7378 7TS GLOCK compatibility issue...

[Det1397]

An interesting development reference our department issued Safariland 7378 7TS- A detective in my squad carries an issued Gen 4 G27 and got his 7378 issued the other day. I add that his holster is the correct (short) model for the G27, as my department issues both G23s and G27s along with the corresponding 7378.

First thing this morning he tells me, is that he thinks that the holster sucks!
He tells me that he can't get the pistol in or out of the holster w/o effort.. I take a look and quickly realize that in fact the G27 is difficult to seat and remove from the holster! Very difficult.. I then tried his G27 in my holster (for the G23) and I experienced the same issue. Same goes with my partner's holster (also for a G23...), even though both accommodate our G23s perfectly.

A close inspection reveals that the G27 appeared to be catching on the holster along the front bottom edge of the trigger guard. We then tried both 23s in his holster, and although they could not lock in, both fit the holster fine!

What is apparent is that his holster is in spec but his G27 may not be. To the naked eye, his pistol appears fine, but it is apparently thicker or fatter in the area of the front edge of the trigger guard. I find this easy to accept, as the frame is a mold and variations in frame dimensions (albeit small variations...) must exist.

I'll compare frames with a micrometer and update my findings tomorrow.

The department range and armorer staff have been notified and will be examining the pistol and holster tomorrow also.

[Larry T]

The 27 doesn't have an accessory rail and is a hair wider through the dust cover and will not fit a 23 7TS holster. I found this out when I bought a 7378 for my 17 and then found that my 26 wouldn't fit properly. I could force the 26 in, but it clearly wouldn't glide in without a lot of friction.

[Artemas2]

I have a couple light bearing G17/22 7TSs now, one of them is a serious Monday holster. Difficult to get anything in or out without a fight. It got slightly easier after wiping everything down with a silicon cloth, but even then the function was nowhere near my other holsters.

[TQP]

The 27 doesn't have an accessory rail and is a hair wider through the dust cover and will not fit a 23 7TS holster. I found this out when I bought a 7378 for my 17 and then found that my 26 wouldn't fit properly. I could force the 26 in, but it clearly wouldn't glide in without a lot of friction.

Interestingly enough my 90-s era 19 (pre-rail) fits in mine fine. My 26 has to be forced in.I think this is the first G19 holster I've had that doesn't play nice with the 26.

[Larry T]

Interestingly enough my 90-s era 19 (pre-rail) fits in mine fine. My 26 has to be forced in.I think this is the first G19 holster I've had that doesn't play nice with the 26.

Me too. It's not a huge deal for me because any reason I'd have for carrying in the 7378 (open carry with retention) I wouldn't care about concealment so I'd be carrying my 17.

[Det1397]

After reading psalms144.1 post on Safariland's CS fail, just an update to my original post...

After several sit downs with Command Staff and Union reps, there was an "agreement" that although current issued holsters for the Gen4 G23 were GTG, the 7378 for the Gen4 G27 were clearly exhibiting very tight fit tolerances, which in turn was a safety issue...
That led to a meeting with the CO of our Firearms Training Section, who is a switched on sort of guy. Safariland's line was that the holster fit was in spec, but this determination was made via phone and email, with no "hands on" testing by Safariland.
My recommendation to the CO was: 1) Contact the Safariland rep(s) and insist that they come here and see the issue in person. 2) Let Safariland know that the department is willing to author a TeleType and send it out CONUS, warning other departments and agencies of a potential safety issue.
The meeting led to a decision to immediately stop issuing the holsters for the 27s and to attempt #1 before #2 becomes necessary.

And FWIW, the CO said that Safariland previewed at SHOT a new Generation 2 version of the 7TS holster...? With built in tension adjustment(s)? Interesting...

[Artemas2]

Good to hear about the gen 2s. I have three 17/22 sized 7Ts holsters. Two of them are great, but the third is a very tight fit and difficult to draw with any of my glocks.

[Gio]

I have recently modified several safariland holsters (including a 7TS) to fit gen5 Glocks. The material is relatively easy to remove with a dremel if you can identify the problem areas. I haven't lost any functionality on the holsters with older Glocks.