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I purchased a C-TAC holster for a G19/23/32 on Friday afternoon, and by the time I got off from work and got home, I thought it was ruined.

Bet that got your attention! Friday was a typical August day in East Texas: hot! As I cannot carry at work, I left the new holster in my car until quitting time (about an hour and a half). When I went to take the holster into the house with me, I noticed that the clips that keep the holster on your belt had softened in the heat of my car, and they had opened up considerably. One clip was open about 1/2 inch, and the other had opened up about 1 1/2 inches. I was floored. Brand new $75 holster that couldn't be used.

After a few minutes of calling myself every kind of idiot for leaving it in the hot car, I decided to make sure the holster body was still properly molded to the gun it was designed for, and it was. My first though on putting my wife's G19 into the holster was that it went in way too easily for the holster to provide enough retention. Then I tried to pull the gun out. I had to shift my grip on the holster to hold it better to get the gun out. After several quick holsterings and un-holsterings, The holster has wonderful retention, and the heat didn't affect the holster body, so, at worst, I had ruined a set of easily-replaceable belt clips. WHEW!!

I removed the clips from the holster and decided to see if I could get them warm enough to mold back into place. (I know this was probably stupid of me, as I could have voided the warranty by trying this.) Using a hair dryer, I was able to soften the clips where I could bend them back into place. As they were alittle too hot to handle, I used rubber bands to pull them back in, and then left them to cool at room temperature for a few hours. After that, the clips held in place well. They do not seem to have lost any strength through all of this! I strapped the holster on and inserted the unloaded Glock and practiced a few draws. The clips held the holster securely in place. Hey! I might not have ruined a brand-new holster after all.

I wore the gun/holster for the remainder of Friday night and for several hours Saturday and Sunday. It took a little while to get used to the clips, but I soon stopped noticing them. (My previous CCW holster had loops on the body of the holster instead of on either side.) The C-TAC's leather tabs creaked for a while, but is already much quieter. The holster was quite comfortable, and wasn't as prone as my old holster to twisting slightly out of place when I sat. All in all, I am quite impressed.

Now for the really good news! I e-mailed Comp-Tac this morning to explain what had happened, and see if what I did would be likely to decrease the longevity of the holster. Comp-Tac promptly replied that nothing that had happened should cause their product to wear out any faster. Also, if I was not satisfied with my own job of getting the clips back into shape, they would replace them under the warranty. I am impressed that they are willing to back their product up even after I told them I had, essentially, modified their product.

In short, the holster is a very good product that I have no qualms about recommending. But, if you have to disarm and leave your weapon in your vehicle in the Texas summer heat, don't leave your holster in the car with your gun! Comp-Tac Victory Gear is also, apparently, a wonderful company who stands behind their products. A hearty recommendation for them and their products (even if things did start off looking pretty dire).

I love the Comptac product. I have Ghurka and CTAC holsters for both my carry guns, and love them, and would recommend them to anyone.

nitrogen wrote:I love the Comptac product. I have Ghurka and CTAC holsters for both my carry guns, and love them, and would recommend them to anyone.

I have CTAC's for several of my guns and I've considered trying a Ghurka. How does it compare to the CTAC?

Thanks,
Chas.

Ghurka is a bit more secure than a ctac, but it's not tuckable. It's also more comfortable, because I don't have the clips poking me in the side.

I also find the Ghurka is a lot more forgiving of a cheap belt than the CTAC is. My only problem with the CTAC is that since it's so wide, it pulls down more of my pants and belt, and the adjustable clips will poke at me after long periods of time. (I actually tried filing the clips down, but they cracked, so I needed new ones.)

The Ghurka is much narrower, and pulls on much less of my belt. Since I rarely require tucking, I find I actually like the Ghurka better. I can actually drive long distances with my M&P pressed against me in the bucket seat and it doesn't poke at my butt and my hip. I can even relax on the couch for long periods of time with it on, and i've fallen asleep while doing so.

nitrogen wrote:Ghurka is a bit more secure than a ctac, but it's not tuckable. It's also more comfortable, because I don't have the clips poking me in the side.

