Review: Dragon Leatherworks Talon
A bit back, Dennis from Dragon Leatherworks asked me if I’d review a holster. And he’s probably been frustrated that I’ve not reviewed it until now. Though some nice photos of it have popped up online here and there. And there’s a reason I hadn’t reviewed until now. Because I actually wanted some time to wear the thing. Here’s the holster (after about six months of regular use):
It’s a Talon. And here it is with my ParaUSA in it:
One of the things about this holster is that, well, it’s gorgeous. I’m a functional guy and typically don’t pay much mind to aesthetics and looks when it comes to guns. If it shoots and works, I go with it. But that’s a fine looking holster. The finish still looks great after months of carrying it several times per week, including at the beach, a few times while mowing (to see how it held up), and in the rain. This picture was taken Sunday afternoon, six months after I got the thing (and because I told my wife I’d put her butt on the internet):
Still looking sharp. Only visible wear is the imprint of the gun. And the stitching looks new. I’m not sure the significance of the snakeskin, but it looks awesome. Fit is nice, and once I broke it in, the draw is smooth and retention is great. Also, I’m not someone who typically carries outside the waistband. But I’m a fan now from purely a comfort level. And, with a holster that looks that nice, I kinda want to show it off.
And here’s my wife again, not so much practicing her draw as showing off her manicure:
July 18th, 2011 at 9:49 am
I think I’m sold on one of these; I just have to find the right color combo. I’m an OC kinda guy anyways, and with the new law here in WI I think the time to get in line for custom holsters is NOW.
My only question: how do you feel about not having a secondary retention mechanism?
July 18th, 2011 at 9:56 am
Never really been a problem.
July 18th, 2011 at 10:11 am
Maybe at tad gaudy. Perhaps some leopard skin would tone it down a bit instead of snakeskin….
July 18th, 2011 at 11:05 am
Typical pancake holster, tough to reholster.
Congrats on the slim tummy especially after 2 kids!
July 18th, 2011 at 11:22 am
Unc, I can Highly Recommend Dennis’ FUGLY I.W.B holster. Been using it with my Smith 4043 (43 oz loaded) for a while now, best I.W.B. holster I’ve ever owned. Put one of your Glocks in it, you’ll forget it’s there.
July 18th, 2011 at 11:41 am
Looks very pretty! More pretty than the Milt Sparks Summer Special I just got from Derek.
July 18th, 2011 at 12:05 pm
“Typical pancake holster, tough to reholster.”
I have both a Talon and the Flatjack which is a true pancake, and both have very stiff mouths that do not fold closed. 1-handed smooth reholstering. No issue with that.
July 18th, 2011 at 12:14 pm
Awesome. Oh, and that butt should be on the net, you’ve done a service. I’ve ordered Fuglys for a couple of the ones I didn’t have holsters for yet, can’t wait to try them out. Not really keen to do the OC thing in my neck of the woods; too nice a town, and infested with soccer moms and their offspring. I can just imagine how that would go.
July 18th, 2011 at 1:23 pm
inb4 “Unc’s wife porn” over at Gunmart
July 18th, 2011 at 3:22 pm
Looks great! Holster as well.
July 18th, 2011 at 4:27 pm
Not a criticism of the Dragon in particular as it’s something I’ve noted with most holsters. And no, I am not going to start making them myself. =)
Is there a reason beyond aesthetics that the sweatguard needs to be a big arc of leather as opposed to more-or-less tracking the actual curve of the grip into the back of the slide?
Even with the variety of beavertails out for the 1911 there’s no reason I can see a holster needs to have leather right where your thumb wants/needs to go for a solid firing grip. There’s nothing there to get sweat on.
Sure you can push it out of the way, though with stiffer leathers that is annoying, but why have it there in the first place? It seems like if you’re fitting the rest of the leather to the gun, one more tracing cut shouldn’t matter.
Particularly with an OWB where skin contact isn’t an issue at all, having it even a bit undersized (compared to the metal of the gun) shouldn’t make a difference as it would still give stand-off.
Anyway, beautiful holster and thanks for the review.
July 18th, 2011 at 4:40 pm
I really like my Fuglies.
The beavertail on the Kimber was digging into my love handle. One call to Dennis, an emailed photo, and at no charge he shipped me a new holster.
It don’t get any better than that.
July 18th, 2011 at 6:35 pm
I’ve been using a Fugly for the last month, and it’s the best IWB I’ve found so far. I’m a surveyor and I do a lot of bending, kneeling, etc, and the Fugly keeps everything in place. I managed to run it through the washing machine yesterday and e-mailed Dennis. He had me call him on a Sunday afternoon so he could give me directions on how to reclaim it. That’s service.
July 18th, 2011 at 8:25 pm
First off…thank you Unc! Glad that it met your expectations.
@John Smith – Beauty / eyes/ beholder…its business. There is an untapped market out there that indicated they wanted something eye-catching. I’m simply serving that market sector, and building said business on serving that market sector.
@HardCOrps – You should try a Talon. A typical pancake will collapse. Mine aren’t typical. 🙂 Give me a call (my number is at the bottom of each page on my site) and I’ll be happy to explain how its done. So damned simple, but only if the holsters are *hand made*…a machine can’t do it properly without marring the finish on the leather.
@Matt Carberry – Again, business. In designing the Talon, I took input from hard-core gunnies, not-so-hardcore gunnies, week-end warrior gunnies, casual shooter gunnies, and folks who aren’t gunnies at all, but simply want a holster that looks nice and works, for OC or CC. 85% of the responses all said that a small body shield to keep the hammer, safety, slide, and rear sight off the body was important. When CCing (mostly men indicated the CC preference) it was to keep from getting grip and/or hammer rash, and when OCing to keep the same off of nice clothing (females indicated that a nice silk shirt or expensive blouse could get chewed up pretty quick on rough edges).
@Rod – Is it starting to dry out?
@Skip – The new one should have a noticeably higher body shield…better now?
Thanks again Unc, for the review, and thanks all for the comments!
Dragon
July 19th, 2011 at 12:25 am
It IS a nice butt.
I mean holster. It is a nice holster.
July 19th, 2011 at 2:49 am
Matthew:
if it has a shield, the one pictured is as small as you would want it to be. Any smaller, and you might as well eliminate it entirely. In fact, with that style rear sight, it should probably be a bit larger, but being it’s not an IWB it’s ok.
July 19th, 2011 at 8:41 pm
If you do not mind, please give some information about: retention device type if any and how many, whether or not these are generic holsters or are made for specific models of pistols (if so which ones), whether or not the holster is lined and if so with what, and what is the retail price.
Thanks
GB
July 19th, 2011 at 8:50 pm
“…85% of the responses all said that a small body shield to keep the hammer, safety, slide, and rear sight off the body was important…”
“…it was to keep from getting grip and/or hammer rash, and when OCing to keep the same off of nice clothing (females indicated that a nice silk shirt or expensive blouse could get chewed up pretty quick on rough edges)”
First time I have heard anything like that in over 32 years of daily carry, including 14 years as an instructor; I suppose one learns something new every day.
All the best,
GB