Holster with adjustable mounting clip

Abstract

A holster includes a case for holding a hand-gun, and a holster mounting clip or paddle releasably attached to the inner side of the case. The holster can be worn on the hip of a user, without attachment to a belt, by slipping the paddle into the narrow space between the body of the user and the waistband of the user's clothing. The paddle is roatable about its point of attachment to the case so the orientation of the paddle relative to the case can be adjusted for allowing the holster to be worn either conventionally or in a cross-draw mode. The paddle can be removed from the case to allow the user to attach the holster to his belt by threading the belt through a belt loop attached to the same side of the case as the paddle.

Description

BACKGROUND

This invention relates to holsters, and more particularly to a holster having a novel mounting paddle for allowing the holster to be quickly mounted on the waistband of the user's clothing without the need for attaching the holster to a belt.

Holsters worn by off-duty and plain-clothes law enforcement officers are commonly worn relatively high around the officer's waist, usually on his hip, and extremely close to the body to conceal the firearm. Such holsters are ordinarily attached to the officer's belt. In some instances the holster has a loop through which the belt is threaded, and in other instances the holster is an integral part of the belt. It is often inconvenient and time consuming for the officer to put on his holster by applying a belt, especially if the belt must be threaded through belt loops on his trousers. It is also inconvenient and time consuming to remove his belt each time he wants to remove his firearm. Moreover, the conventional belt/holster combination, whether or not the holster is an integral part of the belt, requires the officer to loosen his belt and move it to a different position if he wants to switch his firearm between a conventional mode and a cross-draw mode.

During use of the conventional belt/holster combination the holster sometimes has a substantial amount of movement relative to the belt, which can be a nuisance, and even a danger, if the officer has to draw his firearm at a moment's notice. Furthermore, it is often difficult to completely conceal a firearm carried in a holster which is attached to a belt.

SUMMARY

This invention provides a holster which can be quickly and easily mounted on the waistband of a user's clothing without the need for a belt. As an additional advantage, the holster can quickly be moved between a conventional position and a cross-draw position, or adjusted to any desired angle. When worn, the holster stays extremely close to the body of the user in a fixed position relative to the user's body.

Briefly, the holster includes a case having opposed inner and outer sides, and an elongated, relatively narrow mounting clip attached to the inner side of the case but spaced laterally from the case. The mounting clip is arranged on the case such that the length of the clip extends in a general direction which is substantially parallel to the inner side of the case so the clip can fit into the narrow space between the user's body and the waistband of his clothing to hold the case in a fixed position close to the body of the user.

Thus, the holster can be quickly and easily mounted on or removed from the waistband of the user's clothing simply by slipping the mounting clip into or out of the space inside the waistband. The narrow space between the holster case and the mounting clip accommodates the waistband of the user's clothing whether or not the user is wearing a belt. Preferably, the mounting clip is releasably attached to the holster, and the holster has a belt loop attached to the same side as the mounting clip. Thus, the mounting clip can be removed to allow the user to attach the holster to his belt by threading his belt through the belt loop.

In a preferred form of the invention, the mounting clip includes a non-slip coating covering both its inner and outer faces to form a padded, frictional surface between it and the user's clothing for providing non-slip security against the holster being removed or moving relative to the user's body.

Preferably, an adjustable rotatable connection is provided at the point of attachment between the mounting clip and the holster which allows the holster to be selectively aligned in any desired orientation relative to the mounting clip. Thus, the holster can be worn in a conventional or cross-draw orientation, or any other desired orientation. Preferably, the rotatable connection includes adjustable ratchet means to be releasably engaged for holding the holster in its desired orientation.

These and other aspects of the invention will be more fully understood by referring to the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings.

DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an elevation view, partly broken away, showing the holster and mounting clip combination of this invention;

FIG. 2 is an elevation view showing a belt loop on the holster and means for attaching the mounting clip to the holster;

FIG. 3 is an elevation view, partly broken away, taken on line 3--3 of FIG. 1 and showing the holster mounted on the clothing of a user;

FIG. 4 is an exploded elevation view showing the components of the holster, belt loop, and mounting clip combination;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary elevation view, taken on line 5--5 of FIG. 4, and showing means for holding the mounting clip in a desired orientation relative to the holster; and

FIG. 6 is an elevation view, taken on line 6--6 of FIG. 4, and showing means for attaching the mounting clip to the holster.

DESCRIPTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 through 3, a holster 10 includes a case having opposed inner and outer sides 12 and 14, respectively, stitched together to provide the hollow interior of an open-top receptacle for holding a firearm 16. A retaining strap 18 integral with the outer side of the holster loops tightly over the hammer of the firearm. A snap ring fastener 19 on the strap fastens to a cooperating snap ring fastener 20 on a upright portion 22 of the inner side of the holster.

The detailed construction of the holster is understood best by referring to the exploded view of FIG. 4 in addition to FIGS. 1 through 3. The holster includes an elongated, relatively thin mounting clip or paddle 24 secured to the inner side 12 of the holster. The paddle 24 preferably includes an elongated, relatively thin metal plate 26 preferably made of cold rolled soft maleable steel of 20 gauge thickness. When viewed from its front side, as in FIG. 1, the metal plate has a long horizontal dimension, a relatively short vertical dimension; and is formed into a slightly inverted U-shape with rounded corners, and generally parallel top and bottom edges which are respectively curved convex away from and concave toward the body of the plate. An upwardly extending mounting bracket 28 is formed integrally with an intermediate portion of the top edge of plate 26. As shown best in FIGS. 3 and 4, mounting bracket 28 is bent so it extends inwardly toward the inner side 12 of the holster for attachment to the holster. The detailed description of the means for attaching the bracket 28 to the holster will be described below.

Preferably, the plate 26 includes an outer coating 30 of a deformable padding with a high-friction, non-slip surface. The bracket 28 of the paddle remains exposed above the coated portion of plate 26. The purpose of the coating 30 is to provide a padded, non-slip surface for the inner face 32 and outer face 34 of the paddle. The coating can be made from any of a variety of materials. For example, the coating could be made from a polyvinyl chloride foam, or polyurethane foam. It could also be made by dipping it in latex, or by bonding on a layer of rubber with a suitable adhesive. The non-slip coating is preferably greater in thickness than metal plate 26 so that the coating adds an amount of rigidity to the plate. The coating is about 1/8 inch thick on each side of plate 26, so the entire paddle is slightly greater than 1/4 inch thick.

As shown best in FIG. 3, the body of the paddle 24 is held in a fixed position spaced laterally from the inner side 12 of the holster so the length of the paddle extends substantially parallel to the inner side of the holster and beyond both vertical edges of the holster. A narrow space is formed between the outer face 34 of the paddle and the inner face of the holster. The paddle is releasably attached to the holster by an attachment assembly shown best in FIGS. 3 through 6. The attachment assembly includes a generally semi-elliptical-shaped metal plate 36 (shown best in FIG. 6) embedded in the inner side of the holster. Preferably, the metal plate 36 is made of 0.020 inch thick cold rolled stock steel. The plate includes a square-shaped opening 38 near its top edge to accommodate a square-shaped, internally threaded shank of a T-nut 40. The head of the T-nut 40 preferably is welded to the outer face of the plate 36 to hold the shank of the nut in hole 38. The plate 36 and T-nut 40 are placed against the inner leather face 12 of the holster and held in a fixed position against the holster by a leather belt loop 42 which is applied over the metal plate 36 and stitched to the inner face 12 of the holster.

When the plate 36 is held in place on the holster, the shank of the T-nut 40 extends through an opening 44 in the belt loop and outwardly from the opposite face of the belt loop. A metal ratchet wheel 46 is fitted over the protruding shank of the T-nut. The ratchet wheel has a square opening 47 which allows the wheel to be press-fitted over the shank and flat against the face of the belt loop.

