Well, I realized as I search for a few new IWB holsters, that I have had a few of the most popular and some of the higher end holsters and wouldn't mind sharing my thoughts.
As a preface, these holsters were all used with my XD9 Service. The belt has been a RafterS Cordovan 1.5" gun belt for all. I am 6' and 190lbs and tend not to wear cover shirts or even really baggy clothing.
Comptact CTAC: I owned this for only a short while and really couldn't get used to the kydex against my skin. I liked the adjustability, but found myself playing with it often as I just couldn't get the holster to fit right or find my ideal cant and fit, especially when dealing with the kydex. I bought it used and sold it within a few weeks of purchase. With a deerskin backing and enough finagling, it could be a great holster. I ended up wanting leather (for the gun's sake and my side).
<<No Pictures>>
Milt-Sparks VM2: I heard awesome things about this and bought one through Lightning Arms as they had it in stock and I am woefully impatient when waiting for a new toy. It arrived and within (1) night of the gun sitting holstered in plastic, the retention and draw felt great. The quality was superb and I loved the holster. I wore it for 5 months and began to wish it had just a bit more cant to push the grip ever so slightly more into my back. I always felt like I was slightly printing when wearing a t-shirt and it may have been me being anal (as when standing upright it was fine) but when I leaned or reached, it protruded against the shirt slightly. I want to be clear that this is an awesome holster, and I have considered going back to it for my 1911 and J-Frame. I sold this almost immediately after posting it and it remained in the XDTalk family. I will say, this holster absolutely made it as if I wasn't wearing a rig. It was the most comfortable of the (3) by a solid margin, yet lacked the cant I was after.
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At this point I began looking for new holsters and stumbled upon Brommeland Gun Leather.
Brommeland Max-Con 5: I talked to Gary Brommeland about his Max-Con 5 and about the cant angle, which he agreed was just a bit more than that of the VM2. This was in November-December of 2006 just as Brommeland introduced his "Service Grade" holsters which had a bit less boning, but at an excellent price point (it was $80 at the time...I just checked again today and its now $170
). I wanted Cordovan, but had to settle on black as thats all GB makes. It arrived after a 6-week wait and was exactly what I was looking for: more cant, great fit and retention, good comfort. The one thing I wasn't set on his Brommeland "Sciatic Flap" which extends off the bottom of the holster towards my butt. Its supposed to relieve stress, but its the one downside to the holster, IMO as I don't love the extra piece of leather and I don't know that it helps ease my back pain at all.
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Although the MC5 doesn't look as nice as the VM2, its because its not meant to be a show piece (thats where his "presentation grade" comes into play) or as well boned/defined. I agree, however, that the VM2 is damn good looking in comparison.
So, in Summary: the VM2 is the most comfortable, but not enough cant. The MC5 situates the gun perfectly but isn't as comfortable. The CTAC wasn't for me and wasn't going to be a good fit with my lifestyle.
Overall, if not for the new price of the MC5, I would likely go that route again. Instead, I think I will be going with an HBE Com3 as I had always wanted one, yet never pulled the trigger through his ordeals in '06 (huge backlog, etc). He has a commander sized COM3 in stock that is looking mighty tempting.
If anyone has any questions about one of the specific holsters, feel free to ask.
Thanks for reading!
As a preface, these holsters were all used with my XD9 Service. The belt has been a RafterS Cordovan 1.5" gun belt for all. I am 6' and 190lbs and tend not to wear cover shirts or even really baggy clothing.
Comptact CTAC: I owned this for only a short while and really couldn't get used to the kydex against my skin. I liked the adjustability, but found myself playing with it often as I just couldn't get the holster to fit right or find my ideal cant and fit, especially when dealing with the kydex. I bought it used and sold it within a few weeks of purchase. With a deerskin backing and enough finagling, it could be a great holster. I ended up wanting leather (for the gun's sake and my side).
<<No Pictures>>
Milt-Sparks VM2: I heard awesome things about this and bought one through Lightning Arms as they had it in stock and I am woefully impatient when waiting for a new toy. It arrived and within (1) night of the gun sitting holstered in plastic, the retention and draw felt great. The quality was superb and I loved the holster. I wore it for 5 months and began to wish it had just a bit more cant to push the grip ever so slightly more into my back. I always felt like I was slightly printing when wearing a t-shirt and it may have been me being anal (as when standing upright it was fine) but when I leaned or reached, it protruded against the shirt slightly. I want to be clear that this is an awesome holster, and I have considered going back to it for my 1911 and J-Frame. I sold this almost immediately after posting it and it remained in the XDTalk family. I will say, this holster absolutely made it as if I wasn't wearing a rig. It was the most comfortable of the (3) by a solid margin, yet lacked the cant I was after.
At this point I began looking for new holsters and stumbled upon Brommeland Gun Leather.
Brommeland Max-Con 5: I talked to Gary Brommeland about his Max-Con 5 and about the cant angle, which he agreed was just a bit more than that of the VM2. This was in November-December of 2006 just as Brommeland introduced his "Service Grade" holsters which had a bit less boning, but at an excellent price point (it was $80 at the time...I just checked again today and its now $170
). I wanted Cordovan, but had to settle on black as thats all GB makes. It arrived after a 6-week wait and was exactly what I was looking for: more cant, great fit and retention, good comfort. The one thing I wasn't set on his Brommeland "Sciatic Flap" which extends off the bottom of the holster towards my butt. Its supposed to relieve stress, but its the one downside to the holster, IMO as I don't love the extra piece of leather and I don't know that it helps ease my back pain at all. 
Although the MC5 doesn't look as nice as the VM2, its because its not meant to be a show piece (thats where his "presentation grade" comes into play) or as well boned/defined. I agree, however, that the VM2 is damn good looking in comparison.
So, in Summary: the VM2 is the most comfortable, but not enough cant. The MC5 situates the gun perfectly but isn't as comfortable. The CTAC wasn't for me and wasn't going to be a good fit with my lifestyle.
Overall, if not for the new price of the MC5, I would likely go that route again. Instead, I think I will be going with an HBE Com3 as I had always wanted one, yet never pulled the trigger through his ordeals in '06 (huge backlog, etc). He has a commander sized COM3 in stock that is looking mighty tempting.
If anyone has any questions about one of the specific holsters, feel free to ask.
Thanks for reading!
