I really wish someone from Lawman Leather would chime in at this point and explain what exactly is going on.

It appears from the pictures that they are capable of making some very high quality holsters. It is also clear that they are completely incapable of meeting their stated delivery dates. Why would they lie? Why would they deliberately mislead people out of $250, when they could make much more than that amount simply by churning out more of the holsters that they are clearly capable of making?

Lawman leather goods may take some patience on your part, but you'll get exactly what you’ve ordered and be amazed at the workmanship. It will likely take some time, but you’ll get your holster and for the money it's the most bang for your buck. When the STU arrived for my full-size Kimber 1911 custom it was overdue, but it is a work of art. There was a little trouble with them making their deadline of delivery, but they always answered the phone and return messages. During my experience, I got to know Jerry and his son Jimmy and I can tell you that they are hard-working and honest people. This is truly an American company and they will build and deliver your holster as fast as the right way will allow. I’m one Lawman leather customer who is glad he waited. I’ve no doubt you will be too if you give them the opportunity.

Pete B.

After waiting for one year and almost two months I finally received my Dirty Harry Shoulder Holster in the mail today .
It is an absolutely beautiful shoulder holster and extremely well made and my Smith and Wesson Model 29-2 fits in it perfectly . Anybody that buys one of these shoulder holsters will be getting there moneys worth . However be prepared to wait a long time before you get it . In my case an extremely long time . You will need patience and plenty of it .

Glad to see you finally got it.

__________________
jj

I ordered a Lawman Leather holster in December 2009.....same story as most everyone above......only thing I have received so far is a plethora of excuses!

"It's the weather"......."our shipper lost it"......"my dog ate it"

What a completely unprofessional organization. Now they will not return my telephone calls nor my emails.

Lawman Leather's last correspondence, "you should receive your holster in 4 weeks"........that was 8 weeks ago.

I'm afraid I fell for a scam.

Just to beat that dead horse a little more, next week I will be a month away from the 1 year anniversary of ordering my holster. The last promise, after all the excuses and finally, "the shipper must have lost it", was 4-6 weeks. Well, that was 6 weeks ago. I called last week and left a message. I called today and left a message. I'll call again in a day or so, unless by some miracle they actually return my call.

I keep waiting for someone to post they finally received their holster after a lengthy wait...only after selling the gun they originally ordered it for. All I can say is...thank God ammo doesn't take this long to make.

I received my holster two weeks ago. It is a nice piece of craftsmanship and worth the money I paid. I ordered in October of 2009. I would not do it over again, however. Just not worth the aggravation to me. YMMV.

Can you post a picture, RBMAC52? It would be nice to see what I've got to look forward to.

Hey guys. I am new here and you don't know me, but I have posted on gun forums and newsgroups since about 1995, lately mostly on the 1911 and Colt forums.

Earlier today, I was surprised to come across the Lawman Leather website, and began to do some research in that regard.

I have been a gun enthusiast for over 50 years, a lot of that interest in handguns. Thirty (30) years ago I was buying my first Colt Pythons (I still own a couple of Pythons and like them but have several S&W's I enjoy too ). That was so long ago that I drank the Kool-Aid on the "Original Dirty Harry Shoulder Holster" from the very publications Jerry Ardolino now relies upon in his web page advertising. Doesn't look like there has been much written lately.

I wanted a quality piece of leather for my 6-inch Python, and studied on it long and hard before sending what was then a large amount of money to somebody who wanted payment up front and would not send my holster for 6 months. It was my first custom holster order.

I waited my 6 months with no holster delivered, got some promises, then waited another couple, and then one day there it was in my mailbox. Not the holster I paid for dearly and waited months for, but the bankruptcy notice that I wasn't getting it or my money either. Sound familiar?

Anyway, after finding Mr. Ardolino's latest enterprise today I dropped him an e-mail for old times sake, and reminded him that although 30 years have passed I have not forgotten him and his "Dirty Harry" holster.

