HSGI Drop Leg Holster Review

[101matt1]

Introduction

It was a hot day in the Mississippi woods. I was running on a patrol during a team practice for our team, Force Recon Airsoft. While looking around, I noticed my springer pistol on the ground behind me. I went and picked it up, putting it back in my cheap chinese holster, thinking nothing of it. Later on that day, while the other team was practicing ambush (and doing a damn fine job of it), they got us pinned in a dry, sandy trench. While trying to climb out, my holster got rubbed all in the sand, and as a result, my craptastic springer got large amounts of dirt in the barrel, ejection port, and over the grip. Knowing that I had a nice, new WE 1911 Tactical on the way, I started my search for a new holster. It eventually came down to the SafariLand 6004, and the HSGI Drop Leg Holster with Flap. After talking with some people and reading some reviews, it appeared that the 6004 would be a dirt-shovel. So, I went with the HSGI, and have been very pleased.

The Holster Itself

I bought the HSGI Drop Leg Holster from OpTactical for $95 USD with a $5 shipping charge. I got the M9/1911 edition. The delivery was quite speedy, and I was very pleased with the service, as well as the prices. The holster can be found on OpTactical here:

http://www.optactical.com/hispgeindrho.html

It came in a nice USPS postage box, completely loose in the box, in no wrapper. It came with the holster, two single, single stack magazine pouches, and since I ordered it seperately, the flap.



My first impression was very pleasing. The holster was made out of a very rugged material and the buckles were just as tough. Of course, the first thing I did was slide my 1911 in my new piece of gear, and adjust all the straps to fit me, and to fit my gun. The actual part that wraps around your leg is made of a very breathable mesh, so your leg rarely gets any hotter than the rest of you. This mesh is very flexable as well. This holster has never prohibited my movement or hindered my performance. It's quite comfy, and feels very natural.



The holster looks quite nice too, with a large leather patch with the HSGI logo and information on it.



One thing I love about this holster, is that the gun's barrel and slide do not stick out of the bottom like on my previous holster. The thumb safety can be a bit of a *badgeress*, but if you use the flap instead of the thumb safety, then you shouldn't have a problem. If you decide not to get the flap, then the retention strap should hold your pistol in well enough.
Right next to the buckle that fastens it around your leg is a coiled up bungee cord so that the holster will stretch some for the snuggest fit possible-and it really does achive just that. Just tighten the holster snug, and then the bungee will stretch as you move.



Like I was saying, the buckles are very heavy duty. Just by these buckles you can tell that this piece of gear was built to take some major ######, and to last through it all. The buckle that goes around your leg is about 1/2 the size of a 1911 magazine.



The holster, while being made for a M9 or 1911, is very adjustable. The retention strap can be adjusted to any length, and will need to be lengthened if you have the flap. The part that wraps around your leg is very adjustable as well, and can even fit my small leg. You can also adjust the holster height wise. There is a strap on the back that connects to your belt, that attaches to velcro on the back of the holster.



The flap is one heluva thing to try to put on, but I'll get to that later.

Holter gets: 9.5 out of 10.

Magazine Pouches

I am very impressed with the magazine pouches that came with the holster as well. They too, like the holster, feel very strong, and as if they will last. The buckles on these are strong as well, and very easy to open for fast reloads. When you get the holster, they come seperately. You can configure these any way you want, on the holster, or off. There is a good bit of MOLLE/MALICE webbing on the holster for you to mount them. I prefer to have one mounted on the holster, and one on my belt, but how you mount them is purely up to you.



They are very adjustable just like their holster counterpart. I prefer to keep them quite snug on the magazines, so that when I need to reload, I only need to lightly press on the buckle, and it will come undone, for quick and easy access to my magazine.

Magazine Pouches get: 9.5 out of 10.

The Flap

To remedy the problem I had on that day in practice, I decided to buy the flap for the holster as well. This was one of the selling points for me. I thought it would be great to have a flap to go over the grip of my pistol, and I was correct.
The flap, just like the rest of this holster, is made out of some great material, and is very strong. I highly doubt anything debris wise would be able to penetrate this (sticks, rocks, things that you would incounter in a skirmish). It has always kept my gun nice and clean, as well as protected it, when I had to get down and dirty in the middle of a game. Many times I will have to lie down and roll from side to side in order to avoid incoming fire. This helped to protect my sidearm while I was working on getting to proper cover.
Now the only thing bad about this entire holster is getting the flap on and off. Luckly, hopefully, you'll only have to do this once. Getting all the buckles and straps through a two inch long, 1/8 inch wide hole is quite a challenge. Just stay with it, and work each buckle and piece though, piece by piece. Just be sure to get the retention strap through first, or you'll have to undo it all later.
Overall, the flap is still well worth the money and effort, for the protection it offers for your sidearm.





Flap gets: 8 out of 10

Conclusion

Great holster. While this is only my second holster, I love it. It may seem like the flap would prohibit your speed with drawing, I can effectively draw my 1911 in 1.5 seconds. Everything included with this holster is very durable as well as very comfortable. It has been a great holster that has not let me down so far, and won't let me down for a very long time.

Holster overall gets: 9.5 out of 10.

[Bangla_Black]

Great review and nice pics! Might have to get one myself.

Edited October 3, 2007 by Bangla_Black

[Kingmob3]

I'll second this, for woodland this is one of if not the best holsters you can get.

KM

[supportgunner]

Would a 6 inch DE fit in it?

[Kingmob3]

Thats the beauty of this thing! If you order directly through HSGI they will make it for ANY hand gun, from a PPK to a .50AE D'eagle. Hell, they'd probably do a MP7 if you were patient enough and willing to pay a bit more.

KM

[Magsz]

I have mixed feelings about my HSGI holster.

 

Its a very slow holster but it offers unparalelled protection.

 

My issue is that i find a sidearm to be useless in woodland combat which is where this holster shines.

 

In any direct action scenario having a holster like the HSGI holster is a huge hindrance. Draws due to the extremely tight thumb break are very, very slow.

 

Also, the way in which the gun sits against your leg also inhibits a smooth draw with gear on.

 

The safariland holsters are set out from the leg about an inch and a half to two inches which allows your arm to bend at the elbow around your gear in order to draw as fast as possible.

 

Am i bashing the HSGI holster? Hell no, its a fantastic product but i feel as though it protects just a little too well. Even in the woods the regular old airsoft skirmish is more of a direct action mission than a true woodland foray. I personally feel that the levels of protection offered by the HSGI holster for most airsoft players is actually too much.

 

Your mileage may vary, i am only offering my opinions based on over three years of use with my HSGI holster at least four times a month.

[101matt1]

Thanks for the kind comments.

 

Yeah, like I said, the thumb safety can be a *badgeress*. It's wedged down in there so far, that with gloves on, it's near impossible to get to effectively in a firefight. But that's where the flap shines. Not only does it protect your gun, but it covers the entire grip, as well as hamer, so that it holds your gun in nice and snug. The buckle on the flap is very easy to reach, and provides for a quicker draw.

 

But yeah, great holster. While it may be a bit harder to draw due to how close it is to your leg, it's a bit more high speed that way, and will catch on less stuff in the woods. Again, it's a woodland/MOUT holster, not as much for really tight areas, where you would need to get your sidearm out at a moment's notice. Works well for me.

[morb]

nice review... what would you suggest that i use? A serpa or a drop leg holster ?

[101matt1]

That's like saying Basketball or Cricket. What kind of an enviornment do you play in? What is your role? What gun do you use?