun without a round in the chamber.

 

With a 1911 it is possible for the thumb safety to be bumped off, especially with the ambi and extended safety. Every single 1911 I have ever owned has a small thumb safety installed for this reason. I use the smallest safety I can because they can get bumped off and the extended ones only make it easier to happen.

 

And if you think a 1911 will not go off unless the grip safety is depressed you are mistaken. The grip safety only prevents the pulling of the trigger, not the movement of the sear, until the shooter has a proper grip. The thumb safety is the safety that actually locks the sear in place so the hammer will NOT fall. If you drop a 1911 with the thumb safety off it can go off even if the grip safety is not depressed. This is because the sear can still be bumped off the hammer hook. If the thumb safety is engaged the hammer cannot fall because the thumb safety physicall locks the sear against the hammer.

 

Again, the grip safety is kind of a misnomer because it is not a safety at all. It is there to ensure you have a proper grip before firing, nothing more. It is not, and should never be relied upon as, a safety because the gun can still fire when dropped even if the grip safety is not depressed.

 

I have actually pinned the grip safety down or removed the leg internally to ensure the gun will go off even if the grip isn't perfect.

 

The thumb safety is the only safety to rely upon,  if at all, with a 1911.

[MarkInNashville]

I can tell you that by getting into my car, I rubbed the safety of my Colt Commander against the seat, twice and clicked it off. I was caring it in a very cheap Uncle Mikes holster. My trigger is nothing like glass breaking so I wasn't terribly worried but it was enough to make me rethink what I was caring and what I was caring it in. I have now switched to an M&P (with no thumb safety) and a Crossbred Super Tuck (hard kydex, completely covering the trigger).

 

You can theorize all day long about what may or could happen - I however, do not care to play what if's. I do NOT want a close call!!!

[Spots]

I carried it today for a 5 mileer through the roughest nasty logged over country Ive hiked through in awhile. Safety is covered by the holster and never got turned off. I know some of you guys don't like, but I'm gonna rock it for now. I'm comfortable with an uncovered trigger, but I do realize its not for everybody.

Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

[TMF]

Do tell.

 

Well I'll admit there was a bit of negligence involved in the story, but it ultimately ended with the individual shooting himself whilst carrying a 1911 in a holster that did not provide a guard for the trigger.  The negligence part was a brain fart from a person who hadn't been carrying 1911's for very long, but nonetheless, we all make mistakes which is why we incorporate fail safes into things that we do.

 

Sorta like the reason why you don't point a weapon at someone or yourself even if you have checked, double checked an rechecked to ensure the chamber is empty.  You do those things because you recognize that human error exists.  I've been handling firearms for a very long time and still don't trust myself enough to believe I can't make mistakes.  My recommendation to the OP was based on knowledge and experience and was intended to pass that knowledge and experience on.  I don't understand attempting to derail that advice with a dismissive attitude.  I wouldn't have dispensed it unless I had a valid reason to do so.

[gregintenn]

And if you think a 1911 will not go off unless the grip safety is depressed you are mistaken. The grip safety only prevents the pulling of the trigger, not the movement of the sear, until the shooter has a proper grip. The thumb safety is the safety that actually locks the sear in place so the hammer will NOT fall. If you drop a 1911 with the thumb safety off it can go off even if the grip safety is not depressed. This is because the sear can still be bumped off the hammer hook. If the thumb safety is engaged the hammer cannot fall because the thumb safety physicall locks the sear against the hammer.

I believe a properly built 1911 cannot be fired by pulling the trigger unless the grip safety is disengaged. If you DROP a 1911, id doesn't really make much difference whether your holster covers the trigger of not.

 

              

Well I'll admit there was a bit of negligence involved in the story,

So was it the holster's fault or not?

 

I'm not trying to be obstinate her guys, really I'm not. Holsters which cover the trigger are a relatively new fad. Guys got by fine for many, many years without this luxury. Look at some old photos of Texas Rangers, or early FBI agents, and you'll likely see sidearms with the trigger fully exposed, yet they somehow got through life without shooting themselves in the leg.

 

It seems that if something is on the internet, it often gets repeated over and over, regardless of whether it has any merit or not.