Fortunately, since my first bad experience at ordering a custom holster, I have enjoyed great service from many other holster makers, many of them well known. Without exception other than Mr. Ardolino they have always delivered and, if there was a problem, did whatever it took to make it right. Some of those other folks had real life problems along the way
and sometimes got behind on their orders, but they always came through in the end. Not Mr. Ardolino.

I understand bankruptcy and there are times it cannot be avoided. However, to insist that a consumer's money be paid up front for work promised months away and then not follow through is inexcusable conduct, morally if not illegal.

Anyway, forgive the intrusion for this first post, but I had to share my experience. Good luck with your holster orders.

Bear Bait...Welcome to the forum.

Do you still own the gun you originally ordered the holster for? Just in case it arrives in another 6 months. ;^)

Maybe his motto is quality before quantity and he was just never happy with all the holsters that never got delivered and figured the customer would not be happy either and they probably would be happier with nothing instead. Some people go that extra mile for a happy customer...Keep up the good work Mr. Ardolino....Oh wait, it looks like you have.

Thanks for the welcome.

I sold the Pythons I bought new in the late 70's and early 80's when I went back to school to finish my advanced degrees.

A few years later, a client gave me an early 4-inch S&W 686. That is when I started to really learn how to shoot a revolver, double action that is, and wondered why anyone would want a Colt.

I always had a soft spot for Colts though, and a little over a year ago they started to follow me home. Right now I have a couple from the early to mid 1970's but, they are both 4-inch, so the late delivered holster might be a little long.

I still have the 686, and my little S&W collection at present includes a Model 60, a model 64 and, in the semi auto department a Model 41. This doesn't include the Walter P99 and PPS with the S&W importer stamped on the slide. I also have spent some quality time with my brother's 4-inch 66 and 28's, so we have most of the frame sizes covered.

Here's a shot of the old 686 and 60 both dressed in Sambar stag grips:





The Model 41:



And some of the old Colts laying around:

Well, at the real risk of becoming suspect around here, it is only fair that I give a little update to this post.

Less than 24 hours after sending my e-mail yesterday to Mr. Ardolino through his website, I received a call from him this morning.

First, I do not think that Mr. Ardolino owes me anything legally for what happened 30 years ago, but was curious as to just what sort of integrity he has and how he felt about what happened to the customers who did not get what they ordered back then.

The conversation covered a lot of what we have already heard about everything Ardolino and then some, but I did learn a few things I did not know. In any event, bottom line was that Mr. Ardolino volunteered and I agreed on a plan to make up for what happened in my case, at no risk to me, which he did not have to do.

I just want to be fair, and if it works out as promised I will do a follow up post. At this point, I at least appreciate that Mr. Ardolino took the time to call me about something which happened 30 years ago.

I was impressed with the appearance and design of the Dirty Harry shoulder holster many years ago, and even though I have evolved through many other holsters since then and now prefer belt carry for my norm I would still like to try one for field use on occassion with my magnum revolvers.

I'll keep you posted.

Well, Jerry did call me back and I simply heard more excuses and a new delivery date of 6-8 weeks. I now have zero confidence that my holster was in fact made and shipped (and "lost" by their shipper) back in June (when it was 6 weeks "late". The latest "reasons" for the delays is that my order, with about 180 others, was caught in a transition of computer databases so now they have switched back to Word from Excel (neither of which is a "database" program, BTW), and they have fired their CEO, and they are now handling shipping in-house, and . . . .

I am completely underwhelmed by Lawman Leather's business acumen and baffled how they have stayed in business for 30 years. They only make a couple of products, how hard can it be to keep up? Is the product that good? I hope so. The wait has tested my patience.

Why am I not surprised....

