At Shot Show 2019 in February, Olight launched the PL-Mini Valkyrie 2. This light was different than the original PL-Mini Valkyrie in a number of ways, but one of the most important for holster fitment is that the light was redesigned to be shorter and fit better on subcompact pistols.
This change in form factor made the light both shorter, and slightly increased the height of the light.
Note that the original PL-Mini is longer than the PL-Mini 2
As a result, holsters built for a pistol with one of the PL-Mini versions will not work with the same pistol but the other PL-Mini version. You cannot expect a holster for a Glock 19 with the PL-Mini Valkyrie 2 to fit the same Glock 19 with a PL-Mini Valkyrie (and vice-versa).
Note that the PL-Mini 2 is taller (hangs lower on the rail)_ than the original PL-Mini
So… how do you determine which light you have? The Pl-Mini Valkrie 2 has a bit “2” on the right side of the light. That will help you ensure that the holster you order is fit for your light.
I’m asked multiple times a day whether a M2 or M6 holster design can be created for a particular pistol & light combination. Yes, I can, but it’s not so simple. Read on…
Let’s say you have your favorite pistol, and put the latest light on it. You now have it outfitted exactly the way you want, and you want to carry it. Your community and your family should be safer now that you are better equipped to defend them. But for whatever reason, you cannot find the holster you need for it. Instead of buying an ill-fitting nylon holster, you search the Internet for a suitable holster. You found the Werkz M6 holster, and thought that the features fit your needs. The M6 provides a great feeling holster with adjustable retention, supports optics & tall sights & threaded barrels standard, provides a concealment claw, and has modular accessories so you can carry it the way you want. Looking at the availability, you then saw that the holster wasn’t available for your particular combination. So how do you get the M6 for your pistol?
Normal Holster Manufacturing
First, let’s step back to how holsters are made. Many manufacturers use pistol replicas to build their holsters. Werkz does this too for their custom holsters. It provides good quality and features for a huge variety of pistols (Werkz is currently at 220+) and lights (Werkz currently has over 80 lights & lasers). However, this method involves a bunch of individual hand work, for everything from preparing the mold to shaping the holster. It results in variation and slightly looser tolerances. It’s a great option, but we are unable to build the same type of holsters this way as we can with the M6.
The M6 Holster is Different
The M6 (and predecessor M-series holsters) is built in an entirely different manner. First, we must have the pistol and light on hand, both for design and for testing of each holster. We have an expanding library of pistols & accessories, but this requires that we buy the latest and greatest. We 3d scan the pistol and light combination using precision equipment. This scan is then brought into CAD where we bring 7 years of holster design experience (and counting!) into a space where we can precisely control the retention points, hole spacing and location, holster cut & shape, as well as hundreds of design details that you’ll never notice. Once we complete the design, we turn it into machine code (“CAM”), then cut our molds on our CNC machine. 2 molds are required for each holster design. We then build a test holster to make sure our mold design was correct. We then test (again, with the actual pistol). Occasionally, we have to repeat the design and mold cutting part of the process when we do not have the retention correct or if the pistol hangs up on a part of the holster. This process takes days, and due to other activities in the shop, may take longer than that.
M6 holster is CAD designed for precision fit and an outstanding feature set.
The investment in time and materials required for M6 holsters is significant. Therefore, we must prioritize what we build. We maintain a list of our backlog / queue toward the bottom of the M6 page. This list changes from time to time, as we complete designs, add new designs to the queue, and as we rearrange based upon your feedback or our understanding of the market.
We need Your Feedback
The best way for us to know what you want is for you to tell us. We try to guess based upon our experience, but every time you tell us what you want, it helps us reassess our priorities. So here is what to do.
Whether or not your holster is listed on the M6 page, please do let us know what you want. Please include pistol, light/laser/accessory, and whether you want it built ambidextrous or in a left or right hand configuration. (Left & Right hand configurations do not have accessory holes facing the body and have a tall sweat shield covering part of the slide.)
We Will Respond
We will respond one of 3 ways.
The design is coming up soon. We may or may not be able to give an ETA for the design, but the best way to know is to either call, email, or check back to the M6 page to see if the design is complete & listed. WE DO NOT accept pre-orders for products.
