concealed carry.

Just behind the hip bone, Glock 19, not a small gun. A sweater in this cool weather, a jacket in the Jeep. Suspenders sometimes, works well.

The odd time I am behind an adult male, Publix etc, glance at the belt line, must say, never seen printing in 12 years in Orlando. Some of the new Cell phones?
They will need wheels soon!
 
Up until about a year or so ago, I used to carry pretty much exclusively IWB at around 4-4:30. Its that spot that is like a little "nook" on your body, that the gun tucks into, and your arm, when hanging naturally, offers protection and concealment. Clothing tends to hang over it here too. Concealment is very good, but you still need to be aware when you bend, and reach, and mind whos behind you.

These days, Ive been carrying appendix IWB at about 12:30-1:00, and now wish Id switched a lot sooner. It works very well and the advantages have been pretty much instantly obvious. Quicker to get the gun into action and from more positions, easier to protect the gun, and less chance of getting bump frisked or spotted. I can actually bend at the waist now, and reach for things I normally wouldnt have. Even the dreaded "family hug" is less of a problem. Its still "arms under theirs" though when it comes. :)
 
I think most new carriers tend to be pretty self-conscious. The truth is that almost no one will be paying attention to how you're dressed and what bulges, if any, you're presenting to the public. Reasonable care in concealment is plenty. Of course, being careless can lead to issues, just as it will in so many other aspects of daily routines.
 
Coyote, you're asking questions that the answers to are really just opinion. What one person feels is too large for carry, another person will be perfectly comfortable with. What one person believes to be a good position to carry, another will find to be a poor choice for them. Being that you've just begun to carry yourself, you've started to learn what works for you through trial and error, which is a process that all of us have to go through. Opinions from others about what works for them and what doesn't can be very helpful by offering ideas that you can apply to your own situation, but in the end it is your own situation and you've got to determine what is best and what works best for you. All of this boils down to your personal preference, and it takes time to actually figure out what that is. I am assuming that you already have one holster and a second on order from what you've posted, and that's a start, but I can tell you that I've got more than a few that I do not use because they just didn't really work for me. I couldn't know if they would or wouldn't until I tried them.
You are going to figure this out, but you're not going to figure it out over night. Others' opinions can assist you but it is going to take patience and experimentation on your part to settle into what is best for you, once you do... you won't be wrong or right for anyone else but you.
Good luck and enjoy the journey!
 
When you first carry you think the entire world sees it. Its normal. It's a neat thing to ask people you know if they noticed it, after the fact.

Funny thing I found was I was amazed at how many people were carrying that I never noticed before, but was able to spot when specifically looking for it. Next time you go into Walmart, start eye searching patrons who are carrying. :)

In warm weather, it is near impossible to make it totally invisible to someone looking for it. The trick is to be unnoticeable.

If you live in an open carry state, if it is inadvertantly breifly exposed during certain activites, its not really a big deal. Just don't make it obvious.
 
What position on your body should carry your pistol or is that personal preference. I've been wear mine at my 3 o clock.
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Personal preference is the correct answer. Each position has benefits and problems.

For me, the three o'clock carry seemed to bump into stuff like chair arms and door frames. Four o'clock and I whack against less stuff, but take a tad more time to check concealment.

Inside wastband with tucked shirt is easy to hide a Kahr or full size XDm. Same goes for inside wastband with polo shirt or heavy tee shirt cover garment. Kahr can be pocket carried, but would be quite difficult to access while seated. But is dang easy to tuck it in a Desantis pocket holster and drop both into casual or dress pants (if you are a larger frame person or wear loose clothes).

I just got a IWB holster for a new J frame to try appendix carry, but I haven't started the break in process yet as I'm still in ammo testing and selection mode.
 
Jim Bob how do did you deal with concealing the big gun?
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I wore a very thin IWB holster with enough forward cant to it that the grip of the 1911 I carried was just about vertical ....... and I kept it about the 4 o'clock position. I also wore a XL tall (which I wore already, because my arms are too long for regular shirts) untucked, unbuttoned button shirt ..... heavy weight in winter and light weight cotton in the summer .... at times, I would just go with an untucked t-shirt ... you just have to avoid bending at the waist so it does not ride up.

The 1911 is not that big of a gun, really: the grip is the hardest part to conceal if you go IWB ..... the grip of the 1911 is narrow and not terribly long...... IDK if the sR40's would hide near as well ...
 
I, too, reside in a state with constitutional open carry -- no permit required. Thus, if my concealed piece happens to be displayed (I don't think it ever has) or prints (it has) I haven't broken any law, but an inadvertent display could result in a concerned citizen calling the police, who would then have a legitimate reason to ask to see your concealed carry license. No big deal, but needless drama.

As far as dressing around the concealed weapon, I opted to carry primarily OWB to avoid having to buy a new set of pants one size larger. I used to routinely tuck in my shirts, but now days rarely do. I reside in western WA, so tropical weather is rarely encountered. I used to rarely wear t-shirts, but in summer I now do and wear a button-up shirt, usually unbuttoned, over it, which conceals very well and doesn't look odd (ie, overdressed for the weather) in this area.

