I'm mostly a 1911 type guy. I have several of them and since they are all the same barrel length, they all fit the same holster. I recently bought a Springfield Armory Operator with a rail. Needless to say, that gun would not fit in any of the holsters I already had. Obviously, with my new discovered favorite holster for my Sig, I called Rocky to see if he could make one for my Operator. Not only could he make one, he had one in stock and he had it in the color I was wanting, medium brown. I ordered it and just a couple of days later, I had it delivered right to my door. I was excited.
Same story as before, I put the Operator in the holster, with much effort, and when I tried to remove it I thought I was going to have to put my foot on it to get the gun out. As before, I wrapped the gun in the bag that holster came in, shoved it into the holster and waited a couple of days. When it had loosened up enough, I took it out of the bag and put it in the holster. It was still tight, like the Sig was, but holstering it and drawing it a few times and it had settled it in perfectly. I put it on and carried it for the rest of the day and found it to be as comfortable as the Sig was in the other holster. And, it was, as I figured out, due to the gun's position and balance on my belt. I wore this gun/holster for several days and found it to be very concealable under just a tshirt. The cant was perfect (for me) to conceal a full size 1911, with rail. If you have never tried it, the cant of the holster is a very important factor to get correct in order to conceal a 1911, especially a full size gun. The Sig is a little more difficult since it is a much wider gun, but was still doable in the "Black Ops". The Operator was much easier.
Although I really don't like to carry a full size gun IWB because it is just not comfortable
to me. I have, on occasion, carried one of my 1911s in a Max ConV. It has never really been comfortable, but there are times you have to carry IWB or not carry at all. And, while skeptical, I added the IWB belt loops to my Black Ops and tried out the Operator. I wore it for four hours the first time as a trial and was experiencing no problems so I continued wearing it at home. After another 3 or 4 hours, after virtually forgetting that I had it on, I decided I might be able to finally praise the virtues of IWB. While it is very comfortable carrying IWB with the Black Ops, I have to admit I am still an OWB guy but since it's summer an as hot a griddle, I find myself carrying IWB more often. It just seems to work better in light clothes.
What I continue to be surprised at is that it is, without question, more comfortable IWB than the king of IWB carry, the Max Con V. And, when compared to that holster, it is every bit as well made. Because of the stiffness, re-holstering after a draw is easy; the mouth does not collapse even in tight waisted pants like jeans that are not an extra size larger than normal. And with just a tshirt over it, my Operator virtually disappears.
If you are looking for a custom leather OWB or IWB holster, you might want to give Rocky a call. There's a good chance he has one on the shelf but if he has to make you one from scratch, it will be made quickly and without charging your credit card beforehand. Just follow the procedures of breaking the holster in and I think you will be as satisfied as I have been. Keep up the great work, Rocky!
Here's some pictures of the holster with my Operator. It is worth noting that my other guns, without a rail, work well in this holster although long term carrying a gun without a rail in rail model holster is probably not a good idea. That just means I need another holster.
