Greetings all. My name is -Ag0n1st- and I'm a holster addict. I have suffered from this condition for the last 12 months after getting my CCW. I figured this would be a great way to post a ton of small reviews of the different holsters I have so you don't make the same mistakes I did.For reference, I'm 5'10 and approximately 220lbs. I'm overweight but muscular (small belly but no gut so to speak). My thighs are dummy thicc from my weightlifting/rugby days which definitely influences my holster choices.All of these guns and holsters are carried AIWB in approximately the 12:30 position (with variation from 12-1 depending on the holster). My primary belt is a Blue Alpha Gear Low Profile EDC belt, however I occasionally use a Vedder Cobra Belt and a Beltman Leather belt.I carry three different firearms depending on the situation/mood/clothing I'm currently in. However I'd estimate I carry the P365XL about 80% of the time, the M&P 15% and the P01 about 5%.I spend a lot of my day driving from place to place, so a bunch of my time carrying is while seated. I also value having holsters that are easy to remove/replace on my gunbelt since I often travel to CCW prohibited locations. The holsters are organized by gun model, since I purchased some of the holsters for more than 1 gun.I'm rating each holster on a 1-5 scale, 5 being the best. I also note which holster is my favorite for each of my carry handguns. I'll also try to mention which attachment method I'm using for each holster.Sig Sauer P365XL w/ MSTenicor Velo4 - Rating 4Attachment: 2 x DCC clips / 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Built-In 'Claw', Built-In WedgeIncredibly well constructed holster. The built in wedge can be uncomfortable at times but does a great job at concealment and keeping muzzle pointed away from your body. Excellent adjustable retention with quality hardware. I wish they made a model without the wedge so I could use my own foam wedge for improved comfort. The most annoying thing about this holster is the placement of the DCC clips. Since they're placed pretty far apart, its really difficult to get the holster off your belt (Tenicor even has a video on their Youtube channel to go over the proper technique to remove the holster). I wish Tenicor supported more gun models and colors other than black.Tier1 Xiphos V2 - Rating 0Attachment: 2 x Plastic Clips, T1C ClawEasily my least favorite holster out of any I’ve tried. Where do I start? Holster is absolutely huge compared to the gun, tons of extra, pointy/stabby Kydex all around the holster. In particular, this holster jabs the inside of my thigh like no other. The addition of two foam wedges wasn't enough to help with the comfort either. Adjustable retention is good but gun still moves in the holster even when clicked in. The retention is strong that the gun will never fall out, but the gun shouldn't be shifting in the holster. The right side clip won’t stay in place and angles all over the place. When you tighten down the screws to hold the right clip steady the holster develops a significant bend in the body from the screw pressure. The T1C claw is great in theory, but its made of plastic that is too flexible. The claw itself bends backwards from the belt pressure and is nearly useless. I don't crank my belt down either. Avoid at all costs. I had high hopes for tier 1 based on reviews of their sidecar style products (which very well might be excellent), but this ain’t it. To top it all off, their holsters are expensive (this is one of the pricier options).Tulster Profile - Rating 3Attachment: Plastic clip (thrown out) / 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Tulster Sidekick ClawIncredibly minimalist holster. The smallest and lightest by far. Incredibly comfortable due to how slim its width is. The biggest drawback is the lack of a claw (you have to buy their Sidekick claw product separately) and the stock plastic clip is predictably awful. Using snap loops is a huge improvement, but I wish there were more attachment options. Of note, the snap loops purchased through Tulster are INCREDIBLY tough to break in compared to any other snap loops I’ve used. I had to use a flathead screwdriver to open the snap loops on more than one occasion. This hasn't happened with any snap loops from any other manufacturer I've come across.Tulster Oath - Rating 5 (favorite)Attachment: 1 x DCC clip, Modwing ClawMy favorite holster out of any of the models I have for any gun. It has the most perfect mold out of any of the holsters I own. The retention, while technically not adjustable can be changed using the included metal shims which do allow for fine adjustments. The holster has a very strong 'snap' as the gun slides into the