Open front shoulder holster

[dickz]

When I was a kid I remember my Dad having a shoulder holster for his K22. It was a vertical carry slit open all the way down the front and seemed to have a piece of spring steel embedded in the leather to tension the gun. When you drew the gun it just snapped out. Dose anyone know if this type of holster is available any where?

 

[Old Fuff]

You didn't mention what gun, and it can make a difference because the spring largely holds the sides of the cylinder of a revolver.

Look up a member of this forum with the user name Robbt. He offers an excellent selection of the kind of rig you are looking for, and at attractive prices. They may not be available for currently popular polymer-framed pistols though.

 

[Drail]

That sounds like an old Bianchi rig. They show up on Ebay occasionally and sometimes at gun shows if you're willing to dig through the boxes of junk.

 

[W.E.G.]

a vertical carry slit open all the way down the front and seemed to have a piece of spring steel embedded in the leather to tension the gun

Currently available in the form of the Bianchi X-15.

http://www.bianchi-intl.com/product/Prod.php?TxtModelID=X15

 

[JTQ]

It's probably not the holster you remember, but the Andrews Custom "Springbreak" is of that style.

http://www.andrewsleather.com/traditional.htm

 

[iLikeOldgunsIlikeNewGuns]

I have an old Safariland leather vertical holster rig for a 4" wheelgun, and I really love it. Seems to be for a K frame, though I use it for an N frame and it works just fine. It's exactly as you describe and when drawing I pull the gun straight away from the holster vs up and out, definitely speeds up and smooths out the draw. Also when drawing that way the muzzle doesn't sweep me at all, it points from the holster to the floor/ground to the target in a straight line which is nice and safe, part of the draw is turning the gun from 'upside down' to right side up but you'll have that with any vertical shoulder rig.
I forget the model # of the holster at the moment and my GF is asleep in my bedroom, but I'll check it out in a little while. Also my Flickr pro account expired yesterday so the photo I have of it is un-viewable 'til I renew, which I'll do in a little while then post it here

 

[rcmodel]

The one you are thinking of was probably made by the George Lawrence Co., Heiser, Bauer Bros, or some of the other old leather companies.

They had a single shoulder strap to hang the gun under your arm, and an elastic strap around your body to keep it there.

http://www.blfinegunsandsportingcollectibles.com/new-vintage-gun-holsters-and-leathers.html

http://img224.exs.cx/img224/8761/ds7in0bw.jpg

I have one with no makers stamp for a 6" S&W K-Frame.
I carry a Model 19 in it occasionally just for nostalgia.

In actual use though, they aren't much fun.
They flop around a lot.
And it takes two hands to re-holster the gun.
One to open the spring clamp and one to try to stuff the gun back in it.

All this going on under your arm pitt.
They are fast coming out though!

rc

 

[W.E.G.]

...and if you ever step on an iced sidewalk, and your foot shoots out from under you, and you throw your weak-side arm out to brace your fall, and your rib cage lands on top of that holstered pistola, it will hurt bad enough to make you cry.

AMHIK

At least the gun didn't come out of the holster.

 

[icanthitabarn]

I have a large model Bianchi X-15 from at least the late 70's, cause a friend sold it to me with a Uberti .357 in it, at that time, for $100 lol. It didn't stay close to the chest, until a little work that I did, last year. The open front spring mechanism is still perfect.

 

[iLikeOldgunsIlikeNewGuns]

So mine is the Safariland 101, I'm guessing it's from the '70s or '80s, I've had it since i was a little kid, used to carry realistic looking toy guns in it

It functions exactly as described in the OP, sounds like this was a popular holster-style in the 70s/80s. As I mentioned in my previous post, it's definitely meant for something smaller than a N frame, quite possibly K frame, but my 629 stays in there nice and snug no problems. This one is surprisingly comfy, and the thick belt flap/snap keeps the holster firmly secure in one place. Also easy to holster one-handed, there's a groove inside that the front-sight follows. I've worn this .44 and rig under an open zip up sweatshirt and my girlfriend didn't know when I asked if she could tell