Motorcyclists, what are you carrying?

Status
Not open for further replies.
F

Fenrik

Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2005
Messages
39
And what type of holster?

I just bought my first bike and am having a blast. However, I miss having a gun with me so I need some options.
 
Primary is a Taurus 450 in an ankle holster inside of my left boot. Others depending upon mood and weather.:)

Biker
 
Bought a Workman from Mitch Rosen for my Kel Tec 9. It's a "tuckable" IWB, meaning you can tuck your shirt in over the top of it. The shirt tail won't blow up over it in the wind cause it's tucked in over the gun, works GREAT!

Sometimes, if I'm going somewhere where I'm going to have to lock the gun in a saddle bag on the Wing or under the seat of my SV650, I'll just carry my .380 in a pocket in a holster I made that looks like a wallet. That way, when I take it out to lock it up, looks like a wallet, not a gun. Has a little flap over it so you can't see the gun in it, but the flap flips out easily in the pocket if I have to draw the gun. This is a pretty good system in Texas because there are places you're not supposed to carry. For instance, when I went to the Cycle World motorcycle show a while back in Houston, I left the gun locked under the seat of the SV 'cause I don't believe they allow carry in the Reliant Center, got one of them signs that forbids it by Texas carry law. I would just ignore it, but you never know when they're going to use a metal detector. Did the same for a ride up to a horse racing track in Houston for a blood carcinoma event, "Light the Night", walking with a friend/biker who lost her daughter to Leukemia a few years ago. Can't carry in a race track, so I left it on the bike.

Taking the 9 off my hip in the workman would be a little obvious to the public, so that's why the .380 and the wallet holster.
 
I carry lefty on the bike.

I know, not my strong hand, but the one doing a lot less when riding.
GP100 3" left side right in front of my hip. Awkward for concealment, to I use a paddle holser, and then move the rig behind my hip when I get off the bike.
 
This is the 4th year of riding my "beginner" bike, an '84 700cc Yamaha Virago XV700. Cost me less than $1,000, looks fine and rides like a dream! Heck, this "beginner" bike may stay with me for a few years yet since I ride for the ride and not to impress anyone (my ego isn't that fragile ;) ).

Though it's hard to see, on the seat is my Kahr K9... like the bike, nothing fancy but it gets the job done (hopefully I'll never have to test that belief).

f89d81f8.jpg


f95b52dd.jpg
 
Snowdog, a little off topic, but that Virago's starter give you any trouble? Don't know what it is about Virago starters, but they have a rep. Buddy of mine has an 1100, we rode to Sturgis one year, had a blast. His starter went out in the campground there and he was bump starting all the way back to Texas. Bump starting an 1100cc twin is NOT fun. :D He still has the bike and that ride was 10 years ago, but he don't put all that many miles on it a year. It's just sorta his toy. He'd really like to have a Harley and he has the money, but he's always been cheap. :D Don't know if he'll ever wear out that Virago to give him an excuse. I just wish they'd never quit putting kick starters on motorcycles. :rolleyes:
 
any thing in a belt slide with a long shirt tucked around the bottom of the holster and between the holster and your pants. you'll need a long shirt to do this. I wear a long denim shirt for this and it never rides up or comes loose from under the muzzle.

or else a shoulder holster works fine too.
 
When I'm riding armed, I'm not real worried about getting to the gun ON the bike. If I'm in that sort of situation, I want full control of the motorcycle with both hands 'cause my best weapon is the throttle. I'm floggin' it until I can at least get to a spot where I can pull in with cover around me. When I'm on the SV I'm a little less worried about cages giving me hassles than on that doggy old Wing...:D ...but even the old Wing is quicker than most cars and trucks now days. Hopefully, I can find a big parking lot with lots of witnesses or at least some trees to pull in to for cover to shoot from behind if he presses the attack.
 
I usually carry something with good penetration ballistics IWB at 4 oclock. I feel best prepared with the SIG 229 in .357 SIG. I figure on the bike, I am more likely to be dealing with trouble inside a cage. I like something that has a chance to penetrate a car door if necessary. I have a shoulder rig for it that I use sometimes with a jacket as well. Always like to have something, even if its in the saddlebag. You are pretty vulnerable to harrasment if broke down on the side of a lonely road.
 
Wear a RiderWearHouse 'Roadcrafter'; slip an alloy 1911 in the front upper chest pocket.

:)
 
riding while armed

i've only had my 642 out riding . i'm afraid my sig 220 or my pt145 wouldn't stay in a iwb holster w/o a thumbstrap
bentwrench
 
MCgunner,

Starter grind is indeed a common problem with Virago XVs. Mine does grind for perhaps a half second before properly engaging. This hasn't yet proven to be any more than an annoyance, but I'm told the grind will become progressively worse as time goes by. I can either buy a 4 brush starter or a shim kit to "fix" the existing starter. I'll be crossing that bridge soon, I suppose.

