Guns, Bows, Shooting Sports, and Hunting Who already has a drawer full of holsters?

[SRath]

I'm asking because I really don't want to end up with that many myself...



I have never considered my Glock 22 . 40 S&W a very large handgun... until I began trying to figure out how best to carry it concealed.



There are SO many different holsters and CCW methods out there that it looks quite possible to spend a small fortune learning what doesn't really work. I have never considered my clothing particularly tight fitting, but trying to keep the gun from printing through is really tough, I've found.



It is imperative that it remain 100% concealed and un-noticed when I carry it. They can yank your permit here if any "concerned citizen" notices it and calls authorities.



I'm not much of a fanny pack guy. Face it, they're kinda gay . Once winter arrives, things will get much easier, of course. But, for now, even a jean jacket is not much cover. I wear vests quite regularly in colder weather, so maybe something along those lines?



I have seen different crotch-pouches that look like they work in the ads, but I can't help thinking how uncomfortable they might get given the amount of driving and climbing in and out of semi trucks I do. Being self-conscious and/or uncomfortable and fidgeting with my crotch might not help the image either, so I would prefer to let the ol' love gun maintain exclusive rights to that area. Besides, I'd really hate to shoot anything off!



Buying a smaller gun doesn't really appeal to me. Those little buggers can't be much good for anything over 5 yards as far as accuracy goes.



So what do you guys use or recommend?

 

[B.G. Smith]

Guess I fall into the "drawer full of holsters" description. I have the front pocket holster, back pocket holster, crotch pouch, on belt, inside belt etc. I ended up learning two things, you need a rust resistant weapon and I can carry the weapon bare inside my belt/shirt on the left side better (at least for me) than any of the afore mentioned devices. My CC of choice is 9MM, of medium size I would say. bg

 

[SRath]

Thanks for th input, BG. The Glock is famous for it's incredible corrosion resistance, so that should not be problem (wish my Dodge was like that!). But I just gotta know: Do you shoot your gun a few times to warm it up before placing it next to your bare skin?



Like you, I think a cross-draw position would work best for me given the amount of driving I do. I definitely could not tolerate having it poke me in the back or nuts.



So an inside-the waistband, high-ride holster or a shoulder rig would seem to be the choices there.



Any other favorites or suggestions?

 

[pullya]

You might have to start buying your shirts the next size larger to help with the printing problem. There is always some sort of trade off between accessability and concealment. I have the same problems you do when carrying my Colt Commander. I to like a larger caliber and I am concerned with the printing issue also. Sometimes I just carry the "bosses" PPK because of the size and it's a lot eaiser to carry. I'll be watching this thread for any ideas.

Jay

 

[GOlsen]

Also a "drawer full of holsters" guy myself. And also, I have a Glock 22. The latest one I got was probably the worst one I've tried. It advertised itself as a concealment holster, but it looked like I had a Glock shaped tumor! I have a shoulder holster I wear in the winter, but as of yet, am still trying to find a good waistband holster.

 

[NETim]

Sparks Versa Max II. Great quality. Don't forget to get a good gun belt too. It's absolutely essential to carrying comfortably. Takes about six months to get a holster out of Sparks right now. I recommend their belts too.

Very much worth the money.

 

[6BT-Dakota]

It is imperative that it remain 100% concealed and un-noticed when I carry it. They can yank your permit here if any "concerned citizen" notices it and calls authorities.

I have a question . . .

What State are you from that requires you to carry it unloaded and concealed ?

Open / loaded carry is permitted in most states.

The problem is that most police do not know the laws . .

No one can yank your permit without just cause to do so . .

 

[SRath]

In Iowa, each county sheriff can set his own rules for who gets one and who keeps it. 99 counties. 99 sets of rules. All different. But each county has to honor all the others'.

I definitely do NOT have to keep it unloaded!
What good would that be?
I definitely DO have to keep it concealed, though, to keep my concealed carry permit. That's just the way it is here.

Open carry is OPEN carry and a whole different and tricky can 'o worms.

