Gun, load, holster combination for pocket SHOOTING

Hi

I'm wondering who has actually used their gun out of a pocket, having to shoot it? What combination did you use, and what would you suggest as an ideal setup to do so?

There are so many brandishing laws in our state I would like the comfort of being able to pocket shoot if necessary.

Needless to say doing a Richard Prior is not something I'm looking for.

What load, what gun, what effect on the clothes, what caliber.

To be clear: This is a gun, in your pocket, and you pull the trigger while the gun is still in the pocket. I would imagine a 340PD or something like that, with a low flash, 38 special load might be ok. Don't know.



Thanks ahead of time.

P

I honestly can't say there is an ideal setup for this. It's too hard to get sights even close to on target in such a setup. If I actually felt the need to fire, I certainly wouldn't be worrying about "brandishing". In fact, bringing the gun to bear, making it visible to my assailant, might even eliminate the need to fire, and I consider that a good thing. But, if I had to, I guess I'd hope the gun was in a coat pocket, not in any kind of holster, and was a .38 snub revolver loaded with a SWC load. The only holsters made that allow for fire while the gun is still in it are for the little semis, and they are not pocket-fire ideal due to the risk of jamming.

I'd really want to be using a revolver, preferably with a shrouded hammer (or a "hammerless"). Ammo is really not a concern. Any of them are likely to singe your coat and/or set it to smoldering, but this isn't a range shooting, casual plinking problem. Life or death. Harm to your clothes is the least of your worries.

I'd spend a lot of time doing "speed rock" type drills to get used to low-index point shooting. It does work, but like anything else, the more you've done it in practice the more likely you are to do it well under stress.

First, you need to wear some asbestos underpants if you're planning to pull a stunt like that. :what:

Shooting through your pocket is going to make for some expensive practice!!

Practice what you shoot, shoot what you practice.

In all, it is a bad idea with modern tight fitting clothes.
It will be very difficult to get an accurate shot out of your pants pocket unless you are already laying on the ground looking up.

As for "brandishing" laws?
Keep the gun in the holster until it is already a foregone conclusion you are going to have to use it.

rc

I'm thinking jacket pocket as opposed to pants pocket for this situation. In which case it would only be the jacket that gets tore up. And you can often point while the gun is in the jacket.

Maybe take some old pants/jackets that you're ready to throw away, cut out the pocket, and put it over your hand and the gun when you're at the range. Just a random idea.

Personally, I would prefer to keep the gun holstered while it's in the pocket, to keep anything from enterring the trigger guard and keep it oriented correctly, but in a jacket pocket that about fits it, I don't see much of an issue.

If I were to go this route, I'd do a Ruger LCR, although a covered Smith would work, too.

Go for it and get back to us. I'm surprised I haven't pocket shot yet. Seems like a formality/unnecessary to me though. Oh, you'd probably carry/want it naked/not holstered.
Go to the Goodwill. They sell garments by the pound/weight. Use a hammerless and probably some good hardcast SWC's

I have practiced firing my jframe while in an old denim jacket pocket. Used duct tape to cover the holes & kept practicing (50 rds). Never tried firing from a pants pocket. Too close for comfort.

Just remember that the revolver sends gases out the sides between the cylinder and barrel, so I'd advise against keeping that part next to your body.

+1 on the shrouded or "hammerless" revolver. Anything else is asking for a malfunction.

Somebody actually tested this, I thought it was Box-O-Truth
the results
revolver, hammer jams (esp DAO) second round (only good for one shot), eats the pocket liner, locking the cylinder and trapping the gun in the pocket.

pocket auto - only good for ONE round, slide eats the pocket liner OR pocket keeps the spent case from ejecting

BEST tight pocket and a shrouded revolver, if the pocket won't get into the cylinder, the pistol will shoot and keep shooting

BUT don't count on more than ONE shot, and when it jams, it will be stuck in your pocket
so if you do this, best have a NY reload to back it up.

This is not something you will want to do on a regular basis as live fire practice is destructive to clothing, more like something to keep in reserve or as a backup if needed.

For shooting through your pocket, a concealed-hammer revolver is your best bet. Cloth can get pinched in and block an exposed hammer, and it might be possible, even with a shrouded hammer, for a bit of cloth to work its way down between the hammer and sideplate. A pistol is only going to be good for one shot, as the pocket can trap the case ejecting or retard the slide movement.

I read a very good article in Petersen's Handguns some time ago about this very subject. Firing a revolver in a pocket makes not just one, but three holes in the cloth, in the form of rips on either side of the bullet hole from the cylinder blast, even through a fairly heavy trench coat. The author was not able to set any of the pockets on fire.

I might also mention that a pocket holster and shooting from a pocket are mutually exclusive. Shooting through a pocket only works if you carry the gun loose in it.

You can pull the handgun out of the holster and still have it in your pocket, if you have larger pockets.

Would a concealed hammer have issues with lint getting in the cylinder?

A deringer might make a decent option.

I know a guy who gave it a try once, because...you know...he saw it on a Hollywood movie and all and it ewas cool, so it must be a good idea.

One of those little humpbacked Airweight Bodyguards it was.

He fired two rounds. Bad show. Set his coat on fire. He escaped in all due haste and in the nick of time.

I'd make sure that the chosen garment is made of flame-retardant stuff 'f I was you.

"Shooting through your pocket is going to make for some expensive practice!!"

You need to start shopping at Goodwill. But even they've gone up in price around here.

A good tailor can re-weave a wool suit coat pocket. :)

Good information:
Thank you.

So even the shrouded hammer guns bind up after one or two shots, and it flame cuts the sides of your pockets. In other words, a derringer is pretty good for this, since it gives you two shots, and that's all your going to get.

Also, it's not going to create three holes, and it's much lighter, depending on model, and smaller then a CCW revolver.
I wonder if the jacket pocket is going to get in the way of the hammer on a derringer?

Doesn't sound real practical at this point.

Here's a guy on YouTube who fires an LCP from the pocket of a pair of shorts. He gets two shots off before the gun gets jammed up on the fabric. He also completely misses the target.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eegOK1CdkTI&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Good news is I might just use what I've got.

Has anyone actually got off more then two shots, with a Hammerless S&W, out of a pocket, JACKET POCKET, without the gun jamming?

The other question would be, with a short-barreled handgun at your side, in a pocket, could you actually hit a target more than 2-feet away with the one shot you're likely to get off? Only in the movies, or pulp fiction, I think.

If this is in a coat pocket, you're basically doing a "Speed Rock" so sure, you can make good hits out to a few yards. If you have the time and space to draw, you sure would want to do that, but this is a close and dirty gun fighting technique, not a marksmanship exercise.

If this is in your pants pocket...the outlook is dim.

This would be for a point blank, sudden attack.