Whatisit?
 

I've had this holster for some time - it came with a post-WW1 .30 rebuild Luger.
I've always assumed that it is commercialy made, but it is very sturdy and well made, and I'd like to know if it is actually of any known type.
Ignore the pistol - it's just one I was making photos of at the same time, and used for a weight to keep the holster flap open...


Thanks;

mhb - MIke

Holster
 

Your holster is for a Bulgarian P.08 WW2 model.

Thanks!
 

That's good to know.

PRD1 - mhb - MIke

Yep, Bulgarian. I have one like that, with the belt and shoulder strap.
Although the stitching on mine looks a lot less drunk... :rolleyes:

Yup...
 

Yours looks a LOT better than mine - mine looks like it was stitched by a drunk apprentice. I can't tell that mine has been re-stitched, though. I do notice other differences: yours has double belt loops and a strap for the magazine pouch. Do you think mine has been altered in some way(s), or is there significant variation in the Bulgarian holsters?

Thanks;

PRD1 - mhb - MIke

There is a whole bunch of variation in Bulgarian holsters. The holster posted by rolandtg is better constructed than most.
Ron

Roger that...
 

and thanks, Ron.

PRD1 - mhb - MIke

Mine came out of Bulgaria about ten years ago and appeared unissued after long storage although I suspect it's probably post war maybe late 40's or 50's but that's just a guess.

My impression was that Bulgarian holsters are relatively plentiful and inexpensive. Is this actually true?

I bought one at auction online, and it's configured like the one above with straight stitching. Unfortunately, the muzzle of the gun it held wore a slight hole in the face of the toe. Worse yet, I based my $40 bid on a single pic, of the front only. Its belt loops have been removed and some clever technician has sliced through the back and created two vertical slits for a belt!

There are many of them for sale on EBay. They are hard to sell. I believe many of them are newly made. Bill

Here's one more shot of the inside.
That stamp is the only marking on the holster or the belt.
It's undecipherable Cyrillic. Mine is definitely old and fairly well made from decent leather but as I said I think it's post war.

But yeah, there are lot of bad Bulgarian holsters out there. I bought one a few years ago that looked ok in the photos but turned out to be a classic example of an "aged" new repro. It was so bad I practically gave it away to just be rid of it.