It is my only paddle and not real sure how much I like the style. The holster is great but where my issue is, hate to admit it is I am not overweight but do not have 6 pak abs either. The hoslter really digs into my side at times. So not sure about the paddle itself.

Seen at the NRA Show in Louisville. I wonder if this is how the elite Mossad carry their Fobus holsters?

Originally Posted by Mike Barham

Seen at the NRA Show in Louisville. I wonder if this is how the elite Mossad carry their Fobus holsters?

That's the Buddy Holster. Haven't you seen it? It's not designed for the guy wearing it, it's for the guy behind him in case he needs a second gun.

Ohhhhhhhh. And here I thought it was just the old "Shoot Me in the Back with My Own Gun" holster. Silly me.

Franky I'm surprised Galco hasn't come out with one. It's perfect. You hear a bump in the night. You grab your gun and put on your Buddy Holster. You head down the hall to get the kids. Your wife follows close behind you, keeping both hands free to grab the children out of bed and whisk them to safety, yet is within easy reach of a firearm in case she needs to join the fight!

Damn I'm good. You guys need a writer for your catalogs?

Originally Posted by Todd

Damn I'm good. You guys need a writer for your catalogs?

Sorry, that job is taken. If we have an opening for a diaper-changer, though, I know whom to call.

Originally Posted by Mike Barham

Sorry, that job is taken. If we have an opening for a diaper-changer, though, I know whom to call.

Ouch!

Originally Posted by Todd

Ouch!

Todd,
Don't worry I hear mike is getting old, and well, he may re-enter that stage of life

Originally Posted by niadhf

Todd,
Don't worry I hear mike is getting old, and well, he may re-enter that stage of life

I'm not changing Mike's diapers! He can find someone else for that job!

here is a good example of why i think fobus are a good value. I am looking seriously at kel-tec P11. Of course with my last purchase, tru carry holsters are, ummm..... difficult to find.
So I figured i would look at holsters first to see what is available.
I went to Galco, and found the stow and go, and a thigh holster. Sorry, bags don't work well for my work, aand many mag holders.

Went to Fobus and found the paddle holster.

I was hoping for my favorite (currently) S.O.B from Galco. But didn't find. Will probably end up with BOTH, the paddle, and the stack and stow or what they call it. Course I haven't tried any IWB's recently.

check out this video...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDeKtgkZKmQ

it's a "kydex" apparently but are all of these "paddle" type holsters the same design ? that's somewhat scary how easily that ca be removed. granted, it would probably be under a garment so it wouldn't be seen but its just something to think about. I no longer want to do the IWB holsters, can someone reccomend a holster like this that is of better quality ? perhaps with belt loops

http://www.usgalco.com/HolsterPG3.as...=3218&GunID=50

I gotta go with submoa on this one. I don't own a Fobus but I do own an Uncle Mike's model similar to the Fobus. For $20 they do provide great value----which is what submoa illustrated in his posts.

Why all the Galco jealousy???????????

It's hardly jealousy. I've examined many Fobus holsters (we look at all our competitors' stuff). I simply think we have a better product with our Matrix line, and that Fobus is on the flimsy side. I think that the Uncle Mike's plastic holsters are also much better than Fobus.

Its been awhile since I've revisited this thread. Like many CCW holders, I've collected many holsters over the years, with several for the same gun.

Plastic and Kydex holsters are at the low end of the market with leather and horsehide being more premium products. Each has their place and each has their price.

In my mind the natural competition for Fobus has been Comptac, Uncle Mikes, Blackhawk Serpa, Blade Tech, etc. Until now, I believed Galco's competition was Mitch Rosen, Alessi, DeSantis, Bianchi, etc. But the passion that the Galco employees on this forum have attacked Fobus leaves me confused as to where they see themselves in the marketplace.

Who is Galco's real competition? What is the strategy we are seeing here? Is Galco repositioning downmarket?

Frankly, the approach to attack posts about Fobus without providing a supporting argument is alienating and not very smart. How much customer service can a company afford selling a $20 product vs. $80?

Here's some free advice: Run a promotion that allows folks to trade in their "crappy" Fobus holster for a credit towards some nice Galco leather.

Make money, not waves.

Galco competes in multiple price points:

In the entry-level price point, we have the Matrix and Carry Lite series.

In the middle, we have the Cop Series.

In the upper tier we have what are probably our most well-known stuff like the FLETCH, Concealable, Royal Guard, Miami Classic, etc.

We also do some high-end horsehide and custom work.

I'm not saying that there aren't other quality holster makers out there. I've always admitted that. There are lots of great, truly custom guys out there. Sparks, Kramer, Rosen and others do fine work at the upper end. DeSantis and Hume, among others, do good work in the middle. BladeTech and Uncle Mike's do very decent plastic at the entry level.

I have a low opinion of Fobus not because they are a competitor, but based on handling many of their products. I've never seen a Fobus I'd consider carrying, whether I worked for Galco or in a job outside the gun industry. Everyone's mileage may vary, and some people clearly like their Fobus holsters, but the thread did ask for opinions.

Originally Posted by Mike Barham

I have a low opinion of Fobus not because they are a competitor, but based on handling many of their products. I've never seen a Fobus I'd consider carrying, whether I worked for Galco or in a job outside the gun industry. Everyone's mileage may vary, and some people clearly like their Fobus holsters, but the thread did ask for opinions.

I agree that opinions are what were asked for and ultimately the reason many of us follow threads on this forum. I definitely respect the opinion of those who have much more experience than I and many of you do.

