As part of our continuing series ramping up and training for the IDPA Nationals in September, we have to take a hard look at the gear you’re going to need for shooting Stock Service Revolver. Obviously, you’ll need a gun, but one of the most critical components is also the most frequently overlooked. I’d tell you to guess while I wait, but that doesn’t work so well in a text format, so I’ll just tell you: speedloader carriers.
Semi-auto shooters have a wide array of magazine pouches to choose from, but when you look at the rounder view of things, the options are a lot slimmer. Leaving moonclip carriers out for the moment, we’re just going to worry about speedloader holders. Right now, there are three IDPA legal options on the market that I’m aware of.
- Blade-Tech Speedloader Holder (pictured): This model is available in either a double or single holder, and I have both models. It’s also the only Blade-Tech product I don’t really like all that well, but we’ll get into that in a second.
- North Mountain (4wheelguns.com) IDPA Compliant holder: This is the only speedloader holder on the list I’ve not personally used…yet.
- Ready Tactical Speedloader Holder (scroll down on the linked page): This is a fairly popular model for dedicated SSR shooters.
Now, let’s go through each of those, starting with the Blade-Tech holder. I normally love Blade-Tech, because I think they make great products. In fact, they’re doing the holsters for the GP100s I’ll be shooting in SSR because I do think they make the best kydex revolver holster on the market right now. However, I don’t feel like the same level of attention to detail went into the creation of the speedloader holder, and here’s why. See those prongs on the bottom of it? That’s where the belt goes through to hold the speedloader in place. You know what else goes in there? The pointy end of the bullets, in the speedloader. It’s really easy for this unit to shift around on the belt, and then next thing you know, your speedloader is sitting on the deck, laughing at you. I think if this unit had those same pouches but used a tek-lok to secure to the belt it’d be perfect.
The Ready Tactical holders would have been my second choice, but they suffer from an attachment issue as well, which is namely that the clips they use to attach to the belt break. Repeated on and off from a competition belt wears those little guys down and eventually they snap, just like any other piece of plastic that’s been constantly flexed and bent. Until recently though, they were the best option for speedloader holders, and you just had accept that they’d eventually wear out and fall to bits.
The reason I say “until recently” about the speedloader holders is last year when I stopped shooting revolvers for a while, North Mountain didn’t have their IDPA Speedloader holder on the market. They do now, and I can say that without even having used it, it’s probably the best. Normally, I’d never say that about a product that I’ve not used, but here’s the rub: I’ve used a ton of other NM revolver products. I have their Gen 1 ICORE speedloader holder, I have several of their IDPA legal moonclip holders, and they’re all excellent products. They use a tek-lok to attach to the belt, they fully enclose the body of the speedloader, and there’s no part on the bottom that will interfere with the bullets. Simple, secure, and sturdy. It’s everything you want your gear to be.
I have a great relationship with the guys at Blade-Tech, and as I’ve said I think their holsters and magazine pouches are top notch. There’s a reason my revolver holster says Blade-Tech on it. But for my speedloader holders, I’ve been so impressed with all of North Mountain’s other products that I’m going to pay retail for their IDPA speedloader holders. That’s the strongest recommendation I can make.
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