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Old 05-15-2018, 07:49 PM
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Originally Posted by LoboGunLeather View Post
Some large makers catalogued their holsters as being for "Small Frame 4"", "Medium Frame 4", "Large Frame 4", "Small Automatic", "Medium Automatic", "Large Automatic", etc, with much less attention paid to close fitting or forming work than has become more common in recent years.

Thanks for an interesting post.
The point of my post, though, wasn't about 'one size fits several'; that's been going on since the Heiser days. It was about how the one pattern is right for both pistols; except during that era it was inconceivable that the trigger would be covered, and therefore 'wrong'. The ancient Brills then could have been, but weren't, the same pattern for both pistols but with the 'U' cutout for the trigger.

Regarding the 'large auto', it simply had to be done that way. John Bianchi didn't invent the holster but he did invent the 'stocking dealer' and it was the latter that wiped out his competition except his old mate Neale at Safariland who followed the same model. Confronted with thousands of inventory containers, each holding a different holster 'sku' such as 2" Chief right hand tan basket weave 1-3/4" loop, and the one next to it 2" Chief left hand tan basket weave 1-3/4" inch loop -- well, you get the picture; you mould that one to the Chief but you don't then mould another one to the Charter Arms and another to something else: the stock won't be on hand to deliver against a dealer order within a few week's time (called 'good customer service').

Also, why put Colt 45 on the back of a 1911 holster when there was a Colt 45 revolver, too; plus many makers of the Colt 1911 even then (jeez, how about now; how did Colt not realise they had 'configuration trademark rights' and absolutely prevent anyone from copying its non-functional appearance?!). So we used 'large auto' in such a case. But it was moulded, first in presses that were used by no other maker before John (instead they were block moulded, the phrase used by both Heiser and by Bucheimer: wetted and a mould inserted then removed for drying) then later the hand boning (we used the ball end of a motorcycle brake handle).

Bianchi actually popularised today's 'close fitting' moulding; prior it was not done by anyone except Theodore and Gaylord; and Paris was out of business almost as soon as he launched in '66 and Gaylord was quite ill by then. All Bianchi's holsters were hand moulded to the individual pistol, as shown below, beginning in the '70s, and kudos to John for thinking of making it a production process:

witty bianchi (9).jpg

The 'modernistas' including Sparks did not invent this process; and today Sparks, for example, uses a press first then a hand moulding exactly as does (did? who knows what shortcuts they take now) Bianchi whilst Milt was still making steel-reinforced competition holsters. Nelson's own M&P for Bianchi was simply a clone of a Seventrees; he also did not create hand moulding. It was Chic.

Cart before the horse; Bianchi did it first, today's players simply followed on.
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Last edited by rednichols; 05-15-2018 at 07:53 PM.
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