Our duty handgun at the time was a .357 Magnum revolver.
It was a nice combination.
I met the special duty officer in the lobby.
The Bianchi name is a revered one in the law enforcement and shooting worlds. Holsters bearing the name are known to be quality rigs.
As we talked, the suspect emerged from the bar.
We took him down to the ground, pinning him on his back initially.
As we worked to control him, I could feel him tugging on my handgun.
A perfect pairing with the Springfield Armory Hellcat line of pistols, the Bianchi Shenandoah offers a great deal of flexibility for concealed carry.
Fortunately, the Bianchi security system held my revolver in place.
The Chemical Mace did the trick and the suspects gave up.
He was quickly cuffed and taken to jail.
Although the company doesn’t make law enforcement duty holsters anymore, the same durability and practicality is built into its modern CCW rigs.
I carried my revolver in that rig until we switched to .45 ACP pistols two years later.
I am still grateful to John Bianchi for his holster design.
The Bianchi Shenandoah
A number of years passed, and Bianchi was eventually bought out by Safariland.
Here, the author is carrying his Springfield pistol in a Bianchi Model 175. Note how close to the body the rig is able to keep the gun.
And in my opinion, one of Bianchis best concealment holsters is the new Shenandoah OWB/IWB.
The Shenandoah is a hybrid holster design in both construction and function.
First, lets look at construction.
A great deal of care is baked into the design and production of the Shenandoah holsters. The precise molding of the synthetic parts nicely matches the quality leather.
The baseplate and interior parts are made from precision-molded polymer.
The polymer portion contains thePinch Retention gadget, which provides a measure of security.
The baseplate is also where the outer full-grain leather shell is mounted.
A solid gun belt is the foundation for any practical CCW kit. Here you can see the polymer belt loops that will anchor the carry rig to the belt.
The Shenandoah is available in plain black or tan leather.
The Shenandoah also qualifies as a hybrid holster in terms of function.
The Shenandoah comes packaged in its IWB guise.
At my age, there are very few IWB rigs that I find comfortable.
The Shenandoah is equipped with a Pinch Retention gear (PRD) located on the inside of the holster.
This plastic clamp latches onto the trigger guard of the pistol.
The PRD is a passive lock that does not require the push of a latch to release it.
But there was one other modification I wanted to make, and that was to the Hellcat itself.
A Perfect Pairing
The folks at Bianchi put a lot of thought into the Shenandoah design.
It is a perfect mate for the Springfield Armory Hellcat.
The pistol must be cleared from the Shenandoah holster nearly straight up.
Once mounted on a well-constructed gun belt, the polymer belt loops automatically lock the holster in place.
There is no sliding forward or backward.
The combination is extremely easy to conceal under a light covering garment.
For the brief time, I carried the Hellcat in the IWB mode, much the same was true.
The position was very good, and the Hellcats grip could be easily accessed, clearing the Hellcat easily.
This Hellcat is a joy to carry in the Shenandoah holster, even more so with the lightweight 65-gr.
Novx Engagement: Extreme high-performance ammo I keep loaded in the pistols primary magazine.
I experienced zero fatigue when carrying this combo over an eight-hour day.
A better pairing doesnt come to mind.
The MSRP of the Shenandoah is $78.
