Banning the SERPA

[LeeC]

Tamara -- If Joe Shooter admits he made a bad purchasing decision, he's out $29.99 and a bit of ribbing from his buddies.

I'm actually out more like $45 from the gun store. They had a reasonable price on the Glock 19 I bought and I wanted some kind of holster to go with it. Guess they mark up their holsters a bit more. I can't remember if the holster actually made it to the range more than once, if at all, before I decided that I didn't like the design. Then I found this thread and got a real education. Yikes!

But I found an interesting alternate use for the SERPA. If you put the paddle on it, it will slide into the shroud under the steering wheel column on most cars rather nicely. I got the idea from this holster. The only problem is that it reverses the draw hand. And of course, you still have to make sure you don't shoot yourself in the foot while manipulating the release on the draw. So, anybody have a left-hand SERPA they want to swap for a right-hand?

But seriously, I might actually use it this way if I felt I needed more ready access to my gun than having to dig it out from my waist or the center island. And it beats throwing it in the trash or giving it to someone else to get hurt with.

[ToddG]

A "car holster" has all the same flaws as any other off-body method of carry plus the obvious issues involved with both access and potential injury in the event of a vehicular collision.

If I need to exit my car quickly and my gun is in a "car holster" instead of on my person, what do I do? I can grab the gun, but then I've got a gun in my hand... and I may be in a place/situation where that would be a bad idea. Or I can bail out of the car and leave the gun behind, which is obviously a bad idea. Or I can stay in the car until I've had a chance to secure the gun on my person, which may be a bad idea or even impossible.

Or I could just choose a carry method that's comfortable when I drive, and always have the gun on me without having to think about it or screw around with it every time I'm in and out of the car.

[LeeC]

Or I could just choose a carry method that's comfortable when I drive, and always have the gun on me without having to think about it or screw around with it every time I'm in and out of the car.

Sounds like another advantage of AIWB over 3-o'clock OWB carry for right-handed folks. BTW, I'm perfecting my slow-motion reholster technique.

I have a special requirement on the three days that I drive into the office, as I can't carry in the Federal building where I work. I've been told by the security officers that the jurisdiction and enforcement for my parking structure is a "gray area" (technically not Federal property, so if we don't see it, there is no problem). So, in order to avoid unholstering my pistol under the scrutiny of the security cameras in the parking deck, I unholster and stow the pistol before leaving the house. While it is not as ideal as having the gun on me, it is better than leaving it at home. I can't use the SERPA in this case anyway because it would leave it in plain sight or require handling in the wrong place.

But your points are valid and appreciated, so my SERPA is headed for the trash can.

Thanks,

Lee

[HeadHunter]

But your points are valid and appreciated, so my SERPA is headed for the trash can.

I am sure it has economic value to someone, if not functional value.

[BillP]

Unfortunately my employer has selected the Serpa Level 3 light bearing system as the approved duty holster for pistol-mounted lights. It's also the mandatory issue for certain units internally. Serpa Level 2 is the agency approved holster for plain clothes personnel but there is more wiggle room there.

I use a Serpa Level daily.

[ToddG]

I use a Serpa Level daily.

Sorry, Bill. We can still be friends...

[will_1400]

From what I saw today, it looks like AF Security Forces are using SERPAs as well...

[seabiscuit]

Haven't seen them at USAFA yet...

[Mike Honcho]

From what I saw today, it looks like AF Security Forces are using SERPAs as well...

They're not supposed to be. The Safariland SLS is the only authorized holster for AFSF. I've seen units buy SERPAs before based on the supposed cool factor or whatever misguided criteria people inevitably use when selecting this holster.

I've heard for the past couple of years there were rumbles about switching to the SERPA, which (along with many other reasons) makes me infinitely glad I'm no longer subject to the massive clusterfuck that is the USAF Security Forces.

[BillP]

Sorry, Bill. We can still be friends...

Phew. I can now sleep well at night.
I wanted to highlight that regardless of the why and how, some of us don't have a say in what we use...or I'd be rocking an ALS holster with an X300.