Your review? Blackhawk drop leg/thigh SERPA 2 holster

[ElevenBravo]

Looking to save the dime to get one, hiking and stuff... hip holsters are out of the question. I already have the USGI flap holster with drop leg extension... It works, but its... er.. "floppy".

From what I can see the Blackhawk *looks* to be a damn fine holster... however, I dont have the funds to buy on a whim and shelf it if it does not function well, so I wondered who here has one and whats your feedback?

Im really not seeing anything else that even looks like buying. Or, is my enternets not revealing something better?

Ive even entertained the idea of a MOLLE vest with holster... Id welcome feedback on that setup too...

Thanks much,
Andrew

[stabbedmyface]

Honestly, hip holster is better. Over the years tactical research has shown that drop holsters are effective but get in the way when running, climbing and walking. SOC used leg holster for a very long time, but they began moving toward hip holster once again.

[RickOShea]

A lot of trainers and shooting facilities are banning the Serpa holsters:

http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2011/11/foghorn/serpa-holsters-should-be-discontinued/

They cost a good bit more, but I like my Bladetech thigh holsters: http://www.blade-tech.com/RH-WRS-TACTICAL-THIGH-RIG-HOLSTER-pr-1152.html

[Sheepdog-Z]

A lot of trainers and shooting facilities are banning the Serpa holsters:

http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2011/11/foghorn/serpa-holsters-should-be-discontinued/

They cost a good bit more, but I like my Bladetech thigh holsters: http://www.blade-tech.com/RH-WRS-TACTICAL-THIGH-RIG-HOLSTER-pr-1152.html

I agree 100%. I bought 2-3 serpa holsters for my various duty and off-duty firearms and although they work fine as a backup for OWB carry when a minimalist level of retention is necessary, I would not carry it if I had any other reasonable choice. Bladetech is a great manufacturer.

Travis Haley had a RTI G-Code holster at a class I took recently and I was impressed with the durability and how modular it is. I ordered up one for my XD for a relatively cheap $50, and an extra base part for my plate carrier. Might we worth checking out -- similar price point to Blackhawk.

http://www.tacticalholsters.com/mm5/merchant.mvc

[ElevenBravo]

That dude did a dum dum.

At any rate, very interesting.

I am at this time looking at the BladeTech thigh holster and the 5.11 thumb drive holster.

Thanks for the info..
Andrew

[Haji]

Take a look at a Safariland ALS on the 6004-DFA. The DFA allows you to get the shroud up higher onto your hip where it's 875% more stable. If you're running the holster to where the strap is just above your knee, you're running it WAY too low.

[Unorthodox]

Take a look at a Safariland ALS on the 6004-DFA. The DFA allows you to get the shroud up higher onto your hip where it's 875% more stable. If you're running the holster to where the strap is just above your knee, you're running it WAY too low.

I coulda swore it was 914.3% more stable

Not much love anywhere for the Serpa. And as for clearing pack waist belts 'n whatnot...you want that holster only as low as you need to clear gear.

[Haji]

Not much love anywhere for the Serpa.

That's only because it's prone to breakage and snapping the trigger finger into the trigger guard if there's any tension on the lever during the draw.

[Michael2007]

I love my serpa thigh rig for outdoorsy shit. It's stable an comfortable. I run it high though. That being said a safari land 6004 would be my preference for duty use if allowed as well as outdoors if I could swing it in the funding.

[fisterkev]

I had a Serpa for about a year when I was in Iraq. Never had any problems with it. Practice the draw and your trigger finger goes right where it is supposed to be on the gun.

When I got back I got one for my personally owned Beretta, but a belt holster this time. Same performance, no problems.

I guess they are hit or miss on QC, as I know others have had failures with them, though mine worked just fine, and the first one certainly took a beating.

I have had Bladetech holsters as well and like them too. Had a Safariland 6004 as well and though I am not a big fan of the deployment system on them, they do work and with practice drawing can become very smooth.

[Blacksmith]

I carried a Serpa on three tours every day. Can't complain about it any as it always worked and never broke my finger.

Thigh holster I tried a couple of times and settled for just hating it. It either flopped around or cut off my circulation. It would get caught on the vehicle doors and was harder to reach in a variety of positions as opposed to a chest rig.

Also hated the quick disconnect for Serpas for it's sheer size and bulk. I ended up with a hip Serpa for casual wear and chest rig for armored wear.

[Big B]

I would strongly recomend not buying a SERPA.

