Holsters, holsters, and more holsters! Seems to me like I’ve been reviewing holsters more frequently as of late. A quick search in the blog will reveal that this is not really the case. One to two holster reviews per year is the going average and this is only the second holster review this year and the third one in the past twelve months. I do have a feeling holster reviews will increase a bit in frequency on the horizon since I’ve certainly been working with several new ones recently in both defensive carry and competition contexts, but I’m getting off track. Today we are looking at the Speed Beez Kydex revolver holster.
While I don’t have a monetary relationship with Speed Beez nor are they a sponsor of any sort, Speed Beez has become my go to source revolver related gear. They offer a lot of revolver related products. In my opinion, most of those products are geared towards competition, but not all. I don’t always find what I’m looking for from Speed Beez, but it’s a solid place to start. In the case of their Kydex revolver holster, I was in search of a holster that I could use in competitions with the Smith & Wesson Model 66 early in 2023 as a form of practice and preparation for the Rangemaster Master Instructor Development course I completed in April. I already had a custom leather holster ordered, but I couldn’t count on that to arrive on time for either the class or to use the revolver in competition before the class date. In fact, as of writing this post I’m still waiting for that custom leather holster. I was looking for a good quality outside the waistband (OWB) holster, not a craptastic one, with a short lead time and that hopefully wouldn’t break the bank. The Speed Beez Kydex revolver holster fit the bill.
At full price the holster comes in at $87. The elapsed time between order placed and arriving at my door was four days. It really doesn’t get much better than that. I don’t know that every holster ordered from them ships that quickly, but they are batting two for two with orders I’ve placed so far. Of course, your mileage may vary.
The holster arrived in a bag along with another bag containing a few additional screws, t-posts, and belt attachment components which we will get to in shortly. What caught attention was the card that was also in the bag which had Comp-Tac branding and contact information along with some tips to maintain the holster. That took me back to the Speed Beez website where I finally read the description and learned that this particular holster is made for them by Comp-Tac Victory Gear. For those of you who don’t know who Comp-Tac is, they are a company that has been making holsters and accessories for quite some time. They are also pretty active in the competition world and are pretty well regarded by the competition community. Overall this discovery is mostly good news and explains the short lead time on the holster. The not so good news is that one can get an International Holster from Comp-Tac, which is very similar to Speed Beez’ Kydex revolver holster and I will assume comparable in quality (I am assuming here because I don’t have first hand experience with the Comp-Tac holster), for about $13 less.
The holster is made from a single continuous piece of Kydex which is quite thick. According to the product description, the cut out that exposes the rear sight and part of the cylinder should allow for revolver mounted optics. Yes, revolver mounted optics are a thing. No, I haven’t dabbled with revolver mounted optics yet, but I probably will at some point. To be frank, I’m not sold that the cut out on the 3″ K-frame holster pictured above will actually work with a mounted optic without some modification to the holster. However, the other holster I ordered for 6.5″ N-frame appears to be very amiable towards a mounted optic.
The retention can be adjusted by tightening or loosening the tension screws located along the side of the holster opposite to the fold. The passive retention is superb. The revolver snaps into place and is held firmly in the holster. The revolver will simply not come out when the holster with the handgun inserted is held upside down and shaken. The trigger guard is completely covered and protected against interference from external debris.
As mentioned, the holster arrives with three attachments. The first is a belt mount which can be adjusted to accommodate a 1.5″ or 2″ wide belt. The second is a paddle mount. The third is a drop-offset attachment which can be placed in between either the belt or paddle mount and the holster. The hole pattern on the holster is designed so the attachments can be mounted in eight different positions which allows the holster’s cant to be adjusted. While I haven’t tried it myself, I suspect the hole pattern will support direct mounting to some of the popular holster attachments such as the BOSS Hanger or a Tek-Lok. All in all, the holster offers quite a bit of configuration options.
While the marketing material suggests this holster is perfect for competition, concealed carry, field carry, and general use, I think it’s best suited for competition use. There are better options for concealed carry out there such as a high quality inside-the-waistband (IWB) holster or a slim profile OWB holster that would be easier to conceal under lighter outerwear garments. This holster is a bit too bulky for that in my opinion. Field carry? Sure, it will work.
Overall, the Speed Beez Kydex revolver holster is a good holster. Is it perfect? Nope, but it’s a pretty dang good option for a competition holster and quite a value given its price and short lead time. I’d pass on it for defensive carry purposes, but I wouldn’t turn my nose up at it for something to carry a sidearm when out and about hunting, camping, or hiking off the beaten path.