I've got a crazy itch to by a "dedicated bike" pistol, likely a G29... anything reason to buy a new toy is reason enough.
 
MC gunner, I have to answer the Virago thing. The starter doesn't have a solenoid to kick the starters gear into the flywheel to initiate the start. It uses a helical gear assembly that uses centrifugal force to propel the gear into the flywheel. What sucks about this idea is that the entire system is dependent on the speed of the start motor (i.e. it's got to accelerate very fast). What also sucks is that the start motor doesn't get a chance to apply it's torque as efficiently because the gears engagement is largely a matter of chance so it simply grinds off what partial bearing it gets leaving with less purchase area for the successive start attempts from there on out. In short this is crappy system that Yamaha just wouldn't change. As to the concealment quetion relating to how do you move the gun to the bag and vice versa. Bikers (especially helmet wearing bikers) take quite a while to get underway what with all their adjusting and reving, it's easier to move things about than you might think. When in doubt, I've found a riders coat pocket to be a great holster, and when you need to disarm, you take off the coat and put it in your bag gun and all.
 
As to the concealment quetion relating to how do you move the gun to the bag and vice versa. Bikers (especially helmet wearing bikers) take quite a while to get underway what with all their adjusting and reving, it's easier to move things about than you might think. When in doubt, I've found a riders coat pocket to be a great holster, and when you need to disarm, you take off the coat and put it in your bag gun and all.
Click to expand...

Yeah, great idea in Idaho. Ever try wearing a coat in 105 degree heat? I do have a mesh armored Brosh summer jacket (http://www.brosh.com ) that's actually more comfy in the really bad heat. You need to keep that hot wind off you or you will overheat, especially in the humidity, and the brosh sheds the sun and has mesh under the arms and across the back that allow ventilation. However, the thing is so light that putting a handgun in a pocket will print the exact outline of the gun. A chunk of leather in front of the gun or perhaps a specially made holster might help, but it'd bulge out. It's a thought, though, for the Wing. On the SV, I don't exactly have a lockable space that will fit a jacket. :D

Most bike starters just run a chain around the crank and starter. The starter engages with a ball ratchet when it is thumbed, but if the crank is turning faster than the starter, there is no load on the starter and the sprocket on the crank doesn't turn with the crank because of the ball ratchet mechanism is disengaged. I don't understand why engineers seem to feel when they're designing a new model, they have to fix what ain't broke. :rolleyes: Worse than the starter drive is all the friggin' designs I've come across for clutch disengagement. :rolleyes: The wost of the worst is the use of spring washers as clutch springs such as done in Kawasaki Vulcans and Jixxer Suzukis (I think, IIRC). You talk about a complicated POS to take apart just to get at the friggin' plates! :rolleyes: Then there's the Kawasaki KLR which, when the plates wear down enough, instead of the clutch just slipping, the prawl that pulls on the pressure plate will loose it's grab on the throw out bearing and the lever will go limp and the clutch will not disengage. This would be a pain if you were 200 miles from home and it happened. There are so many good clutch designs, why do engineers try to reinvent the friggin' wheel?????:rolleyes:

I guess I could go on about the stupidity of some engineers, but I might step on a few toes here. :D I worked with chemical engineers all my life as an underling technician. My minor in chemistry got me a good payin' job working with morons, in many cases, for bosses. :rolleyes: Usually, there were enough experienced, smart ones around to straighten problems out, but not always. I can only figure that the design departments of MC companies aren't a lot different than in chemical plants. :D
 
On a sportbike, I don't carry. On the Harley, typically, I just put a small gun (like my AMT Backup 45ACP) in the front pocket. If I carry on the bike, I NEVER keep it on the bike, but on me. I always figure that I am not in complete control of it if it is on the bike, and if a person ever crashes, you will probably never be anywhere near your bike when you come to a stop.....same thing with a cell phone. It stays on me.
 
Steyr S40 in my over the shoulder bag.....

that rest on the tank so I can draw it. A Kel Tec 3AT in my pocket. A Glock in my bag. If I am going to my camp, a rifle bungied to my sissy bar. When drivers see the rifle, they are VERY polite............chris3
 
Depending on how much space I have left in my tank bag it is typically either a Bersa .380 or a 6" 686. If I am going to carry off-body I might as well carry big. The tank bag is magnetic so I just pull it off the tank and carry it with me at my destination.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

jaytex1969
  • Locked
Scenario, question. Texas carry.
Replies
11
Views
976
thedriver101
T
Craig_AR
  • Locked
Open Carry => 911 Call (Virginia)
2 3 4
Replies
83
Views
3K
GEM
G
P
  • Locked
What's The Best Way To Carry A Handgun On A Bike?
2 3
Replies
74
Views
4K
Brian Williams
Brian Williams
X
  • Locked
CCW and a motorcycle
2 3 4
Replies
77
Views
4K
otasan56
O
G
  • Locked
Motorcycles
2 3
Replies
69
Views
4K
Colton White
C
Back
Top