Holster ideas?

[Seth]

I have a Glock 26, and a ruger lcp 380. I am awaiting my ccw permit. I have a Galco king tuck for the glock, and a Uncle Mikes iwb holster for the ruger. Those of you that have pistols this size, what is your preferences on carrying? I'm kind of a big guy, (6'4" 270lbs) if that makes a difference. I prefer not to carry from a shoulder holster under normal carry conditions. Any ideas or advices are welcomed.

[Mr. Glock]

The Ruger is great for pocket carry, in a Desantis Super Fly holster. Almost too small for belt carry (but of course works just fine).

I'm partial to the Galco IWB for the G26 family that is a straight up and down leather holster along the lines of their NSA model but with a J-Clip that goes under the belt. I just can't recall the name right now. The KingTuk works just fine, but you can get away with a smaller holster since it is a smaller gun.

Don't be afraid to buy used holster (or new) to try them out, everyone is different and everyone needs to experiment.

[SMMAssociates]

Seth:

Welcome Aboard! (If nobody else has said that yet .)

My usual advice is to find an Uncle Mike's dealer of some kind and grab up a few that look like they might work.

If you find one you really like, look for a similar holster in leather (or Kydex, which I hate, but that's another story). You tend to put three or four (or more) holsters in a drawer someplace before picking one you really like; might as well save a few bucks. DO NOT skimp on the price or quality of a "real" holster. (Use the junk on the range.)

IMHO, if you're not into "Open Carry", stay away from magic security devices. If a BG is trying to disarm you by grabbing your gun (while it's holstered and concealed), he's either going to whack you over the head or find some way to take it from you. Might as well save the money, and understand that a thumb break of some kind will be adequate to keep the gun in it's holster until you want it out, without being a training issue.

Regards,

[WY_Not]

The pocket holster I use for my LCP is a Hunter. It is their Pocket Holster, model number 2500-2. Can be found in their online catalog or Midway or one of the many online vendors should stock it. I picked mine up at a LGS over in PA.

Here's a link, their website is a bit wonky but you'll at least be able to see it. http://www.huntercompany.com/index.html ... p/35682845" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

They also make a version that fits the LCP with a Crimson Trace installed as well as models for other models of pistols.

I've been using mine for a few years now and while it isn't anything fancy it does the job, keeps the trigger covered, and if it does print it looks like a wallet.

[Seth]

I just bought the Ruger, it has a grip laser with the laser on the top of the gun, mounted to the trigger guard, under the barrel. I tried it in my uncle mikes iwb holster, left hand type draw, but in the small of my back, making it a right hand draw. It was pretty comfortable for someone who's never carried concealed, (i hardly knew it was there.) as for the Glock, it's ok in my uncle mikes right hand iwb, but easily fits in my leg pocket of my BDU pants. Just need to figure something out for weekend carry, this is where my king tuck will probably come in handy. After talking to a few guys at work, I might even reconsider a shoulder holster with a long sleeve shirt over it, idk. Anyway, thanks for having me, and having mercy on a noob that hasn't quite figured everything out yet.

[TSiWRX]

Here's a hypothetical for ya.

With so many carry options - so many different places that you carry - if someone gives you a nasty surprise on any given day, will you instinctively reach to the correct place to access your firearm?

What's the difference in your draw-to-first-hit time from each of these positions?

What are the physical compromises you may need to consider, in terms of access/accessibility, with each of these positions (translation: can you pull the Glock from your BDU's cargo pocket while you're on-the-run? what's your technique for drawing from the shoulder holster so that you won't muzzle innocents as you bring the gun into play? SOB, can you access the gun while supine [you're a bigger guy, so an assailant pushing you down is not as likely, but it's Ohio in the winter, so let's say you simply slip on some snow/ice and goes down during the fight])?

As with what Mr. Glock and SMMAssociates wrote, I completely agree: "everyone is different and everyone needs to experiment." As you progress, you'll come to learn that *_A LOT_* about concealed carry is based on each one of our personal compromises.

But keep in mind as you experiment that the more inconsistencies you introduce, the more you're going to have to practice in order to become competent in the skills involved.

Options are great, but starting with so many options may actually put you farther down the power-curve and increase the slope of your learning curve.