IDPA Rig

When I was working I got plenty of shooting in to scratch that competition itch. I never felt the need to shoot in any of the competitive associations. All that changed when I retired.

Bear in my mind that the last year has been filled with caring for a very sick dog and preparing and executing a move from california to Utah. Because of those factors my shooty time has been limited. Like none at all. I need something to get my competitive juices flowing and keep my skills sharp. Enter IDPA.

I decided on IDPA because they concentrate on CCW and severely limit gun and holster modifications which keeps costs down. Miguel and Larry Correia are men I respect and are very experienced IDPA shooters. If it's something they recommend and enjoy that's good enough for me.

I decided I needed to start preparing early for the Spring schedule. I'm going to shoot my Glock 35. It's a gun I specifically bought a few years ago as a potential competition gun. I looked around and found very few holsters for that gun and none I really liked. In my search I found Michaels Holsters. He makes high quality and beautiful custom holsters, mag carriers and accessories. He also has a lot of very positive customer feedback, very important to me. I sent Michael an invitation, an outline and asked for a bid. We went back and forth a few times, checking out the rules and discussing what I wanted and needed in a race rig. Miguel and Larry both took the time to weigh in and give us some solid info and good pointers. Michael made a few suggestions and I decided on a final build.

This is the description we settled on;
-Concealable pancake holster to fit Glock G34/35 with concealed tension adjustment screw, hidden stitching, 5-degree cant and a fully covered trigger guard, for compliance with IDPA rules. Hand-stamped, stylized basket weave dyed brown with black edging.
-Concealable magazine carrier to carry two Glock .40-cal magazines with concealed tension adjustment screw, hidden stitching, in an upright position, covering just over 2-inches of facing tube, for compliance with IDPA rules. Hand-stamped, stylized basket weave dyed brown with black edging.
-1.5-inch wide, double grain leather gun belt with nylon webbing reinforced core. Hand-stamped, stylized basket weave, dyed brown with black edging, black stitching, and brass hardware
-Lifetime Warranty.

The total will be just shy of $500 but that's actually not bad at all considering the completely custom, hand built nature of the rig, the fact it's for holster, mag carrier and belt and the lifetime warranty. Michael even gave me a nice discount for ordering the total package. Michael prides himself on his customer service and will not rest until the customer is completely satisfied with his work. He'll also repair it for free for as long as I live (hopefully that will be a while Michael). He did a lot of the leg work, checking the rules to make sure what he made would fall within the rule book, a service that is sadly lacking in so many businesses and was greatly appreciated. I never felt like I was out on a limb. Michael was with me every step of the way, insuring we got things right.

I sent him a confirmation e-mail just a few minutes ago. We'll settle on payment method and I'll get an idea on build time. When it comes in I'll fit it, shoot it and post some pictures here.

I've never ordered a completely custom rig of any kind before. Call it a combination Christmas and retirement gift from Lu who never even batted an eye. She asked me if that was what I wanted and then said order it. I do love that woman. And no, she doesn't have any sisters.

More to come later. It should be beautiful. I'm really, really excited. Thanks Michael.

Six

For the FCC, this is with the strict understanding that no monetary compensation or other considerations have taken place between Michael and I other than the bid he submitted before I made the post (and he didn't know I was going to or that I even had a blog) and my acceptance to pay full value. (Really, you people just irritate me to no end)