Breaking a Rule, Reholstering

P

PH/CIB

New member
Have had some training classes,,,watched some videos,,,read some books,,,and have some experience....All the experts seem to say when the threat is over,,,scan your area left and right for any other threats and then with your eyes downrange looking for danger you reholster your pistol without looking at the holster.

One thing is pretty obvious the experts would probably have you scan 360 degrees your entire perimeter for threats,,,and obviously you cannot do that at the range or in a class or in IDPA because you have people behind you,,,but in a real situation I would scan 360 degrees all around myself,,,would you?

The second point or rule I always break,,,I always look down at my handgun and holster while reholstering.....I have heard of too many people being shot or having an accidental discharge while reholstering,,,looking down at the handgun forces me to have my finger out of the trigger guard and to see that there are no obstructions that might accidentally get in the trigger guard and fire the gun,,,between the gun and the holster or in the holster. Considering the moving around,,,the cover you take,,,the positions you might get into and the things around you, in a possible confrontation, I consider this reasonable.

Well you say,,,you might get shot by looking down to reholster the handgun and I reply then you have not done a very good job of clearing the area and the handgun should not be reholstered until you are sure the area is clear and safe.

Thoughts?
 
If what they say is true about the police being only minutes away... then you will have at least a minute to reholster your handgun safely and properly.
 
I don't see that its that hard to holster your gun without shooting yourself.

I dont have any problem re-holstering without looking.
 
The second point or rule I always break,,,I always look down at my handgun and holster while reholstering.....I have heard of too many people being shot or having an accidental discharge while reholstering,,,looking down at the handgun forces me to have my finger out of the trigger guard and to see that there are no obstructions that might accidentally get in the trigger guard and fire the gun
Click to expand...

Are you really serious that it's necessary for you to look at your gun in order to insure your finger isn't on the trigger when reholstering?

OK, but people have been shot when drawing their weapon, also. Don't forget to ignore what's happening down range and make sure you look at your holster on the draw, also.;)
 
You shouldn't use a holster that you have to look down to hit OR use your weak hand to get it in.

IMO you also shouldn't use any holster where the retension device can get inside the trigger guard.

Buy cheap and risk an AD, while the muzzle is right by your hand or butt.
 
Thanks for the replies, but I would respectfully disagree...In a self defense situation you of course have to draw as fast as you can,,,but after it is all over and you are positively sure your surroundings are safe and clear,,,you have all the time in the world to reholster....as a civilian and not professional law enforcement or military you will not have to handcuff anyone, or watch a suspect, or restrain a suspect, and if you do have to do that as a civilian, I would suggest keeping your gun out until help arrives to assist in such activities.

When are your surroundings safe,,,are your surrounding safe just because you kept your eyes downrange while reholstering or because you cleared the area and know your surroundings are safe....Also if you follow that rule and reholster with your eyes downrange,,,can you assume your surroundings are safe at that point and lower your eyes or at what point can you lower your eyes or not be vigilant? Obviously the answer is when you have cleared the area and know it is safe and you had better do that before you reholster.

I have carried with practically every holster system imaginable,,,including IWB where you have to clear a garmet to draw and reholster, OWB where you have to clear a garment to draw and reholster, pocket holster carry in a front pocket, Thunderwear or Smartcarry holster and we all know where the handgun is pointing with that holster, fanny pack holster worn in front, shoulder holsters, ankle holsters, waistband or belly band holsters, cargo pocket holsters, pager pal holsters, etc, and some are easy to reholster without looking and some are not....why not err on the side of safety and be very careful while reholstering using your eyes and in some cases both hands to reholster, it only makes sense and I do not think anyone can argue that is would not be safer for everyone.
 
Last edited:
PH/CIB said:
...but after it is all over and you are positively sure your surroundings are safe and clear...
Click to expand...
Because you can never be that positive. That's why you learn to re-holster without looking, so you can keep an eye continuously on what is going on around you.

PH/CIB said:
...I would suggest keeping your gun out until help arrives to assist in such activities...
Click to expand...
You'll be better off with you gun holstered, keeping your hand on the gun until the police arrive, at which time you raise both hands empty. If your gun is in your hand when the police arrive, you look like a target. They won't know that you are the good guy.

PH/CIB said:
...can you assume your surroundings are safe at that point and lower your eyes or at what point can you lower your eyes or not be vigilant...
Click to expand...
You can't assume that everything is safe. You continue to look and pay attention, keeping your hand on your holstered gun in case you need it.

PH/CIB said:
...why not err on the side of safety and be very careful while reholstering using your eyes and in some cases both hands to reholster, it only makes sense and I do not think anyone can argue that is would not be safer for everyone....
Click to expand...
Why not follow bet practices as taught by all leading instructors. There's are reasons we are taught to do things certain ways.

Using a good, strong side belt holster (which I favor) there is nothing unsafe about re-holstering one-handed without looking -- at least if you've trained and practiced.
 
rule #1 is don't point a gun at something you don't intend to destroy. If your hand/body is part of that, sounds like a bad plan.
 
Respectfully disagree. Across the board. You should be able to slot your weapon without looking at it. I have holsters where I can't do that. They're in a box to remind me of what not to use. If you can't re-holster the weapon without looking, you need to find another holster. And my own experience has been that practice with whatever holster you settle on will cure any doubts.

As to standing around a defensive shooting situation with a pistol in your hand, the cavalry charging in, that's just suicidal.
 
