Review of GALCO VHS Vertical Shoulder Holster System for small frame revolvers

The Galco VHS is a modular concept; by changing the holster and ammo storage you can switch the harness between handgun models and sizes.  I've owned this revolver rig only since November of 2014 but have attempted to shake it down during representative slices of all weather.  Unlike the Jackass Rig and the Miami Classic, all of Galco's tanker style VHS line lack the option for a holster-side tie-down; that can kinda really suck for some of us.  <- EDIT: 04/04/2020 THE VHS HOLSTERS NOW HAVE THE HOLSTER SIDE TIE-DOWN OPTION.  There is an option for installing an offside tie-down, but there are no provisions for anchoring any of the VHS holsters.  With minor exceptions, drawing a handgun from a VHS holster requires two hands or pinning the holster to your side using the weak-side arm.  Yes, I consider the lack of a holster tie-down option a downside to the Galco VHS.  However, I did find that certain revolvers listed for use with Galco's V118 holster have no need for a holster-side tie-down; drawing them from the holster is slick, quick, free, and easy.

Further, using this shoulder rig with no tie-down whatsoever is a problem for me due to the mismatch in weight from one side to the other; I used the two black non-Galco ammo pouches (with cartridges, of course) to add weight to the offside.  While an untied rig is ok for tossing on for a walk around the block or a drive to the deli, I needed it tied down when performing any solid physical activity.  The VHS offside tie-down is via an attachement on the ammo pouch (or via an optional harness attachment if you want to eliminate the ammo pouch).

The small frame revolver used in most of the photos of this review is the S&W Model 640-1 .357 Magnum.

As shown above, the VHS has the widest shoulder straps of the four common Galco shoulder rigs.  I own two of the Galco VHS rigs, one for full-frame 1911s and one for small frame revolvers.  I also own a Galco Jackass Rig equipped for use with 1911s.

Wide shoulder straps help keep loads comfy, but getting the straps set correctly takes time and patience.  In the photo above (without using the offside tie-down), the widest portion of the straps have shifted forward on my shoulders after some outdoor activities.  Wide shoulder straps during summer weather also makes it difficult to remain cool; this rig contributes to profuse perspiration.  When I remove this harness at the end of a summer day there are always wide sweat stains on my teeshirt where the harness was sitting.

As mentioned earlier, I used the two black non-Galco ammo pouches to add weight to the offside to provide a more comfortable balance when not using the offside tie-down.  There are 24-rounds total on speed strips between the black and brown ammo pouches.  Whether that is too much or too little to carry for personal defense is for each of us to decide, but in this case I used the extra 12-rounds strictly for ballast.

This ammo dump-pouch I believe is intended for .38 Special loose rounds; it takes a bit of effort, but the pouch can accommodate the use of speed strips.  I am under the impression that this pouch was never intended for use with .357 cartridges, but I could be wrong.  EDIT:  A reader left us a tip in the comments section on how better to fit cartridges on the speed strips into the pouch

It took some doing to stretch the leather more than I already had, but this is how the .38 caliber cartridges on speed strips will be carried from here forward.

(Above:  Pouch with loose .357 Magnum cartridges)

I mentioned earlier that I was unsure if this Galco pouch was intended for .357 cartridges; well, I have since found that the pouch readily holds LOOSE .357 magnum cartridges but I cannot YET get the leather to stretch enough to hold those cartridges on a speed strip.  If Galco intended that pouch for use with anything other than LOOSE .38 Special cartridges I never found any document on the internet that said so.

The black ammo pouches are not from Galco (they are from Del Fatti Leather).  They work on the straps of most any shoulder rig (such as on this often-worn Ken Null City Slicker rig) as well as they do on a gun belt.

The V118 holster worked fine with J-Frames sporting different grips, including the LG-405 Crimson Trace on my S&W Model 638 Bodyguard.  There is a minor problem when holstering the Ruger SP101 with the standard factory grips, but there are no problems drawing the SP101 from the holster one handed.

