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Blue Steel & Gunleather: A Practical Guide to Holsters
8vo size.
214 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1978
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 7, 2016
This book is just crammed with information... but it's somehow lacking in organization.
Bianchi, a premier holster designer and manufacturer and a "fast draw" artist himself, conclusively proves that all the stories about 19th century gunfighters are more or less a crock, because the holsters they used made it flat-out impossible for them to make any sort of a Marshal Dillon-style quick draw.
I learned all sorts of stuff about how leather and leather goods are made, that will help me repair and maintain my own stuff because now I know how it went together in the first place (and with what components, right down to the types of thread used). I found out about the special stitches made by 100 year old leather sewing machines he used, that are better than anything made today.
I think I can now go through one of those huge piles of used holsters at a gun show and actually spot something I can use. I've also got a newfound respect for the effort that went into the Bianchi holsters I own - Bianchi's workmanship is nearly unequalled.
Cops in particular ought to read this book - Bianchi was a cop for years and spent a lot of effort designing holsters for police use. There are fascinating anecdotes scattered throughout about various lawmen and their gun leather. (Bianchi, and any number of the cops he knew who were competitive shooters using modern equipment designed by him, could easily have outdrawn and outshot Wyatt Earp, John Wesley Hardin, Wild Bill Hickock, or any of the other legendary gunfighters.) Bianchi personally collected antique pistols and holsters and owned a number of actual rigs used by various gunfighters going back to the 19th century.
All of that said though, I had a *hell* of a time piecing together all the threads of information Bianchi imparts. I got the impression the book was assembled out of a bunch of articles he'd written and then edited together by his collaborator. I found myself jumping back and forth, rereading things, looking for references, wishing there was an index... It's to be expected, though, since being a master craftsman and an expert shooter, he probably was not a literary type, - but in that case his editor probably should have done a better job of organizing the material.
Well worth reading, regardless, for any red-blooded gun nut (and invaluable for anyone who has to carry a pistol and may have to use it in a hurry).
Bianchi, a premier holster designer and manufacturer and a "fast draw" artist himself, conclusively proves that all the stories about 19th century gunfighters are more or less a crock, because the holsters they used made it flat-out impossible for them to make any sort of a Marshal Dillon-style quick draw.
I learned all sorts of stuff about how leather and leather goods are made, that will help me repair and maintain my own stuff because now I know how it went together in the first place (and with what components, right down to the types of thread used). I found out about the special stitches made by 100 year old leather sewing machines he used, that are better than anything made today.
I think I can now go through one of those huge piles of used holsters at a gun show and actually spot something I can use. I've also got a newfound respect for the effort that went into the Bianchi holsters I own - Bianchi's workmanship is nearly unequalled.
Cops in particular ought to read this book - Bianchi was a cop for years and spent a lot of effort designing holsters for police use. There are fascinating anecdotes scattered throughout about various lawmen and their gun leather. (Bianchi, and any number of the cops he knew who were competitive shooters using modern equipment designed by him, could easily have outdrawn and outshot Wyatt Earp, John Wesley Hardin, Wild Bill Hickock, or any of the other legendary gunfighters.) Bianchi personally collected antique pistols and holsters and owned a number of actual rigs used by various gunfighters going back to the 19th century.
All of that said though, I had a *hell* of a time piecing together all the threads of information Bianchi imparts. I got the impression the book was assembled out of a bunch of articles he'd written and then edited together by his collaborator. I found myself jumping back and forth, rereading things, looking for references, wishing there was an index... It's to be expected, though, since being a master craftsman and an expert shooter, he probably was not a literary type, - but in that case his editor probably should have done a better job of organizing the material.
Well worth reading, regardless, for any red-blooded gun nut (and invaluable for anyone who has to carry a pistol and may have to use it in a hurry).
Displaying 1 of 1 review