European holster maker Falco is known outside of the U.S. for its handsome treatments and an extensive library of holster options, but American gun owners’ patience was always tested with long lead times to manufacture and import their products. Ranging from holsters with a thumbreak to shoulder rigs, pancake and tuckable designs, Falco introduced its Timeless series in March 2021 to reduce wait time to four weeks. G&A evaluated its popular IWB leather holster for the Glock 19, model A604. (It arrived in 3 weeks.) $75 (Photo courtesy of Guns & Ammo)
September 29, 2021
By Eric R. Poole
On the surface, the name “Falco ” might suggest a new holster brand that is attempting to immitate “Galco.” However, the similarity of name is a coincidence. Falco’s history started in 1989, and the name refers to the company’s business of sewing simple leather holsters and falconry gloves for the European market. (Note the falcon image in the logo, also.) Using both European- and American-made materials, Falco’s early days began with one man in his garage, a forestry teacher with a passion for hunting and shooting. At age 14, CEO Robert Kovác joined his father in sewing holsters. Kovác now leads the company.
Initially, Falco only made a few models of holsters using cow leather. Some of the original holsters are still relevant and are included among their best-selling products. Today, Falco offers 2,900 designs (including holsters for optics), one of the largest model varieties of any holster company.
Falco holsters are manufactured in central Slovakia with the “one-person, one-holster” approach to craftsmanship. These holsters are made for a specific handgun from the start to the end of its production by one artisan.
Falco offers two lines of holsters. The Premium Holsters are customizable and built from scratch. You can choose the leather, add leather underlay, laser engraving, and select from seven colors of leather, nine colors of edging and 11 colors of stitching. Production and delivery of these holsters typically require two months of patience.
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Due to growing demand, Falco decided to launch a second lineup for 2021: Timeless Holsters. This line consists of the most requested designs in two color combinations with limited options. The limited variability means that Falco has reduced delivery to a four-week guarantee.
Falco’s leather holsters are crafted from natural, 1/8-inch thick Italian leather. The raw leather is inspected, and only the best is selected. Designs are shaped from laser-cutting machines and then wet molded, hand tanned, oiled and lacquered. The best part about opening a package from Falco is the aromatic leather fragrance. It’s intoxicating.
Falco’s F100 spare magazine pouch can be worn IWB using the spring-steel clip or OWB using the sewn belt loop on the opposite side. These can be ordered for either a 1 ½- or 2-inch-wide belt. $30 (Photo courtesy of Guns & Ammo) In 2001, Falco Holsters added nylon products and tactical equipment to expand their market, and later Kydex. Falco’s nylon and Kydex duty holsters generated a positive awareness among Europe’s law enforcement and military.
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The Magazine Pouch Falco also manufactures other elements of a carry rig including spare magazine pouches and gun belts. Among the most popular accessories is the F100 series. Starting at $30 for single-magazine pouches, these can be purchased with either an open top or a snap-button flap. They are very slim, too, which is unexpected given the pouches’ feature list. There are mag pouches with retention screws, and those with the option of being worn inside the waistband (IWB) and outside the waistband (OWB). These pouches utilize a sewn belt loop for OWB carry, and on the opposite side is a riveted-and-sewn, spring-steel belt clip that affords users the option of wearing the pouch IWB. Few magazine pouches exist with the combination of IWB/OWB carry options, sewn reinforcements for the belt loop and clip, plus an adjustable tension screw, especially at this price.
Spare magazine pouches can be ordered for 1 ½- or 2-inch belt widths, with or without a leather underlay, and dyed in one of seven colors ranging from black and brown to green and blue. There are even 11 options for a colored leather edging. For an extra $4, Falco will even emboss up to four initials to the front or rear.
The F100 pouch for double-stack magazines was ordered in a traditional brown color with black stitching. Workmanship was great, and the OWB belt loop did not add unwanted bulk. For IWB carry, the spring-steel clip proved reassuring. I highly recommend this pouch for its versatility, adjustable retention and all-day comfort.
The Gun Belt A carry rig isn’t complete without a functional belt that can support the weight of a handgun. Drawing any gun from a holster puts unusual stress on a belt, especially if it fits sloppily within a pants’ belt loops. As the gun is drawn, the holster travels with it on the belt until the loop or clip hits the bottom of the belt. If the belt is undersized, thin or worn loosely, a holster can interfere with the draw by twisting or bending around the belt before the gun can seperate from it. This is remedied by measuring the diameter of your pant’s loop and wearing a belt that is sized to fit closely to the width within. The 1 ½-inch-wide belt is a popular choice, but if your pants’ loops measure 2 inches, it’s best to change belts and wear one that fills the gap better for maximum support.
Falco’s Sturdy Elegant Classic belt features two layers of leather, stitched reinforcement and a single-tongue buckle. The leather was 0.18-inch thick and finished with edge dressing. $55 (Photo courtesy of Guns & Ammo) A thick or rigid belt can improve your drawstroke, too. Certain styles of pants, such as dress slacks, have loops that are not large enough to accept a thick or two-layer leather belt. For that, Falco offers a single-ply belt made of a 1/8th-inch strap of leather. For jeans and hard-use pants, a thicker, two-ply leather belt, which is better suited for carrying the weight of a gun, is also offered. Both styles of belt are shipped complete with a single-tongue buckle.
I advocate two-layer leather belts for concealed carry, and I purchase pants that accept them. I ordered Falco’s Sturdy Elegant belt that perfectly matched the color of the accompanying holster and spare magazine pouch. Well made, it arrived several sizes too long. (Length is the reason most belts are returned for any company, but usually for being small.) I adapted and wore the rig, but the two-ply system featured two thin straps (0.18-inch wide) and didn’t offer the rigidity that I desire in a gun belt.
30-Day Carry (Photo courtesy of Guns & Ammo) For this review, I selected a Timeless IWB open-top holster for a Glock 19 having a new Leupold DP-Micro sight mounted to the slide. It fit the holster as if Falco made it for my pistol, and there was no interference with the optic. No break-in period was required. It featured a spring-steel belt clip, the same as the spare mag pouch’s clip, which is riveted and sewn for excellent reinforcement. This holster never moved along my waist when worn with Falco’s gun belt, and it never let go during draws at the range. Retention is strictly friction fit, which means tension is not adjustable. The holster’s lining is a rough-grain finish that does not impede insertion or the upstroke.
Falco’s IWB holster earned my recommendation for its comfort, durability and security. The best part is that these can be ordered to fit many unusual handguns.
Draw-to-fire time is the average of five clean draws producing an A-zone hit on a stationary target positioned at 21 feet.
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