Concealed means just that. Concealed.

Not long ago, a local taxi driver with a CCW permit picked up a fare on a snowy, icy night. While waiting for her, his windshield iced up a bit, so before taking off once she reached the cab, he scraped his windshield. As he stretched a bit, his coat rode up just barely enough for her to catch a glimpse. After being taken to her destination, she called 911 and complained. That taxi driver will now have to defend himself with sticks and stones...

It sucks, but we citizens are working on it. Hey, in THIS ultra-liberal county and the adjacent one, the former sheriffs would issue NO CCW permits at all. Zip. The new sheriff in the neighboring county is pretty much "shall issue unless good reason is found not to during the background check".

My new sheriff is a bit tougher and you must show "justification" that he agrees with. After applying and paying my money and taking the class (and scoring 100% on the lengthy exam), I received an "Alert" from a statewide citizens for CCW organization that was screaming mad about a radio interview he did in which he supposedly said he did not think citizens needed guns at all and that the 2nd Amendment only meant for the Army to have them.

Yikes!! After waiting 6 months to simply get in a class, passing with flying colors, and spending all the application and class fees, NOW I find out how he feels?!! I still had my shooting qualification to do, after which yet ANOTHER background check would be performed (for those who passed both the class and the range qual). I was very worried it had all been for nothing!

I was very nervous shooting indoors, on tape, in front of hard-core evaluators. None of which i had ever done before. I am a very good shot, but my heart was racing and I thought I only had 30 seconds to load a 5-round mag, fire 5 times, load another 5 round mag, and shoot 5 more. By the final 2 shots I was racing an imaginary clock and rushed them. the indoor lighting was strange, and I thought, after just the first 3 shots, that i had already blown it.

I thought I saw holes in the edge of the paper! Oh no!!!!!

When finished, I was surprised to hear shots still coming from the other shooters. It turns out I actually had a minute and 30 seconds to fire my shots. My hearing protection (required) worked TOO doggone well! I did not even hear the command to commence fire; just the sound of the other shooters finally.

So, I figured I had blown it. When they took us downrange to examine our targets, i was already asking what the procedure for re-testing was. The evaluator just looked at me funny and said "Why don't you just come shoot with us on Thursday evening when we are open to the public? You might want to consider joining our Club. " Then I saw my target. "Your first 8 were great, but you really rushed those last two. The ninth was still in the ten-ring, but not in that 3 inch group the first 8 were. Your final shot dropped just outside the ten-ring. That still gives you a 95% score. You pass easily!" (they score the first shot of each magazine heavier for some reason, thus the 95% score instead of 90% since those were dead-on. It has to do with needing to prove you can load and operate your weapon properly. ).

The "holes" I had thought I saw on the edge of the paper were just shadows from the lighting! I wanted badly to show how good i really was, and failed at that, but I came one shot from a perfect 100%.

Our county does not even have it's own shooting range. The liberal Iowa City citizens scream bloody murder every time county and local LEO's try to aquire or build one. Even out in the sticks. So we applicants and LEO's from this county are sent to the next county to qualify at the range there.

My results were now forwarded to the other county sheriff, who would in turn forward them to my sheriff. Any successful candidates up there would need to now be fingerprinted. Fully 50% of the applicants from each class fail either the written or the shooting test or both. They make it tough. For me, they did not know the procedure our sheriff required. So I waited.

One week later, the nice lady from the sheriff's office called and said I could come pick up my permit and should bring the required $15 additional fee with me. On the permit itself, and I have yet to figure out exactly what it means, in the "Reason for Issuance" box, the sheriff wrote "Exceptional", and signed it.

I took it at face value, even if it maybe isn't the compliment it sounds like, and I wrote to the organization who sent out that Alert Notice about my sheriff to tell them I think they have it all wrong about him.

Now I need to find a holster and/or concealment method that works extremely well so I don't lose it like that taxi driver did. It will be easier come winter (though that proved not such a sure thing for the taxi driver), but warmer weather attire is tougher.

