After spending the necessary time at the range to ensure function, reliability and accuracy of my LCR, I began my quest to find a suitable carry holster. June has been rather harsh in Texas as the heat has been regularly surpassing 100 degrees each afternoon. This is not a nod to Al Gore's "Global Warming" -- it's hot EVERY summer down here in the Rio Grande Valley!
I dug through my holster box and came up with 2 j-frame pocket holsters to try. The Mika pocket holster was my first selection (http://www.frontiernet.net/~akim/pocket.htm) since it didn't have model-specific mouldings. These are beautifully simple holsters, and the creator, Robert Mika, offers the best customer support that I've ever experienced. The LCR slipped into the holster comfortably and the draw from the pocket was smooth. My only problem with the LCR and any of the pocket holsters is that the soft rubber grips tend to grab the the lining of my pockets. With a pair of loose fitting shorts, the Mika pocket holster works great for all-day carry. There was no "printing" to indicate that I was carrying a revolver in my front pocket, but it did look like a rather fat wallet. Not sure that I want to give the bad-guys this impression either!
My second selection was the Galco horsehide pocket holder. Although moulded to fit the S&W j-frames, it took to the LCR quite well. I tried my best to carry with this holster for a full day, but I was quickly reminded why I gave it up with my S&W 642 -- horsehide is as noisy as a squeaky door hinge. Before I get a bunch of emails regarding horsehide break-in, please note that I tried silicone spray, baby powder, and just about every other home remedy to fix these squeaks. I have other horeshide holsters that don't make this much noise, but it appears that the leather flaps that extend to the fore and aft on this particular model create way too much movement when I walk or sit down.
Knowing that pocket carry isn't always the most practical, I picked up a Galco Stow-and-Go inside the waistband holster from Dury's (yep, another stop in San Antonio on my way to DFW last week). While not form-fitted like the Summer Comfort, Royal Guard, or Ultimate Deep Cover holsters, this is about the only off-the-shelf option available right now for the LCR (and it's relatively cheap). I fully expect that the holster selection will improve proportionally to the number of LCR sales in months to come. This holster has an embedded metal band around the opening of the holster that allows for a very smooth draw and will even allow the revolver to be re-holstered with one hand. My only concern is that the Stow-and-Go may be a little too smooth and that retention could be weaker than a custom fit design. Continued carry will bear witness to its function.
I'm starting to get quite fond of my LCR. More reviews to come.
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