You can keep your ugly carbon-fiber high-speed-low-drag tactical holsters. Leather has worked for five centuries of pistols, and it still works today.
Pictured above is more of Tom Dyer’s remarkable work. I wanted something like a duty holster, but with the light weight of a traditional rig (and a bit more class). The ensuing design is similar to to the early Askins holsters, but the retention strap rides behind the grip, instead of behind the hammer.
The gun is a Sig Sauer P220, arguably the finest combat .45 available today. Yes, I know about 1911s, but the P220 is a different breed. It has better ergonomics, and the design is simpler, which lends it a degree of reliability not seen in the 1911 platform. Fewer parts mean fewer things to go wrong, and maintenance is far simpler with the P220.
I have owned several Sigs, and I’ve put close to 100,000 rounds through them in my life. I have had one malfunction. Ever. They fit my hands and point more naturally than any other type of handgun, and they’ve got a great balance.
The P220 was originally chambered in 9mm and .30 Luger and was marketed to European police and military agencies as a low-cost alternative to the P210. In the 1970s, it was brought to the States as the Browning Double Action (a few examples are still out there). The following decade saw the establishment of SIGARMS in Exeter, New Hampshire, and the P220 was rechambered for the .45ACP and .38 Super cartridges in 1987.
Though never widely adopted by any agencies in America, the P220 quickly developed a superlative reputation, and it continues to be one of their flagship models. It handles even stout loads easily, and the grip angle is far more natural than that of the Glock.
The following are from my first run with this specimen. The first group was shot rapid-fire (one shot every two seconds) with Black Hills 230gr XTP, my carry load:
This group was shot with 230gr Atlanta Arms reloads, 12 yards, slowfire (one shot every five seconds):