holster. The single DCC clip is great for daily carry and low profile. I did add a small T1C foam wedge to the back to help with printing of the optic which fixed any issues I had. I liked the fit and finish of this one so much I bought a second one for my incoming PHLster Enigma that I have on the way. Highly recommended.TXC X1 - Rating 2Attachment: 1 x DCC clip, Modwing Claw, Built-In WedgeThe most minimalist holster I’ve tried so far. The holster is well made with great retention and a single DCC clip and modwing. However, I have difficulty getting a master grip during the draw because of the low DCC clip placement. Raking your knuckles on your belt isn’t fun. The biggest/most dangerous issue IMO is it’s two piece Kydex construction. The holster collapses under belt tension which makes reholstering difficult without putting a ton of pressure on the gun when you re-holster. This alone is enough to make me not recommend it unless you remove your holster from your belt each time you reholster.Vedder Lighttuck - Rating 2One of the first holsters I bought due to recommendations on the forums/not knowing any better. I have two huge problems with Vedder (this holster and in general). The low position of the holster clip makes drawing the gun difficult, even when raised as high as it goes. My knuckles drag on my belt in every position on this holster. This is harder to quantify but this holster also had the worst build quality out of the bunch. Hardware was cheap, Kydex molding is inconsistent. It’s not a terrible holster and you could do a lot worse. But you can also do a lot better for what Vedder charges for these holsters. I think I'm more perplexed by how often these holsters are recommended.S&W M&P 2.0 Compact 4” w/ MSBlack Arch Entrada - Rating 3Attachment: 2 x Plastic Clips, Modwing ClawThe first and last sidecar style holster I'll own. I don’t have anything bad to say about the holster itself other than the plastic clips are bulky. I just don’t like this style of holster. The build quality is perfection. Molding lines are clean, excellent adjustable retention and its relatively comfortable. I prefer to carry a spare mag in a pocket rather than on my belt. These style of holsters aren't comfortable for me when seated which is why I just don't like them. Obviously YMMV.Black Arch Revcon - Rating 5 (favorite)Attachment: DCC Monoblock, Modwing ClawMy favorite holster for my M&P. This one does a couple interesting things. First, its ambidextrous design puts some kydex on the outward facing side of the gun. This helps when concealing while wearing this holster on a belt under gym shorts. The gym shorts dont spill over the belt and onto the gun causing printing issues because of it. The retention is adjustable and the lateral side near my thigh is smoothly molded to aid in comfort. The build quality is also impeccable just like the Entrada.My biggest complaint is that there aren’t more attachment methods, but I do love the DCC monoblock. The holster is also a bit longer which helps lever the holster more and aids in concealment.DarkStarGear Orion 5” - Rating 4Attachment: 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Darkwing ClawThis is hands down the nicest constructed holster I have. The kydex is thicker than normal, each seam and line is carefully smoothed out. Retention is easily adjustable with quality hardware. The only knock I have against this one is lack of attachment options. I wish I was able to get DCC clips from the holster-maker. One additional note, the DarkWing Claw is super cool and a great idea, but I don't know if it actually works any better than the Modwing in practice. The DarkWing is however, really good at chewing up the back of your nylon belt due to the sharp steps on the front of it. My only issue with this holster is the length. I purposely got a long holster (5'' holster, 4'' gun) to try to see how far I could take concealment with it. However the holster is simply too long and is uncomfortable because of it. Its excellent in every other way though.Henry Holsters Flint - Rating 4Attachment: 2 x DCC clips, Modwing Claw, Built-In WedgeIncredibly well constructed holster that would be my favorite if it weren't for one significant flaw: its retention sucks. The retention is non-adjustable and barely enough to keep the loaded gun in the holster if you lightly shake it upside down. I moved one of the DCC clips over from the left most to the middle position to help with concealment. The corner nearest my thigh is a bit sharper than I would like and sometimes can be uncomfortable here, but I'm really nitpicking. The holster is so good otherwise that I want to send it back to Henry Holsters to see if they can work on the retention a