by Galia Berry
When I attended LFI in New Hampshire, I was pleased that Mitch
Rosen, whose workshop was just up the road a few miles, stopped
by to introduce himself and his products to our class. Most of
us are relegated to buying holsters directly from a catalog, without
the possibility of trying them on for size before we buy. And
most of us who have purchased a holster directly from a catalog
have holsters collecting dust as a result: even though they might
be a quality product, they didn't fit as well as we had hoped.
Not that Mitch Rosen's glossy, quality catalog isn't helpful.
Expertly photographed and described, it is well worth ordering
($5). Through the catalog, I thought the IWB (in the waistband)
holster that he's so well known for, the Ayoob Rear Guard (ARG),
would be just what I was looking for. My husband liked the idea
of the Workman, which allows one's shirt to be tucked in
a loop over the exposed grip for enhanced concealment. We might
have ordered from the catalog, but knowing that we were heading
up to New Hampshire, we decided to wait, knowing that we'd have
a chance to meet Mr. Rosen and see his products personally.
Boy, am I glad I waited. The Workman was totally impractical for
my husband. The added fraction of an inch needed to create the
loop, which is behind the ingenious workings of the Workman, made
my already wide-hipped husband look positively lopsided. This
holster is better on a long, lean and slender type of body build.
As far as the ARG for myself, it didn't work either. Again, I
attribute this to my feminine anatomy; my hips are big and my
waist-hip ratio is such that the holster just didn't conceal well.
It looked like I had a big lump sticking out from under my skirt.
(In slimmer, leaner women, and for most men, this holster conceals
nicely, however . . . who said life was fair?)
Mitch Rosen is sensitive to the differences of a woman's anatomy
vis a vis holster needs. Using his wife, Nancy, as a model, he
invented the Nancy Special. The tilt, or rake of this holster
is slightly muzzle-forward. Worn outside the belt, I was concerned
it wouldn't be highly concealable. Was I wrong! Due to the positioning
of its belt slots, as well as the rake, this holster fit against
my body's curves like a glove. Somehow, Mr. Rosen has managed
to create a holster that sits close to the body, yet doesn't dig
in, either at the hips nor at the ribs. I ordered two Nancy Special
holsters (for a S&W 3913, and for an HKP7M8) in mahogany (cordovan),
as well as a belt. Knowing that Mr. Rosen was inundated with orders,
I knew I'd have a four-month wait. So I waited. And waited. And
waited.
Mr. Rosen's products aren't cheap. His Nancy Special holsters
sell for $105 apiece. His excellent gun belts go for $95. But
like the old adage, "you get what you pay for;" I rationalized
the cost because I wanted quality and fit. I also purchased a
small bottle of "Leather Lightening," a liquid that
is applied sparingly to the inside of the holster, to help break
in the tight-fitting holster faster. This is worthwhile, in my
opinion.
Now comes the nasty part. I have a real problem with Mr. Rosen's
policy of charging the full cost of the order up front. It's one
thing to let go of your money when you can expect delivery within
a reasonable amount of time. However, parting with several hundred
dollars, and not seeing the results of one's order for nearly
half a year (the time it took to fill my order) is not, in my
book, reasonable. I feel that a "fifty percent down"
policy would be much more fair. When I asked the office about
this, they said that when they had tried this, they had gotten
"burned" with cancelled orders and were left with too
much stock on hand. This is frankly ridiculous. Mr. Rosen has
such a backlog, that the unclaimed orders could be transferred
to others waiting to receive their orders. And since he would
keep that half of the deposit, he wouldn't be losing a cent.
Well, four months came and went. I called the office to check
up on my order. I was told that due to the volume of orders, Mr.
Rosen had moved his workshop from his basement to a small factory
in town, and the move was increasing the lead time by ten days.
But not to worry, because at the new location, the customer would
actually benefit by increased output and decreased lead time to
process the incoming orders.
A month later, and still no holster. I placed a call on a Thursday,
explaining that I was going to be going up to New Hampshire in
three days, and I needed my order for my class at LFI-II, which
involved extensive drawing from a holster. I was impressed when
my two holsters and gun belt arrived the next day, overnight express.
Impressed, that is, until I realized that the order was not of
the quality I had expected. The belt had a deep gouge/scratch
on the very front near the belt holes. Very fixable, but not what
one expects from a fresh-from-the-factory, $95 belt. I called
immediately, and Mr. Rosen assured me it would be fixed; he would
take it back for repair when I got to New Hampshire. He, too,
was disturbed that the belt had somehow escaped final inspection
before leaving the factory. About my other complaint, however,
he was more reticent, and told me he'd have to look at it before
offering a solution.
