Middle of back carry

J

JimL

New member
Some people say a middle of back carry is a good way to get your back broken. Having said that... If folks here use the MOB carry I'd like to know if they carry it "handle" down or up. (Or Thomas Magnum style - no holster!)

I just saw one advertised that put the slide just above the belt with the butt up. Frankly I could never even draw from that position, but I've never heard much, if anything, about MOB holsters that put the butt down. Comments?
 
I'm sure many people have carried M.O.B. but I wouldn't take the chance of falling on it plus the fact that someone could come up behind you and get hold of your gun before you could react. I like to carry where it's either in front of me or under my strong hand. Sitting on a chair or car seat with a gun in your spine is also not very comfortable.
 
Think of doing some standard handgun retention drills with a middle of the back carry. If nothing else will dissuade a person, that should.
 
The SOB holsters that I have seen are designed butt-up, but if I understand your description correctly, it sounds as if the one you are looking at holds the pistol so high that it would be awkward and unstable. If you can post a link to it maybe we could comment better.

In addition to all the valid points made by drail, it takes a lot of practice and concentration to avoid sweeping one's own lower trunk and/or bystanders when drawing from SOB. I used an SOB holster for a while and discontinued it because of concerns for muzzle discipline, retention, and comfort. I also had the tail of cover garments hang up on the holster occasionally, and realized that it was hard to tell if that happened soon enough to avoid flashing the firearm to bystanders. I now carry almost exclusively IWB at 3:30 to 4:00. Just never got the SOB thing to work out.
 
SOB carry is not comfortable when sitting. I do find myself carrying that way with no holster for small periods of time when i walk around my property or need to visit one of the out buildings.

I do not like it for extended periods because its uncomfortable when sitting, and it creates an opportunity to be disarmed ( the thing i fear most ). I know this might sound weird but i find that the weight at the back pulls my buckle and my pants against my tummy, it gets uncomfortable
 
Having built a holster to try the old "Confederate Cross Draw" position (for a right hander: the gun is carried in the middle of the back, on the belt, with the muzzle pointing about 45 degees downward to the left...ie to draw, you slide your hand between your back and the butt of the piece then pull to the right), I found it uncomfortable on horseback (the gun bounced off the saddle cantle), on a tractor (the same as horseback), in a chair (it pushed up against whatever I was wearing) and in the car (same feeling). It just wasn't useful and I wonder if it ever was used when horses were the most common mode of travel. Standing and walking were no problem, but the gun prints like you filled your drawers and the draw, as someone has pointed out, requires you in reality to fan the muzzle's arc past your body. Not a plan for success.

Those of us old enough to remember "Magnum PI" with Seleck playing the lead role, will recall he always carried a full length 1911 tucked in the waist band of his jeans crossways - over the crack of his......, in the above mentioned "Confederate Cross Draw" position. I always wondered how he was going to out-run the bad guys with 40 oz of Colt slapping away at his bum. He'd have been better off to tuck it, or better yet a Commander length 1911, in his right rear pocket...having carried one there for 30+ years here on the farm doing chores, I can tell you it's comfortable, secure, and you never need to wonder if you're armed or not...a good belt will keep your Levi's from sliding down like some Rap artist. But as a concealed postion, it's limited to coat wearing temperatures in the fall, winter, and spring.

That said, I have found the "FBI" carry positiion (for the usual 2-3" barrel snubbie), high up, behind the right hip for a right hander, in a slanted position with the butt angled forward, to be the most comfortable, on average for all of the above listed scenarios. It offers too a moderate amount of concealment with the average t-shirt...a summer time daily wear item, and reasonable draw speeds.

JMHO, Rodfac
 
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If I got into all the situations that Magnum PI got into I might consider using an SOB/MOB but since I don't I won't. I will keep my primary on the side and the BUG in the pocket.
Also, If I got into all the situations that Magnum PI got into I would wear a football helmet all the time, because he was always getting knocked out but since I don't I won't. Honestly, his skull must have been as soft as a bowl of mush from all the times he got knocked out. You could probably thump him really hard on the back of the head and he would go out like a light.
 
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You can actually remove the shooter while driving.
 
I think Drail mentioned most of the drawbacks. Take it from someone with a spinal injury: it is permanent, and it is not fun to live with.

Along with the dangers, discomfort, and awkwardness involved, SOB carry prints badly and obviously. It's one thing to see someone printing on the strong side hip, but someone printing in the small of the back raises a few suspicions.
 
Servo, I carried like this for a long time and would always ask the little woman...hey can ya tell I'm carryin? No prob ...
 
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I've tried it. If you've got to be sure your gun is totally concealed, it works pretty well, and does distribute the weight more evenly than strong side or weak side.

Strong side works best for me, and living as I do in Colorado, I don't worry about concealment even when I'm not carrying openly. If I'm driving very far, I switch to my weak side.

Actually, having carried some while now, I believe I'm going to have to 'fess up and state a simple fact: there's no such thing as a comfortable way to carry a gun all day every day if it's anything bigger than a pocket .380. My small regular carry gun is a pre-agreement Smith & Wesson model 60 .357 magnum. It's easy for a couple hours, but by the end of a long day, it's definitely weighty and a strain on one side of my back.
 
Just never got the SOB thing to work out.
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Ah. Gotcha! :p

As for linking to this one example, beside the point. I can't twist my arm around to get hold of something sticking straight up at the middle of my back at any normal level. Put it this way. I can slap the back of my hand to the small of my back _MUCH_ easier than my palm.
 
Given my ahhh, maturity level, I no longer fly, hang-glide, ride motocross or regularly participate in activites wherein I might end up landing on my back...but I still ride a motorcycle every day and so on.

I had spinal fusion surgery three years ago and am a bit "protective" of my lower back. No way I would put a chunk of steel there.
 
I tried it a couple of times over the years with Uncle Mike's holsters and either a S&W 4506 or the XD-45. It did not feel right. Like many here, I've carried so long that it's second nature. Most times I'm no longer aware of the "bulk". This was not the case when I tried it in the small of my back. Hard to get to, felt unsafe as well as uncomfortable. Not for me.
 
Servo, I carried like this for a long time and would always ask the little woman...hey can ya tell I'm carryin? No prob ...
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Perhaps I should have said, "for MOST people, it doesn't conceal well." There are folks who can make unorthodox options work, but for the most part, I can usually spot it when they move or bend. If it works for you, great. I'm not the Ultimate Arbiter of Gun Advice; I simply have my reservations.

Oh yeah, did you injure your back with carryin SOB?
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No. I got hit by a tractor trailer carrying a load of cows. Long story. Traffic on a major metropolitan interstate stopped dead for an entire working day. Cows flung for hundreds of feet and wandering around loose in suburban backyards.

In any case, I've got bone spurs between the 6th and 7th vertebrae which need constant chiropractic attention. The pain the first few months was excruciating.

There are those whose spinal injuries are not so easily managed, and a regimen of opiates can really cramp one's lifestyle. Those who've been through fusion can tell you that it's no picnic.

So, yes, I'm coming to the table with a bit of trepidation. We can't quantify the exact risk, but I think we can agree that there is a risk there, no matter how slight it may be.

And reducing the risk of bodily harm is why I carry a sidearm in the first place.
 
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