Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Holster question - forward cant or neutral cant

Forward cant or neutral cant, for a holster to be used in the field. ie packing around a 44 mag Ruger single action in the field. Advantages to one over the other?

I prefer the FBI cant no matter if it's for a revolver or semi-auto. I have a Sparks 200AW for a 4" N-frame with a straight drop, and it's fine. But FBI cant is easier to draw for me.

You should rename yourself "chickenwing". Draw from your goofy FBI cant holster in front of a mirror and you'll understand. You also ain't very fast on the draw.

For a field holster when carrying a long gun, I prefer cross-draw. Otherwise I like a forward cant on a concealed gun, neutral on an exposed one.

I prefer a strong side straight drop for the field.

Forward cant for 5" or less. Straight drop for over 5".

While TAK didn't sugar coat things much in his delivery, he's also correct. The ONLY practical reason I see for an "FBI" cant, is concealing a handgun that's too large to conceal well with a straight drop due to the handgun's grip poking out the back of the wearer's clothing.

I MUCH prefer a straight drop, and detest the chicken wing draw (and mandatory forward lean), but I do have a "pancake" holster with a strong forward cant that hides a Glock 21 crazy well. It's a conscious trade-off for concealment's sake. While on the subject, it's a Kramer Belt Scabbard in horse. For field use, or while concealing anything smaller than that huge chunk of a pistol, I'll go straight drop. A second exception is when carrying IWB, behind the my right hip (at around 3:30-4:00). A slight cant is helpful there since the gun isn't lined up right on my hip.

Where are the Montana pics.........dikhead? Hopefully one day you'll shoot yourself in the mirror, purty boy.

I assume the OP's Ruger SA .44 has a 7 1/2" barrel. I hate carrying long barreled revolvers on the strong side due to the awkward drawstroke, especially when wearing a coat. A crossdraw holster works much better for me, giving easy access to the revolver with no interference with a long gun if I'm carrying one. So I vote for a neutral cant holster that can work as a crossdraw.

Thanks for the replies. For the record, the pistol is a 5-1/2" super blackhawk.

Straight drop for that one.

For that revolver - I would tend to fully agree..

All my revolvers are straight drop. Fully half of my semi-autos are straight drop.. Only three with forward cant and yes, the 'chickenwing' thing is a valid point, but man - they really hide things well..

I've been considering a cross-draw of some kind. I like the idea but at the same time they can be truly uncomfy when sitting down.. It all boils down to body shape/size, firearm to be used and who makes the holster..

Tom,
I just ordered a pair of Tom Threepersons holsters (and a belt) from EPS for my Flattop .44spls. For the 4 5/8" plow handle I ordered a straight drop (neutral cant), but for the 5.5" Bisley I ordered the standard (for EPS) forward cant. It was another compromise, but I went with the cant for the Bisley because I envision sometimes carrying it on my pants belt behind my hip and under my coat while carrying a rifle. I'll eventually order a 200AW for that purpose, but for now the new holsters need to get things done, and some forward cant increases the versatility a little. When worn right on the hip the draw does feel wrong to me, and works best if worn at 4-4:30. I've already got the same setup for a larger .45 Bisley Vaquero, so I knew what I was ordering this time and did it anyway. Hope this doesn't confuse you more.

Forward cant or cross draw is the only way to go for me as I have a very short torso and short arms. The only neutral cant that works would be a drop loop Hollywood western holster. I might be able to get by with a neutral cant holster for the 1911 if the holster is not worn to high. Size of person does matter.