American Handgunner May/June 1978

The newly designed holster boasts ametal reinforced sight channel, Auto-Flexgun retainer, full leather face and lining,and last but not least a leg strap. The holsteris well designed, being very rigid forboth strength and protection as well as offeringa snag-free draw. It is angled slightlyfor increased speed in clearing the gunfrom the top of the holster. Bianchi's reinforcedmolded sight channel (metal lined)is, no doubt, a very good feature for combatshooting as the front sight is betterprotected and it also uses the channel as aguide way as the gun slides in and out ofthe holster.The Auto-Flex gun retainer is a newidea that utilizes molded surgical rubbermade much like the conventional safetystrap. The Auto-Flex is, however, a littleshorter and because it is made of rubber,stretches, applying tension that securelyholds the gun in the holster. The Auto-Flex retainer slips over the auto's cockedhammer serving as a safety. In order toiconvince myself of the safety of the gunwhile cocked with the Auto-Flex in position(over the hammer) I pushed in on the? Colt's grip-safety and forced the triggert back with a small screwdriver. The hammerwas held back by the retainer anddidn't so much as start to move. There'sThe Grip w.,,J magazine pouch holdstwo spare clips securely, yet theycan be withdrawn with little effort.no doubt in my mind of the safety theAuto-Flex offers. It likewise holds the gunvery securely in the holster, even if onewere to go as far as to perform backwardsomersaults.(There is usually some formof rigorous movement required atmatches to insure the safety of the holsterbeing used) I've been accustomed to theleather safety straps oil my other huntingand combat holsters, but the Auto-Flex isstronger due to the tension applied and inmy opinion safer than the leather type, butI must admit that I had some difficultyusing it. Naturally, it's newness had a greatThe Pistolero combat rig comes complete with holster, leg strap.belt and Grip Clip magazine holder. Author's Gold Cup is shown.Auto-Flex strap ,- of suiy,calrubber. It holds pistol in placeand blocks hammer from firing pin.deal to do with the awkwardness I experienced,but the tension does make a differencein replacing it over the hammer. Itrequires more force to stretch it over thehammer and this is where I ran into somedifficulty with it I believe that once a personhas become thoroughly familiar withthis stretch-type retainer no major handlingproblems would arise. I'm certainthat the inconvenience of becoming ac- ..customed to it through practicing would be 'outweighed by its ability to positively holdthe aim " in the holster as well as affording "protection against accidental firing.As far as leg-straps go, there's little tobe said of them other than that 1 personallyprefer to have one on any type of quickdrawrig, as it's a good feature. Having theholster remain next to the leg while drawinghelps speed and I don't know of a bet-ter way than the use of the leg-strap., . . ~The last accessory of the "Pistolero"~outfit is almost as important as the holster.Bianchi's "Clip-Grip," as it is called,enables the user to very quickly remove afresh magazine and ram it home with littlethought or effort. The "Clip-Grip" incorporatesan adjustable tension screw tohold the magazines as loosely or tightly asone desires. The magazines are separatedapproximately 3/4' by a round bushingmade of rubber. The "Clip-Grip" is notstationary and may be positioned anywhereon the belt.I've been using the Pistolero Combatrig for a good while now and other thanthe difficulty I had getting used to theAuto-Flex gun retainer, I'm very happywith the outfit's looks, styling, and over-allperformance. The rig fits me well, andthus is comfortable while running throughthe course. My Gold Cup slides in and outof the holster with some resistance but it'snothing to be greatly concerned about, asthe holster is still a bit tight from beingrather new.All in all, the "Pistolero" is a lot of rigfor the money. It's available at your localdealer or direct from Bianchi,retailing at $89.95.'$MERICAN HANDGUNNER MAY/JUNE 1978