On his YouTube channel, American Adlerauge reviewed two US Duty Gear holsters —one light-bearing and one non-light— directly comparing them with Safariland.
His verdict: “these are just as good, if not better than Safariland.”
Transcript Video: @AmericanAdlerauge1775
[Music] [Music] all right welcome back so today we’re going to talk about us Duty Gear Holsters I have both a light bearing and a non-l bearing holster we’ll kind of compare contrast these to the Safari Land Duty holsters that’s kind of their main competitor my understanding is that us duty gear is essentially a bunch of guys that used to work over at Safari Land and making a very comparable product and bottom line up front for me is that these are just as good if not better than Safar land products uh with a few little nuances so
this is a light bearing Red Dot capable 2011 holster so it fits this Surefire X300 it fits a 5 in gun fits really any uh Red Dot you want to put on it comes in a very similar belt platform as a Safari Land it has a little more offset so it’s kind of built out thicker so the pistols it’s further out from your waist than the stock so Farland uh belt adapter the ubl uh one thing I would knock us duty gear on is that there’s no can adjustment on this so the new ubls from Safari Land they have kind of that that open slot to adjust C and that’s
why I have uh this holster attached to a Safari Land ubl obviously from that example you can tell these are compatible with all the Safari Land stuff so I could take this put it on a qls fork and go right into Safar ecosystem so that’s great let’s see 5in gun X300 and it fits no problem so even with that giant hollow sun optic it still fits in here and then one thing to note uh the button the way you deactivated the ALS style retention device it sits further you know forward away from the shooter so you got to get your thumb a
little bit further up in order to deactivate it so that’s just the difference between the Safari Land on the right and the US duty gear on the left so we can see kind of those buttons sit in different locations I prefer the location on the Safari Land I also kind of prefer the fact that the Safari Land comes with a smaller you know nub and you can add a OTB nub little attachment there to make it bigger whereas the usdy gear it comes kind of mediumsized I kind of like the bigger size myself and I think that the placement on the Safari
Land is a little more intuitive for me like right right there I like the Safari Land N location however I’ll say this going right to the uh us Duty Gear holster using it in a match it it wasn’t fine it was not an issue I wasn’t killed in the streets or anything like that overall build you know I think the quality of it is very very comparable if not better one thing to note though uh I do have an issue with how the pistol sits in the holster so we’ll see in our nonl bearing model when it locks in there’s a little
bit of trigger exposed so hypothetically you could go off safe get something in there and get enough finger and drop that hammer so that’s kind of a problem in my mind uh I don’t think that’s an ideal design like I understand they want you to get as high grip as possible that Master Grip in the holster but we could just get a little more plastic up there and kind of protect that that trigger okay on the light bearing holster because the light is so wide that issue is even more apparent so I can get my whole finger
in there without moving the gun at all now let’s look at Safari Land on Safari Land it’s a little bit tighter it takes a little bit more effort to get my finger in there but still the problem remains so this is something to just understand with a light bearing holster because it’s wider you it’s a little bit open the trigger guard not a big deal but with the non-l bearing we got to build that up a little bit I think at least and cover some more of that trigger so those issues with kind of the trigger being exposed out of the holster
that’s nothing new from these kind of holsters it’s something to be aware of I think they could have made a better attempt at bringing this up in the non-l bearing holster overall though retention is great fit finish construction all that’s really really good like I like these us Duty Gear Holsters I’ll probably buy some of them instead of uh the Safari lands I think they seem a little bit more robust right there’s nothing exposed there’s no mechanism out there very very well built but just understand and you’re
getting a duty holster that is imperfect like all things are the other angle here is that this platform you know on your leg all day not very comfortable so I think if you get something like this really got to get the core performance pad and that’ll slap right there and this really helps a lot uh with comfort so any questions guys please let me know uh let me know your comments and let me know if you guys have had a good experience with these holsters thanks
Key Highlights
- Safariland compatible: fully mounts on UBL, QLS, and related accessories.
- Optic & light ready: tested with a 2011 pistol + Surefire X300 + Holosun.
- Robust build: equal or better in durability, with fewer exposed mechanisms.
- Retention system: reliable, though the release button sits further forward than Safariland.
- Room for improvement: slight trigger exposure noted on non-light models (common to WML holsters).
Pros & Cons
| ✅ Pros | ⚠️ Cons |
|---|
Made in the USA (Ontario, California).
Fully compatible with Safariland ecosystem.
Level 2 and Level 3 retention options.
Optic & light ready.
Rugged, professional-grade build. | Release button less intuitive than Safariland.
Slightly bulkier.
Some trigger exposure in non-light models. |
Community Q&A
“Well safariland starting making everything in Mexico to save money without passing the savings on to the customer. Thanks for the review, might give them a try.”– @rangerminiaturesandgaming3647
It’s true that many manufacturers have moved production abroad. At US Duty Gear, all of our holsters are designed and manufactured in Ontario, California, which allows us to maintain strict quality control and quickly adapt to user feedback. If you’re looking for a Made in USA option, tested and approved by agencies like LAPD and LASD, it’s definitely worth giving them a try.
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“I’ve only gotten to handle someone else’s US Duty Gear holster that was not for a 2011. … I do like the non-WML option for those times you don’t want one but don’t want to give up active retention … I’m assuming the hole pattern is cross compatible if you wanted to attach a QLS fork to your U.S. Duty Gear holster.” – @Beau-B14
You got it. US Duty Gear holsters are available in both WML and non-WML versions, always with Level 2 or Level 3 active retention depending on the model.
And yes, the hole pattern is fully cross-compatible with the Safariland ecosystem, so you can attach a QLS fork or adapt it to your current setup with no issues.
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“What’s the difference on the duty vs tactical holster on their site?” – @Pbrown532
The main difference is the intended environment:
- Duty Holster → optimized for daily uniformed duty, with a 2.25” duty belt mount and patrol ergonomics.
- Tactical Holster → designed for drop-leg or MOLLE platforms, oriented toward SWAT operations or training with external carriers.
The core holster is the same, but the mounting setup differs.
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“Are these large enough to fit the new Vortex Defender XL?” – @Blitzkreig007
Yes, the US-280 SRH Level 3 Duty Holster is optic ready and supports most slide-mounted optics, including larger models. This ensures modern setups fit securely without compromising retention.
The Level 3 Duty Holster is a professional-grade holster, optic & light ready, fully Safariland compatible, and Made in USA. Validated by top agencies like LAPD and LASD, it’s a reliable alternative to Safariland.
Explore here: View all Level 3 retention holsters