I recently went holster shopping for my 1911 and found this: http://www.safariland.com/DutyGear/product.aspx?pid=6378 the Safariland ALS.
I'm generally not a fan of moulded plastic holsters but this one was special enough for me to take a second look at. At less than $60, it's a good price to try it out.
Construction: The main part is made of one piece that overlaps on the body side. Inside there is a polymer block that the trigger gard rests on, a locking mechanism that catches the ejection port, and a faux suede liner to protect the finish of the gun. The liner is well adheard to the inside and I can't lift it with my fingers. The polymer block is held inplace by a screw and nut that goes all the way through the holster. The intenal lock is a single piece that is screwed in place and seems a bit overbuilt. My particular holster came with two options, a high ride belt loops adapter and a paddle. Both securly screw on with three screws. I'm impressed how they reinforced any place there would be a weakness.
Construction 5/5
Comfort: I have tried both attachment options and the both work out well. I prefer the belt loops over the paddle but both were reasonably comfortable over several hours of wear. There are several other mounting options and the system is versital enough and simple enough I can see experimenting with home made options too.
Comfort 4/5
Practacality: I have a full size 1911 that I use in the one I have. The gun slides in easily, locks firmly, and slides out easily when the lock release is pressed. There's about an 1/8th inch of up and down play and about 2 degrees of lateral play. The gun doesn't rattle around and it slides nicely on the faux suede liner. The lock is firm but not overly stiff and is released with the strong had thumb when drawing. Using it is so close to a thumb break holster that you could easily switch between the two without thinking about it. My only beef with this is that I feel the thumb lever should be textured to prevent slipping when drawing.
Practacality: 4/5
Looks: Bottom line is I don't like the looks of plastic holsters. It's on par with the Bladetech and Blackhawk holsters in the asthetics department. The model line comes in a variety of finishes including gloss, matt, carbon fibre weave, and others. It looks tactical without going over the top so I'll wear it without shame. I feel it could be a lot better if they'd wrap it in cow hide.
Looks: 1/5 (very biased, sorry)
Over all, I'd reccomend that anyone looking for a self retaining holster spend a little time looking at this one. They make it for a variety of common semiauto handgun models from many of the popular manufacturers.
I'm generally not a fan of moulded plastic holsters but this one was special enough for me to take a second look at. At less than $60, it's a good price to try it out.
Construction: The main part is made of one piece that overlaps on the body side. Inside there is a polymer block that the trigger gard rests on, a locking mechanism that catches the ejection port, and a faux suede liner to protect the finish of the gun. The liner is well adheard to the inside and I can't lift it with my fingers. The polymer block is held inplace by a screw and nut that goes all the way through the holster. The intenal lock is a single piece that is screwed in place and seems a bit overbuilt. My particular holster came with two options, a high ride belt loops adapter and a paddle. Both securly screw on with three screws. I'm impressed how they reinforced any place there would be a weakness.
Construction 5/5
Comfort: I have tried both attachment options and the both work out well. I prefer the belt loops over the paddle but both were reasonably comfortable over several hours of wear. There are several other mounting options and the system is versital enough and simple enough I can see experimenting with home made options too.
Comfort 4/5
Practacality: I have a full size 1911 that I use in the one I have. The gun slides in easily, locks firmly, and slides out easily when the lock release is pressed. There's about an 1/8th inch of up and down play and about 2 degrees of lateral play. The gun doesn't rattle around and it slides nicely on the faux suede liner. The lock is firm but not overly stiff and is released with the strong had thumb when drawing. Using it is so close to a thumb break holster that you could easily switch between the two without thinking about it. My only beef with this is that I feel the thumb lever should be textured to prevent slipping when drawing.
Practacality: 4/5
Looks: Bottom line is I don't like the looks of plastic holsters. It's on par with the Bladetech and Blackhawk holsters in the asthetics department. The model line comes in a variety of finishes including gloss, matt, carbon fibre weave, and others. It looks tactical without going over the top so I'll wear it without shame. I feel it could be a lot better if they'd wrap it in cow hide.
Looks: 1/5 (very biased, sorry)
Over all, I'd reccomend that anyone looking for a self retaining holster spend a little time looking at this one. They make it for a variety of common semiauto handgun models from many of the popular manufacturers.
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