1.) Stick with high-quality, tried & true designs from companies with stout reputations. Can't get many "on approval", but most offer Moneyback Guarantee.
2.) IWB, OWB, Fanny Pack, Ankle, Pocket, Purse, Shoulder - Pick your poison (IMHO, be s-l-o-w about cross-draw or middle-of-back). If you're like
most of us, you'll end-up with a BOX full
.
3.) *see "2" above.
4.) Generally, yes.
5.) No.
6.) Junk is junk, regardless of the material. The same can be said for quality.
7.) You're correct.
8.) Be as skeptical about "advice" as you are about holsters. *see "6" above.
Ghost Tracker's
Voice of (expensive) Experience -
1.) The right belt is (at least) as important in effective carry & presentation of a handgun as the right holster.
2.) You've wisely bought high-quality pistols (congrats!). Maintain that
get-what-you-pay-for mindset in the holster process.
3.) It's TOUGH to beat a Milt Sparks "
Summer Special" anywhere, but in Arizona a quality Kydex option (FIST, Blade-Tech, Ky-Tac, Galco, ?) might end-up, uhhh...
smelling better.
4.) Leather from; Mitch Rosen, DeSantis, Alessi, Kramer, Safariland, Bianchi. There are some places to "start", and of course there are many very fine (yet lesser known) custom makers.
5.) Don't just research holsters for maker, material, etc. Talk with folks who carry the same
pistols as y'all carry & find out why/what works best with
THAT gun. Very often a make & model of holster will be
GREAT for a GLOCK but some detail of the same holster makes it a poor choice for a SIG.
6.) Contact some of the better training facilities (Thunder Ranch, Gunsite, Tactical Defense Institute, Defense Associates, ?) and ask their recommendations. They're PROS, they've seen/tried most everything, they're betting their reputations/lives on knowing what works. (Unlike we Internet Opinionators around here)
Hope This Helps, Good Luck & again...Welcome!