Finally, an easy and smart way to mount a holster under the dashboard of your vehicle!
The product development folks at Alien Gear Holsters have another interesting product that interacts with the Cloak Mod OWB Holster (previous reviewed here). The Cloak Dock is a holster mount that allows you to attach your handgun holstered in the Cloak Mod OWB to whatever surface you desire. The biggest advantage I see with the Cloak Dock is you could conceal it at home or your workplace (if permitted) and have a car holster for the commute in between.
Thats right, you can mount your holster to the wall, under the desk, beside the nightstand, to the vehicle console, inside the safe door, or even in the shower! This lets you leave the gun in the Cloak Mod holster when its not being carried for convenient concealed access, yet detach and take the holster and gun with your on the go. AG generously saves you a trip to the hardware store by including an bunch of different screws and even a drill bit so you can mount the Dock onto a plastic, wood, drywall or sheet metal.
The template makes it super easy to mount the dock wherever you want, and the screws, anchors and drill bit included mean no trips to the hardware store.
Once you've picked where you want to mount the dock, use the template guide to drill the 4 pilot holes using the supplied 1/8" drill bit. AG recommends using a 1/2" bit for drywall installation (not included) due to the drywall anchors. If you are mounting into sheet metal, You can skip drilling pilot holes since the sheet metal screws are self-driving. Once you've mounted the two mounting brackets correctly, you have to decide whether you want the gun handle facing in or out, which is dictated by whether the alien head shaped paddle or the holster shell itself is facing outward.
Made your choice? Then you mount the docking bar between the two brackets with the correct label facing out (paddle side OR shell side) and the point of the triangular shape pointing down. Don't worry, the paddle will only snap over the docking bar one way, so its hard to screw it up. It's whether you have the bar reversed or not between the brackets that makes the difference. Depth adjustment is another design consideration that was implemented into the Cloak Dock, allowing you to tuck your gun closer up against the mounting surface, or protrude out farther for better access. Oh, and if you are wondering if your holster's cant will affect how it docks, don't worry... the dock has enough room for both forward and reverse cant, with one small limitation - at it's shallowest depth setting with the docking bar shell side out, the dock won't release a canted holster.
The docking bar's depth can be adjusted for less or more space between the gun and the wall.
Using the docking system is simple enough, just slide the paddle attachment of the Cloak Mod holster onto the center docking bar until the belt ledge of the paddle snaps over the bar. It should be as easy as a single fluid motion, with the added mass of the gun in the holster. The lockup is okay... not completely rock solid though. When its time to head out and you need to take the holster with you, just pull up from behind the paddle and pull the holster off the mount. It is possible to torque the gun's grip causing the the paddle to bend outward and freeing the locking ledge from the docking bar without having the manipulate the paddle yourself, but you would never do this unintentionally when drawing the gun from the holster. The draw is easy and clean, no different then if you had the holster on your belt.
In my small Toyota pickup, the best place to mount the dock is right under the steering wheel between my legs. Its out of sight incase I have to leave the Cloak Mod and my gun in the vehicle.
This is a great addition for gun owners wanting a solution for concealing inside of their vehicle, whether mounted under the steering column, alongside or even inside the center console. You could also purchase additional docks to place in the office or at home, even inside your gun safe's door for easy storage keeping the gun and holster together. When its time to head out and you need to take the holster with you, just pull up from behind the paddle and pull the holster off the mount.
FIREARMS INSIDER REVIEWS – 8 KEY POINTS
Claim to Fame: Attach your Cloak Mod OWB Holster to a variety of surfaces with the all-new Cloak Dock Holster Mount.
Target Market: Cloak Mod OWB owners wanting to "dock" their firearm in a vehicle, office, etc.
FNBs (Features & Benefits of this product):
- Interfaces with Cloak Mod Holster
- Constructed of glass filled nylon
- Mounts to plastic, wood, drywall or sheet metal
- Docking Bar configurable for left or right hand orientation
- Accommodates both forward and reverse cant of Cloak Mod Holster
- Comes with template for drilling holes
- 30-Day Test Drive and Forever Warranty.
What other aesthetic options or finishes are available?: Black only
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING?:
"I been wanting something like this for a while and I am glad alien gear came out with this. I had recently purchased the OWB holster but I never really used it since I conceal carry, and for only 15 bucks I was able to convert it into a bedside holster. Now I can quickly grab my gun in an emergency which is only 20 inches form me now mounted on the side of a book shelf. Alien gear is amazing, I order it only 3 days ago and it arrived already. They keep coming up with awesome products and continue to sell them at ridiculously low prices" - Website Review
"This is a need to own product. (must own cloak mod 3.0 holster) I just received the cloak dock in the mail, I was extremely excited to get it installed but Where?? Well being In Arizona and having a ccw permit, I decided to set it up in my 2014 Nissan Frontier. With very little room to the center consle it wasn't difficult to install,. I still have enough leg room and it's at the ready. With it's versatility you can mount to plastic, wood or thin metal. Also you can switch the sides if you want the paddle or shell facing out, Highly recommend this product" - Website Review
PRICE POINT:
- MSRP: $14.88 or bundle with a Cloak Mod OWB Holster for $57.88 (save $4.88)
I NEED IT NOW! AVAILABILITY:
OUR RATING:
Pros:
- Adaptable in either padded in/out configuration for left/right handed.
- Easy to remove holster to switch to carry
- Includes 1/8 drill bit, nice!
Cons:
- If your holster paddle is setup for a cant, it won't release when shell side out if the dock is set to the its shallowest depth
- The locking interface could be more secure
