Horizontal shoulder holster and concealment

Status
Not open for further replies.
lle014hy.jpg

lle024dc.jpg

lle033kb.jpg

lle043pt.jpg

lle055ge.jpg
 
And here’s the bare pictures, no cover garment. Try to ignore the extra holiday food I have in storage there. :D

under012tf.jpg

under024al.jpg

under038rt.jpg

under049fa.jpg

under057af.jpg

under068bw.jpg

under076td.jpg
 
Last edited:
i used to use a shoulder harness system. it was great!!!!! gun under my left armpit and two fully loaded clips inder my right, but that was when i used to wear suits. buy it if you like it. nothing wrong with the shoulder holster, but now i prefer a pancake holster for my .45 1911. easier to conceal and easier to draw the weapon quickly while concealing it under a t-shirt. while wearing a suite or jacket the shoulder carry gives you a fast draw too. just buy it!!!!! can never have too many toys my friend:)
 
Wow pretty impressive, thanks for the pics NineseveN, think if your gun were an additional .75" long you would have more trouble hiding it? I'm trying to size them up and it seems like at 7.75" you might wind up with muzzle printing.
 
Quite the opposite of many of the other members, I'm not tall, and i also enjoy a shoulder holster, horizontal. I guess its kinda like imaging an oompa loompa with a full size, non-detective model hi-power slung under the armpit. I actually prefer the barrel tipped down, rather than up, more of a 25-30degree angle. Not vertical, but not really horizontal either. I also bought a cheaper horizontal for my new glock 20. I think its really the only style im going to be able to carry it. I love shoulder holsters for doublestacks, and IWB for 1911's.
 
Soybomb said:
Wow pretty impressive, thanks for the pics NineseveN, think if your gun were an additional .75" long you would have more trouble hiding it? I'm trying to size them up and it seems like at 7.75" you might wind up with muzzle printing.

I don't think it ould make too much of a difference, but anything longer than that might start to stick out too much.You'd be surprised at how large of a gun can be concealed, even on a person with a smaller frame.
 
Thanks for all the advice, I put my name down on the list for an alessi bodyguard for a sig p226 this week. I am a little concerned about my shirts not being heavy enough to keep them from printing but its worth a shot. And now the wait begins...
 
There are numerous reasons why horizontal shoulder holsters are prohibited by nearly every major law enforcement organization.

First of all, they violate the 1st rule of firearm safety: Never point a gun at anything you do not intend to shoot.

You need to carry the way you train, and instructors won't even allow horizontal holsters on a range. Nobody want's a gun pointing in the wrong direction, with some fool waving it past folks when he draws.

Gravity should work for you, not against you. Nearly all horizontal holsters point muzzle up, with some sort of "safety" mechanism to defy the law of gravity. Your gun will fall out when you least need it to. If it hasn't happened yet, you still have that experience to look forward to.

If you are carrying a handgun, it is vitally important that you be able to re-holster using just one hand. It is also important to note that most accidental discharges occur during reholstering. A horizontal holster will dictate that the gun is pointed at friendlies or loved ones while you are doing this.

If you wish to carry on the opposite side, get a vertical belt holster with the extra loop near the trigger guard. It will pull the butt in close against your stomach, and still allow instant access (even while seated). Just remember to draw the gun straight up, then raise the muzzle to point only in the direction of the threat.
 
KurtC said:
There are numerous reasons why horizontal shoulder holsters are prohibited by nearly every major law enforcement organization.

First of all, they violate the 1st rule of firearm safety: Never point a gun at anything you do not intend to shoot.

So does hip carry (unless you consider yourself as something you intend to shoot)....or someone's leg/foot depending on your holster cant and your height. While this is just a stupid retort, there is a small amount of validity to it. It is amazing how unaware some folks really are of where their muzzle goes, hip carry folks included.


You need to carry the way you train, and instructors won't even allow horizontal holsters on a range. Nobody want's a gun pointing in the wrong direction, with some fool waving it past folks when he draws.

Some instructors won't allow it...some also won't allow Glocks or similar firearms. Some only allow one shooting stance. That's the funny thing about individual instructors, they are individuals, they do individual things.


Gravity should work for you, not against you. Nearly all horizontal holsters point muzzle up, with some sort of "safety" mechanism to defy the law of gravity. Your gun will fall out when you least need it to. If it hasn't happened yet, you still have that experience to look forward to.

And does one go into an anti-gravity state when they pull their gun from below[/u] their line of sight and raises it, against gravity to the eye line? Does gravity cease to exist when drawing from an ankle holster? Or do you just shoot from the hip? Gravity works against you more raising your gun from hip to eye than it does from armpit to eye, especially if you go from shoulder carry to a modified weaver stance.

Also, I don't know how long it has been since you've used a shoulder rig, but all of the vertical rigs that I know of allow for perfectly vertical carry. A good holster will also not allow your gun to simply fall out any more than an IWB rig will allow the holster to flop out if you run or jump. This is pure poppycock. It might be true for a cheap Uncle Mike's Velcro rig, but not so with a quality leather rig with a good system of retention (tension screw and thumb break).