I also find the Ghurka is a lot more forgiving of a cheap belt than the CTAC is. My only problem with the CTAC is that since it's so wide, it pulls down more of my pants and belt, and the adjustable clips will poke at me after long periods of time. (I actually tried filing the clips down, but they cracked, so I needed new ones.)

The Ghurka is much narrower, and pulls on much less of my belt. Since I rarely require tucking, I find I actually like the Ghurka better. I can actually drive long distances with my M&P pressed against me in the bucket seat and it doesn't poke at my butt and my hip. I can even relax on the couch for long periods of time with it on, and i've fallen asleep while doing so.

Thanks for the review.
Chas.

That seems odd to me on the softening of the plastic. Mine will sit in my truck ALL day long with witnessed interior temps of 140* and I have seen no softening.

TxFire wrote:That seems odd to me on the softening of the plastic. Mine will sit in my truck ALL day long with witnessed interior temps of 140* and I have seen no softening.

If the sun shines on it, I wouldn't be suprised. I've had CD cases and a cellphone melt on me in the heat, in direct sunlight for long enough.

I used to live in Phoenix, and I actually had a plastic part of the dashboard deform in the heat. (I had left the car at the airport for a week during 115+ temps.)

Nitrogen,

Thank you for your words about the Ghurka. I've been looking to replace my carry holster and looked at it - you may have pushed me over the edge.

Regards,
Andrew (the Second Cheapest Man in the World)

Hope this is a parashute for you so you don't hit the ground too hard. I also have a Gurkha & cannot add one thing to nitrogen. Really like it. Does not move. Easy on & off if needed. I like the hight that it rides much better than a C-TAC. Get one.

Thanks for the information - sounds like the Gurkha holster will work for my G23.
Rich

Well, three week later - I did indeed order a Comp-Tac Ghurka, based largely on nitrogen's and longtooth's advice.

It is really nice - everything they said, and the turnaround time was amazingly fast. I called Tuesday, they shipped it Wednesday, and it was in my mailbox Thursday evening (i.e. yesterday) when I got home.

The holster is very nice, comfortable, and the ride height is perfect. The pistol sits high enough to grasp the grip properly right away, but low enough that the grip does not flop outward - it is held into my body very well.

The leather holster I used for the last (almost) two years is beautifully made, holds the pistol securely, but the belt loop placement makes the pistol ride high enough that once the leather started to soften a little, the grip was not held in close - showed a big bulge under my cover shirt when I moved. The Ghurka holds the pistol in tight to me so the bulge is gone.

I'm having a little problem adjusting the tension screws on the holster tight enough that the pistol would not bounce out if I jumped up and down or something like that - not that I jump up and down a lot, just want it a little more secure.

A phone call to Comp-Tac yielded advice on which screw to adjust first, and the promise that if I could not get it right, send it back and they would heat it and adjust, and turn it around the same day. I like it well enough (after wearing it less than 24 hours) that I don't want to send it back for adjustment!

Anyway - if you are thinking about a Comp-Tac holster, my experience is quite positive so far.

Now I need a better belt - time to look at Tucker's belts, and order one.

Regards,
Andrew

edited once for spelling

I purchased a CompTac OWB holster for my CZ75B and it didn't fit. I wasn't able to get it to work, nor were any of my friends. I called up CompTac and they offered to fix it as I waited if I would just drive over Apparently, CZ changed the design for the SA after it came out, or they had used the incorrect mold, but either way, my problem was solved with about an hour of driving and about 20 minutes of waiting. I am very happy with their service.

Glad to hear about it budder. Welcome to the forums!!!

I haven't heard one bad thing about this company. The only business I have done with them was an exceptional experience.

Bringing an old thread back to life...

Is the Ghurka adjustable in any way? Cant angle? Ride height?

It is not adjustable. The new model Infidel is a modular holster that has an adjustable belt clip on it in the place that the the Gurkha rear anchor clip was. That one is adjustable for cant. It will ride at the hight of your belt w/ the ledge & belt loop in the front.
I really like mine.
I think jbird has one too.