Several years ago, I reviewed a holster made by El Paso Leather (now known as Nevada Gun Leather). Not long thereafter, I decided to test and review another product from their inventory, and their pistol caddies looked to be practical items for hunters and shooters. I opted for one of their leather caddies with deluxe interior.

These "caddies" are basically nice pistol cases. Standard interior is padded with wool, while deluxe interior is lined with nylon and includes a pocket on one side for a pistol (a Colt Commander fits just right), and the other side has two magazine pockets and a velcro-flapped accessory pocket, for fairly flat accessories.


The pockets and liner of the deluxe model are well-made of black Cordura nylon, and padding is added between the external leather and liner. The deluxe model also features a large one-inch wide leather carry loop about seven inches long.

I ordered mine via Email, and specified "deluxe model, cape buffalo." Some of these leather caddies come embossed with different African wildlife scenes, and I thought I was ordering one with a picture of a cape buffalo on it. Imagine my surprise when I received it and found that it was made of cape buffalo hide, with no embossing!

I was quite pleased; the buffalo hide is more attractive (to my conservative tastes) and won't show wear as readily as a finely embossed leather surface might. The buffalo hide is dark brown and has an interesting texture, and it has a tough, almost rubbery feel to it. With a little leather conditioner, I imagine the close-grained buffalo hide would be fairly water-resistant, too.

Be forewarned, though, that the light-colored binding around the edges is not leather, but rather a cloth-backed vinyl-type material which will probably not wear quite as well as leather would.

Zippers are often the weak link on any gun case; the older metal-toothed zippers tend to lose teeth or corrode, making opening and closing the case difficult or impossible, and some nylon zippers are just too wimpy. Not so with this pistol caddy - mine sports the biggest zipper I've ever seen on a gun case, even bigger than most sleeping bag zippers, and it's non-corrosive (nylon?).

There's not a whole lot of room to spare in these, so don't expect it to be a carry-all case. Mine accommodates a semi-auto pistol nicely, along with two spare magazines and a few low-profile items in the accessory pocket (nothing very large will fit, as this pocket is opposite the pistol's grip). This cuts down on slop: your gun and mags won't go sliding about within the case. Some folks will love this feature, and others may not. I like it fine, myself, and my gun can still be easily removed in a hurry if I need it.

What's to like:

- Nifty water buffalo hide.
- Mostly quality materials: leather and Cordura nylon.
- Strong, even stitching, reinforced at stress points.
- Well-built throughout.
- Snug fit; gun and mags stay put until removed.
- Carry loop is handy.
- Big tough zipper.

What's not to like:

- Edges bound in imitation leather, rather than the real thing.
- Not much extra room for goodies.

Obviously I couldn't find much to dislike about it. This is a well-made and well-designed pistol case that should last for many years.

- Russ Chastain

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