As a side bar kind of comment, I can't help but notice all these open topped, simple leather holsters (simple in design, not quality) carried by Federal Agents and compare them to the overly complicated "snatch proof" holsters that are all the range in LE circles today. Did the bad guys get that much tougher, or did those LEOs from years ago know something (or have something) that's missing today?
When I was a LE firearms instructor I never met anyone who could draw quickly from one of those retention holsters.
Dave
This is a very astute observation. Bill Jordan's holster design had a safety strap that could be snapped three ways: (1) strap over hammer for retention; (2) strap swiveled down so it wrapped around the front of the holster to allow the brass snap to show; or, (3) snapped completely out of the way in the back of the holster. Method 3 is how he kept it reasoning that the need for quick use might not allow time to unsnap, but there was always time to snap up before running or climbing onto a box car, etc.
NYPD's standard revolver holster did not have a snap right up to the day they went to 9mm pistols, and what retention there was depended upon a leather "shelf" catching on the edge of the cylinder. You just did not ever hear of gun grabs with those. Nor of officers being shot with their own revolver.
I believe that in the old days, anyone who was fool enough to grab for an officer's gun was going to get shot dead. The same for fleeing felons. Legal to shoot them dead. In the back. Running away. You heard that right. I am old enough to remember when that was completely legal and very few people thought anything about it. There was a fairly decent outcry when the federal court decision came down outlawing that practice. (That is one reason that we must remember to judge shootings by the standards of the time, not by today's standards.)
Quite frankly, there would be far fewer attempts to disarm officers today if officers were still large, strong, tall, etc., as imposing size alone often deters criminals. In addition, if it were legal to shoot someone the way it used to be, far fewer of these (clears throat, thinks about, but declines to use a "not-nice" term) poor unfortunates would be disrespectful to, or challenge, our police officers, who do not, under any circumstances, deserve such treatment.
I positively despise any holster design that is assembled using an abundance of screws and other hardware. Such designs are, in my opinion, unnecessarily heavy, bulky, and prone to failure. The release mechanisms on many of these duty holsters are a joke. I am especially suspicious of holster bodies that are "bolted on" to the belt loop or hanger, as they are sometimes called. That way, when the screws fall out, the holster is left in one location and when the officer reaches for his weapon, he gets "a handful of belt hanger."
I suppose the officers feel more comfortable with a holster that is difficult to use, or else they would complain, and it is their choice, even if it would not be my choice. They have to wear these unfortunate things, so I suppose I really cannot complain as I do not have to do so.
But, yes - you are right - holsters used by police and FBI used to be simpler. They still should be, in my opinion.
Ken Null can make a holster that will pass the standard retention test without the need for any safety straps. He does it with handfitting and careful hand molding. So much so you can tell the model of pistol from the detailed molding even with an empty holster. With modern presses, synthetic materials, etc., it is a mystery why bigger companies cannot do so.
Any holster with straps, bolts, nuts, or that comes with tools, such as Allen or Hex wrenches is to be avoided at all costs. There are plenty of ways to accomplish good retention without any gimmicks, especially with modern materials, synthetics, molding, etc.
We cannot go back "to the good old days," but we sure can go back to "good old holsters."
EDIT: I re-read your post, and wholeheartedly agree with your observation that you have never met anyone who can draw fast from "one of those [retention] holsters." I know several who claim they can, but when asked to demonstrate, they politely, or sometimes not so politely, decline.
The only person that I am aware of who can draw fast from one of these retention holsters is Bill Rogers, who works (I suppose he still does) for Safariland. He started the retention holster trend as he said that when he was an FBI agent, he once ran across the street, and his weapon made it there first, or words to that effect. The picture below is one of his early retention holsters. Seems that times have changed. Or, something has.
