About a month ago, I published an initial review of the DoubleAlpha Academy’s new Race Master holster. I promised an updated review once I’d spent some more time with the holster, so… here we go!
Since my last word on the subject, I’ve spent several days on the range with the Race Master, quite a number of dry fire sessions, taught a couple of lessons, shot a couple of local matches, and shot the High Desert Classic in Albuquerque, NM. I’m pretty comfortable offering a solid opinion on the performance of the holster, at this point.
In terms of performance, I noticed quite quickly that on closer, “warp speed” type of targets, I picked up a tenth of a second my draw vs. the CR Speed I’d been using. Unlike longer/harder shots, where a number of other factors can come into play, on up close stuff the draw speed comes down to the ability to get on the gun quickly, get it out of the holster smoothly and accurately, and pushed straight into the target without hesitation. The holster itself can play a part in the absolute speed of this sort of draw. Given the consistent change in my draw speed on these types of targets, the Race Master is definitely faster for me than the CR Speed. As the shots got harder, the difference between the two shrank, as would be expected.
As I grew used to the holster being on my hip, my confidence in it’s ability to retain the gun grew. You’ll note in my original review that I found this holster to have very impressive retention capabilities. It’s one thing to know that logically, but living with the holster for a while really made it sink in. We had a start at the HDC that required you to draw the gun while remaining seated. With most race holsters, this is sort of a nervous situation, as the gun is sort of precarious hanging out in the holster, or you’re taking a slower draw to start with your holster locked. With the Race Master, it’s unlocked and solid, with no concerns around bumping the gun out of the holster on the draw. My confidence is very high in this holster, at this point. I would state without reservation that this holster has the best retention of any holster I’ve used.
The holster remained comfortable, even through a long day of wearing the rig. I’ve seen some concerns about this voiced on the Benoverse, and can definitely say that I do not find the holster uncomfortable on my body, despite the lack of some kind of pad or spacer to keep the holster off of my leg.
In a month’s time, I have not had any issues with the adjustment screws backing out or changing tension. So far, so good, in that regard. Still, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to check on them every so often, just to be sure they’re staying snug. If you lose one, DAA offers a spare screw kit for the holster. It would probably be prudent to pick one of these up just for purposes of avoiding an encounter with Mr. Murphy, but not something I’d consider necessary, at this point.
One thing that I will take advantage of, though, is the slim safety lever. I do still notice that I brush the safety lever with the middle finger on my strong hand occasionally on the draw. It doesn’t get in the way of the draw, but I notice it (because the teeth of the lever bite into my finger pretty sharply), and the last thing I want mid-stage is to be thinking about how my finger hurts! DAA received some early feedback about some folks having this issue, and devised the slim safety lever in response. It’s the same part as the stock lever, just with the serrations removed – excellent little personalization to the holster.
I’ve also read that some folks have had issues with the tension adjustment screw falling out, usually when they have tension set extremely light. I haven’t experienced that with my holster, personally. I’ve also seen reports of the head of the adjustment screw interfering with folks’ draw. I don’t encounter that, either. DAA reports that they’ve got something in the works to help folks that run the holster with super light tension, though. Here’s a company that listens to feedback and makes changes to improve their products.
In the end, perhaps telling you that my CR Speed holster will be up for sale soon would give you a clear picture of where I’m at with the DAA Race Master. The Race Master beats the pants of any other holster I’ve used, and I feel it’s the best race holster on the market today.
