Pocket carry with a MRDS

[RJ]

Help me avoid falling into a Rabbit Hole: Does it make sense to pocket carry with an optic?

Case in point: I have a Sig P365X with a WC grip module and HS 407k. EDC is in a JM CK AIWB with wing claw and a PTD. It works well. I also have a Ruger LRC .38. It is the walk the trash out carry, in a Desantis Nemesis fabric holster.

I had an idea (ok, you can see it coming): What if I bought a regular Sig P365 grip module, and a 10 round flat mag, put the FCU/slide from the P365X into the 10 round grip, and stuffed it all into the Desantis Nemesis?

I'm thinking the disadvantages are: optic may foul the draw from the pocket. Square rear of the slide on the Sig will not slide out of pocket as easy as revolver. Lint may build up on the optic (I don't carry anything else in that pocket). And of course, carrying a SFA gun in the pocket, chambered, in a fabric holster May Not Be a Good Idea.

Advantages are: My pocket carry option would go from 5 rounds of .38 WC to 11 rounds of Federal HST. The Sig will be slimmer than the cylinder on the LCR.

Leaving out the optic, the Sig package even appears smaller than the LCR:



Thoughts? Will I get killed in the streetz?

[HeavyDuty]

I’d be doing it with a MS equipped pistol, and would stock up on blower brushes to delint the RDS daily. I think I’d rather go with a SAS if I were trying to pocket carry a P365 - I think your proposal will be snaggy as hell. But give it a try!

[GJM]

Very capable setup compared to almost all other pocket options. If I was set on pocket carry, I would probably use a regular sight slide, which would work with your barrel. If you aren’t absolutely committed to pocket carry, why not one of those Sticky things, so you could wear the pistol inside your waist band, even with a tucked shirt?

[JCN]

I’d be doing it with a MS equipped pistol, and would stock up on blower brushes to delint the RDS daily. I think I’d rather go with a SAS if I were trying to pocket carry a P365 - I think your proposal will be snaggy as hell. But give it a try!

I was going to say the same thing, but didn’t want to be the first one.



With a good index, the SAS is like a red dot but green.

[BehindBlueI's]

What problem are you solving with a pocket pistol where the benefits of a red dot are significant enough to warrant the reduction in ability to smoothly draw and present?

[Leroy Suggs]

Good luck drawing that from a pocket in a panic or shtf situation.
Very bad idea in my opinion.

[RJ]

What problem are you solving with a pocket pistol where the benefits of a red dot are significant enough to warrant the reduction in ability to smoothly draw and present?

And there it is: Cold Dose of Reality meets the Good Idea Fairy.


The argument with my Lizard Brain usually goes like this...

Lizard Brain: Hey! You know it is kind of a pita to strap up every damn day, even though you have one of the lightest, most size efficient modern handguns on the market! And you like it when all you have to do is slip the LCR into your pocket. Why not just fiddle a bit with the Sig, and set it up to do that?!

Adult Brain: Look, we've had this conversation before. Being self-aware, and observant of your surroundings, will keep you out of more trouble, statistically, than carrying a gun. And in the unlikely event you have to draw it, will you even need to discharge a round? And then, how many rounds do you need, honestly, to keep dude at WalMart from doing what he's doing? And if the balloon really goes up? Do you really want to be carrying a J-frame size revolver? Seriously, get a grip.


...a short time later...


Lizard Brain: Dude! Five rounds? Are you kidding me!? You could just spend a little more money...and buy a 10 round flat mag, and a Sig grip module, and put your FCU in there!! Why not!? You'd have ELEVEN ROUNDS OF 9MM to deal with any problem!! Plus being able to just put it in your pocket when you need to!! And having an optic is the new hotness!! You gotta do this!!

Adult Brain: Geez, give it a rest. Ok, ok, I can see one objective point - I would not have to buy any more .38 Special Federal Gold Medal Match WCs, which is impossible to find and near as dammit more expensive than Federal HST. Plus, I'd be down to one cartridge type...Ok, well maybe I'll just price this out on Osage County Guns...Damn, only $78 for a module and 10 round mag...including shipping...hmmm

Lizard Brain: 'Er ya go! Atta boy!

Adult Brain: Well, I'm still not sure...let me ask the experts on pistol-forum...


...and so, here I am.

[GJM]

What problem are you solving with a pocket pistol where the benefits of a red dot are significant enough to warrant the reduction in ability to smoothly draw and present?

Anecdote not data, but when I stick my 365 XL with a 407K in the front pocket of my standard 5.11 Ridge pants, the optic is not snaggy.

[RJ]

Concept of operations, prototype. Existing P365x stuffed into existing Desantis Nemesis. Based on a very limited set of dry draws just now, the pistol seems to come out of the holster/pocket fairly smoothly, the longer grip of the P365XL Wilson grip module notwithstanding.

I may run a series of timed test runs using my Dry Practice setup in the garage tomorrow. (I have some fairly well-tested timing data on my simulated Gabe White Performance Tests with my G34/OWB as well as P365X AIWB I can compare it to. I've incorporated Gabe's tests into my Dry Practice Performance Journal, as well as Steve Anderson's CC Drills 1-14, and have been tracking them since November.)

Hmmmm.

[GJM]

Having heard various suggestions, you should now proceed with your experiment and see how it works for you. The increase in capability with the 365 over a J frame is so significant, it is worth some experimentation.

Out of curiosity, why are you opposed to sticking it in your waistband? Between the stuff I have in my front pockets (light and knife in left and iPhone in right) and the clothes I wear, even a J frame is heavy for my pockets. One or two 365 pistols AIWB is pretty easy.