Blackhawk! Italian Leather Rig
In a bit of an unexpected move, BLACKHAWK! is offering a modest line of very high quality Italian leather holsters. Showing great workmanship, excellent detailed boning and solid designs, I was surprised and impressed. The “antique” finish is likely something you’ll love or hate, but it does tend to make them seem as if they’ve ridden with you for a while, even though your holster might be new. The test rig is an ISP design (inside the pants) according to them, and designed for a J-Frame. I found it to fit right and work as intended.
It and the other designs (a sort of “Summer Special,” classic Pancake and mag pouch) fit all the usual suspects like 1911s, GLOCKs, Springfield models, S&W Shield, Kimber K6, etc. They’re all double-stitched and hand made in Italy. I have to admit it’s easy to spot “Italian” leather and it might be due to their unique attention to details. The line comes with a lifetime guarantee — and when was the last time you saw that on a leather holster?
Executive Editor of Guns Magazine, Payton Miller, calls me a “Leather Luddite” and it’s a badge I wear proudly. As I told him, “It takes one to know one, eh?” This holster goes firmly into the “keep it and use it” pile. BLACKHAWK! calls these “heirloom quality” and I can’t disagree. For a factory-made offering (even though it comes from the old world), I think the care and craftsmanship going into this line is evident the holster gang at BLACKHAWK! is gun-people and understand what we like. Around the $100 mark, give or take. P.S. That’s the new S&W Model 360 .357 with Flat Dark Earth grips and unfluted cylinder/Scandium frame peeking out. For more info: www.americanhandgunner.com/index; Blackhawk Ph: (800-379-1732)
