Shoulder Holster With A Belt Loop At The Bottom Question

[Order and Chaos]

I've been practicing making different styles of holsters and decided to try using the shoulder harness pattern from the Stohman holster pattern book. When I pieced everything together to make a shoulder holster for my Ruger Redhawk .41 magnum with a 7.25" barrel, the muzzle end of the holster was just below my belt. That got me wondering, would it be useful or a hinderance to have a belt loop at the bottom of the holster to keep things from flopping around under my jacket? Is there a way to make the belt loop removeable (a line 24 snap) that would also allow it to swivel, would it need an elastic section in the belt loop to allow more flex and stretch?

Using the same shoulder harness pattern for a friend's FNX in .45acp, his holster looks like it will stop about 1-2" above his belt line. If you do put a belt loop at the bottom, what do you consider to be a reasonable distance to decide if it does or does not need a loop at the bottom?

[glockanator]

Every shoulder rig I have seen always has some type of retention strap from the bottom of the holster to the belt.

[Order and Chaos]

The reason I'm asking is I remember the shoulder holster my uncle wore. He was a plainsclothes detective and it didn't have any kind of strap going to the belt, I think his duty pistol was a 5 shot Chief Special, and I don't recall any of his fellow detectives having their holsters hooked to their belts.

[Haystacker]

I have made several holsters using the same pattern. I do not use a belt strap with the Stohlman pattern.

However, the big revolvers may require one. Couple of different ways to add the straps. Be sure and leave enough slack in the tie down strap for movement like sitting etc.

[Dwight]

Like pickles on a cheeseburger, . . . some like em, . . . some don't. With a big revolver like that, . . . my preference would be to have one on there in case I decided to use it.

For a 1911 or smaller, . . . I don't use them, . . . but then again, . . . I've seen and made them both ways.

May God bless,

Dwight