The problem was this: on the Nancy Special holster that was made
for the HKP7M8, whoever had cut the leather from the pattern,
cut a bit too much. My trigger was slightly exposed. It wouldn't
have mattered for someone with large hands, but with my slender
fingers, I was actually able to cock the HK and squeeze the trigger,
while it was still holstered!!! While I personally practice safe
unholstering techniques, and wasn't particularly worried that
I'd have an accidental discharge while unholstering, I was concerned
that if I ever got into a situation that an assailant grabbed
for my gun while it was still holstered, all hell would break
loose due to the exposed trigger, and the gun would go off prematurely.
This holster was not just a "mistake," it was dangerously
defective.
This is where it got tricky. Mr. Rosen takes extreme pride in
his work, and was reluctant to admit that this holster should
never have left the factory. His initial response was, "I'll
have to think on this." When I stated my complete dissatisfaction
with his answer, he got rather huffy. Because his fingers were
meatier, he couldn't reach the thin slice of trigger that was
left exposed by the overcut holster, so he didn't have the problem
that I did. I felt a demonstration was in order at that point.
Having checked and rechecked my firearm to see that it was unloaded,
I holstered the gun and pulled the trigger. This didn't make an
impression on Mr. Rosen, since one really has to squeeze-cock
the HKP7M8 before the trigger will "fire." So, with
some regret, I did just that: I showed Mr. Rosen how, while holstered,
it was possible to cock the (unloaded) HK and squeeze the trigger.
Mr. Rosen's face blanched noticeably. He then accused me of unsafe
gun handling, and told me that he would replace the holster for
me free of charge, but only for another model gun, since he wasn't
willing to be liable for my inability to handle an HKP7M8 in a
responsible manner!!
I certainly didn't understand nor appreciate his attitude. First,
I didn't want a holster for another gun. I didn't want a refund,
either. I felt he had a good product; the Nancy Special was unique
in its construction, and I needed a holster that really fit for
my HKP7M8. I thought it was simply a case of a factory worker
making a mistake, and called for a simple rectifying of the problem
(and a good chewing out of the worker responsible). Mr. Rosen
did not see it this way. After much communication back and forth,
and the intervention and mediation of a certain someone who shall
go unnamed, but is rather influential in the gun world, Mr. Rosen
finally agreed to replace my HKP7M8 holster with another one.
I asked him about how long it would take to repair the belt and
get a new holster. I certainly wasn't interested in waiting another
five months. His answer was less than satisfying: "I can't
give you a time." When I told him that I would not hold him
to a specific time frame, but would like a general idea - a week?
A month? Six months? - he again stated that he didn't know how
long it would be until I got the holster and belt back.
I assured him I was still an admirer of his holster work and especially
the design of the Nancy Special. I just don't understand why he
makes "customer service" an oxymoron.
Well, surprise! Within two weeks of leaving my belt and holster
with Mr. Rosen in New Hampshire, I received a brand new Nancy
Special holster for my HKP7M8, and my refinished belt. I noticed
that the quality of the fit and finish was much improved over
the previous holster. I also noticed that it was missing some
code marks engraved in the holster. I suspected that my new holster
was crafted by Mr. Rosen personally, rather than handed over to
a factory worker to finish. When I asked if this was indeed the
case, my query went unanswered - - I guess they were just happy
to be done with me. (It was now seven months from the time I had
placed my original order!)
Now, several months later, I have put quite a bit of wear on the
two holsters. And this is where it gets real interesting. Both
look very nice. But the fit of the HK holster that I suspect Mr.
Rosen personally crafted, has maintained its quality throughout.
The finish is fantastic, a real beauty. On the holster for the
3913, which shares the same engraved code numbers as my original
HK holster did (same worker??), the holster has not fared as well.
It has stretched to the point of not retaining the gun in an optimal
manner, nor does it fit as well on the belt, since the belt holes
are cut fractionally larger and with less precision than the HK
holster. The finish, while very nice, does not have the same finesse.
The belt hasn't lost much of its stiffness. I would highly recommend
this belt to men, who are used to wearing a belt on a daily basis,
but I think women might find the stiffness uncomfortable after
a full day of wear (the belts made by Ted Blocker, for instance,
are about half the price and are much more supple and comfortable,
though I suspect they aren't nearly as durable as the Rosen belt).
The belt still looks like new, even after much wear, and I suspect
it will give many, many years of fine service.
So, do I recommend Mitch Rosen holsters? Well, that depends. I
think Mr. Rosen has some great design innovations, and his products
are good ones. He is, however, a victim of his own success. This
is a labor-intensive product which demands attention to detail
(which, until recently, Mr. Rosen amply provided), not a factory
filled with careless workers. Mr. Rosen needs to provide better
quality control, and much better customer service. But until other
holster makers can better address the needs of women, whose anatomy
and type of clothing worn influence the way we carry a firearm,
Mr. Rosen's Nancy Special, at least for me personally, has a captive
audience. What a shame that this triumph is bittersweet.
Mitch Rosen Gunleather
300 Bedford St.
Manchester, NH 03101-1102
(603) 647- 2973 or fax (603) 647-2973
(c) 1996 Galia Berry, All Rights Reserved