vulnerable at 5 o'clock?

L

L2R

New member
I have a supertuck holster and 9mm pistol. With a long shirt hanging outside, I am not printing.

But when I stoop down to get a case of bottled water at the store or something like that, there is no doubt I am printing at that point. Seems like this happens quite a bit in the summer.

My concern about all this is if someone saw it and wanted to take it, I would not see that threat coming It could be taken before I could react. My greatest fear it that I could arm my attacker.

Anything at 1 to 3 o'clock is inside my peripheral vision, I could push off a thread to get some distance or deflect an assault but that isn't practical when it is time to sit down to drive and carries it's own set of concerns.

Even at 3 is a little open for attack from behind. I am not aware of a locking IWB holster and it would seem difficult from 5 o'clock.

Anyone at TFL nation have an opinion or solution?
 
My first suggestion would be to do any lifting with your knees, instead of your back. Not only does this help prevent additional strain on your back, but by remaining straighter, it also keeps your weapon more concealed.

Aside from that, my only other suggestion is to walk up to your item standing alongside the shelf (your item on the shelf to your left, for example), then turn 180 degrees around, visually checking for anyone that will be behind you, and pick the item up (with the item now on your right side). Try to keep your back to the long end of the aisle, that limiting the people who might be able to approach you. And make any bending movements as quick and smooth as possible, drawing as little attention to your weapon as possible.

Others may give better ideas, but this is just the best I can suggest without changing your carry location.
 
The size of your 9mm may control how and where you carry to a larger degree. A mid or large framed pistol will have more limits with how you carry. What is your pistol.

A smaller sized shield , cw9 , bersa cc9 , p-11 and like sized pistols maybe a glock 26 or m&p9c, sig 290rs sized can all be carried on the front side between 1 and 2:30 position.and sit , drive and have comfort doing so with a very adjustable holster. If you try to carry on your front side you may find a set of clips used by comp-tac holster offers more adjustment to a holster than the standard metal clip used by so many.

I wear a 3 1/2" barrel single stack in a high carry position about 2:10 position but find with a high sitting 10* rearword cant I can carry a commander sized pistol in the same location. I am not a skinny guy ether and can tuck a shirt in if wanted.

Son-in-law carries a p-11 the same way and he is skinny in a old faithfull holster with a couple extra holes for mounting.
 
1) Printing is over-rated. You could wear a Desert Eagle under a wetsuit and most people would never see it. The only one who notices you're printing... is you.

2)Be aware of your surroundings. Look around, notice those around you. This doesn't mean looking like a ninja stalking his prey. Just... be aware. Pay attention.

Those 2 things are all you need.
 
I carry a Glock 19 in a Galco King Tuk. For those not familiar, it's a hybrid holster, like the Super Tuck. I typically wear fitted (not Yeager tight!) tshirts and jeans or shorts, and conceal with no trouble.

Lifting with your knees instead of your back was good advice. Great, even. That's probably half the battle.

Bringing your belt line up slightly helps, as well. If your pistol grip is turning out so that it stands far away from your body, the midpoint of the pistol-- at your belt line-- is somewhere around the bend of your butt when you're bending. The higher the belt line is over that pivot point, the closer the grip stays to your body. As a byproduct of growing up skateboarding and playing basketball during the huge shorts era (Michigan's Fab 5, anyone?), I'm still most comfortable with my belt low, but not as bad as it used to be. I find that wearing it a couple inches below where it would be in "business casual" pants is still high enough to keep the grip from sticking out too far.

A "wife beater" tank top made from thick material (as opposed to those cheap, thin ones) helps kill the print, and helps the over garment slide over the pistol as you shift, mitigating clumping/bunching of the over shirt. I practice my draw a lot, and am not slowed down by the extra layer. It also helps with retention, because the grip won't pop out from under it. Any prospective weapon snatcher would have to first clear your layers. That's virtually impossible to do without alerting you, with one of these on.

These three things work very well for me. At this point, I don't carry anything smaller than the 19.

For reference of body type, I'm 6'2", 185.
 
I agree with Brian that it's not so much of an issue. Around here, it has to be ridiculously obvious fir anyone to notice, and most likely you'll just get kicked out of the mall.

There were a lot of good suggestions to avoid printing. A holster with a little more forward can't helps, too. Another thing I'd like to add is that a dark color or a pattern tends to break it up.
 
1) Printing is over-rated. You could wear a Desert Eagle under a wetsuit and most people would never see it. The only one who notices you're printing... is you.

2)Be aware of your surroundings. Look around, notice those around you. This doesn't mean looking like a ninja stalking his prey. Just... be aware. Pay attention.

Those 2 things are all you need.
Click to expand...

Brian nailed it.

Most people are oblivious to their surroundings and so long as you aware of what is going on, you have zero worries.
 
Brian Pfleuger said:
1) Printing is over-rated. You could wear a Desert Eagle under a wetsuit and most people would never see it. The only one who notices you're printing... is you.

2)Be aware of your surroundings. Look around, notice those around you. This doesn't mean looking like a ninja stalking his prey. Just... be aware. Pay attention.

Those 2 things are all you need.
Click to expand...
:D That is seriously funny.. And the rest of the post is absolutely true. I carry cross draw, IWB and wear some pretty body hugging tops from time to time and promise you, no one notices I have a gun. I, on the other hand, feel like that is the ONLY thing people are looking at. :eek: But in this day of technology of cell phones and such, people are more apt to think electronic than gun, I dare say.
 
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