bit.Harry’s Holster Singleton - Rating 3Attachment: DCC Monoblock, Darkwing Claw, T1C WedgeThis is one of the more comfortable holsters I have. They took a great deal of time smoothing and rounding all the edges of the holster to make sure nothing sharp contacts your thighs. The holster has a massive cut-out for a red dot which is so large it looks off? The retention is non-adjustable, but adequate. I generally prefer adjustable retention and would like it to be a bit stronger on this. I added a small T1C wedge to help a little bit with concealment. The large optic cutout was printing a bit through the front of my shirt. Overall though, its a good, versatile holster, but I think there are better options out there.HolsterCo Stealth - Rating 4Attachment: DCC Monoblock / 1 x DCC Clip, Modwing ClawSurprisingly, one of the nicer holsters I've come across. The Kydex quality and 'neatness' of the mold leave a bit to be desired, but the holster itself is solid. Excellent retention with a very loud 'snap' as the gun clicks into place. I've used both the DCC Monoblock and a single DCC clip and different times. I think I prefer the monoblock because the single clip just isn't rigid enough to really support the weight of a a loaded M&P without some movement. To top it all off, this is one of the cheaper options and they ship incredibly quick too. Highly recommended.JMCK AIWB - Rating 3Attachment: DCC Monoblock or 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Built-In Wedge, Built-In ClawI wanted to like this holster so badly. JMCK has a ton of options and supports a ton of gun models that other don't. I like the idea of not having an actual claw, but in practice it just didn't work for me. The lack of a claw makes it incredibly comfortable, especially against my thigh while sitting. However, the lack of a true claw causes the gun's grip to print like crazy. Maybe its because I'm more 'round' than 'flat' up front but this one just didn't work for me. Otherwise, quality was excellent, and the adjustable retention was great. I have no knocks against its build quality, but the design just isn't for me.Tier1 Xiphos v2 - Rating 1See review from the P365XL. Everything applies to this holster too. The only improvement is that the holster isn't as oversized because the M&P is a larger gun.CZ P01JMCK AIWB - Rating 2Attachment: DCC Monoblock or 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Built-In Wedge, Built-In ClawSee the M&P review. The same problem with printing applies here too except its even worse because of the length of the CZ's grip. It sticks out like a sore thumb. At least its really comfortable?JMCK Wingclaw 2.0 - Rating 3Attachment: 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Built-In Wedge, Modwing ClawSame build quality, and such from their AIWB holster models, except this time with an actual wedge. Its a huge improvement. However, the retention on my particular model was off. I couldn't get this holster to retain the gun unless I absolutely CRANKED down the retention screw and caused the Kydex to bend around the trigger guard. I sent an email to JMCK with a picture asking about this and their response was its 'normal' which left me pretty concerned. I know JMCK has an excellent rep around these parts but they've just been 'OK' in my personal experience.Harry’s Holsters Singleton - Rating 3Attachment: DCC Monoblock, Darkwing Claw, T1C WedgeSee review from M&P. Pretty much exactly the same in every way. The holster's width is a bit more for the CZ model, but otherwise it still retains that massive red dot cutout that I dislike.HolsterCo Stealth - Rating 4 (favorite)Attachment: 2 x Pull-the-dot soft loops, Modwing ClawAgain, the same as the M&P review. This one I decided to use pull-the-dot loops which work really well with the CZ. The loops are placed farther apart than the holes for the Monoblock which gives the holster more added stability. It has a surprisingly narrow profile and is very comfortable. My only knock against this holster is that its pretty wide to accomodate the extra size of the CZ, but thats the gun's fault.Vedder Lighttuck - Rating 2Attachment: Vedder Clip, Vedder ClawSee the P365XL review. All the same applies here except its worse. The holster is huge with a lot of unecessary Kydex. To top it off, the holster contacts the corner of my aftermarket sights and prevents reholstering unless you apply a lot of downward pressure. Once the gun is actually in the holster, everything is fine. I still won't recommend Vedder holsters though.Well that's it (for now). I'll literally pay one of you to take the T1C Xiphos holsters off my hands if you want. via /r/CCW https://ift.tt/384ThPg
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