If you are carrying a handgun, it is vitally important that you be able to re-holster using just one hand. It is also important to note that most accidental discharges occur during reholstering. A horizontal holster will dictate that the gun is pointed at friendlies or loved ones while you are doing this.

If you wish to carry on the opposite side, get a vertical belt holster with the extra loop near the trigger guard. It will pull the butt in close against your stomach, and still allow instant access (even while seated). Just remember to draw the gun straight up, then raise the muzzle to point only in the direction of the threat.

While there are concerns, there is a reason why shoulder holsters are still on the market, not everything is black and white. Plenty of guys I know in Iraq carry their M9's in shoulder rigs over their chest rigs because the belt units and drop legs aren't always comfortable or easy to get to, and sometimes they ride up (the drop legs) when you run.

Police officers are different stories, they have their own set of liabilities to be concerned with, sometimes these concerns outweigh all else.

While I respect your opinion, if you look around, there are plenty of good and bad points on every method of carry. Remember, don't bend over with a gun on your belt in the supermarket, someone might get shot.
 
KurtC said:
There are numerous reasons why horizontal shoulder holsters are prohibited by nearly every major law enforcement organization.

First of all, they violate the 1st rule of firearm safety: Never point a gun at anything you do not intend to shoot.

You need to carry the way you train, and instructors won't even allow horizontal holsters on a range. Nobody want's a gun pointing in the wrong direction, with some fool waving it past folks when he draws.

Gravity should work for you, not against you. Nearly all horizontal holsters point muzzle up, with some sort of "safety" mechanism to defy the law of gravity. Your gun will fall out when you least need it to. If it hasn't happened yet, you still have that experience to look forward to.

If you are carrying a handgun, it is vitally important that you be able to re-holster using just one hand. It is also important to note that most accidental discharges occur during reholstering. A horizontal holster will dictate that the gun is pointed at friendlies or loved ones while you are doing this.

If you wish to carry on the opposite side, get a vertical belt holster with the extra loop near the trigger guard. It will pull the butt in close against your stomach, and still allow instant access (even while seated). Just remember to draw the gun straight up, then raise the muzzle to point only in the direction of the threat.
Fantastic don't carry one. The local range only allows leo's to use holsters (yay illinois) at the range. Practice drawing is not a range activity for all. I am quite confident my gun will not fire when its in its holster. Trigger discipline keeps me from worrying when my hand is on it. Falling out is an absurd arguement.

I appreciate your enthusiasm in answering a question that I never asked however much like zero tolerance laws, I think inflexibility in applying rational thought and analysis to a situation can be quite handicapping.
 
Car Knocker said:
And certainly never carry on an upper floor of an apartment building. :D

Heh, hadn't even thought of that one. Listen, I didn't mean to bust anyone's chops, but do me a favor, go into your garage, take a squirt gun (small super soaker works well) and hold it in the position and angle you normally carry on your hip. Squirt it one once and hold down the trigger as you draw up to your firing stance. Now look around at the wide arc that your muzzle just covered.

The only carry position that does not cover those around you is the traditional LEO retention holster going straight up and down....anything behind the hip or forward of the hip has a wider draw arc that most are aware of.

Now put it under your arm pit, turn to face your target as you draw and pull it into a modified weaver stance. The results will surprise you.

If you're concerned about where the muzzle is when your hand is not on the gun, well then pay attention to where your gun points on your hip when you are on the stairs, sitting down and as was said just before, while your on an upper floor of a building walking along.

There are a number of drawbacks of shoulder carry, the concerns listed earlier in this thread that I responded to aren't included in that list.
 
I carry a Beretta 92 or a Kimmy TLE in a shoulder holster, with double mag pouch on the right, from time to time, mosly when I walk the dog late at night or when picking people up from questionalbe neighbor hoods. So I'm not CCW on a daily basis. My usuall dress is a hooded sweat shirt and I've been through the supermarket a few times w/o incident.

I took the tie-downs off and had the local tactical store cut me a strap and a little slider that fit around my back, so when the pistol is pulled from the holser it pulls against my back, not my trousers, it's alot more comfortable. I've used it for carry over my military blouse a few times and it's extremly comfortable, no drop holster in the way and quick access from a vehicle.
 
KC&97TA said:
I took the tie-downs off and had the local tactical store cut me a strap and a little slider that fit around my back, so when the pistol is pulled from the holser it pulls against my back, not my trousers, it's alot more comfortable. I've used it for carry over my military blouse a few times and it's extremly comfortable, no drop holster in the way and quick access from a vehicle.

I would appreciate it if you could post a pic of the strap and of the who rig with the strap attached. This sounds like a good mod.

Good shootin'....
 
Soybomb said:
Thanks for all the advice, I put my name down on the list for an alessi bodyguard for a sig p226 this week. I am a little concerned about my shirts not being heavy enough to keep them from printing but its worth a shot. And now the wait begins...

Soybomb, a little bit of starch can really help with printing issues. A stiff shirt makes quite a bit of difference, in my opinion. Carrying does require a few lifestyle changes... :(

Steven
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top