new cow wrapper.

I needed some decent new leather gear for my S&W K-frames, so I fleaBayed some old leather from the Box o' Holsters and used the proceeds to order a new carry setup from DeSantis.

This is the DeSantis Speed Scabbard in black, with matching speedloader holder.



What I like about DeSantis is the cut of their holsters. Their pancake and paddle designs tend to conceal the gun better than the offerings from Galco and Bianchi--they ride higher and impart a more aggressive forward cant to the weapon. The DeSantis speedloader pouch is the best one on the market, far surpassing Bianchi's version for both concealability and function. The DeSantis pouch leaves the knob of the loader exposed, which would seem to spell trouble in everyday use, but I've used their design before, and I've never accidentally twisted the knob.

What I don't like about DeSantis is the quality of their leather. It's fairly decent, but they seem to use a more coarsely grained leather than Galco or Bianchi. (My gunsmith Shannon calls it "Mexican goat leather".) Also, the black dye on the holsters is fairly prone to scuffing and accumulating white scuff marks. For the money, however, they're fine holsters, and their superior cut and design outweighs my minor gripes with their leather texture.

Carry gun du jour: S&W's Model 13. Serious as a heart attack, that gun. When I took the picture earlier today, the gun was wearing Hogue Bantams, but I've since switched back to Pachmayr Compac Pros.