[h=1]When Form Serves Function[/h] By Mark Kakkuri // 02/23/2018


I’m not too big on form or style, especially when it comes to concealed carry gun holsters and belts. After all, they’re supposed to be concealed. Granted, I do my share of showing off my carry rig every now and again, but it’s for informational or educational purposes in a highly controlled setting. How good it looks is mostly irrelevant. Except now the proliferation of gear and accessories in the concealed carry market has brought with it plenty of style: different patterns, textures and looks. I’m still not too big on style, but I’ll pay attention if the style comes with additional functionality. And that’s what Versacarry’s Water Buffalo Leather Holster (retail $29.99) and Double-Ply Belt (retail $49.99) do. Together they make not only a good-looking rig but also one that is more adaptable to you and your gun and your nuances of carry than most others. And so it is more comfortable. Here, form serves function.
Water buffalo leather is strong — more than adequate for use in a gun belt and gun holster. But there’s a softness to it that allows for it to form around the dimensions of a gun or to form around the dimensions of your waist. As it moves and conforms, it’ll change color, darkening or lightening as it gets used, bent and shaped. I’ve had holsters and gun belts made of leather so stiff they hardly flexed or conformed to anything — at least not for a long while. They weren’t bad in either form or function, but there were times I was tolerating more discomfort than necessary. A stiff holster can hold a gun, sure. But I want the break-in period to be complete sooner, not later. As for gun belts, some are so firm it is actually difficult to install a belt-slide holster and then, at times, the belt itself will push into my gut or hip because it will not flex. These are minor issues, to be sure. But these minor issues are alleviated with water buffalo or other softer leathers.
I carry my Glock 19 in this rig. The 1.5-inch-wide belt’s two layers of leather and nylon stitching are strong but flexible and the removable buckle has seven adjustment holes from which to choose. It feels like it is broken-in from the first wearing but, in every wearing thereafter, cinches up well and creates a strong, stable platform for the holster. The holster, a belt slide, sports a raised backing, which puts comfortable, protective leather between body and gun. It won’t be long until you see the belt and holster leather lighten or darken as it further conforms to your body and the gun you’re carrying in the holster. Despite the flex, the holster will not interfere with your gun’s magazine release.
In any carry rig, there’s a fine line between flexible and unstable or insecure. Versacarry’s Water Buffalo Leather Holster manages to offer additional flexibility — and therefore, comfort — without sacrificing any stability. And it looks good while doing so. Form and function.