The Galco V118 holster for the VHS system is said to fit the following revolvers:

Charter Arms Undercover (2" bbl)

Colt Agent Revolver

Colt Cobra

Colt Detective Special (2" bbl)

Ruger LCR

Ruger SP101 (2.25" bbl)

Smith & Wesson J Frame 340PD

Smith & Wesson J Frame 36 (2" bbl)

Smith & Wesson J Frame 442

Smith & Wesson J Frame 60 (2.125" bbl) .357 .38

Smith & Wesson J Frame 640 Cent (2.125" bbl) .357

Smith & Wesson J Frame 640 Cent (2.125" bbl) .38

Smith & Wesson J Frame 649 Bodyguard (2" bbl)

Smith & Wesson J Frame 638 Bodyguard (2" bbl)
Taurus 605 (2" bbl)

Taurus 85 (2" bbl)

Taurus 85 Titanium (2" bbl)

Taurus 85CH (2" bbl)

NOTE:  It has been my experience that once a "one size fits many" holster is broken-in for a larger handgun it often (but not always) becomes unsuitable for use with the smaller handguns listed.  EDIT 04/04/2020: I HAVE PUT PLENTY OF MILES ON THIS OLD HOLSTER WITH MANY OF THE DIFFERENT SIZE REVOLVERS LISTED ABOVE; STRETCHING AND WEAR IS NOT A PROBLEM.  


NOTE:  The Galco V118 holster is truly a no compromise ambidextrous holster; it works equally well on either side; it is a very creative design.

My Ruger SP101 and all of my J-Frame revolvers easily draw (tilt) from the Galco V118 holster.  My D-Frame Colt revolvers, with their "girthier" cylinders (the Agent and the Detective Special), require two hands to draw from this holster.  Could I do some additional break-in work on the holster so it would work better with the D-Frame Colts?  Maybe, but I am not certain that the holster would then have enough retention for use with the J-Frames.  It would be best to have separate holsters; one for D-Frames and another for J-Frames.  For now (and probably forever) I will limit use of this rig to the J-Frames and the Ruger SP101.  EDIT 3/6/2016:  It was just a matter of breaking in the holster with the D-Frame Colts; they work fine now.

Although I found it was possible to carry this rig without it, I found it to be more comfortable and more practical to use WITH the offside tie-down (BTW, you have to purchase the tie-down separately, it is NOT INCLUDED with the purchase of the rig).  With the tie-down in use, I no longer needed the extra ammo pouches to try and balance the weight of the rig so I removed them (for this photo, I swapped the boot grip adorned S&W Performance Center .38 Special 640 No Dash for the S&W Model 640-1 .357 Magnum).

I believe this type of rig is designed primarily for use over a shirt and under jacket, which is how I wore it in cooler weather.  During the warm weather months I used it mostly over a teeshirt and under an oversized regular shirt.

It is my conclusion that this rig has far too much leather for carrying such small handguns; I may switch the holster and ammo carrier to a Galco harness that has thinner shoulder straps.  Overall, I am happy with this GALCO rig but I do not (at least not yet) consider it to be an essential part of my carry collection. It was an extravagant impulse purchase for me; it is a pricey rig but IMHO it is equal to the quality received.  I'll continue to work with it from time to time but it just does not (for my tastes, especially during summer months) equal the comfort and convenience of the uber lightweight Ken Null SMZ and SKR rigs.

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EDIT 02/15/2020:  BELOW is where I am now with this rig ...

That's the same old holster (Galco has evolved the newer models of that holster to include a tie-down but I opted to stay with this one for now).  I changed everything else to suit my tastes and needs; all components except the ammo pouch were purchased from Galco.  

A) Miami Classic 1'' harness (cooler carry than the 2.75'' original harness but anecdotally not quite as comfortable for bearing weight as are the 1.5'' harnesses)

B) Offside tie-down replaced the ammo dump-pouch and tie-down.

That alloy frame 6-round Colt Agent will now be a reasonably comfortable carry on the longest days (perhaps not during the very hottest days) of the year.  The heavier 5-round .357 Magnum frames that are sometimes too much to bear with the SKR and SMZ rigs now have a tolerable alternative carry.  Life is good.

Yep, this rig is now more to my liking; your tastes and needs may differ.

DISCLAIMER: As always at this blog site, this product review is simply good old-fashioned  campfire talk; this is not an opinion on what you should or should not purchase or what you should use.  What does or does not work for me could be many country miles away from what does or does not work for you.  All products I review for this blog are purchased at retail price by me.  I do not accept payment, discounts, "freebies," products on loan, demon alcohol, or sexual favors for doing any review.  My holsters are as much as a hobby for me as my guns are.