Wilson Covert Companion IWB Holster

By Andrew F. Branca

I would urge you to consider Wilson’s Covert Companion for an IWB holster for a 1911-type gun. I’ve used one for a couple of years now, every day, all day, at the office and elsewhere, and never had any squeaking or any other such nonsense. It uses snaps that are quite secure–this is also my range/match holster, and it is subject to vigorous use and thousands of presentations and re-holsterings. Also, unlike many IWB holsters, the snaps are offset from the “body” of the holster, greatly reducing the overall thickness of the holster compared to those (like the “Summer Special” type IWB, which I’ve also used) where the snaps are on top of the body of the holster. The mouth of the holster is not reinforced, but this is not the drawback it may seem. For one thing, the absence of reinforcing material helps keep the overall width of the holster way down (important, particularly for an IWB). In addition, the Covert Companion has a kind of leather flap (integral to the body-side of the holster that extends up several inches beyond the belt-line. This serves to cover the thumb safety, to prevent the rear of the slide from digging into one’s “handles”, and to provide a place where one can gently press the SIDE (NOT THE FRONT–this should not need saying, but obviously one should never angle the muzzle of the gun at one’s body while re-holstering) of the slide to open the holster enough for a smooth entry. I have no trouble re-holstering while keeping my eyes on the threat.

Cosmetically, the holster is just plain ugly–really, it’s little more than a sack-o-leather–but given its intended purpose (concealed carry) who cares? And it serves that purpose very, very well.