I came here to update this thread to share photos of the new holster, but I wanted to respond to this one first.1911 Raptor wrote:
Again I see it as a solution for a problem that does not exist. Massad didn’t actually endorse it only explained that it is a viable option for those who don’t like cocked and locked. It solves nothing but provides a piece of mind to those who don’t understand the 1911 platform.
I don’t understand the fear of cocked and locked. To each his own I guess.
The 'fear of cocked and locked' as you put it is absolutely NOT the problem. I see you only joined this forum in November (welcome to the forum, by the way), so you certainly have not read on here my story of why I chose not to carry a 1911 (or any other platform with a safety on it) for years now. I have nerve damage in my right thumb that makes it nearly impossible for me to (a) feel if the safety is on or off, and (b) confidently operate the safety in a defensive situation and know for a fact that I did, indeed move it to the fire position. I figured if I couldn't definitively know where the safety lever was at any time without looking or feeling with a different finger, then I couldn't trust myself with it.
So, for years, I have carried a gun with no safety. I've regained just a little bit of sensation in my thumb, enough now that I can sense where the high and low points are on the gun (indicating where the safety should be) - but it is still not enough to feel whether or not I have moved the lever.
This SFS system (which came with the gun - I never even knew it existed before then) solves this problem in two ways.
- First, it reduces the travel of the safety lever significantly. Rather than moving from a 'locked in the slide' to a 'below the slide' position, it barely moves at all. Since I can't use the normal area of my thumb to push it, I slide further up and let the lower half of my thumb disengage. That reduces the amount of pressure I can apply, but because the safety doesn't travel as far, it's not a problem.
- Second - and much more important - is the fact that when I do disengage the safety, the hammer flies back into position. That action creates enough of a mechanical movement in the gun that I don't have to look to see if it happened. I can hear the action, and feel it in my arm, to the same degree as you would feel if you were to dry fire your (UNLOADED) 1911. That adds an audible and tactile response to this safety mechanism that the 'normal' 1911 safety doesn't give me.
So please, don't be judgemental. Not everything is as it seems. Contrary to what you suggested above, I do understand the 1911 platform, and I am not afraid of cocked and locked. I simply cannot operate that platform in its normal 'out of the factory' configuration given my nerve damage. However, I have been blessed to stumble upon a contraption that will allow me to carry it, as I am doing right now, as I type this. Think of it in the same light as an adaptive device to let someone in a wheelchair drive. Sure, they may not be able to use their legs as well as you, but that doesn't mean they (a) don't understand the driving platform, and (b) are afraid of driving a stick shift.
So now, back to our regularly scheduled programming. My holster arrived a week ago, and I've carried it quite a bit. It fits like a glove, and I really enjoy OWB. Randy made both the holster and the mag holder with the sweat shields, because I'm not a little guy, and there is enough of me rubbing against the metal that I wanted the extra protection.
Randy does INCREDIBLE work. He was extremely pleasant to talk with, and I learned a lot in the process. I gave him just a few parameters of what I wanted (holster cant, holster type). He asked me what kind of styling I wanted, and I told him to surprise me - I figured he'd do just fine (and he did!). My gun fits the holster like a glove, and it looks incredible. I will gladly order from him again in the future.
http://www.rdwarrenleather.com/index.html