civilian open carry with a drop-leg holster

If you are a LEO, then depending upon your watch commanders view of "visible" versus "community" policing they may have a firm view on it.

As a non LEO, body armor, drop leg holster etc is getting into mall ninja/Gecko45 territory

This was posted by Derek Zeanah on another thread in a slightly different context. FWIW, it may have some bearing on the question in this thread.

Our focus should be on education and getting popular acceptance.

Our biggest hurdle is the irrational fear many people have toward firearms. We should be trying to eliminate it, not provoke it.

Click to expand...

Making 98% of the population slightly nervous because of the guy with the tactical attitude is not a way to win hearts and minds.

I have, a couple of times, worn a pistol in a thigh rig. Excluding the mideast, and IPSC matches, I was always out backpacking or camping where I didn't expect to run across people and I had a reason to wear it on the thigh and not waist.

For everyday OC in town, it seems a little mall ninja-ish. Like it or not, perceptions are important.

Unless you live in TX, and its a SAA in a leather thigh rig. Then I'd just ignore it.

Having worn body armor a lot, I wouldn't wear it in my civilian life. If I need armor, I need to exfil., quickly.

Body armor and a drop-leg holster for civilian open carry? GREAT!
But only if you also wear a Viking helmet and maybe some inflatable clown shoes.

30 cal slob, what are the benefits to an OCer of wearing a thigh rig?

I think a BBQ gun in a fancy leather rig would definately be a plus at most events I attend.

Commando rigs scream Ninja in training.

I don't care much one way or the other. A holster is a holster and as long as it is secure, why do I care what kind of holster someone else decides to use?

I doubt that the average citizen is going to be alarmed more by the style of holster than by the fact that someone is carrying a gun.

I -do- think that the average citizen is more likely to notice an "evil assault" holster and see it as a threat.

Heck, that'd make -me- nervous...

But you see a guy with a regular belt holster - heck... That's darn near normal. Let's get those -really- accepted first, okay?

I'm with the folks saying it would be a little over the top. Regular holster? Not threatening. Even though I know better if I were to see a thigh holster around town I'd be immediately thinking Mall Ninja as well.

Thigh holsters are more comfortable, but I wouldn't risk the more than likely sneers from gunnies and non gunnies alike.

why do you need body armor? do you live in a war zone?

If you're worried about retention, a drop leg is a step in the wrong direction.

a drop leg doesn't seem to offer any advantages to a civilian. I'm sure it can make you feel tactical (but you're not, so stop trying to feel that way.) I'd think it would put the firearm further from your hand, never good. As others have said, making everyone (including other ccw'ers) think "what is that phsyco doing with a gun?" is not good either.

I went one step further. I use a drop leg holster with a 3 ft length. This puts the pistol at my foot level where it is not likely to be noticed.

This helps keep the gun out of the way when im doing acrobatics, jumping jacks and getting in and out of a clown car.

It does tend to clank on the ground alot, so make sure the holster does not have an open end.

The fastest draw I have found is the drop to the ground in the fetal position and this puts the uber tactical foot holster right in the correct spot for drawing.

Try it. it works.

I understand all the concern about appearances but occasionally we have to be practical too.

My wife simply cannot use a normal belt holster. First, she's left-handed so I had to conquer that disability before we even recognised the other one. She's ... Well, she's... Okay, she has big boobs and they get in the way of any draw from her belt. If the gun has an exposed hammer she danged near performs a mastectomy on herself. So I bought a bunch of leather and made a holster for her that rides lower than the belt holster but slightly higher than a drop-leg.

It works and though she doesn't wear it to the grocery store it doesn't seem to get anymore attention than any other pretty lady would get if she carried.

I saw a guy in the grocery store carrying a Beretta 92 in an OD drop leg holster. I think was wearing BDU pants and a white t-shirt. He was just waiting in line at the customer service counter. Nobody else looked like they noticed or cared.

I was a little surprised, but not concerned.

Heck, that'd make -me- nervous...

Click to expand...

Why?

But... I agree with others here. Too mall-ninja-ish. And if you're not wearing a pack or body armor, why go drop-leg anyway? I don't see a tactical advantage. I know I'm a helluva lot quicker from the hip than I am a drop leg holster. But... it could be that I just suck.

I'd probably chuckle a bit and think "mall ninja" but it would be just another holster to me. I can't say how anyone else would react, but I tend to think more people would laugh than would panic. Just a guess so don't ask me to prove it.

As for "retention." The only retention I use when I open carry are (1) my arm, and (2) keeping my head out of my butt.

I have a thigh holster that I OC with from time to time. Nobody really seems to care any more about it than a gun in a "normal" holster. I'm lightning fast from a thigh rig, and I find them quite comfortable, which is why I own one, but this is a matter of personal preference. I'm usually wearing khakis and a polo, and I don't go around acting like a thug, so most folks just go about their business without noticing and/or caring. Now, if I wore the same holster with bdu pants, a wife beater and chains, I think the reaction would be different.

I view thigh holsters the same way I view punks on sportbikes wearing shorts, no shirt, and flip flops. Frickin' idiot.

Some may think the same way about OC in general and that's fine.

Thigh holsters are very good for hunting, especially in cold weather where a jacket is too heavy or will retard the draw.

It would be OK only if the person wearing this outfit had a Concealed carry badges on

Snob, the one thing I keep seeing in this thread is body armor.

Do you regularly wear body armor? If so, I'd say go for the drop leg especially, as it sits out of the way of the armor.

Otherwise, go with what makes you happy. If OC is legal, it's legal even if you do it in an ugly holster (see, the second amendment protecting the first amendment! ha!)

Somebody, somewhere, will not approve. But then, life is hard sometimes, and the rest of us stone-hearted operators will have to endure.