[Spots]

And if you think a 1911 will not go off unless the grip safety is depressed you are mistaken. The grip safety only prevents the pulling of the trigger, not the movement of the sear, until the shooter has a proper grip. The thumb safety is the safety that actually locks the sear in place so the hammer will NOT fall. If you drop a 1911 with the thumb safety off it can go off even if the grip safety is not depressed. This is because the sear can still be bumped off the hammer hook. If the thumb safety is engaged the hammer cannot fall because the thumb safety physicall locks the sear against the hammer.
I believe a properly built 1911 cannot be fired by pulling the trigger unless the grip safety is disengaged. If you DROP a 1911, id doesn't really make much difference whether your holster covers the trigger of not.
 
              
Well I'll admit there was a bit of negligence involved in the story,
So was it the holster's fault or not?
 
I'm not trying to be obstinate her guys, really I'm not. Holsters which cover the trigger are a relatively new fad. Guys got by fine for many, many years without this luxury. Look at some old photos of Texas Rangers, or early FBI agents, and you'll likely see sidearms with the trigger fully exposed, yet they somehow got through life without shooting themselves in the leg.
 
It seems that if something is on the internet, it often gets repeated over and over, regardless of whether it has any merit or not.

This is my thoughts. If it goes off by any method other than the trigger being depressed then it would have went off trigger covered or not. For the trigger to be depressed by a branch it would also have to depress the grip safety some how, and the manual safety would have to get knocked off. An exposed trigger, especially one thats backed up against the leather of the holster tightly. Its just honestly not a concern for me at all, I know it worries some of you guys, but I made this thread to show off a new piece of leather made very well by a friend, not discuss the merits of open vs closed trigger holsters.



Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

[gregintenn]

This is my thoughts. If it goes off by any method other than the trigger being depressed then it would have went off trigger covered or not. For the trigger to be depressed by a branch it would also have to depress the grip safety some how, and the manual safety would have to get knocked off. An exposed trigger, especially one thats backed up against the leather of the holster tightly. Its just honestly not a concern for me at all, I know it worries some of you guys, but I made this thread to show off a new piece of leather made very well by a friend, not discuss the merits of open vs closed trigger holsters.



Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

...and it looks great. I really like that style.

[DMark]

.... Look at some old photos of Texas Rangers, or early FBI agents, and you'll likely see sidearms with the trigger fully exposed, yet they somehow got through life without shooting themselves in the leg......

 

I would bet that those old pics would show SAAs and double-action revolvers.  Exposed triggers on those holsters for those type of firearms were (are) the norm.

 

I agree that the idea of having a covered trigger is far more current.  The idea of carrying a 1911 in Condition 1 - Cocked & Locked - really didn't come around until Cooper's Modern Technique of the Pistol.  Until then the standard for a single action auto, at least within the military, was to carry in Condition 3 - Loaded mag with an empty chamber.  I still remember getting advanced training to do the "Israeli Carry Method" where one drew the 1911 out of the USGI holster and then cycling the slide.  Reckon I'm showing my age here...., but we were so Tac-Cool back then that the term Tac-Cool hadn't been invented yet.  :pleased:

 

And think about the term "Glock Leg"  when somebody drawing or re-holstering a Glock shoots themselves in the leg because they place their finger on the trigger while the muzzle was pointed at their leg.  Alot of Police Departments had that problem early in the use of Glocks.  Study after study showed that in many cases, the person Glock-Legged was new to semi-autos and had always carried a revolver in the past.  The revolver's heavy double action trigger pull kept alot of folks from shooting themselves...., not so with the Glock.  AND an added problem was the habit of "prepping the trigger" of a DA revolver during the draw which many "pistoleros" of the time practiced. 

 

But..., Getting back on topic of the OP's 1911 holster.

 

A major concern for me would be how well that holster retains the pistol for those "Walk-Abouts" in the woods.     

[MarkInNashville]

I carried it today for a 5 mileer through the roughest nasty logged over country Ive hiked through in awhile. Safety is covered by the holster and never got turned off. I know some of you guys don't like, but I'm gonna rock it for now. I'm comfortable with an uncovered trigger, but I do realize its not for everybody.

Sent from the backwoods of Nowhere

In my case it has absolutely nothing to do with liking or disliking you (I, for one, don't even know you)! Its about each person's level of comfort and just how much chance you care to take.I am only speaking for myself. I am glad it works for you! As the Aussie's say "Good on ya mate"!