Holster sewn inside of a coat?

[Carl]

I thought it'd be an interesting idea to have a holster sewn to the inside of a heavy coat, in the same place that a shoulder holster would have a handgun sitting. Is this possibly a practical idea or not? For all I know tons of people do this and I don't know about it. I'm new when it comes to handguns and holsters and concealed carry techniques.

 

[Hungry Seagull]

I dont know, I happen to be considering the same when faced with the cost of a under shirt holster at 50 dollars.

I present to you a recent experience with a taylor (Clothes tradesman) that charged 20 dollars for a simple hem repair to proper leg length. Unfortunately the item repaired had a retail of 15 dollars or so. We learned the lesson. We replace the article instead of having it repaired now.

 

[Hanafuda]

there's a company that makes outergarments, i.e. coats, blazers ... with holsters built-in. Not only is the holster sewn into the coat, but ther are also supporting straps built into the lining to support the weight so there's no 'sag.' I do not remember the name of the company, but shouldn't be hard to find. You could probably mimic their support design if you wanted to DIY. Without something like that, though, the coat will sag from the weight, even with the holster sewn in. Maybe not with a P3AT, but anything from a G26 on up is certainly heavy enough to make the sag happen.

 

[AlexIT]

What is the company that makes these??

 

[DHJenkins]

Why not buy a cheap shoulder holster and just sew it into the coat so it has the proper support?

 

[Macmac]

The idea is valid the heavy coat is not.. Just how long are you going to wear a heavy coat indoors?

Try here, for a bit better plan, and I see no reason you can't roll your own if you can cut and sew.
http://www.coronadoleather.com/

 

[AlexIT]

thanks for the link

 

[glockdriver]

holsters

check out The Sportsmans Guide. They have both jackets and vests with concealed holsters

 

[SomeDude]

Sig makes a coat with a "pocket" for your gun. Looks like a typical Carhartt jacket. Google "SigTac coat".

 

[Mr.510]

Custom tactical clothing.....

I have a Carhartt work coat with a nylon shoulder rig sewn into it. My former room mate was a clothing designer and we looked at all sorts of ideas for him to make a line of highly concealed carry garments. This was mid-'90s, there wasn't much available, and it all looked way too tactical for Seattle to me. I did end up with an uber-cool pullover fleece coat with a built-in belly band enveloping a Galco IWB in the front pocket and a mag carrier in the left pocket but that project is way beyond the scope of what you're asking about. Back to my Carhartt jacket: We tried just attaching the holster to the shoulder seam and bottom of the arm hole and no matter how we did it the jacket looked like there was something hanging from the shoulder. It never laid right and stuck out like a sore thumb. :banghead: The solution was to adjust an Uncle Mikes shoulder rig to fit me just a little loose. Then I put on the coat over it and he pinned the top of the shoulder pads to the shoulder seam of the jacket. We sewed "tack points" at the inner and outer edges of the rig's shoulder pads. Then we tacked it to the jacket at the adjuster rings and used a piece of elastic to attach the bottoms of the holster and mag carrier to the armpits of the jacket so I didn't need the straps attached to my belt. We also sewed the strap between the shoulders into the neck seam at the middle so I could carry the jacket by the neck and this works very well. The goal of this project was for me to be able to carry in a shoulder rig but be able to take my jacket off at a restaurant or whatever. It worked almost too well and the jacket is in shreds from many Winter's of daily use. To sum it up, we found that having the garment "load bearing" did not work at all. We attached the shoulder rig in just enough places that I could take the "loaded" coat on and off just like any other. With a little practice it becomes second nature to put it on and take it off without revealing it's little secret. We were going to do an updated version with buttons sewn into the jacket and button holes in the shoulder rig so I wouldn't have to launder the shoulder rig with the jacket but never got around to doing it. I carry IWB now anyway. I hope I described what we did well enough for you to get the idea. If not, ask me for more info! I'd post some pics but everything involved is black fabric and you can't even make out the shoulder rig. (I guess in that respect it does work too well!) It sounds like a lot of work but once we figured out that we needed to use the whole shoulder rig it probably didn't take 45 minutes total, and we sewed it all by hand. Hope this helps.

 

[Oro]

I have a leather Schott mc jacket that conceals two 1911's and four clips - no problem. I went to a person who made leather goods for bikes (chaps, saddlebags, etc) and she made the mods pretty easily - sew in nylon magazine pouches, and put pockets in the lining for thin leather holsters on either side.

The only hard part of this is finding a competent seamstress, which really isn't "hard" - it's just not a point and click activity - you need to open the yellow pages or such and make a few calls, then visit them and explain what you want.

5.11 also makes a line of pants and other clothes that have concealed pockets sewn in. I have a pair of their jeans that works very well (though I think they stopped the jeans and now just make tacky parachute pants).

 

[owlhoot]

Many of the gunfighters of the old west had holsters built into their pockets, leather lined and made to fit a large revolver.
Some used the front pockets other used the back pocket. Dallas Stoudenmire carried two revolvers thusly.

John Wesley Hardin designed his vests with leather holsters sewn on either side for a pair of 1860 Colts. Toward the turn of the century he carried a pair of Colt Lightenings in leather lined front pockets. These pockets were cut to fit the gun.

Coats of the period usually had large side pockets, and these were often lined with leather to fit the gun. Wyatt Earp was carrying his revolver thusly in a frock coat pocket at the OK Corral shootout.

 

[chris in va]

Sig sells a Carhartt-looking jacket with a holster (of sorts) sewn in. Opens using velcro on both sides. I have one and wear it on occasion.

 

[Carne Frio]

Try coronadoleather.com They have vests, coats and even purses.
Coronado caters to concealed carry. The bison hide vests are the best.
It is an American company.

 

[statelineblues]

I have a SigArms coat similar to to the one chris in va is talking about - works well with all my handguns (I've carried everything from a J frame S&W to a full size 1911). Can be used left - or right - handed.

Check the S&W website - I think they have several jackets/coats with concealed holsters as well.

 

[UhKlem]

A coat will show the weight hanging in it more than and independent harness hung on your frame and covered by a lighter, looser coat.

Here in Arizona shorts, shoulder holster and comfy shirt makes for good summer carry. Presentation is slow but it's a great rig for access while driving, requires no messing with if you have to use the head, and you won't have any urges to hug strangers ;-)