Women's carry questions

[Hambo]

My wife is talking about carrying a gun. I know all the standard advice: I'm not picking it for her (she says she wants an auto, hence the post here), training her, or telling her how to carry it.

For her part she is willing to go to quality training and says she won't carry it if she doesn't practice twice a month minimum. She is considering off body carry or belly band type of holsters. She's never worn a belt and never will.

So if you're a woman, have you used either of these methods of carry? If you know a woman who carries, what has worked for her?

As far as training goes, I've noticed that trainers generally say "good quality pistol, holster, mag pouch, and at least three mags." I get the safety/liability issues, but how does a woman get training if she's going to carry in a bag?

[Haraise]

Don't know anything about belly bands. Don't work for me.

As far as purse, if one carries like that, I'd heavily recommend a crossdraw bag specifically made for carry. One with a reinforced strap would be preferable.

Something that stopped me from really going that way, I said to myself 'if I can not leave my purse anywhere for a month, I'll consider purse carry.' I ended up not succeeding at that.

Training, really depends where you are and what your options there are. Might want to check a local forum. If you're willing to travel, that of course opens things up.

Why twice a month minimum? Having good skills is awesome, but the gun you have without perfect training is better than none (as long as you're safe).

As far as the gun, I really prefer safeties for on body carry, but wouldn't really consider purse carry without one. Adds a layer of defense to a gun that could get poked, jostled (still keep the gun in a dedicated pocket with nothing else, but falling out of the holster is a possibility, then it's just a matter of anything getting in the trigger guard... retention helps, but layers of safety get you to security).

[KeeFus]

My wife finally decided she wanted to carry while off-duty so I let her use my Shield and bought her a IWB holster. She didnt like it because...belt. Im not a fan of off body carry AT ALL but she wouldnt carry otherwise. For Christmas I decided to buy her a quality purse that would accommodate a holster but wanted her to be happy enough with it to actually carry it. She decided on a purse from Concealed Carrie. The purse she wanted is very well built and since she received it has carried it everyday. She is even thinking of buying another one in a different style/color to accomodate other clothing.

http://www.concealedcarrie.com

The one she now carries: http://shop.concealedcarrie.com/all-...carrie-71.html

This purse carries the pistol in a side pocket, as you can see from the pics. The pocket is easily accessed by the top or by pulling the zipper on the side down. It comes with a holster that velcros to the interior. There are copious amounts of velcro inside to position the holster in pretty much any reasonable position. I was also able to place and secure a reload in there with some supplied straps. There is no real security feature, such as a thumb snap, to secure the pistol in the holster. While I don't like that all that much the holster/purse does a fairly decent job of securing the pistol without any such feature.

[SLG]

Since she's sort of outside the norm, for us, (no belt...) maybe a Dale Fricke Zach? My wife loves them for the shield with no belt. She also likes smart carry and a belly band. The Can Can, I think.

[KeeFus]

Since she's sort of outside the norm, for us, (no belt...) maybe a Dale Fricke Zach? My wife loves them for the shield with no belt. She also likes smart carry and a belly band. The Can Can, I think.

This? http://dalefrickeholsters.com/produc...lment-holster/

[SLG]

That's it. I have a few, and they fill niches for me. For her too, but she goes without a belt fairly often. Very well made, just not what I would consider for my own daily carry.

[pax]

To answer the training question about belt carried holsters in class for people who only want to carry in belly bands and such, I actually wrote a blog post a while back that speaks to this directly. Please forgive me just throwing a link at you rather than a longer post, but I'm a little pressed for time this morning. It's a good question and an important one.

http://www.corneredcat.com/annie-get-your-gear/

pax

[Chance]

My SO uses a Smart Carry holster when it's legal for her to carry on her person.

If she wants a concealed carry purse, find a place like Cabelas that carries a few models and let her try them. The efficacy of those pouches can be very dependent on hand size, and the size of whatever pistol she's carrying. My SO has larger hands, and she couldn't pull her M&P9c out of the pouch without pinching it with her fingers and wriggling.

Regarding training - some trainers will let you use bags, or whatever you're planning to carry with, and others will not. My SO went to Shoot Smart here in D/FW, and they let her use her carry holster in class (Smart Carry is basically AIWB). Paul Howe let's students use off-body carry, if they want. There were women in the Haley class I was in using bags. Just ask ahead of time.

[41magfan]

There has always been a fairly large disconnect between the training that is generally available and the reality in the way many folks carry guns. Most trainers remain inflexible by simply inferring that the student is "doing it wrong", while the majority of prospective students continue to go about their business without proper training. Most people that carry guns are forced to make compromises of all sorts; not because they want to, but simply because they must.

Training people to be safe and effective as possible while utilizing belly-bands, pocket holsters, purses and other alternative carry methods is tedious, time consuming and you certainly can't do it with 15 people on the line. The few places that offer specialized classes to accommodate this need are probably doing the most good in terms preparing the average citizen to defend himself with a firearm. Training that doesn't match the realities people are forced to live with has a very limited relevance, even if that reality demands serious compromise.

To me it's analogous to the "right" gun argument; for every incident where having the WRONG gun was an issue, there are thousands of examples where having NO GUN was a much bigger issue.

[SLG]

FWIW, I tend to think that "alternative", real world carry positions are best trained dry fire at home, and then on your own on a range. Not so much in a class.