By Jim Dickson
El Paso Saddlery’s G.I.Tanker shoulder holster (above) for M1911A1 and their #2 thumbreak crossdraw holster on the bottom. The # 2 is on a belt to show it’s angle of carry.
Because of the longer reach involved in using a crossdraw holster compared to a conventional holster it is slightly slower and therefore less popular. The speed difference is not as much as you might think though and there are times when the crossdraw holster is the best choice.
A lot of people carry a pistol when hunting and it is a valuable backup weapon against man or beast. The problem is that a pistol carried on your strong side gets in the way of a rifle or shotgun. What’s worse, it can even damage the long gun. You don’t want the sharp hammer spur of your Colt Single Action Army revolver gouging out wood from your new Purdey shotgun’s stock. If you must carry on your strong side a G.I. M1916 flap holster with a M1911A1 is less likely to damage anything but it is still in the way. You can always move the right-handed pistol holster over to your left side and use the high cavalry draw to draw and fire with your left hand but not everyone is ambidextrous and practiced with firing with both hands.
The best solution for most men is to use a crossdraw holster with the proper slant for a right hand draw. This puts the gun safely out of the way yet permits fast access. If speed is a worry, remember that you are carrying a shoulder arm and normally would fire it first. Even a load of birdshot will buy you all the time you need to draw and fire a .45. Once empty the long arm is held in the left hand while the pistol is drawn.
Of course one of the big reasons for carrying a pistol is that it is always with you ready for action whereas the long gun is set down for various reasons and may not be available in time if you suddenly need it. Emergencies, by their very nature, usually happen suddenly, without warning. Any predator stalking you, whether 4 legged or 2 legged, is going to try to catch you off guard. An old friend of mine was skinning out a caribou he had shot when he turned and found a polar bear stalking him. There was no time to reach the rifle but fortunately he was carrying a pistol and was able to kill the polar bear with that.
A close-up of El Paso Saddlery’s #2 police duty crossdraw holster on a belt showing it’s position for a fast draw.
An added advantage of the crossdraw holster is that it is harder to snatch a man’s gun from him when carried in a crossdraw holster. For this reason some lawmen in the old West chose the crossdraw holster over the strong side holster.
In these days of carjacking the ease with which a crossdraw holstered gun can be drawn and fired when behind a steering wheel and it’s comfortable carry position for sitting are also contributing to their popularity.
Some people find the crossdraw more easy and natural than a conventional holster. This is probably because men have been drawing swords and daggers from that position since time began and it is ingrained in our genes. If you ever want to see blinding speed from that position with a sword just watch a Japanese iado master draw a samurai sword.
An excellent example of a crossdraw holster is El Paso Saddlery’s number 2 thumb break crossdraw holster. This is also made as a conventional strong side holster as well. The crossdraw version is properly angled for a fast draw and rides out of the way of your long gun. I have always found the thumb break snap to be infinitely faster than the old fashioned strap snap. There is never any fumbling for or missing the strap when you are in a hurry when using the more modern thumb break design. The angling of the pistol to facilitate a fast draw can interfere with concealed carry with this holster, but remember that this is a police-style open carry model.
El Paso Saddlery has been around since the Old West was young. They made holsters for John Wesley Hardin, the deadliest of the old West gunfighters with the highest score of men killed. They also made the crossed bandoliers so popular with Mexican bandits like Pancho Villa. Of vital importance is the fact that El Paso Saddlery does not make the extremely tight molded holsters popular today and touted for their weapon retention should someone try to grab your gun and pull it out of the holster at the wrong angle. In a gunfight against man or beast you can easily find that you are just sloppy enough in the draw for that tight molded holster to grab the gun like a vise and not let it out of the holster. That can be the end of you. With a holster from El Paso Saddlery you always know the gun will come out when you need it.
I have used their number 2 crossdraw with an M1911A1 .45 automatic in it and can highly recommend it.
The G.I. Tanker holster, familiar to all veterans of the tank corps, as made by El Paso Saddlery.
El Paso Saddlery also makes the M1942 Tanker Holster for the M1911A1 calling it their Patton-style shoulder holster. Those of you who served in the military will remember it. It is a crossdraw holster worn higher up for ease of drawing within the confines of a tank. It is basically midway between a crossdraw belt holster and a shoulder holster. It can be concealed under a coat or worn openly outside the shirt. It is fast and does not interfere with carrying or firing a shoulder gun. I have also used this holster and found it holds a gun much more securely than most shoulder holsters. This will be appreciated by anyone who has ever had a gun bounce out of a spring clamp shoulder holster. It can be a very good choice.
Times are changing for the worse. We never used to encounter drug gangs or drug farm plots with guards on them in the woods. Betty and I had to quit hunting in one game management area in Georgia because of the war between the law and the drug crowd going on there. Alaska never had a problem with man eating black bears or wolves in the old days. Today the Alaskan Game and Fish Commission has sent out numerous notices warning people not to play dead if attacked by a black bear because when a black bear attacks in Alaska he generally intends to eat you. As for wolves, they killed a female school teacher out jogging in Alaska a few years ago. The lower 48 have been plagued with wild dog packs that haven’t the fear of man that other wild animals do. Back in the 1960’s most of Georgia’s game wardens seemed to have a story about how they had shot wild dogs that were attacking them. W
Wild hogs are becoming a plague to farmers in many parts of the country. Anyone who thinks that wild hogs will always run from them has never run across a mean one. Of course there is always the low mentality criminal type who thinks that just because he is out in the woods he can get away with anything. Of course you must check the laws in each state you are hunting and have any necessary carry permits. These days it’s just good sense to always pack a pistol and if it gets in the way of your rifle or shotgun you might just want to consider the crossdraw holster.