With your position at a holster manufacturer, I hope to receive and use your opinion on holsters as well as other subjects. So, when you provide an opinion such as your "opinion of Fobus is low", I look to you for the reasoning behind that statement. You do call it "flimsy", but I want to know if that is from design differences (flaws), poor materials (light plastic), not enough rivets...I have two Fobus holsters and bought each for less than $17. To me they're a good value but, if you were to elaborate on their flimsy construction and point out how other products were more structurally sound and better for certain purposes like CC, I'd listen and possibly purchase based on the constructive information. It might even save my life. So keep the opinions coming and back them with as much info as you can. WE'RE LISTENING !!!

Has either of the following already been said?

1) You can snatch a Fobus holster, gun and all, off of its paddle if you pull on it correctly. The rivets give way pretty easily under pressure in the right direction.

2) The Fobus made for the Government Model and 1911A1 lets the pistol's muzzle protrude quite a ways below the bottom of the holster. If you're wearing one, and you sit down in dust or dirt (in the field), you end up with serious amounts of crud in your gun's barrel, creating an unsafe condition.

Originally Posted by Steve M1911A1

Has either of the following already been said?

1) You can snatch a Fobus holster, gun and all, off of its paddle if you pull on it correctly. The rivets give way pretty easily under pressure in the right direction.

2) The Fobus made for the Government Model and 1911A1 lets the pistol's muzzle protrude quite a ways below the bottom of the holster. If you're wearing one, and you sit down in dust or dirt (in the field), you end up with serious amounts of crud in your gun's barrel, creating an unsafe condition.

There is a Youtube video in this thread, demonstrating point #1. Point #2 is noted and good, constructive, information.

Originally Posted by Steve M1911A1

1) You can snatch a Fobus holster, gun and all, off of its paddle if you pull on it correctly. The rivets give way pretty easily under pressure in the right direction.

I saw the youtube post as well. If you are expecting to be wrasslin' over your gun, why would you have an open top holster much less a paddle?

Originally Posted by Steve M1911A1

2) The Fobus made for the Government Model and 1911A1 lets the pistol's muzzle protrude quite a ways below the bottom of the holster. If you're wearing one, and you sit down in dust or dirt (in the field), you end up with serious amounts of crud in your gun's barrel, creating an unsafe condition.

This point has me wondering...

All my CCW holsters have an open bottom - leather, paddle and belt. Presumably this is a good thing as it allows debris to drop from rather than plug the barrel and air to circulate. The only way I can see avoiding the condition described would be to have closed bottom holster, IWB or shoulder carry. Or you can go Mexican.

I'm not a fan of minimalist Yaqui style holsters as you are right, it does leave a lot of the gun exposed and in some leather variants, can hang up on the front sight during a draw.

Originally Posted by submoa

I saw the youtube post as well. If you are expecting to be wrasslin' over your gun, why would you have an open top holster much less a paddle?

It's not a matter of "wrasslin' over [a] gun." It's a matter of a weakness in the basic design. The fact that the holster can be ripped from its paddle leads me to believe that normal wear-and-tear will also eventually result in a catastrophic failure.
None of us expect to "be wrasslin' over [a] gun," but it could happen. Does that mean that we should use only thick, heavy, triple-retention cop holsters for concealed carry? That seems to be a very silly conclusion to draw from the minor possibility of an occurrence.

Originally Posted by submoa

This point has me wondering...
All my CCW holsters have an open bottom - leather, paddle and belt. Presumably this is a good thing as it allows debris to drop from rather than plug the barrel and air to circulate. The only way I can see avoiding the condition described would be to have closed bottom holster, IWB or shoulder carry. Or you can go Mexican.
I'm not a fan of minimalist Yaqui style holsters as you are right, it does leave a lot of the gun exposed and in some leather variants, can hang up on the front sight during a draw.

It's not a mere open bottom, which is what many holsters have. Most of those holsters extend some small amount past the pistol's muzzle anyway, as a protective measure.
The Fobus lets almost two inches of slide hang out, down below the end of the holster.
I think that Fobus did that so the same holster would "fit" both full-size and Commander-size 1911s.
Anyway, it bespeaks cheapness and corner-cutting.
And so do those damn rivets.
New Slogan: "Fobus: it's no way to make a holster."

Just my opinion, of course...

Fobus holsters are not liked by many that I've heard from mainly due to finish wear. I have a couple of them and yes they will wear a finish some..But to me it seems they only wear so much then seems to almost stop. I think it's the pressure points that get the most wear. Unlike a leather rig that will tend to cause wear over more of the gun and it will always do that.

Most the Fobus fans I know are also poly frame pistol fans they work really well for that. I am not as big a fan of poly frame pistols leaning to more old school types like a 1911 the leather just seems a better fit for me. I had them for my Glocks and they were great. I don't own a Glock anymore and don't see myself getting a other one I don't see myself getting another I probably wont get any more Fobus holsters any time soon. But they do work. You get your moneys worth out of them in my experience.

I still have two of them.One bought for a XD9 compact (RH) and one I got for a Glock 17-19 (LH). Maybe one day I'll find something to fit them again..Then again..like I've said more than once. I don't see myself ever owning another Glock I just don't care much for them personally. Good pistols..Just not one that I'm real fond of in my hands.

I personally tried Fobus holsters twice and returned them both. The first one was for a Glock 27 and it was when the Fobus holster first became popular in the U.S. I had problems from the start. I never got used to the draw and half the time the weapon would not release and I would either jerk the entire holster off or pull my pants up (rather forcefully I might add, which was unpleasant to say the least). I was uncomfortable with this and returned the holster.

Some years later I tried one again, this time for a S&W J frame. Same issue. I never got the draw figured out and same holster off/pants up issues. The holster went back.

I do know seveal people who love the Fobus holsters and I certainly do not think they are junk. My experience has not been positive but they may work well for some. I found that the sport holster from Glock is a similar system and that has worked great for me.

I going to get some in LH as soon as I can My local gun shop owner and all his employees use these for daily carry with no complaints.