As to where to wear the gun, I agree that 3:00 is asking for a lot of bumps and uncomfortable sitting. About 4:00 eliminates those problems for me. And, I agree that the dimension hardest to conceal is height, ie, the grip. A forward cant to the holster goes a long way to making the grip easier to conceal.

Finally, one gun just isn't enough. I have four compact-size pistols, as their primary use is carry and I wanted a full 3-fingered grasp on the grip. I must admit, my experimentation before buying convinced me that concealing a full-size pistol would not be much harder than concealing a compact. But, I very much want to add a pocket pistol, which would leave me no excuse for ever leaving home unarmed. I can pocket carry my compacts, but it looks like I have a huge tumor on my thigh, although no one has ever commented. A true pocket-sized pistol would ride in my pocket more comfortably.
 
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coyotewsm said:
What brand of iwb holster has a forward cant.
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Pretty much all of them. I use Crossbreed Supertuck or its clone, Foxx.

I also got a Crossbreed belt with the hook and loop (Velcro) liner system and it is great when you actually tuck in the shirt. It's completely invisible.
 
Most holster makers offer products with a forward cant. I think 15° is typical.

A Crossbreed-type Kydex-leather IWB tuckable is likely a good choice. Many holster makers have something similar. The two points of attachment to the belt spreads the gun's weight out better than a single attachment point. A good, stiff and sturdy gun belt helps keeps the pistol grip tight into the body, helping to prevent printing. The belt attachment clips can be moved up or down, allowing the gun to ride lower or higher, respectively, or, if moved independently, allowing the cant to be adjusted.
 
What brand of iwb holster has a forward cant.
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Most holster makers offer products with a forward cant. I think 15° is typical.
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I'm no expert, but I think 15 degrees is not enough to make much difference if you are trying to get a fat butted pistol grip more in line with your body instead of sticking out behind you.

Coyotewsm, maybe you can not afford a second gun right now, but there is always the option to trade the one you have in for the sR40c version...... controls are all the same, and it'll even take the same magazines, with a spacer. My brother has the sR9c, and it came with 2 high cap magazines and a 10 rounder for carry, IIRC.

Or better yet, scrimp, save, sell plasma, pick up aluminum cans, whatever for a couple months: the sR9c can be had for just over 400 bucks ..... the 40c can't be that much more.
 
I dont think that SR40 would be all that hard to hide. I dont have one, but it doesnt seem to be much bigger than a Glock 17 or SIG P226, etc., if it is even as big.

Ive carried a number of full sized guns over the years, and never found it to be a problem. The forward cant type holsters, when carried at around 4-4:30, move the butt upwards enough to reduce the poking out, if you were to move the wrong way. Holsters like the Sparks VMII, also tend to pull the butt of the gun int the body, reducing the problem even more.


This is my one Colt Commander in a Blade Tech IWB. It gives a good idea as to how things ride.....

ry%3D480
 
I appreciate all the comments and advice I guess now I just need to experiment. The next thing I'm going to do is buy a gun belt. I like the looks of the beltman so I think ima go that rought
 
HTML: 
When you first carry you think the entire world sees it. Its normal. It's a neat thing to ask people you know if they noticed it, after the fact. 

Funny thing I found was I was amazed at how many people were carrying that I never noticed before, but was able to spot when specifically looking for it. Next time you go into Walmart, start eye searching patrons who are carrying.

I believe this statement is spot on. I have really enjoyed reading the posts in this thread. They remind me of the time I was sitting with my wife in a Food Court in a mall in the capital city of Columbia, S.C.

I had been carrying my little KelTec PF9 in my front pocket for awhile and had gotten comfortable with it. While we were eating I made the statement that there were probably a lot of people eating there that would " freak out " if they knew I had a loaded gun if my pocket. My wife looked at me and said No, But I bet that you would freak out if you knew how many of them had one. :)

I think I will follow what this poster suggests and next time I am in WalMart waiting for my wife to spend all my money ; I will have something to do while I am waiting.
 
carrying concealed

"Criminals may target you just for your gun if they think you are not paying attention" -- that's why I don't believe in open carry in urban environments.

As many people said, "Dress around the gun". You will probably have to buy some clothing items specific to hiding your gun, particularly if it's a bigger gun.
 
After reading, in just about every gun blog, the "Carry a little gun" rational, a shoot out at a house, an attempted home invasion, where a whole bunch of rounds were fired by the homeowner, 30/40? 9mm ones.

Could not be bothered to find where I read it, but I saw it in more than one spot.

I am sure it has happened before anyhow, just not publicized. So please, stop kidding ourselves, it could happen to any one of us.

If you are going to carry a gun, carry enough gun! At least a 15 round magazine pistol (giving you 16 ready to go) plus a spare magazine, really for a malfunction problem, but another bunch of spare rounds, not a bad thing?

There are two kinds of gun toters? According to me. And I mean just us gun people who carry every day for protection.

The first, the chap with at least a dozen different pistols, who rotates them religiously, day in, day out! They might even do that with different holsters, in different places as well.

Then the more dedicated individual, the same gun, in the same place, always! Said gun must be a, as we used to say, a Hi-Capacity one.
Plus a spare magazine.

In my case, a Glock 19, and a G17 spare. Use the same rationale as you use with your vehicle, "Oh, I am at the gas station, low on gas? Why don't I put 5 gallons in the tank?" Hullo.
 
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