It turned out my experience wasn’t uncommon. However, beyond that structural issue, there is a key issue with the safety aspect of the Serpa. Over time people began to realize the Serpa’s design was not a particularly safe one. Applying pressure with your trigger finger to a button in line with your trigger as you draw the weapon turned out to be an unsafe action. If the pressure remains as you draw your pistol, the finger will find its way into the trigger guard and potentially cause a negligent discharge.

In my case, I guess exposure to the heat-filled environment, saltwater, and doing Marine things just weakened the Serpa over time. But even after those safety and structural issues, the Serpa’s retention button also turned out to be another weak point.Broken Serpas became a common theme among infantry units issuing the holster. Almost always, the structural weaknesses were the points where the holster was attached to a belt, MOLLE adapter, or what-have-you. The cheap plastic easily broke when stressed. Eventually, videos even emerged of guys training for firearm retention with the Serpa and the holster simply being yanked off the adapter by the ‘aggressor.’ The Serpa’s active retention device is a small button the user presses that releases the gun so it can be drawn. If that button is not pressed, the gun stays put. Active retention devices are not uncommon, but the method in which the Serpa utilized an active retention device was when it was introduced. The release button is located in line with the trigger. The open design of the retention button allowed dirt, sand, and debris to get inside the button and completely disable it. This would make it impossible to draw your firearm. One of the reasons I moved the gun to my chest was a warning from an experienced sergeant who was already aware of this issue. As a machine gunner, I was in the prone position frequently, and the Serpa was exposed to the ground quite often as a result, meaning even after the change, I still had to worry about it.