Conceal Carry Methods

I've decided to share with you how I conceal carry my handguns. The way I carry may not be the perfect or even the right way, but here are some ways that have been comfortable for me.

But before we begin, let's talk about "open carry". Openly carrying a handgun in a holster is legal in some states. I live in Virginia, and open carry is totally legal here.

As you can see, I have my Taurus Milenium Pro PT-111 in 9mm in a holster on my belt, and it is openly visible. It is totally legal to walk around in public like this in Virginia. Not that I'd recommend it though, because unless there is some sort of natural disaster going on, walking around with a pistol strapped to your belt will likely at best get you some nasty looks, and worst, some freightened and ill-informed citizen who doesn't know that this is legal will call the cops on you so that a nice policeman can spend some time harrassing you.




But what happens if you decide to put on a jacket?


Now it's concealed under the law, even though the holster is poking out underneath the jacket. In order to carry a gun concealed in most states, you will need an appropriate conceal carry permit, often shortened to CCW.












So, on to the conceal carry methods that I use. In this demonstration I will be concealing my Smith & Wesson 642 Airweight revolver in 38 special.






I will be carrying it in an Uncle Mike's Inside the Waisteband Holster, usually shortened to IWB. It's a cheap, lightweight holster. The inside of the holster allows the gun to be smoothly drawn from it, while the outside provides some friction against your clothing. It has a belt clip for added support.




Here is the easiest and most obvious way to conceal a handgun, although it is not the best: in your pocket. This only works if you have deep pockets. With some pants I find that the handle of the gun is clearly visible if someone was looking down my pockets. The other problem with this method is that it leaves an obvious gun print in your pants. Using either an inside the pocket holster or an IWB holster shoved down your pocket does manage to break up the obvious gun print to some extent, but it's still not great. I very rarely carry using this method anymore.







A fairly comfortable way to carry is inside the pants, on the side, like this.














In a proper holster, and a long enough shirt, you can't tell that anything is there at all.

This method is very comfortable if you have pants that are loose enough. With tight pants though, forget it. This method also only works if your overshirt is long enough.

The only other problem with this method is that when looked at from the front or the back, you might not appear symetrical, thus revealing to the careful eye that you are packing something.

Moving around and sitting with this type of carry method are comfortable and will not easily reveal your weapon.



Another method is to conceal the weapon in the small of your back like this.














With an overshirt the weapon is easily concealed. The problem with this method is two fold. First, the weapon is harder to reach in a hurry. Second, sitting down will either block your access to the weapon, or cause the weapon to protrude slightly in your shirt, revealing that you are packing something.

However, if you'll just be walking around all day, this is a very comfortable method of carrying.








The deepest method of concealment that I use is down the front of my pants like this.














If you're wearing an undershirt, you can tuck the shirt on top of the holster, leaving only the belt-clip visible like this.















With an overshirt, the entire rig is totally concealed.

This method used to be really uncomfortable for me because...well, I got a beer gut. But I've been working out and loosing weight over the past couple of months, and this method is now comfortable. I can totally conceal the weapon without worrying about it being seen. When the rig is properly placed, I can even comfortably sit down with the gun like this.

There are drawbacks to this method. First, if you have to get to the gun, you have to lift up your shirts with your weak hand, while reaching for the gun with your strong hand. This takes practice.

Second, if you're overweight, the handle of the gun is going to stick into your gut when you sit down.

Third, you have a loaded gun that is pointed right at your genitals. However, with a proper holster and a strong double action trigger, the chances of this gun going off accidently and blowing off your nutsack are pretty close to zero.

By far though, my favorite way to conceal a handgun is to just stick it in a jacket pocket. Depending on your jacket, the weather, and your creativity, you can easily hide a handgun on you. Now you don't see it.












And now you do.

The limits of this method really comes down to your own personal style & the weather.

If the weather is nice & the circumstances allow, this is the method I choose most often because it's the most comfortable.

So these are the methods that I use. There are other methods, such as ankle holsters, or pager paddle holsters; that are available, but I haven't bothered with them yet.

Again, I'm no expert in this, but consider it a decent intro to how to conceal carry.

As far as how to conceal carry legally, you should consult your local state's laws. The links to the right of this blog provide a good starting point for that. If you live in Virginia, you can check out my intro to gun ownership & legally carrying a handgun.