Ankle Holster First Impression

[Murcielago]

Ordered a Bianchi Triad ankle holster last week and it arrived Friday. Wore it all day yesterday in lieu of the usual El Paso Saddlery C-Force IWB that I usually carry my J-Frame in. Here are my initial thoughts in case anyone's interested:

From a concealment perspective, the ankle holster was probably the best concealment holster I've used. I wore it with jeans, and my jeans had a slight flare at the bottom, and there was no printing whatsoever that I could notice.

I wouldn't say it was "comfortable", but it wasn't uncomfortable either. I'd hate to have to run with it on, but for just walking around all day -- to the supermarket, for instance -- it was not bad.

Here was the con that I'm not sure I can get over: I don't know how quickly I could bring my gun into play if I had to. I was in a couple of rougher neighborhoods over the course of the day, and I asked myself repeatedly, if TSHTF, how would I get to the J-Frame, and I have to say, it worried me.

 

[ObsidianOne]

I'm with Massad Ayoob on this one and ankle holsters are strictly for a BUG, unless you literally have no other options.

 

[Valkman]

I agree - presenting the top of your head to the BG while bending over and drawing is a bad thing. I have an ankle holster by Alessi and have only used it for a BUG.

 

[MICHAEL T]

Their good sitting down . I wouldn't waste the money on one

 

[HiWayMan]

I have the same holster. If you want it a bit more concealable, ditch the cushy ankle pad it comes with. I tried it and unless I wear bell bottoms it ain't gonna happen for me, unfortunately I wear boot cuts. My calves are too big to get a pants leg over the holster, the J, and my calf muscles. I have considered it upside down, but with the Bodyguard model J that I prefer the retention is not the best.

I have used it when nothing else would work, but I was not convinced that I would be at all effective with it. And yes I practiced drawing for weeks.

I've found a Hip-Gripped J under my "Dun-Lop" at 1:00 works much better, even in dress clothes.

 

[Stormin.40]

If you have dress in bisiness or even business casual cloths and will be sittling a lot I think ankle carry is a great option. I wear a shirt and tie all day and spend most of my time behind the wheel so for me the ankle holster is my best option 90% of the day. When I am running around town in casual clothes I go with a full size pistol IWB.

 

[gpr]

i did a ankle holster for a couple years.....now i am paying the price with poor circulation in that leg...there are better options now.....gary

 

[jad0110]

I can only imagine that if you have lower back pain, weighting one ankle probably isn't going to help things. Just an assumption on my part, I've always wondered about that.

 

[Unistat]

I have the Triad. After fiddling around with it and breaking it in, I found it to be very comfortable. I will say I only ever used it to carry a BUG, although when driving or sitting in a car, I'd probably go for the ankle gun before trying to draw from the waist.

 

[2wheels]

I don't consider ankle carry to be the best form of carry (access is the biggest problem), but it has its place. I have a cheaper Uncle Mikes ankle holster I occasionally use if I want to carry my P238 as a BUG, it works ok, I'm too cheap to pay out for a decent one.

 

[Plan2Live]

If you do ankle carry, choose your holster carefully and practice, practice, practice. A friend of mine primarily sits in his office or takes short trips in his car. His daily dress is a collared shirt and tie. So he thought an ankle holster would work best for him while carrying his Taurus TCP 738. He carried this way for several months and one day while seated in his office he was talking about it with a trusted friend who is also a fan of self protection. His friend asked him to draw the weapon. When he tried to draw the weapon the slide release snagged a seam inside the holster and he couldn't get it out at all. He had to take the holster off and fiddle with it to get it loose. This was an obvious design flaw with the holster that did not immediately present itself even with early test draws.

Imagine if this had shown itself during a real life or death scenario.

Don't be that guy.

 

[Girodin]

I don't know how quickly I could bring my gun into play if I had to.

A shot timer is a great way to answer that question.

I was in a couple of rougher neighborhoods over the course of the day, and I asked myself repeatedly, if TSHTF, how would I get to the J-Frame, and I have to say, it worried me.

Carrying in a way that one has not dedicated a fair amount of practice time to seems like a really bad idea.

I have put in some time experimenting with an ankle holster. I found the following:

-Standing I was unable to make my personal standard for time for drawing and firing an aimed shot from a random start signal.

-It took more than 2x as long as it did from an IWB holster under a shirt and a zipped up coat. I also experienced many more bobbles in drawing the ankle holster (i.e. some error that slowed me down significantly). In all fairness, with respect to this comment and the one immediately above, I have MANY MANY MANY more draws from a belt holster than an ankle holster. I likely could speed up the ankle holster with more practice. However, I do not believe it would ever be nearly as fast, or just as important smooth and easy as drawing from a belt.

-It was actually faster than a reactive draw from a pocket holster with certain pants. Cargo pants were much faster with the pocket holster, most of my jeans were not.

-It is viable, and I'd say superior to holster on my right hip when I'm driving.

Overall a specialty tool that I do not believe is well suited for daily carry of a primary weapon.

 

[orionengnr]

I'm with Massad Ayoob on this one and ankle holsters are strictly for a BUG, unless you literally have no other options.

I am with this as well.

I once tried a j-frame with an ankle holster and it was very uncomfortable and un-balanced (in fairness, I have had back problems for the last 20-25 years).

I no longer own a j-frame, but can easily pocket carry either my Kahr PM9 or my LCP. I seldom carry either, beacause I have learned to conceal and carry something larger, but I hang on to both. I'm not getting any younger, and one day that PM9 will come in handy.