BetterBusinessBureau

I ordered the Dirty Harry Shoulder Holster 11-18-09 and they billed my credit card 11-20-09. Delivery was promised in 23 weeks. After the 23 weeks passed and no delivery, I called back and began a long series of calls with Jerry. Jerry made one excuse after another "explaining" why I didn't have my holster yet and why I would definitely NOT be getting a refund. This went on all summer 2010. Sept. 16, 2010 I filed a complaint with the BBB of Las Vegas and BBB promised a response in 30 days. On Oct. 16, 2010 BBB told me Lawman Leather Goods had not responded but they eventually might. I noticed on the BBB website that from the time I ordered to the time I complained 3 other customers had filed complaints of non-delivery, but all 3 of those had been resolved to the satisfaction of the customers. I've gotten nothing, and would warn any potential customer to avoid this outfit, unless you like waiting for a year or just losing your money. I guess small claims court is next. Anybody have any good ideas about how I might get my refund or my holster.

Just curious...what was the reason he had for definitely not giving you a refund...because he spent money on gas driving to the bank to deposit your check? I hope you get lucky like some here that suddenly and unexpectedly received their order. What is really amazing is after all the excuses, delays and BS, I have not heard anyone say he screwed up their order or worse were completely dissatisfied with the holster when they finally got it. Still waiting for someone to get a holster for a gun they no longer have.

Tech23

Ever see their ads in the gun magazines? They seem to be able to pay that bill don't they?

Guess where your money goes well before you get your holster?

Wow....Wake up guys. how long does it take to get a kidney transplant?? Anybody on this forum from Vegas? If so drive out to alleged factory site and let us all know. 1 Is there a site 2. who is doing the work. 3. How much time does the owner spend in a casino. 4. What kind of auto does he drive....It is Vegas baby !!! a lot of talented people with some real problems out in sin city...Talent only goes so far. Financing with advance orders isn't that unique but over a year...wise up........Walks like a duck, quacks like a duck...well you know the rest..

You may find this hard to believe but Mr Ardolino has a Better Business Bureau rating of F



BetterBusinessBureau

BBB ratings don't mean squat. They can be bought off.

Have an aquaintance whose business rating was also an F. THEY contacted him and offered to give him an A+ if he made a "contribution". So he did.

Looks like Jerry's late not only with his products but his contribution too.

I think people should see that page, especially this:

1 - Company failed to respond to the BBB or to the consumer to resolve the issues.

Tech23

I ordered 3 holsters bought and paid for with lawman leather goods, was given a 3 month wait time for them, soon they informed me that they could not come up with a pattern for my Ruger LCP, well after now a year has gone by and still no holsters just excuses as to factory problems and suppliers who cannot supply the correct materials. Well I am happy to see that someone has recieved there product. I however am trying to put together a lawsuit on Lawman Leather goods and welcome anyone else who has gone through this with them. Please e-mail myself at [email protected] together we can accomplish a full refund or a lawsuit. Tanks

So much for their ""NOW Made for EVERY HANDGUN EVER MADE and ALL CURRENT HANDGUNS in the WORLD--EVERY CALIBER-EVERY BARREL LENGTH."

Well, has anyone else actually received a holster lately?

Rev. Buzzard, if I can ask, what was the date of your holster order and the original delivery date you were told?

After patiently reading this whole thread, as well as the links, I can see that this guy will always have a willing group of folks to pay him up front for years to come . . . for products that will never come as promised.

Surely the guy realized years ago that to be upfront and honest with his REAL delivery times would greatly reduce the number of folks willing to let him live off their money for nearly a year average.

He's had enough time to get it right, in all ways, if he was able and if he desired.

Hi guys,
I ordered one for my 629 Stealth Hunter, and delivery did indeed take a while ; but I'd been informed about that in advance.
I am from Belgium (Europe) and everything went flawlessly, I even got a personal call on a Sunday morning to confirm my specifications .
If you want handmade quality - it's worth waiting for ...

I just glanced at a feature article about this outfit in the current issue of American Handgunner. I thought it was ironic. I imagine many more folks will be joining the dissatisfied customers who have posted their experiences in this thread. It's disgraceful.