Oh, and the instructors did warn us that the local Liberal anti-gun newspaper WILL make sure to publish our names for all to see if a permit is issued. They sure did. Thanks alot... I feel almost famous now... Nothing like being low-key...

 

[pullya]

Damn--have you ever thought about relocating? Thats just crazy. I guess were pretty luck here in Texas. Our CCW process is pretty clear cut.

Jay

 

[Flinty]

I carry a Springfield . 40 subcompact in the small of my back or cross draw IWB. I wear a t-shirt tucked in with a button down shirt untucked in the warm months. I made my own SOB holster, couldn't find one to suit.

I can't remember the exact stats but I recall some study that found most shootings happening at 7' or less. I've never been a fan of Glock but the 27 would be a lot easier to hide. You should seriously consider a smaller piece. Good excuse to add to your collection.

Here's a pro at cross draw IWB for your viewing pleasure:

YouTube - calderones_return. wmv

Just remembered this long read on CCW:

SurvivalBlog.com

 

[The patriot]

Sparks Versa Max II. Great quality. Don't forget to get a good gun belt too. It's absolutely essential to carrying comfortably. Takes about six months to get a holster out of Sparks right now. I recommend their belts too.



Very much worth the money.

+1. Not cheap, but worth the $$$.

I'm not a very big guy (5'11" 220) and I can carry a full size 1911 all day long in a VMII.

Also, go to the big & tall store and get some long shirts.

 

[kenny61]

I carry a Springfield . 40 subcompact in the small of my back or cross draw IWB. I wear a t-shirt tucked in with a button down shirt untucked in the warm months. I made my own SOB holster, couldn't find one to suit.



I can't remember the exact stats but I recall some study that found most shootings happening at 7' or less. I've never been a fan of Glock but the 27 would be a lot easier to hide. You should seriously consider a smaller piece. Good excuse to add to your collection.



Here's a pro at cross draw IWB for your viewing pleasure:



YouTube - calderones_return. wmv



Just remembered this long read on CCW:



SurvivalBlog.com

Seven Yards (21 feet) is the distance most shootings occur. Which I also believe is the maximum distance that a person with a knife can rush and stab you that will not give you time to draw and fire

 

[kenny61]

with everybody having a cell phone today a bulge under a t shirt is no longer worrisome to those who even notice. keep a long shirt over it and only those trained and looking for it will notice

 

[SRath]

That VM-II looks well-designed. The wide spacing of the belt supports makes perfect sense.



I also like this Crossbreed Supertuck for the same reason and the price is whole lot better. Each one hand-made, adjustable height and cant, cowhide or horsehide (better sweat resistance), as slim and low-profile as possible, and 3 different types of clips, base price $69. Oh, and a 10% discount for military, LEO, and NRA customers:



SuperTuck Deluxe



"Is that a cellphone bulge or are you just happy to see me?"

 

[SRath]

JMarinaccio, That is the fastest, smoothest crossdraw I have ever seen! Apparently that actor is actually a famous pistolero in real life? Wow!

I found additional videos of that scene. One shows the whole draw and fire sequence repeatedly in ultra slo-mo. VERY impressive! And something tells me he probably hits what he shoots at, too.

Notice how he clears the weapon before laying it on the "dead good guy's" chest and walking off? He's for real. Everything he did was so smooth and natural and correct that special effects and mere actors could not duplicate that.

I like the idea of crossdraw since I spend so much of my time driving. Too bad they don't show what he used for a holster, if any.

The lesson is: NEVER take your eyes off your opponent for even a split second!

 

[MKinner]

Sparks Versa Max II. Great quality. Don't forget to get a good gun belt too. It's absolutely essential to carrying comfortably. Takes about six months to get a holster out of Sparks right now. I recommend their belts too.

Very much worth the money.

I second that. I'll be ordering one myself soon for my 5" 1911. From what I've read, they only take orders the first 3 days of the month. Here is an example of what it looks like.

The Milt Sparks Versa Max 2 in Review - Texas Gun Talk

Now, just wish i had a 4" model...