IBX Tactical (Concealment Holsters)
A review by an armed professional (term used loosely)
I met Jason (founder) of IBX Tactical on somewhat of a lark. I was looking for a light bearing holster for both my work gun and my off duty gun. I was looking at several different manufacturers from Safariland to G-Code to Raven Concealment and everything in between. I saw a friend post a picture of his IBX Tactical holster on the ever-present Facebook, so I figured I’d give it a shot. I contacted Jason and was genuinely impressed with the following conversation. Jason and I spent about 40 minutes on the phone, only about 10 were allocated to getting to know one another, the rest involved shop talk. Specifically, Jason wanted to know the basics, what side I carried on, about where on that side and what type of sweatguard I wanted. Then Jason started talking colors, cant of the weapon, belt loop size, height of carry, stiffness of the material and the list goes on. The dedication and passion to develop a superior product was evident right away.
From phone call to delivery was about 6 days. Now, before you get all excited, Jason lives in the next town from me, so I opted to pick up everything vs. having it shipped. After it was all over and done with, I had received the two holsters/magazine pouch combos seen in the photo, a Beretta 92 holster in Superflage pattern (dead ringer for Multicam without the pesky royalties), 2 AR magazine pouches in Coyote Brown and 1 in Superflage, a Walther P22 holster and double magazine pouch (something that NO ONE seems to have) and a Glock 19 holster without a light attachment. All of hem were set up for belt loop attachements as those may be more aggravating to get on and off, but they don’t come loose when you need them either. Suffice to say, I had plenty in hand to evaluate quality control and craftsmanship/materials.
I started playing with the Glock 19 holster and AR magazine pouches first. I was using them at a training that I was helping teach and they immediately got a lot of press; a testament to their quality, as the folks I was working with are skeptical of everything. The AR pouches were designed for Magpul brand magazines and had an extra wide opening that made replacing the mags extremely easy. I laid in the dirt and drew the weapon and mags. I put the weapon and the mags back in the holster/pouches dirty and muddy. I intentionally put the weapons and mags in the holsters and pouches and set them up for failure in vehicles with seatbelts pulling on them and seatbacks and doorposts constantly tugging on them. I rolled around. I held the holsters and puches upside down with full weapons and mags in them. I stepped on them while they were empty. No failures. Having said that, I wasn’t trying to break the items, simply testing them in a bad environment. They cleaned up easily enough as they are Kydex and Chicago screws. I never cut me or anything else, the edges were rounded flawlessly.
A short time later, Jason made the light bearing holsters. When I saw a short time means he had to wait for the blue gun to come in. In the meantime he was pumping custom holsters out like a madman. You take him the gun, he makes the holster. The attention to detail on non-mainstream guns and holsters was second to none. Making sure that the guns go in and out smoothly is of the highest priority. Again, craftsmanship was grade-A. Anyway, I digress. The lightbearing holsters were tensioned just right. They held the guns like gloves and released just as easily as non-lightbearing holsters. They sit just right on the hip and have several adjustments that can get the holster right where you want it. Plenty of clearance for oversized/height sights and the holster even switches the light off during reholstering (just in case you were in a rush and forgot).
All in all, the holsters perform their functions flawlessly. Easy to clean when they get dirty. Easy to wear. Easy to get on and off. I had products that had .060 thick Kydex on both sides, .060 Kydex on one side and .080 on the other and some that were .080 on both sides. I like my stuff overbuilt, so the .080 suits me just fine, although I see the value of the .060 in certain situations (less bulk from the weapon, i.e. no light). The products are just that, products. They do however reflect the attention to detail of their maker. I’m big on two things, quality for my hard earned money and customer service. Not only was the product great, Jason was quick to ask for flaws or things that I didn’t like so that he could fix it. Couple that with a “buy back for unsatisfaction/you break it we fix it” guarantee, you can’t go wrong.
About the author:
William B. is a 13 year veteran of two local law enforcement departments. He is currently serving in ERT (SWAT) as a Designated Marksman, and when necessary an Entry Operator. His primary assignment is a detective for the Special Victims Unit. He is a NC LE Firearms Instructor, NC Concealed Carry Instructor, NC Subject Control/Arrest Techniques Instructor, Lead Rifle/Carbine Instructor for his current department and helps with all matters of training there and at local community colleges. He is married, has one child comes from a military family and has been a lifetime student of multiple martial arts.