The outer face of bracket 28 has a circular recess 48 approximately the same size as the ratchet wheel 46. The perimeter of the recess is grooved or serrated as will be described in greater detail below. The recess includes a concentric opening 50 to be aligned with opening 47 in the ratchet wheel 46. The threaded shank of a screw 54 fits through the opening 50 in the top of the paddle and is threaded into the internally threaded shank of the T-nut 40. Tightening of the screw against the face of the bracket 28 will bind the serrated outer edges of the ratchet wheel 46 and the recess 48 to hold the paddle 24 in a fixed position relative to the holster. The recess 48 has a series of spaced apart ratchet teeth or serrations 64, preferably the same number as the serrations 60. The radius of the ratchet wheel 46 also is substantially the same as the radius of the recess 48.

In use, the holster of this invention may be worn close to the hip of the user simply by slipping the paddle into the narrow space between the body of the user (represented in phantom lines at 68 in FIG. 3) and the inner side of the waistband of the user's clothing (represented in phantom line at 70 in FIG. 3). The narrow space between the outer side of the paddle and the inner face of the holster accommodates the waistband, whether or not the user is wearing a belt. In the illustration shown in FIG. 3, a belt is shown in phantom line at 72.

Thus, the holster may be worn in a hip-hugging manner and applied quickly and easily without the necessity of using a belt to hold the holster, or threading the belt through belt loops or the like. The holster also may be quickly removed without the necessity of having to remove a belt which holds the holster. The non-slip, padded surface of the paddle makes wearing the holster comfortable, and at the same time holds the holster in a fixed position while being worn. If the user wants to attach the holster to his belt, the paddle can be removed by unthreading the screw 54. The user's belt can then be threaded through the belt loop 42. Moreover, the plate 26 is curved convex away from the inner face of the holster to substantially match the contour of the hip area of the user's body. Since the plate 26 is maleable, it may be bent to adjust its contour to fit the shape of any user. This aids in positioning the holster so that maximum concealment of the holster and firearm can be provided.

As an additional advantage, the paddle can be loosened and rotated about its point of attachment to provide any desired adjustment in the orientation of the paddle relative to the holster. Once the screw 54 is tightened, the cooperating ratchet teeth of the ratchet wheel and recess bind to lock the paddle in a fixed position relative to the holster. There are a large number of the ratchet teeth so that there are a relatively large number of possible points of engagement between the teeth. Preferably, the paddle can be rotated in increments of about 8.degree. to 10.degree. at a time, and then fixed by tightening the screw 54, so that the paddle can be held in a large number of orientations. Thus, the user can wear the holster in practically any desired orientation he wishes, whether it be a conventional orientation, a cross-draw orientation, or any other desired position.

Claims

I claim:

1. A holster comprising a case for holding a firearm or the like, the case having an inner side to be located adjacent the body of a user wearing the holster; an elongated mounting clip attached to the inner side of the case, a portion of the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the inner side of the case; the mounting clip including an elongated metal piece, and an outer layer of a compressible material covering the metal piece and having a generally roughened, frictional outer surface; fastening means for releasably attaching the mounting clip to the case; and a belt loop attached to the inner face of the holster case, the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the belt loop and being of relatively narrow profile and positioned so the length of the mounting clip extends generally parallel to the inner side of the case for fitting into the narrow space between the clothing of the user and the user's body to hold the case in a fixed position adjacent the body of the user.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1 including means for rotatably attaching the mounting clip to the inner side of the case so the mounting clip is rotatable about an axis extending through the inner side of the case; and fastening means for releasably holding the mounting clip in any of a plurality of rotational orientations relative to the case.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2 including cooperating detent means on the mounting clip and the inner side of the case to engage each other and hold the mounting clip in a fixed rotational orientation relative to the case.

