There have been a lot of threads and discussions over the previous years talking about smaller guns for carry/those smaller guns becoming more usable (more rounds, optics, etc)
SLG over at pistol-training posted a thought provoking write up that I think will create some discussion here.
https://pistol-training.com/dressing-around-your-gun/
Clearly, he's being paid off by the UNTUCKit crowd.
(I still have no intention of acting like an adult, no matter what SLG says.)
There's nothing civil about this war.
I will not give up my sweat pants and fanny pack.Originally Posted by blues
Clearly, he's being paid off by the UNTUCKit crowd.
(I still have no intention of acting like an adult, no matter what SLG says.)
But I'm also afraid of SLG. Don't tell him I said that.
He's right.
We may lose and we may win, but we will never be here again.......
emphasis added.If you prefer to wear workout clothes everywhere, that is your business, but I will stick to real pants, a button-down shirt, solid footwear, and a good modern AIWB holster.
How any self-respecting individual with the slightest tactical acumen can walk around in flip-flops in public I will never understand.
A bunch of years ago I was at an evening church ceremony for kids in our homeschooling group. There was a reception in the church hall afterwards. My in-laws needed to leave after the ceremony so I drove them to my house where their car was located. I took the opportunity to exchange my suit for a sweater and dress slacks before returning to the hall.So the next time some young interneter wants to show off how well their micro gun setup conceals under their play clothes, you can smile and nod, while comfortably concealing your full-size iron. And look like an adult at the same time.
One of the dads who I knew and had discussed firearms with in the past told me he was jealous that I was able to change. Then he said, "I can't even take off my jacket, I'm carrying" As he patted himself under the arm and gave me a glimpse of his garbage shoulder holster and compact XD. I'm sure I gave some sort of nod of acknowledgement and walked away. Walked away with a light merino wool sweater concealing a 5" 1911 IWB of which I had zero interest letting anyone know about.
I wear combat flip flops if I don't have to walk much, or going to BJJ. If it's serious enough I'll ditch them and run barefoot. I'll go to the range in flip flops too.
I’m just happy that people carry guns at all. If someone doesn’t want to put in the effort to carry a G19 or larger-sized gun but they’ll carry a P365-sized gun, I consider that a win. Make no mistake about it, carrying a larger gun does take more effort. It’s not an insurmountable effort and could be something like having to purchase a more expensive holster or change the way you dress, but that still takes extra work. If there are guns out there that people can plug directly into their lifestyles with no other changes, they’ll be much more likely to have those guns on their person instead of in their gun safe at home.
Not everyone is as obsessive about this stuff as the firearms training community seems to be. We make up such a tiny fraction of the gun owning public that if we all disappeared tomorrow, the numbers wouldn’t noticeably change. Some people don’t want to walk around in button up shirts, pants with extra pockets, and sturdy shoes when they aren’t at work. They want to walk around in t-shirts, shorts, and flip flops. If someone can find me one documented incident where the thing that caused someone to lose their defensive encounter was that they chose to wear flip flops that day instead of hiking boots, I’ll admit I was wrong.
If you want to carry a duty-sized gun concealed in the stereotypical federal agent outfit all day, cool. If you want to carry around a P365-sized gun concealed in an t-shirt, shorts, and flip flops all day, that’s also cool.
My posts only represent my personal opinion and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or official policies of any employer, past or present. Obvious spelling errors are likely the result of an iPhone keyboard.
No disrespect at all to SLG, but he’s talking about being an armed professional as he said. It’s his job. Not only does he have a very different responsibility to engage and maintain contact than a civilian, but he also doesn’t have the same worries about being made, or NPEs, or even “looking” like a cop or someone who is armed. Probably doesn’t have kids crawling all over him either.
Now I don’t even own athletic wear or a pair of sweatpants, but there are plenty of occasions I would be out of place wearing a button up and boots in the warmer months. Wearing a tee shirt and canvas sneakers is the overused “gray man”, to not stick out. I think normal clothes, tee shirt and jeans or whatever fits the occasion, with a P365XL type gun deep carried in an Enigma really is the future of civilian concealed carry and for good reason, including weapon retention like he mentioned.
Guess what would help a civilian avoid a weapon retention situation? Great concealment and not looking like a tactical gun guy to begin with.
I carried a G34 under a flannel at church today (very casually church security in a sub 100 person church) because I could, but for most day to day things in tee shirt weather, a slightly smaller gun carried deep is a great solution.
I only wear gym clothes when I am going to the gym to work out. Otherwise I am in “adult” clothes. I wear sliders in the shower at the gym but that is the only time you will ever find me without decent shoes.
Despite being self employed and able to dress as I choose, I am always business casual or smart casual in my office in case I get an unexpected client visit. In warm weather, that means a tucked in short sleeve shirt and dress slacks. I can look weird leaving in a sport jacket in 90F temperatures, look unprofessional in an untucked shirt, or I can carry a P365 in an Aholster pocket holster. The last option leaves me well armed and looking professional. With care, it could work for NPE carry.
No, a full size gun does not work all the time.
About 2 decades ago the North American Arms forum had a large number of high paid professionals as participants. At that time, their guns were the best option for people who needed to be discreetly armed. There was nothing casual about the approach of any of these people to training or shooting.
While I prefer to carry as capable a weapon as I can, most people I know who are truly serious about being armed all the time own and sometimes carry something small.
Any legal information I may post is general information, and is not legal advice. Such information may or may not apply to your specific situation. I am not your attorney unless an attorney-client relationship is separately and privately established.
To be honest, I'm pretty sure that 99% of the crowd hanging around this neck of the woods know what clothing and equipment is appropriate both for their day to day environment, and the potential circumstances, seen and unforeseen, they may encounter in those venues.
As to the generally perceived "Walmart" crowd, I would not be quite as sanguine in my estimation of their capability.
There's nothing civil about this war.
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