"Jacket Carry" logistics -- maybe a dumb question?

O

OhioGuy

New member
I guess it's not specifically a revolver question, but since I'd be carrying a revolver, here I am!

I've read a lot of comments by people who say they carry a backup gun in winter months, usually in an outer coat pocket where it's easy to reach. Often it's a snubbie revolver that's easily concealed but still can be fired easily with gloves.

Presumably the main carry piece is then under layers of clothing, where it's inaccessible without a lot of work.

So, if you do this, here's my question: What do you do with the pocket gun when your jacket comes off and you're indoors? :confused:

I'd be paranoid with it not physically touching my body in some way, and putting my jacket back on every time I get up from a chair to hit the bathroom, etc. seems like a lot of work, plus risky since I'm not used to doing that and could be prone to forgetting about it.

My quick idea would be to carry the revolver in something like a sticky pocket holster, then move it IWB when I get indoors, then back again when the coat goes back on? I'd have to be like Superman I guess, running into a bathroom stall to make the change, but...I don't know, is that what people do?
 
I don't think that's a dumb question at all. I've faced this dilemma a couple of times. The best solution I was able to come up with was much like your sticky holster solution.
 
My solution to your dilemma would be to hang my jacket in my office,,,
Then close/lock my office door "every" time I leave.

But for that to work you must have your own office.

Or a locked drawer in your desk,,,
Or pocket carry when you're indoors.

Or in my case in a locked box in my car,,,
I work at a state university and can't carry on campus.

Aarond

.
 
I dress in layers, specifically with this in mind. Even with an over type coat/ sweat/fleece/whatever type garment, I can still normally access the gun quickly and easily.

When I go to take the outer layer(s) off, the gun is always still covered underneath.

Multiple light layers is how you stay warm in the winter, and much more accommodating to those who carry a gun.
 
"...a dumb question?..." That'd be the question not asked.
A pocket isn't a good place for any firearm. Too much lint, etc. in most. And it's not easy to extractor any handgun small enough to fit.
"...a snubbie revolver..." One with a bobbed hammer, but very, very, few are easily used with winter gloves on. Trigger guards are too small.
"...to hit the bathroom..." How much trouble to you expect to get into in The Crapper? It sounds like you're over complicating the entire thing.
 
I've "gone to the bathroom" upon being seated in a restaurant and slipped the revolver into my front pants pocket then removed my coat at the table. of course this is only if I wore a really big coat that required taking it off to be comfortable.
 
How much trouble to you expect to get into in The Crapper? It sounds like you're over complicating the entire thing.
Click to expand...

I don't expect this issue is having the firearm because of trouble. I expect the concern is leaving an unsecured loaded firearm in a jacket pocket readily accessible to anyone who walks by.
 
T. O'Heir said:
"...a dumb question?..." That'd be the question not asked.
A pocket isn't a good place for any firearm. Too much lint, etc. in most. And it's not easy to extractor any handgun small enough to fit.
"...a snubbie revolver..." One with a bobbed hammer, but very, very, few are easily used with winter gloves on. Trigger guards are too small.
"...to hit the bathroom..." How much trouble to you expect to get into in The Crapper? It sounds like you're over complicating the entire thing.
Click to expand...
HA!!! :)

If I get mugged in the crapper, I suppose my life has really hit a new low and maybe I should just give up!

I meant, when I get up to use the bathroom (or get up at all), I don't want to leave my CCW in my jacket pocket at the table, nor do I want to put my jacket on every time I get up.

I guess what's driving my thought (and my overthinking) is something like this: my wife and I go to dinner downtown in the winter. We have to park in a garage and walk 3 blocks because it's crowded. I'm bundled up because it's cold, but the (hopefully small) odds of being mugged are far higher during that short walk, than they will be in the 2 hours I spend indoors at the restaurant. So needing quick access to a defensive weapon is most important during the time when I'm least able to reach it, unless it's in a pocket.
 
I routinely carry a 2” K frame S&W revolver in my front right hand pocket. I had the pocket lengthened so I can wear shirts tucked in. I use a sticky pocket holster.


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I own my own business, so being at work is not an issue. Mine is in a Remora pocket holster, which I can just slip in my waistband if I leave my coat anywhere.
 
That's one reason I find front pocket carry very consistent. I'm able to avoid the troubles that heavy garments bring. I guess my jackets don't tend to hang down too low. I find my pockets still accessible in the winter.
 
Remove heavy coat , gun goes out of the coat pocket into the front pants pocket the movement is hidden by the coat . After swap the coat goes on the back of my chair.
You have to do like a magician , sleight of hand and misdirection and people don't see the move . It's not really magic ... only looks like it .
It's not rocket science...just think about what you do and how you do it.
Try not to be paranoid ...paranoia is not a good thing .

My grandmother kept her 38 S&W in the folds of a bandanna in her purse , she could take out the folded bandanna and no one had a clue the old girl was packing heat . I use the bandanna trick now and again to conceal what I don't want seen... works like a charm .
Gary
 
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I think having a pocket gun in an overcoat pocket isn't enough of a benefit to be worth the hassle. I suggest carrying a firearm, and one better than small pocket gun, under the coat in good holster the way one would carry without the coat. It doesn't take that long to open the coat and draw if necessary and the difference in the time to draw is not likely to change the outcome of an event as much as being unarmed.

I have one old overcoat that has slits behind the pockets that allow access to the trouser pockets from outside without opening the coat. It could conceivably work to reach in and draw a small pocket revolver, but the advantages of a larger gun recommend themselves and such a gun is not so likely to pull through the slit such that it's better to just open the coat.
 
First, let me start with the caveat that I generally don't carry this way when I carry.

I don't see coat pocket carry as a primary way to carry. Thus, it would be for specific situations, and to my mind it would require some pre-planning. I can see it as useful when walking to the mailbox, walking the dog, going for a walk, going shopping, etc. when you will be keeping your jacket on and not taking it off. If I knew in advance that I'd go somewhere that I'd be taking off my coat, I wouldn't likely carry in my coat pocket.

That said, I don't live where it gets all that cold. It only gets below 20 a few times a year, and most days, the high does get above freezing (even in the dead of winter). So, a shorter coat works fine. I have coats that are waist length, and other than my dressy overcoat and my raincoat, none go more than a few inches below my waist. Perfect cover garment for IWB or OWB holsters. Now, if you were dressing up and needed an overcoat over your suit then some planning may be in order (maybe using your idea of having a small gun in the pocket of your overcoat, excuse yourself to the bathroom before taking off the coat in order to move the gun to your pants or suit pocket, and the reverse on your way out - though with suit pockets, I'd be more inclined to go with my LCP over a J-frame, or come in with an empty IWB holster which is where the revolver would go when I got inside).
 
The situation involving being outdoors in the cold for lengthy periods, then going inside for an hour or so in a public setting, then back outdoors, happens routinely in my life.

During winter months I carry a J-frame in the outer coat pocket where it's accessible.

I wear a leather vest beneath the coat, with an inside gun pocket. While indoors I transfer the J-frame to the inner vest pocket while doffing the coat. Reverse the process when going back outdoors. Doesn't take 2 seconds, and no one notices.

Here is one source for the vests -
https://coronadoleather.com/collections/vests-jackets-outerwear

Vests have a 'holster' inside the pockets, and are engineered with a panel that prevents the revolver from printing through the leather.
 
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