Questions/opinions and advice on getting back into concealed carry

[corneileous]

Well, a few things.

Buy pants that fit with the holster you want to carry. Take your gun/holster combo to the dressing room with you when you try clothes on.

I have. My work jeans are one size larger than what I normally wear like for dress jeans but even then, with the tightness of the gun belt, it’s not really the pants that are causing the discomfort; it’s the belt. I’ve got two belts that I’ve bought over the last couple years. The one is the belt that you buy from alien gear and the other one is the one that has the slip buckle on it from crossbreed.

You aren’t getting anywhere near 2200 fps from your revolver. That number on the side of the box is for a rifle length barrel. Depending on exactly which revolver you have your bullet is probably leaving the muzzle at around 1,000 fps. All you are really gaining is noise, flash, and recoil due to all the unburnt powder exiting the barrel. I've seen them work but wouldn't recommend them for self-defense based on terminal ballistics, difficulty in making good hits, and horrendous ergonomics.

With it’s 1 inch barrelI I highly doubt that I’m getting the full muzzle velocity that’s printed on the box but still, it buried a bullet about halfway into a piece of a 4 x 4 pressure treated post from about 5 feet away. I fully respect your opinion on that but I still stand firm and still would not rather get shot by this little pistol.

After about 10 feet, it is fairly hard to get good grouping with this pistol but as I said, I’m not going to be shooting at somebody from 20 yards away. This is for extremely close combat. And yeah, it’s ergonomics wasn’t very comfortable all with the laser-grip handle it came with but the wooden grips I added make it quite nice to shoot.

And yeah, I’ve only got six shots and after that, you’re done because to reload it, you literally have to take it apart. The pocket holster it came with does have a little pouch to hold five or six rounds but still, you use this up and you’re done. Better make them count.

https://comp-tac.com/mtac-premier-iw...ster-comp-tac/ has been very comfortable for me for IWB carry of a full sized Glock and Sig. They are more expensive than Alien or Crossbreed but the difference in quality is readily apparent when compared side to side and the comfort is much better.

I don’t know, my crossbreed holster I’ve got wasn’t cheap either. With the additional cost of the combat cut horsehide leather and the J clips it was about the same price for that one that you got. But, that one you have doesn’t look to be as wide of a holster as either one of those two. That’s why if I ever went back to inside the waistband, I’d be looking at something that’s even smaller than your holster is that just has a single clip on it.



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[Zincwarrior]

Hawaiian shirt. Problem solved.

[lwt16]

My step father was an over the road trucker and ALWAYS carried a revolver.....no matter what state he was in nor what company policy said. He was built like you and he would buy his pants at the Salvation Army and other thrift stores because he was always tearing them and snagging them on things when he was securing his load (camper tops with c clamps and often times those tie down straps) and later on when he was delivering parts for auto dealerships and stayed dirty and greasy.

He would take his Charter Arms Bulldog and test the pockets to make sure they would allow pocket carry when he got out of the truck. He kept a stainless S&W .357 four inch barrel (with fixed sights...not sure the model number 681?) in the truck attached to the "dogbox" or in the driver door pocket for serious work.

He was cheap too....I went with him into one of those thrift stores and he bought up a ton of clothes...then poor mouthed the cashier into letting him have them for half of what they totaled up to.

He pocket carried that .44 special Bulldog pretty much everywhere....local laws be danged.....as he traveled to sketchy parts of Chicago and other places. Not recommending that...just telling what he did and why. He's passed away now so he won't care.

A more rough and tumble fella you couldn't find. Used to like to go to dive bars and always ended up fighting someone. Was missing a lot of teeth until we shamed him into getting a partial top plate. Knuckles looked like he had extracted a chicklet or two in his time.

He wore those button up, short sleeved work shirts with his name on the left side and the ever present pack of Marlboro lights in the shirt pocket. Untucked, of course, so that it covered up the butt of that .44 special.

Good times. I still have that revolver.....which was stolen from him, used in an interstate flight kidnapping and attempted murder......and the FBI tracked me down and mailed it to me since I had signed the FFL forms when I bought it for him. Probably the one gun in my safe that brings back the most memories.

Regards.

[corneileous]

If you can get away with jeans and t-shirt, then I would strongly suggest either OWB or IWB belt carry of the Ruger. And by that, I mean a legitimate carry system involving a real gun belt and holster combo that would probably cost nearly half what the Ruger did. I would suggest AIWB, but I know you mentioned a bit of a gut. Look for heavier weight shirts with patterns or darker colors. If you can find an IWB holster that you can live with, then shirt length is obviously less of a concern. One thing that can potentially mitigate the discomfort of a gun in or on the waistband is wearing Under Armour or similar compression under shirts. Gives a layer between the gun and your skin, prevents trapping of the outer garment, wicks sweat, and other advantages. If you pick a darker color, it can help with concealment as well. Everyday concealed carry is a definite commitment and can require a lot of experimentation to find a working formula. I started out 22 years ago with a P220 in an OWB holster with a vest, and over the years have settled on AIWB with an untucked shirt. It works for me pretty much no matter what I’m wearing, as long as I can maintain the untucked cover garment. If I have to tuck in my shirt, then a J-frame revolver gets the nod, either in a pocket or on the ankle. But I am making some significant compromises when I do that. For your purposes, realize that pocket carry is going to be virtually inaccessible while seated in a vehicle.

Finally, I applaud your attempts to get back to carrying and wish you luck in finding a workable solution. Whatever you decide on, pressure test it and train with it.

I think I’m gonna look into some longer shirts because if I remember right, I don’t think it really would take a whole lot more to keep my Ruger in that Mitch Rosen holster concealed if I had a longer shirt. It’s a pancake holster with a typical FBI cant so it rides pretty high on the belt.

