ALS Heads Up

[John Hearne]

I have been a fan of Safariland's ALS holsters since they were first released. I was an early adopter and have never had any problems with the holster. I had noticed some polishing of my front sight but nothing major. Recently, I had to swap duty guns and started carrying a different P220. I started dry firing daily and quickly noticed that the front sight was wearing quickly.

When I inspected the holster, the problem was easily discerned. Apparently, I have worn the plastic down and exposed the threaded metal insert to direct contact with my front sight.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/ajp3jeh/Gun%20Stuff/IMAG1948_zps81b84833.jpg

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/ajp3jeh/Gun%20Stuff/IMAG1957-1_zps7f482469.jpg

I contacted Safariland and they are sending me a new locking arm. They were very cool about the issue and handled it well.

I would suggest that users of ALS holsters start intermittent inspections of the holsters and to make sure you don't encounter the same problem.

[gringop]

I posted this on TPL earlier, I had the same issue with my G19 with Ameriglo Defoors. The sights handled the bronze OK but once it wore down to the steel bolt, I started seeing damage. Safariland is replacing the locking arm for you, you say.

Hmmm.

Gringop
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee238/gringop/20130717_233524a.jpg
http://i233.photobucket.com/albums/ee238/gringop/20130721_090959a.jpg

[MD7305]

Thanks for the info, my agency is issuing 6360s this week. I will keep this in mind for sure.

[Chuck Haggard]

I believe that perhaps the ALS doohickey should have been built with slightly more trough for the front sight to slide up on the draw. I wrecked one of my Amerilgo front sights in a similar fashion before I noted that this was a wear item and needed PMCS regularly.

[Gary1911A1]

Thanks for the informative post. I have a holster coming and will keep an eye on this part for wear.

[MD7305]

All of the new holsters my PD has received (Glock 6360, 6305, 6378) have a little hump on the locking arm just below the rivet/screw. They also are labeled "2." None of my older (2+ years) ALS holsters have that hump. Maybe it's a revision to help prevent this issue? In any event it's still plastic against sharp metal sights so intend to keep check on it.

[Suvorov]

Just noticed that I'm experiencing the same issue with my SP2022 ALS holster. Probably somewhere around 1500 draw strokes or so and the front sight is beginning to dig into the brass nut.

Are you guys having any luck getting Safariland to send replacement locking arms? If so, do you have a POC?

Thanks to the OP, I wouldn't have known to look for this had I not seen this thread and probably wouldn't have noticed until I had front sight damage.

[John Hearne]

As best I can determine, Safariland has made three different versions of the ALS locking arm. Each change increases the amount of material before you get to the metal insert. The most recent version even has a "ramp" to keep the front sight away. Safariland had no problem sending me a new arm - they just wanted the exact model number as stamped on the holster. They were not immediately available and I had to wait several weeks for mine.

Gen 1 (bottom) and Gen 3 (top) levers.

http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb374/ajp3jeh/Gun%20Stuff/als_levers_zps1cc46f51.jpg (http://s1202.photobucket.com/user/ajp3jeh/media/Gun%20Stuff/als_levers_zps1cc46f51.jpg.html)

[MD7305]

John, our new duty holsters (86 various ALS hoslters in all) received in June have the new style lever. I can already see that some of them are showing a bit of wear. Definently something to keep an eye on and replace over time. Our agency is notorious for running gear too long so I plan to BOLO for this issue.

[John Hearne]

We are swapping style of duty gear at work and I just received a new, ALS-based holster. Safariland is discontinuing the 6320 and 6325 in lieu of the 6390 and 6395 (allows addition of the ALS guard). When I went to try my new holster, I quickly realized that the DG switch on my X300 no longer fit. They have tightened the dimension along the trigger guard of the holster and the rubber cover on the DG switch was worn after just a few insertions. It took some time with the dreaded dremel tool to make enough room for the DG switch to fit which it does now.