There is no perfect holster that can accomplish every gun-carrying task. There are multiple ways to carry a gun and the various carry methods have different requirements. A concealed carrier has a ton of different needs and wants than a police officer or soldier. Today we are going over my favorite Safariland holsters by specific use case.
Keep in mind your opinions may differ, and that’s cool. We all have different needs, experiences, and wants in a holster. These holster choices reflect my opinion, experiences, and wants, and needs. Let’s dive into my five favorite Safariland holsters.
Concealed Carry: Incog X
If my use case is dropping a gun in my pants, I’m going with the Safariland Incog X. This is an IWB holster aimed at appendix carry. Travis Haley of Haley Strategic partnered with Safariland to create the Incog X holster. This rig is available for guns, both big and small, from companies such as Glock and SIG to smaller, lesser-known companies like Arex.
The holster has passive retention, with a trigger guard and ejection port retention points that keep the gun where it should be. This retention is adjustable to your personal preference. The Incog X can work with a magazine caddy to allow for an effortless means of carrying spare ammo. It’s completely optional, though, and I typically just prefer to carry my gun.
The clips are redesigned for concealment. One of our clips even comes with an integrated concealment strut, which allows you to use snap-in spacers to adjust the grip angle. This allows you to find the right level of speed and concealment.
On the outside, the holster uses a microfiber suede wrap for comfort, which helps reduce friction between your body and the gun.
The Incog X is like a magic trick, it makes your gun disappear under nothing more than a t-shirt. It offers features we don’t see anywhere else and allows you to carry in comfort all day, everyday.
Duty Holster: Safariland Vault
The SafariVault is one of the newest rigs to grace the Safariland Duty line of holsters. Safariland doesn’t hide the idea behind the holster by naming it the Vault; it’s one of the most rugged and robust holsters ever. Like a Vault, it’s tough to break and secures your valuables — in this case, a duty gun. The SafariVault offers an entirely new layer of protection for your firearm.
The SafariVault is available as a level 1 and 3 retention holster with the ALS and SLS systems. Safariland designed the Vault for serious duty use and Safariland’s intent was to produce the most rugged holster possible. It can take the abuse that a life of duty demands. If your use case is duty then the SafariVault has your back.
Frequently, the trade-off for increased security is speed. That’s not the case with the SafariVault; it allows for a clean and consistent draw. Admittedly, the retention devices take practice to master, but they aren’t difficult. Even when you’re jacked on adrenaline, the natural movements of the ALS and SLS are easy to defeat for the person carrying the gun.
If someone tries to take your gun, then those simple controls become unintuitive and nearly impossible to reach. I’ve taken retention training with Safariland, and we could never free the gun with an actively resisting participant. With the SafariVault, we get top-level security and durability.
What’s the catch? Well, it’s only available for a limited number of guns at the moment.
Competition: 6354RDSO
I’m a big fan of the 6354RDSO with the ALS lever for competition or downright anything. The 6354RDSO fits a ton of different guns, including Glock, Walther, FN, HK, SIG, S&W, Staccato, Wilson, and some I’m likely forgetting. It’s perfect for everything from 2011s to long slide Glocks.
The holster is red dot ready and can accommodate everything from the beefy ACROs to the pint-sized RMSc style optics. It can work with lights, but a light isn’t necessary. The only optic I can find that it has trouble with is the SRO, and I’d imagine it’s due to the forward window design.
The Level 1 retention device might not be seen as necessary for all types of competition, but for action shooting sports, it’s a must-have. If your gun pops out of the holster during a match, you’re catching the big DQ for disqualification. If your use case is winning the match then you have to avoid the DQ.
The ALS creates a situation where you can get a natural draw stroke without even noticing its presence. I can draw in almost a second flat; if I was better, I could get to that 1-second mark. The gun will be right where I left it when I go for it. I prefer the mid-ride model with the QLS19 Fork, but it’s available in numerous configurations.
Budget Priced: 5198
How much holster can you get for $51? Someone must have asked Safariland, and their answer was the 5198 Open Top Concealment Holster. They even put 51 in the name. This rig is made from SafariLaminate and features an STX external finish to keep it looking good. It has a passive retention design and an adjustable retention system.
Safariland makes the rig for an absolute ton of guns! You can scroll through the various companies, models, and sizes to find the right one. It’s made for guns as big as the Glock 17 and as small as the Ruger LC9. There is a 5198 available for most shooters out there.
The 5198 has a paddle or a belt loop design in the box. I’m a belt loop kind of guy.
The rig is IDPA and USPSA-approved for defensive pistol competition. Depending on your gun’s size, it’s low-key enough to work as a good concealed carry holster. The 5198 is great for a variety of tasks and won’t break the bank. I would advise active retention for a duty use case, but outside of that, the 5198 likely has you covered.
At $51, it’s tough to beat. The rig’s low-cut design even allows for optics. For the money, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better holster.
For A Little Bit of Everything: 578 GLS Pro-Fit Holster
I know I said one holster can’t do it all, and I stand by that. But is there a holster that gets pretty close to being able to do it all? Maybe, at least to me, the 578 GLS Pro-Fit Holster is as close as possible to a do-it-all design. This rig is aimed more at concealed carry, but several features make it a great choice for most roles and more than one use case.
The GLS design’s active retention system does a great job of locking the gun in place while keeping the retention device super low-key and easily defeated by the carrier. The GLS mechanism is designed to be defeated by a natural grip on the gun, and a natural grip can only be established by the person carrying the gun.
The paddle design allows it to sit tight to the body, and with a smaller gun, it hides away somewhat easily for concealment. I won’t pick this holster for a beat cop, but it’s a winner for plain clothes. I would swap the paddle for a UBL if I were carrying this for duty use.
You can run an optic with the holster, and the simple retention mechanism makes it easy to use for competition. The 578 series is available for many different guns, and it’s an affordable option. It’s not perfect and not the universal answer to your holster problem, but it would pull double duty rather well.
Carry On
When choosing a holster, you must have a clearly defined use case. What do you expect to use the holster for? That will give the groundwork to find the right rig for you. It’s what led me to the holsters you see here.
Safariland makes a ton of great rigs, but the above five stand out to me and are some of my favorites. What’s yours?