Lefty

I order my holster in November 2009! It has been nothing but a stream of excuses from Jerry. Last month he gave me the phone number for "operations", so I called and talked with the "new" CEO. I don't know his name because he mumbled and growled at me when I said I was tired of all the excuses. Some customer service. I see they have advertised in the latest Guns & Ammo. I'm sure there will be many more unhappy customers. The new "CEO" did offer me a 35% discount on any new holster I'd like to order - I didn't take him up on it. It has now been 6 weeks since my last call, so I'll call again next week. I'm sure the excuse this time will be Christmas break.

Can you post that phone number??

I have always bought from EPS and have never been disappointed. I believe my next will be from Bell Charter Oaks. I'm amazed at the number of people who know of the excessive delays and still order from the company.

Here's the number I have. You need to call after 8:30p.m. Western Time Zone - according to J. Ardolino the factory works during the nights.

(702) 588-9583

Thank you!! Merry Christmas!!

Ordered holster over 1 year ago. Have received nothing but excuse after excuse after excuse. Sick and tired of dealing with this shady outfit. They will not return my calls nor reply to my emails. I just want my money refunded. Time to talk to the BBB.

Lawman Leather Excuses

The excuses started in late April 2010 with my first call about a week after the projected 26 week delivery time had passed. My last call was at the end of November. I’ll try again in January. Maybe the new year will bring new results (or just add another excuse to the list).

1. We’re running about 4-6 weeks behind.
2. We’re still running behind because of a large military order.
3. It shipped, didn’t you get it? The shipper must have lost it. We don’t do shipping “in-house” because it would add to the cost of the product. [Like paying a 3rd party shipper doesn’t?]
4. It will take 8 days to do an internal company trace.
5. The weather has been bad, its been raining, so the humidity is too high for the leather to dry.
6. Work has stopped because someone tried to break into the factory through the A/C units on the roof.
7. We had to change our database to keep track of orders. We’re back to using Word instead of Excel [please note: neither is database software]
8. We’re doing all the shipping in-house now, so it should be done in 4-6 weeks.
9. We fired our CEO.
10. We hired a new CEO.
11. Oh, yours was in that group of orders in November 2009 that got all screwed up because of the problems with the database.
12. We don’t make excuses!!! I’ll give you a 35% discount on any holster you want to order. Do you want your money back? It will take about 4 weeks. [communicated gruffly, defensively over the phone by someone purporting to be the “new” CEO]

Any of these sound familiar??

I've been hearing the same excuses.

Wow!! Life has been tough for them. I hope 2011 is a better year for them.

Yea...must be tough taking peoples money up front and only delivering excuses, empty promises and the occasional holster.

Tech23

Here's what I don't get: Why doesn't someone at Lawman Leather Goods just issue an e-mail to everyone who currently has a holster on back order. Apologize for the delay, tell us when we can reasonably expect our holster to arrive (even if it's another year's wait), and offer to return people's money if that wait is too long, then apologize again and sign off.

They already have each and every person's e-mail from when the orders were placed. It would take ten minutes to write a form apology e-mail, and another hour to e-mail it to everyone. Customer service isn't rocket science.

I placed an order over a year ago, and at this point I'm just going to wait it out. I can't help but believe that the holster will still show up at my door some day, but I've stopped holding my breath. If I wait another year, I'll be disappointed but not shocked.

You all will be among the first to hear when it finally shows up.

I know this is a S&W forum, but this thread rings so true with me as well. I did a ton of research on holsters before I found Lawman Leather Goods and their STU. I have two Springfield XDm pistols in 9mm and 45 ACP and wanted a holster that would accommodate the Viridian X5 when attached and without. I placed my order 12/6/2009 and was told that there was a 6 month wait. Wow! They must have a really good product. Jerry called me after I placed my order to confirm weapon specifics and he told me how he was former law enforcement, lawyer and other occupations that led me to believe his integrity was sound. His product was being worn in Afghanistan, Iraq and other dangerous places around the globe by soldiers and law enforcement officers and the quality was unmatched in his industry. I was excited! I could wait 6 months. It should arrive 2 days before my birthday...

