Hi Jay,Heh. "No-bullshit style". I like that. I try really hard to review items that I receive in "real world" conditions as best as I can. If I'm testing out a holster, for example, I'll wear it out and about for a few weeks before drawing any conclusions. When testing a new firearm, I'll try to get it to the range on multiple days, quite often using a variety of ammunition.You review a lot of stuff, and I've come to like your no-bullshit style. Here are two items you may have come across, and if you have, I'd like to hear what you think --- clipdraw.com -- ever used them?- MagnaTrigger, done by Tarnhelm.com in NH -- Massad Ayoob seems to think highly of it, but I've seen precious little mention of it elsewhere. (My wife is very nervous indeed about keeping a gun in the house, but she was intrigued by this.)
As for the Clipdraw, I've never had direct experience with them. I'm not a fan of the concept in general, but that's specific to me - I'm a sweaty Italian guy, and if I had a pistol pressed against my body my sweat would eat the finish right off of just about any gun that's out there, stainless or not. I also prefer a holster to keep lint, dust, and other detritus (don't salute!) out of the action and/or barrel. If I were going to get a Clipdraw, I'd want it for my P3AT or the soon-to-be-acquired S&W Bodyguard 380, nothing bigger.
As for the Magna-Trigger, it's got two strikes against it from the get-go. First off, it needlessly complicates something that should not be complicated - the interaction between the firearm and the user's hand. Secondly, it's $350 and requires shipping the gun to them for modification and then shipping it back to you. $350 will buy you one hell of a nice biometric pistol safe...
I'm always willing to hear otherwise, so if anyone has experience with either item, please chime in!
That is all.
And if anyone from Clipdraw would like to send a unit for review, well, I can be reached through the blog e-mail... :)
14 comments:
You have a G30, right? I'll send you my clipdraw.
-SayUncle
I'd consider the clipdraw risky at best.
Does it pass the shake and job test? Can you really move with the firearm hanging on with a wee clip?
It does not cover the trigger either.
The trigger thingy is lame. $350 buys you a shitload of training, which will do more to make uncomfortable folks comfortable and prevent the problems that the device is trying to solve.
As one sweaty Italian guy to another, I can assure you that ALL guns have a very anti-garlic bias.
As to the clip draw... I fooled around with one on a Glock for about two minutes. Thats exactly how long it took me to realize that it was more hype and nonsense then the great wiz-bang awesomeness that I thought it would be.
*Hope that was bullshit free enough to be of help!
Heh, "a sweaty Italian guy" ... Throughout the Katrina cleanup debacle (NOLA) my BUG was a Phoenix Arms .25 unceremoniously carried in my back trousers pocket. Being right-handed, you can imagine what the left side of the slide now looks like ...
It seems to me that with the clip there would be a chance of snagging the pistol when drawing it; either on your pants or your underwear. I'd rather have a holster, thanks.
The only thing I'd use the clipdraw on was a mousegun with a long heavy trigger, and then only for things like running out to the store in sweatpants. Since I only do things like that a few times a year or less, I haven't gotten in to it.
The magnatrigger is a ridiculous gimmic IMO. Just want I want in a defensive gun, another way for it to fail when I need it.
Do you need me to name your Bodyguard? :)
I'd say "Not just no, but HELL no!" to both.
Clipdraw: If I'm not controlling the gun with my hands but it's on my person, I want that trigger guard covered. Period, end of sentence. With this, if something bumps you wrong, or your clothes bunch up wrong, you could easily find yourself with holes you didn't have before. BAD idea.
Magna-Trigger: You pretty much hit the main problems already, so I'll just add: what if you forgot the ring when you left the house, or what if the mugger demands "that silver ring" first? What if it goes down the drain when you wash your hands? Once you lose the ring, your pistol is disabled until you can get another one. BAD idea.
I'll keep these poorly thought out gimmicks well away from all of MY guns, thanks anyway.
I have a Clipdraw attached to a S&W Model 60 revolver. It works well for waistband carry when I don't have time to put on a holster; for example, picking up the gun from my desk to go and answer the door. I can shove it in my waistband and cover the gun with my shirt. No-one can see it, but it's accessible to my hand in case of need.
However, I wouldn't recommend it for daily carry, as (unlike a holster) it won't keep the firearm in a given position. Also, I don't recommend it for any gun with a light or short trigger pull. In a DA revolver, there's enough of a safety factor in the long trigger pull that I don't worry; but with a short or light trigger pull, I'd be concerned.
I wore my Colt Commander with a Clipdraw attached for a few months. The concerns over AD due to an exposed trigger guard are overblown in my experience. That said, the gun tends to shift with body movement - more a change of angle than around the waist line - and the external features tend to make themselves felt (this may prove less of a problem for a lighter weight gun with less pronounced external features like a safety, slide lock release or magazine release).
My principle objection to the Clipdraw is that it is incompatable with the Crimson Trace laser grip sight system. Secondary to that is the necessity to exercise extra care to avoid beating yourself up on all the additional exposed edges. While not sharp in the ordinary sense of the word, it is still quite easy to give yourself a severe bruise or blood blister on either hand (assuming a two-handed grip) from simple recoil.
I've still got it aroung here somewhere; if you want multiple examples to test your welcome to it.
Hi Jay,
My wife has a Clipdraw on her S&W 642, and she loves it. It works like a charm for her, and she has NEVER had the 642 come loose from her waistband. I do have her check the barrel, etc for lint on a daily basis. For certain firearms/people this is an excellent device, and certainly well worth the $20. That is all - couldn't resist ;o)
HankH
Love the Pratchet reference! :D
Will,
Remember that covering the trigger -is- a big deal for the modern striker fired guns most people carry nowadays with their comparatively light triggers (getting lighter and shorter all the time) and no additional safeties.
Your Cmdr, like mine, is about as safe as it gets for Mexican Carry (not something I recommend though) given you can have the thumb safety off and the trigger still can't move unless the grip safety is fully depressed while the trigger is pulled. Which pushes statistical probabilities without hands being involved somewhere.
The modern pistols most folks seem to carry don't have those safety redundancies.
Barami's Hip Grip is a better bet for wheelguns. Not a long term carry solution (unless you're working UC and can't have a holster for some reason), but to hang on your belt to go to the store for ten minutes, it's a better solution than the rubber bands old school coppers used to wrap around their grips.
http://www.baramihipgrip.com/
Matt
St Paul
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