Berns-Martin

Berns-Martin is the name given to a brand of split-front holster made only for a revolver. This type of holster was later referred to as a "Break Front" during the 1970s with the introduction of such a model by the Bianchi Holster Co.

Development and functionality

The Berns-Martin holster was first developed in the 1930s by J.E. Berns of the Navy Rifle Team, who, assigned to shore duty in Alaska, decided he wanted to carry a long-barrelled gun for hunting and invented a holster that allowed him to carry such a revolver high on his hip and out of the Alaskan snow. The leather work was left to Berns' Navy teammate Martin, and hence the name "Berns-Martin" for the company. The holster was patented by John Emmett Berns in 1935 as 2,001,321 for a Revolver Holster. When used in a hip holster, the revolver is drawn by pushing down (slightly) on the revolver grip while rocking the top of the revolver forward through the open front of the holster. While in the holster, a leather covered steel spring holds the revolver cylinder (and the rest of the revolver) securely in the holster, regardless of what physical gyrations the wearer might go through. No less an authority than Jeff Cooper stated that the Berns-Martin holster "keeps the pistol secure enough for anything up to parachute jumping, and yet permit drawing without releasing any latch or strap beforehand."