Ursula sent me my email receipt the next day and they charged my credit card $282.95.

I looked and looked for the package in May 2010 and finally sent them an email on the 25th. Jerry called me the next day and told me about their poor weather and how the dye wouldn't cure. That put their production back 5 weeks...

September 3, 2010, I wrote them indicating that it'd been 14 weeks (they'd promised 5 weeks) and still no holster, still no contact from them with word on when it would arrive so I wanted to cancel my order. Jerry called back talking about the CEO issue and him trying to convert the business over to MS Excel from MS Word. Apparently most of their orders are actually on hand written ledger! My order was one of the ones lost due to the "ignorance" of his CEO. I do technical support for Federal emergency responders and so I too explained that neither MS Excel nor MS Word were appropriate to manage business orders with, but Jerry is very head strong and nobody can tell him that ledgers are inefficient. I explained that his customer service was horrible and that if he would hire someone to design a proper database then an employee could manage customer support calls an proactively alert customers to manufacturing delays. This all fell on deaf ears! Ignorance can be cured, stupidity cannot.

So what, why should I care... I wanted to cancel my order! He said that he could not reverse the charges on my credit card because he had closed his Wells Fargo merchant account and (because he used to be a lawyer) he explained that somehow it would violate banking laws covering cash advances if he gave me a cash refund! It has been too long since my order was placed for the credit card company to accept a fraud complaint so I'm screwed... I listened to him expound on how his integrity was paramount and his product was king... heard it before.... They're using them in Afghanistan, Iraq... heard it before.... Eventually I resigned myself to the fact that this guy was a good con man and that my money was gone, but he still claimed that he'd now found my order and would deliver it to the manufacturing floor HIMSELF and I should expect it in no more than 5 weeks. I'm beginning to think that the words "5 weeks" are somehow magical to him.

November 3, 2010, I get an unsolicited call from Jerry... "Your holster should arrive in a couple of weeks and you can call me anytime you want to order another holster and you'll get a 25% discount". Sure it will, whatever. It never showed up. Why would anyone EVER order something else from this guy after being run around like this! How about refunding me 25% on THIS purchase and actually DELIVERING it!

I put it out of my mind until Christmas 2010... I sent them another email... no response yet... Maybe if Jerry does respond it will be the "shipping error" that several people here have been given.

I suppose that if I ever do get the holster it will most certainly not have the magical powers that some seem to imbue it with.

But some people ARE receiving holsters, is the thing. Several people on this forum, who appear to be reputable themselves, have posted photos of the holsters they receive from Lawman Leather Goods.

What doesn't make sense is this: if he does have some way of making holsters and sending them, which clearly he does, why doesn't he just make enough to cover demand? And if he cannot make enough to cover demand, why doesn't he just be honest with customers about it and let them know what the actual delivery times are?

It's a shame so many people are having trouble getting their holsters.

I made my first call for 2011 this evening to the "operations" number. No one answered. Surprise, surprise,surprise. The voicemail message recorded quality was terrible and I think I only got that the new CEO might have a first name of Jim and that if you leave your name and number he'll call you back. Right. None of my emails have been answered. One of the previous posts said that Ursula answered their email, but no one has answered mine. Tomorrow I'll start trying to call Jerry again. Unfortunately, they are in the driver's seat as they already have our money and we have no tool for leverage to get our product. They already have a Las Vegas BBB "F" rating so it can't get any worse. What can you do?

I ordered a Bianchi X-15 model 12365 from OpticPlanet this evening. Regular price $160, their price $99.99 and free UPS ground shipping. While it won't be a custom Dirty Harry holster, any of my 6" N or L frames will fit.

Guns and ammo has a section on neat products. Guess what one of the products they were tooting....You guessed it Lawman Leather. Wonder how long it took them to get a sample??