The design is on the list, but further down. We cannot provide an ETA for it. Due to the multitude of responsibilities in the shop, some months allow us to get 1-2 designs a week completed, some months we get no designs completed. The best advice is to watch the page and see if your desired combination continues rising up. As always, you may choose to purchase a custom holster which likely has your combination listed.
We cannot add your design to the list at this time. Due to the demands listed above, plus the large design queue we have, we cannot justify adding your desired combination to the list at this time. As always, you may choose to purchase a custom holster which likely has your combination listed.
Group Buys / Department Orders
Orders of 15 or more designs will be considered for quicker production. Larger order sizes offset our initial costs significantly enough to warrant moving up the queue. Even “less popular” or “oddball” combinations can be considered. So if you’re part of a forum for a particular pistol (Steyr comes to mind) and you all want a holster for a particular pistol and light, contact us to see if we can move forward with a design for you. Werkz has a long history of providing carry options for less popular pistols or lights.
So Please Let Us Know!
We need your feedback, so please let us know what you would like to see the M6 holster built for.
While not everyone wants or needs a concealment claw, let’s take a look at how they work, and how much extra concealment they provide.
What is a concealment claw, anyway?
Here is a typical concealment claw, pictured on a Werkz M6 holster. It attaches to the adjustable retention points and extends under the trigger guard.
A concealment claw is a device that is attached to or integrated with a holster. It is typically oriented so that it pushes against the belt, helping rotate the pistol into the body slightly. The idea is that by rotating the butt of the pistol inward, print is reduced. Claws come in many varieties, some attached under the trigger guard, some over the trigger guard, and some (like the picture above) attaching below the trigger guard and coming up.
Are Claws Effective?
The left side shows no concealment claw, and the right side with a concealment claw. Note that you can see more of the side of the pistol with the concealment claw.
As is shown in the picture above, claws can achieve their intended goal. The claw does help rotate the pistol into the body. You can see in the picture on the right that the claw (barely visible above the pantline) is pushing against the belt. This results in the butt of the pistol sitting closer to the body. The pictures are taken from the same angle, and more of the side of the Glock on the right is visible. Note that both holsters are similar designs, but the one on the right has the claw.
Claws perform a similar function whether the pistol is carried on the hip, or whether the pistol is carried in the appendix position. In both cases, print may be reduced.
In addition to helping reduce print, many claws are “grippy” and help keep the holster in place when drawing.
For myself, while I am not very concerned about print, I do find that the increased stability that the claw provides helps make my concealed carry just a little bit more comfortable. And for that reason alone, I do prefer a claw on my holsters.
One final note: I do not consider a claw mandatory. There are a lot of people carrying on the hip or appendix positions without a claw with no concealability or comfort issues. However, it is an option to consider for your next concealed carry holster purchase.
Werkz Holsters with a Concealment Claw
At Werkz, we have been attaching claws to our holsters for years. It started with the Bisect 2.0, originally using machined piece of Kydex. Now, the Bisect 2.0 has evolved to use a more refined carbon-fiber reinforced 3d printed part. The Bisect 2.0 features an attached magazine carrier, and is available for over 200 pistols and over 70 different light/laser combinations.
We then introduced the M5 holster with a slightly different machined Kydex solution, and it too has evolved to use a carbon-fiber reinforced 3d printed part. The M5 is a quick ship holster, and available in fewer configurations.
Werkz M6 holster for a pistol with a light. In this case, the Glock 19 (gen3, gen4, gen5) with the Olight PL-Mini Valkyrie.
With the advent of strong carbon-fiber reinforced 3d printed parts, plus advanced manufacturing techniques, we have launched the M6 holster, pictured above. The M6 contains more modularity features, allowing you to switch out the single clip for dual tuckable hooks, or a single hook plus single strut strap for ultimate holster retention. Plus (of course), these feature a claw, even on the ambidextrous versions. These holsters feature adjustable retention, threaded barrel drop through capability, support for slide milled optics, and a precision fit. Order yours today!
We need your feedback!
The M6 is currently available in limited configurations. What pistol / light / laser combination do you want us to build for? Let us know at products@werkz.com. We cannot guarantee we will build for your combination, but we will absolutely consider and prioritize your feedback along with everyone else’s!