I thought about from time to time about the appendix carry but for one, guess it would take a whole lot of research for me to have any faith in that method to carry up the sides like I said, I am sitting down all day long so I don’t know how well appendix carry would work for somebody who is sitting most of the time.

And yes I know, pocket carry in this truck is really not what I need to do. That’s why I pretty much even quit carrying my little 22 Magnum in that holster because even though it fits fairly well and when you’re standing you can actually draw the pistol fairly easy but like you said and like what others have said, when you’re sitting down in a car it’s virtually impossible to pull the pistol out.


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[Clusterfrack]

Early in my CCW journey, I realized that most of the mass-produced popular holsters suck a bag of dicks.

Alien Gear, Crossbreed, Uncle Mikes, and many (but not all) products from Galco, etc. make it really hard to conceal or carry comfortably. A lot of these holsters make small guns feel and print like much larger guns because they do not interface with the human body well.

A holster is like a prosthesis. It takes good design, experience, and experimentation to find the right fit for each person's body and requirements. This is not easy to do, and it requires patience and willpower. Add to that, the time and monetary costs of trying multiple holster, belt, and clothing combinations.

But, for many of us the CCW journey is worth it. I started out having a hard time carrying and concealing a mousegun or subcompact. Now, I can comfortably conceal even a Glock 20, and I'm not a huge dude.

My suggestion is to take the first step and get a quality IWB holster and belt, and then go shopping for pants. Then work on concealment.

Be aware that any new holster is going to feel super weird and uncomfortable at first. But as long as you're not rubbing skin off, stick with it long enough to figure out what needs improvement.

[vcdgrips]

FWIW-Here is a start

Ripstop cotton blend cargo shorts 15 ish
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Wrangler-...?selected=true

Ripstop cotton blend cargo pants 20 ish
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Wrangler-...?selected=true

Synthetic square bottom shirt in 2xl 5ish on sale
https://www.walmart.com/ip/George-Me...?selected=true

You already know about and have "dryfit" t shirts.
2xl 7 ish per shirt

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Big-Mens-...t-2XL/48314306


44 inch Wilderness Frequent Flyer Belt 44ish
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/2526123421

PS Edited to add- Buying stuff at thrift stores is a great idea as well if your job is hard on clothes.

[corneileous]

My step father was an over the road trucker and ALWAYS carried a revolver.....no matter what state he was in nor what company policy said. He was built like you and he would buy his pants at the Salvation Army and other thrift stores because he was always tearing them and snagging them on things when he was securing his load (camper tops with c clamps and often times those tie down straps) and later on when he was delivering parts for auto dealerships and stayed dirty and greasy.

He would take his Charter Arms Bulldog and test the pockets to make sure they would allow pocket carry when he got out of the truck. He kept a stainless S&W .357 four inch barrel (with fixed sights...not sure the model number 681?) in the truck attached to the "dogbox" or in the driver door pocket for serious work.

He was cheap too....I went with him into one of those thrift stores and he bought up a ton of clothes...then poor mouthed the cashier into letting him have them for half of what they totaled up to.

He pocket carried that .44 special Bulldog pretty much everywhere....local laws be danged.....as he traveled to sketchy parts of Chicago and other places. Not recommending that...just telling what he did and why. He's passed away now so he won't care.

A more rough and tumble fella you couldn't find. Used to like to go to dive bars and always ended up fighting someone. Was missing a lot of teeth until we shamed him into getting a partial top plate. Knuckles looked like he had extracted a chicklet or two in his time.

He wore those button up, short sleeved work shirts with his name on the left side and the ever present pack of Marlboro lights in the shirt pocket. Untucked, of course, so that it covered up the butt of that .44 special.

Good times. I still have that revolver.....which was stolen from him, used in an interstate flight kidnapping and attempted murder......and the FBI tracked me down and mailed it to me since I had signed the FFL forms when I bought it for him. Probably the one gun in my safe that brings back the most memories.

Regards.

Love your response. lol. Forgive me for saying but towards the end of your post, and I started to hear that song by Bobby Bare; The Winner… LOL. You should listen to it if you haven’t already.


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[Joe in PNG]

I find that Colombia style fishing shirts are some of the absolute best cover garments made. I can easily and comfortably IWB a full size Beretta 92 or Colt Commander no problem.
Plus, they make the 95'+ heat & humidity in Florida almost bearable.

As mentioned above, a proper belt & good holster are also key. I've had really good success with the CCC Gesalt series.

[Gater]

The OG rolled OC...see number 1

https://www.buzzfeed.com/waggy/12-re...t-bad-ass-hjis

Completely unhelpful, I know, but seemed like someone had to do it.

[BehindBlueI's]

I have. My work jeans are one size larger than what I normally wear like for dress jeans but even then, with the tightness of the gun belt, it’s not really the pants that are causing the discomfort; it’s the belt.

I've seen the rimfire rounds bounce off teeth. I've also seen them penetrate a skull. Angles will matter a lot. The 'wouldn't want to get shot with' thing is meaningless. I'd rather not get hit in the crotch with a rubber band, after all.

You shouldn't have to have your belt that tight just because of the weight of a gun if it's a proper gun belt. Now if you're just shaped so that you need a belt that tight even without a gun, can't help you. I don't know if he still makes them, and they are pricey, but Red Nichol's curved gunbelt (he's sold them both as "triple curve" and "side winder") are the absolute best gun belt I've ever used. It curves naturally to the body and you don't have to constantly hike your pants back up after getting in and out of your car. I'm wearing one right now and it's supporting a Glock 17M, spare mag, handcuffs, and radio with no issues at all. Well, technically it's not supporting the radio *right now* as it's on my desk while I type this, but you get the idea.