4. A holster comprising a case for holding a firearm or the like, the case having an inner side to be located adjacent the body of a user wearing the holster; an elongated mounting clip attached to the inner side of the case, a portion of the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the inner side of the case; the mounting clip being of relatively narrow profile and positioned so the length of the mounting clip extends generally parallel to the inner side of the case for fitting into the narrow space between the clothing of the user and the user's body to hold the case in a fixed position adjacent the body of the user; means for rotatably attaching the mounting clip to the inner side of the case so the mounting clip is rotatable about an axis extending through the inner side of the case; fastening means for releasably holding the mounting clip in any of a plurality of rotational orientations relative to the case, the fastening means including cooperating detent means on the mounting clip and the inner side of the case to engage each other and hold the mounting clip in a fixed rotational orientation relative to the case; and a belt loop attached to the inner face of the holster, the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the belt loop.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4 including fastening means for releasably attaching the mounting clip to the case.

6. Apparatus according to claim 5 in which the cooperating detent means comprise separate ratchet teeth on the mounting clip and the inner side of the case, the ratchet teeth being rotatable relative to each other when the fastening means are in a loosened condition, the ratchet teeth also being adapted to engage each other in a tight frictional fit when the fastening means are tightened.

7. Apparatus according to claim 5 including a metal reinforcing plate attached to the inner side of the case, and means rigidly securing one of the detent means to the reinforcing plate.

8. Apparatus according to claim 7 including an attachment device rigidly secured to the reinforcing plate and extending through an aperture in said one detent means to provide an axis about which the mounting clip rotates, and in which the fastening means are engaged with the attachment device.

9. A holster comprising a case for holding a firearm or the like, the case having an inner side to be located adjacent the body of a user wearing the holster; an elongated mounting clip attached to the inner side of the case, a portion of the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the inner side of the case; fastening means for releasably attaching a portion of the mounting clip to the case; a belt loop attached to the inner side of the case, the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the belt loop; the mounting clip being of relatively narrow profile and positioned so the length of the mounting clip extends generally parallel to the inner side of the case for fitting into the narrow space between the clothing of the user and the user's body to hold the case in a fixed position adjacent the body of the user.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9 in which the mounting clip includes an elongated reinforcing member, and a layer of a compressible material having a frictional outer surface covering the reinforcing member.

11. Apparatus according to claim 10 in which the reinforcing member is embedded in a layer of plastic foam material.

12. Apparatus according to claim 9 including an attachment device having a base portion and a fastener portion, the base portion being sandwiched between the inner side of the case and a portion of the belt loop for holding the attachment device on the case so the fastener portion thereof extends through the belt loop for releasable attachment to a fastener for securing the mounting clip to the inner side of the case.

13. A holster comprising a case for holding a firearm or the like, the case having an inner side to be located adjacent the body of a user wearing the holster; an elongated mounting clip attached to the inner side of the case, a portion of the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the inner side of the case; the mounting clip being of relatively narrow profile and positioned so the length of the mounting clip extends generally parallel to the inner side of the case for fitting into the narrow space between the clothing of the user and the user's body to hold the case in a fixed position adjacent the body of the user; the mounting clip being rotatable about an axis through the inner side of the case; and fastening means for releasably holding the mounting clip in a fixed rotational orientation relative to the case, the fastening means including (a) an attachment device having a base portion rigidly secured to the inner side of the case, and a fastener portion projecting outwardly from the inner side of the case, (b) a first ratchet means affixed to the fastener portion of the attachment device, (c) a cooperating second ratchet means affixed to a portion of the mounting clip, and (d) a fastener extending through the first and second ratchet means for being releasably engaged with the fastener portion of the attachment device, and first and second ratchet means being rotatable relative to each other about the fastener portion of the attachment device when the fastener is in a released condition allowing the mounting clip to rotate relative to the attachment device, the ratchet means also being adapted to engage each other in a tight frictional fit when the fastener is tightened to the attachment device.

14. Apparatus according to claim 13 in which the fastener releasably attaches the mounting clip to the case, and including a belt loop attached to the inner face of the holster, the mounting clip being spaced apart laterally from the belt loop.