The new issue of American Handgunner has an article about them, too...

__________________
Gotta love N-frames...

Ordered my holster in late 2009. Thought it might be a reputable organization as they offered me a Military Discount...you figure, "maybe the owner is a good guy, a supporter of our troops and a patriot".......yeah

I've been calling on the telephone and sending emails several times a week for the last 6 months. No returned calls, no replies to my emails.

The first 2 times I called, Jerry (the owner?) actually answered the telephone. He seemed nice enough, even though he had a HUGE excuse matrix: "the weather has been bad.....we have changed to a new system.....my dog ate it......LOCUSTS!!!"

Anyway, you get the picture. This organization is the lowest of the low. Poor business practices and a dishonest owner. He might put out a good product (though I seriously doubt it could even come close to the quality of Milt Sparks, or the like), but Lawman Leather is a terrible business.

I think it is time to write the gun publications that print his advertisements.

Amen to that !! Years ago a very well known gun-smith told me that gun mags have a real problem. They take advertising from almost all arms makers and outlets. Because of this it is hard for their gun-writers to really say any thing negative about their products especially if they are current advertisers. Past reading sort of proves that point. I find you get better and I might add honest opinions here on this blog than you get from gun-mags. I don't know about other blogs but I'll bet the same is true..more honesty from owners, and past owners than even the best gun publications....Just my opinion....The advertising dollar is a very mighty sword. Lawmen seems to have an advertisement in all the mags I read.

The Bianchi X-15 arrived a week after I ordered it. I got the large size to carry a 6 inch large frame. A few adjustments and it seems to fit me just fine. The spring closure is VERY strong and I think I'll have to work with it some to get used to re-holstering. Its just a bigger version of the med/sml X-15 I've had for 30 years.

I had a conversation last week with both Jerry Ardolino and the "new" CEO, Jim Ardolino. I ended up faxing back to them a copy of the email receipt I'd gotten back in Nov 2009. I got the standard, 4-8 weeks, they had gotten about 40+ of the 90 some "lost" orders completed, and now they are building a new factory. I guess I can add "building a new factory" to the excuse list.

Let me share with all of you my business analysis:
If a holster took 4 hrs to manufacture (given the process would lend itself to various steps of batch production, e.g. pattern cuttings, dyeing, forming, stitching, etc., etc.), then with ongoing production, 12-13 skilled workers could in theory produce 25 finished holsters per day in an 8 hour day and 125 per week. If a holster took 8 hours of total work, then you would need 25-26 skilled workers. This would give an order to ship time of theoretically 2, maybe 3 or 4, weeks, given the various steps in the construction may be (and probably are) spread out over a week or more. This production rate (25 per day) would result in 500 per month; 6,000 per year and at $250 per holster would gross $125,000/month and $1,500,000/year. In the world of manufacturing, that's not a lot given the associated costs (advertising, labor, taxes, rents, utilities, etc., etc.). I would hope they have gross sales much higher than $1.5M per year, otherwise, how viable is this business?

Given the seemingly automatic 26 week delivery promise made to many of us, you can deduce several things.

(1) 26 weeks is about 9x longer than "theoretically" possible, so the actual production rate must be significantly less than 25 finished products per day. and/or,

(2) The number of skilled workers is significantly less than the number needed to produce 25 finished products per day, and/or,

(3) The actual start to finish construction time is greater than 8 hours per holster, and/or,

(4) Your guess is as good as mine.

Let's see, another 4-8 week promise, so, maybe I'll have mine around Valentine's Day?? I'll let you know.

I also went with the X-15 from OpticPlanet and got prompt delivery. But I couldn't live with that spring - it took 3 hands to get the revolver back into the holster. I returned it and got a prompt refund. Too bad as I really like the holster and it gets rave reviews everywhere.

The new X-15 I received was also very stiff and tight, but a little forcible spreading wide by hand has remedied the problem. Works better and still holds very well.