The 6304RDS holster covers guns from Glock, Springfield Armory, SIG, Smith and Wesson, Shadow Systems, Staccato, and Wilson. It’s designed for the most modern handguns that wear optics and lights, specifically duty-sized lights and optics. For me, this holster plays home to a Glock 17 Gen 4 MOS with a Vortex Defender-ST and an Inforce WILD2 weapon light.
This great big holster is designed for something other than concealment. The only way to conceal something like this is to wear a trench coat, but you have other problems if that’s your solution to the concealed carry. This is a duty rig. It’s THE duty rig of all duty rigs.
Many Safariland holsters can play dual roles for duty, competition, and other non-concealed tasks, but this rig and its features are designed for the duty user. Sure, you can use it for other tasks, but where it excels is duty, tactical, and similar roles. Just as you wouldn’t drive your kids around in a race car or drag race with an SUV, you can try, but it doesn’t work well.
What Makes the 6304RDS A Duty Rig?
The most obvious answer comes from me simply saying look at it! If you know holsters, you’ll quickly deduce that this isn’t anything but a tactical holster. That’s not a good enough explanation, is it? Let’s dig into what makes this the Cadillac of duty rigs.
First and foremost, it’s all about retention. This is a Level 3 rig by Safariland standards. This means the gun can’t be taken by anyone but the shooter. The Safariland system sets the standard for retention holsters.
Second, the QLS fork lets the holster attach and detach quickly to and from duty belts. The rig also features things like the red dot hood and the ALS and SLS hood, providing another level of protection from takes and swipes.
The 6304RDS series uses the tough Safarilaminate material molded around the gun, leaving room for optics and lights as needed. A suede lining inside the holster protects my Glock 17 slide. I’ve heard folks joke about protecting a finish as if you’re babying the gun. In reality, those folks never carried a gun for a living. Without a finish, your gun rusts, and a rusting gun becomes an inefficient gun.
Breaking Down the Basics Of The 6304RDS
Let’s explore some of the features I mentioned above. My goal is for you to walk away an expert in the 6304RDS holster and know whether it’s the right one for you.
Security
Before we get into anything fancy, let’s talk about the basic construction of a holster. The first feature we need is trigger protection and security. The molding of the Safarilaminate ensures the trigger remains adequately protected and cannot be accessed or manipulated when it’s in the holster. Once the gun is in the holster, it’s locked in place and doesn’t move unless the user decides to draw the weapon.
The active retention devices ensure that only the user can access the gun. The 6304RDS features the ALS and SLS retention devices. Although it has two devices, it’s considered a Level 3 holster. The retention levels are decided by the number of movements required to free the gun. With the ALS and SLS, you have to make three movements: push the SLS down, pivot it forward, sweep the thumb back, and defeat the ALS device.
Additions like the ALS and SLS guard add a new level of security to the holster. This puts a passive physical shield in front of the devices, making them extremely difficult to access.
Optic Cover
The optic cover or hood is an intelligent addition to a modern-duty holster. As red dots on handguns become more prevalent, holster makers will have to accommodate them and plan to include some degree of protection for the optic. The Safariland optics cover adds a degree of protection to a life-saving and critical device.
The cover protects your red dot against the elements. Most pistol red dots are open emitter designs, which means the emitter is exposed. If the emitter gets wet, dirty, or hit with snow, the dot won’t appear on the glass. The optic cover allows you to carry your weapon confidently without fear of the elements.
I had planned on rigging a hose to simulate rain, but I got lucky. Hurricane Debby swept through Florida. As a natural Florida man, I grew up in the wake of hurricanes and decided to see if the 6304RDS is hurricane-proof. I stood out in the hurricane, and the bravest, prettiest photographer I knew took my photos.
After sitting in the rain longer than I could stand, I drew and checked the optic. It was dry, and the dot was as brilliant as ever.
Working the Holster
I went on a quest to see if different retention levels goof up your draw. I set a goal to practice daily to see how fast I could get. After a few days of practice, I had my draw down to 1.25 seconds on average. In just a few days of practice, I got my draw with a first shot into an IPSC A-zone in less than 1.5 seconds. Retention doesn’t add a whole lot of difficulty to a draw.
Deactivating the SLS and moving to the ALS can be done swiftly. It’s super intuitive: press down, forward, and sweep rearward with the thumb. Yank it up, and get to work. Safariland designed the system to maximize user safety and retention while being extremely fast and intuitive.
Running and Gunning
Standing still at the square range isn’t realistic. Sure, it works in perfect conditions, but I wanted to see what happens in less-than-perfect conditions. First, I can’t simulate adrenaline, but I can get my heart rate racing. I did sprints, overhead presses, kettlebells, straight-leg deadlifts, and more. Enough to get my heart rate to 150, according to my Garmin.
My hands were shakier and sweatier, and my draw slowed to about 1.5 seconds because that dot was jittering around in that optic. Defeating the ALS and SLS was still plenty simple — just a press, push, and sweep. The gun flew out of the 6304RDS and on target with ease.
I changed it up and drew it in weird positions. I got in the prone, which proved interesting, but the SLS and ALS devices were still intuitive and straightforward to defeat. The same goes for a kneeling position and even in my daily driver cover. Admittedly, I’m a big guy who drives a sedan, so the holster was jammed into the center portion of the front seat. Still, the draw was simple and intuitive.
The Duty World
The 6304RDS provides me with all the modern features I could ever want. It accommodates modern guns and modern accessories and does a helluva job protecting them. The Level 3 retention makes a grab as close to impossible as it gets. Even with those devices, I can draw the gun, get it into action, and respond to threats and paper targets with speed and surety. What else can I ask for?