I'm going to quote myself from this AAR I wrote affter attending a Magpul course....

It was while doing urban prone that I had a major gear fail. I was using a BLACKHAWK SERPA holster for my Glock 21sf. After a couple of reps of urban prone there was enough sand in the side button on my holster to cause it to fail. I was completely unable to get my Glock out of my holster. At our next break I had to flush it out with water in order to make it usable again. Now I have heard of this happening before with SERPAs, but there is a lot of BS on the net so up until this point I was still on the fence about whether or not to trade out my SERPAs. After this I will be getting rid of my BLACKHAWK SERPAs and buying Safariland SLS and ALS holsters. I STRONGLY recommend avoiding SERPA holsters! There was a second LEO in the class who also had his SERPA fail in the same manner, so I wasn’t alone.

[Unorthodox]

Had a Safariland 6004 as well and though I am not a big fan of the deployment system on them

Its why I'm a big fan of the Safariland ALS holsters without a hood. Thumb break that locks automatically after holstering? Yes please.

[Blacksmith]

Last tour when guys started falling out of love with the Serpa a bunch of them went and Safari Land with the push button hood release. This was ironic since they were merely replacing one mechanism for another. The replacement being slower and less reliable than the original. Without the hood I think they are fine holsters.

[Philpot]

Huh. I've never had a problem with my blackhawk with my finger slipping inside the trigger guard, and certainly nothing close to an ND when I do draw practice. But considering it was such a great deal, I think I can afford grabbing another holster... using the potential safety risk as an excuse

[Sheepdog-Z]

I've run into a few SWAT teams carrying the serpa drop rig set up and to be honest it seems bulky and swingy, as others have mentioned.

When looking for an autolocking thumb drive style holster, don't forget to consider the RTI offerings, specifically the XST for the thumb drive:
http://www.tacticalholsters.com/product ... T-RTI.html

I had the chance to eval these at a recent hard use training and was surprised to find the locking mechanism was quite secure across platforms -- unlike the safariland bastardized version I'd seen before. RTI stuff is pretty inexpensive too, considering their quality. I prefer the "tactical fuzz" on their gear.

Beauty of the RTI system is being able to get the cheap hangers for your MOLLE gear, your drop leg platform or duty gear, as well as extra hangers that can turn your favorite holster into a modular piece to swap around. I was concerned about it being rock solid, but not so much after checking them out. Ordered me up a set for my raid vest.

Oh, and you can bolt the RTI hangers to under your desk, sidewall of your car, etc.

[ElevenBravo]

I've run into a few SWAT teams carrying the serpa drop rig set up and to be honest it seems bulky and swingy, as others have mentioned.

I went on a woods ruck hump with my UM85 drop holster last week, I ended up putting it on an LBE belt and ditching the whole leg holster idea... I think no matter what I buy, the leg setup is going to be the same, plus or minus a few marks on different areas, but floppy and bulky is pretty much going to stay the same IMHO.

Andrew

[GunnerMax]

My Safariland 6004 holster shipped today. I like the bail and the sturdy safariland platform. I dislike the Serpa.

[jdbl14]

I have a fobus paddle holster that I absolutely love. It holds my pistol very securely without any mechanism but friction and a bit of a "ridge" that fits into the trigger guard. I have seen some complaints about rubbing on the frame and scratching the finish due to the friction, but I don't care how my pistol looks, just that it functions. The pull out of the fobus is a bit stiff, but not enough to make it a big issue.

[Vicarious_Lee]

I'm bringing a Serpa to MilCopp....or maybe I'm not now.

[RickOShea]

I have a fobus paddle holster that I absolutely love. It holds my pistol very securely without any mechanism but friction and a bit of a "ridge" that fits into the trigger guard. I have seen some complaints about rubbing on the frame and scratching the finish due to the friction, but I don't care how my pistol looks, just that it functions. The pull out of the fobus is a bit stiff, but not enough to make it a big issue.

Why a lot of people don't use Fobus paddle holsters:

[ElevenBravo]

Why a lot of people don't use Fobus paddle holsters

Yeah, amen. Not knocking the poster that loves/likes his... but my opinion is... waste of postal service gas to deliver it to you...

Andrew

[Haji]

Fobus and Blackhawk are both injection molded plastic, not Kydex. Safariland isn't Kydex, either; they use a proprietary material called Safarilaminate.

[jehicks87]

RTI G-Code holster

/thread