Gary Brommeland

Good question. My guess is that you'd be fine in doing that. However, you'll need to moisturize the leather periodically.

In my shop, all raw leather is stored in plastic containers. Uncut hides are loosely rolled and placed into 55 gal Rubbermaid trash cans, with the lid on. Cut parts are stored in plastic boxes, also with a lid. The reason for this is that leather must have a particular moisture content in order not to just dry up and crumble. Leather has a fiberous make-up. There are sub-structures in leather fibers called fibrilles. At the fibrille level, once a piece of leather dries out to a particular point, it cannot be properly moistureized ever again. So, the purpose in moisturizing a piece of leather is to prevent it from ever reaching that point.

Having said all that, the acrylic dip process that we use does a very effective job in sealing this critical moisture in, so it is usually necessary to moisturize a holster maybe once a year. However, if your safe's humidity level is really low (I am guessing here at maybe 25% or less) then it is possible to over-dry a holster until it reaches a critical point.

Here's a rule of thumb: Leather is skin. Any condition that is harsh on your skin, is bad for leather. However, because a holster-mag pouch must have some body (ie stiffness) to work properly, you cannot over do it by applying things like neetsfoot or mink oils to them , either. (EVER!!) The best stuff that I've found for holster maintenance is Lexol Leather Conditioner (NOT the neetsfoot formula). However, a holster seeing everyday use will only require a drop or two a YEAR to keep it properly moisturized.

Here's how I store my personal holsters: I put them into a plastic shoe box (like you can find at Lowes, WalMart, etc) and store them at room temp in an airconditioned environment. I would not leave them that way untouched for long - I get into that box at least a couple of times a week, and each time it vents out any accumulated humidity and lets everything inside "breath". My personal EDC (every day carry) rig is always either on my body or sitting on top of the dresser - it never goes into the box, except when I am wearing something else to test it.

I hope that this helped. For step by step instructions on caring for my holsters, please refer to the instruction sheet that came with it (you know, the one you threw in the trash, Bud ). Otherwise, go to our website and click on the "Care & Feeding" section" and print off a copy. Good luck!