The items in front are a bunch of zip ties, not a light. The ratchets are stored that way for security more than anything (God forbid I drop my Snap-On flex-head Dual-80 in the middle of Michigan International Speedway’s infield), and they’re plenty quick on the draw. Easy to thread back once the webbing loosens up a bit, but tricky when the rig’s brand-new.

Part of the rationale for a leg rig was theft prevention. Detroit natives are paranoid to begin with, and there were a few hundred tool-savvy gearheads at this event, so I didn’t want to risk setting down a tool bag and inevitably turning my back.

You’re actually wrong about the photo; it’s not staged See how the water bottle’s still moving? This is about ten percent taken from the bottom-right corner of an otherwise interesting photo. Professional photographers have some ridiculously high-resolution gear these days.

You might want to try ballistic (ripstop) nylon or duck cloth next time you make a custom holster. Both are more workable than leather, and pretty darn close to just as durable.

Good point about the loading. Maybe I should get two.

I will confess to stitching up a leather holster to carry an adjustable wrench on my belt (an idea I ripped off from a toolmonger post) but that’s the extent of it.

Lex: Load that rig up too much and you’ll be running in circles.

If you have access to a PX, or a military surplus store with a large selection of pouches and carriers on hand, you can take your items down there and see what fits what. If not, mail order can be hit or miss.

Personally, I’m impressed with the range of more general-purpose nylon tool-toting gear available from big box retailers and would try those first (unless there were some very specific need). Most pouches for consumer items can be slid on a wide belt, but won’t attach to PALS webbing. Also, many PALS-compatible pouches are made so they can also be attached to a belt.