When I carry openly with retention holster I never need to look when re-holstering. When I carry inner waistband I ALWAYS look. Way too unsafe to clear a shirt and find the opening without looking. I have a galco reinforced IWB holster I wear strong-side a four o'clock. It requires that I use both hands to holster SAFELY. Every time I have attempted one handed the tension from my belt tends to rack the slide as I push down and creates a situation I feel is conducive to accidents. Besides, my way of thinking if I have to shoot to defend my self I would like to keep alert and ready until police arrive. When they do arrive the gun would be on the ground and visibly not in my possession. I would not want to be armed in any way when they come in guns drawn. When called to shots fired they will come in hard and fast to control the situation and I can't imagine anyone having a gun on them is going to get friendly service.
 
It depends. Holsters can get jammed full of the weirdest stuff... Sometimes I look, sometimes I don't.

That said, there is no "re-holstering".

There is draw, and holster.
 
Geez, some great replies, and I would agree I would not want to have a gun in my hand when the police arrive....but after I have cleared the area I could reholster my gun by looking down and safely because if the area is not safe after I cleared it when if ever will it be safe? And if it is never safe why should I reholster my gun?

Still I googled up "reholstering accidents" and got 68000 hits, now I did not read them so anyone's quess if they are appropriate or not but I would bet that more people get shot while reholstering than by a bad guy while they are looking down to reholster after a self defense encounter.

The Firing Line and other firearm forums are great and think of all the guys and gals and all the different guns they carry and all the different holsters they use,,,sure they should all get well trained in gun safety,,,but once again I would bet more of them will get shot by a reholstering accident than by a bad guy in a self defense encounter if they looked down and were extremely careful while reholstering....

Sometimes I think in this one area the training schools are incorrect.

I quess I have been in enough dangerous situations that I tend to over think things and am overly cautious,,,these have been some good replies and I might have to adjust my thinking somewhat.
 
It depends on the gun, holster and carry method. To blanket statement that you must be able to re holster every time without looking is simplistic. You should not be in a hurry to holster, it should be a slow deliberate act. You should ensure your cover garment is clear.
 
I usually carry IWB, so I would not feel comfortable holstering my gun - which is under my shirt/sweater/jacket - without either looking, or feeling with my other hand.
I'm not worried about my holster or finger hitting the trigger, but rather a bunched up knot of clothing.

In a real world scenario, I can't imagine holstering my gun if I was still unsure enough about my surroundings to be able to shift my focus to my holster for the 1-3 seconds it takes to put it away.
 
Maybe it's just the way I read it, but you do know that a 360 degree scan does not include a 360 sweep of the weapon?
Just your eyes doing the scan.
With head attached, of course.
 
All of the guns I carry (Usually an EMP or P938 and a P238) have a safety in addition to the trigger. Drawing the weapon to fire I instinctively flip off the safety. Before re holstering the safety gets put back on. Not as much to worry about inadvertently reholstering without looking. Not having a safety in addition to what I find to be the horrendously long trigger pull inherent to most DA only pistols is just another reason why I will never have a DA only pistol.

IMHO if you can't reholster anything without looking, you are carrying wrong or just plain not practicing enough.
 
Opinion:

A lot (didn't say all) of "holster without looking" theory is predicated on cowboy-western-movie notions of "expert gun handling". It has more to do with looking like you "know what you are doing" than doing what is necessary or prudent.

The rougher Force-on-Force and CQB training I've done strongly suggests to me that my clothes and the holster may not be where I expect them to be, (or where they have been in less physical training) in any situation where I actually have to defend my life with a gun.

Add to this the known physical effects of threat-to-life circumstances, and it starts to sound like a recipe for something ugly. I've read enough stories of the good guy getting shot by police (because he was holding a gun) to make me believe it's a good idea to put that sucker away as soon as it is safe to do so.

I've read enough stories of ND-on-reholstering, under comparatively calm, day-at-the-range circumstances to make me believe that it's more important to be safe than to look good.

The smartest advice seems to be that you shouldn't be holstering unless it is thought safe enough to do so. "Safe enough" means that the known threat is down and you've done what it necessary to insure that there are no other known threats. Having gained some combination of distance and cover, a quick glance upon reholstering, and keeping a hand on the weapon until authorities arrive ... seems like no downside to that approach.
 
PH/CIB

Breaking a Rule, Reholstering

Well you say,,,you might get shot by looking down to reholster the handgun and I reply then you have not done a very good job of clearing the area and the handgun should not be reholstered until you are sure the area is clear and safe.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

The scene after a defensive shooting should be considered a "fluid situation"; a situation that is subject to change in an instant without notice.

Consider that if the shooting takes place inside of a building there are a great number of places you can not clear unless you search.
If the shooting takes place outside in a parking lot there are a great number of places that a shooter could pop up or out to engage you as you look down to holster. If, if, if . . . .

If your handgun lacks a safety device that prevents the handgun from firing should the trigger snag some material or a defective holster, then consider changing to a handgun with a safety that will prevent that from occurring. For example, the 1911 has a thumb safety that should be engaged before holstering.
 
Mello2u said:
The scene after a defensive shooting should be considered a "fluid situation"; a situation that is subject to change in an instant without notice.

Consider that if the shooting takes place inside of a building there are a great number of places you can not clear unless you search.
If the shooting takes place outside in a parking lot there are a great number of places that a shooter could pop up or out to engage you as you look down to holster. If, if, if . . . .
Click to expand...
Consider also that after a self defense incident there might be other reasons you will want two hands free but to also have your gun immediately available in your holster. And it can be helpful if you can get it into your holster safely but without diverting your attention from what could be more important goings on.

Just as you can not predict ahead of time how a defensive encounter will play out and what you will need to be able to do to be successful, you can not know ahead of time what you'll need to be able to do immediately afterwards. Being able to holster your gun one-handed and without looking just might come in handy.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top