Re-arrange pocket items for pocket carry?

[gun4me]

When you guys pocket carry, do you have to re-arrange the items in your pockets to make room for the gun, and if so, where do you move or put everything?

I have a few pocket guns, but I almost never carry them because I already have my front pockets full. I put my wallet and smart phone in my right front pocket and keys in my left front pocket. Knife is in a leg pocket, and leatherman is always on my belt. I would prefer to put the gun in my right front pocket, but that means moving my wallet and cell phone. Chiropractor said to get that wallet out of the back pocket, so I did a few years ago. Now its habit.

I want to be able to throw it in my pocket quick for a quick 10 minute trip to the corner store without "installing" an IWB holster, which sometimes seemingly involves an ordeal.

So, what do you guys do?


Edited to add the IWB part - hopefully to clear up some confusion.

I wear cargo pants/shorts. Gives you extra pockets and works great for me to carry in which ever pocket I need.

 

[mjbskwim]

I wear cargo pants/shorts. Gives you extra pockets and works great for me to carry in which ever pocket I need.

I don't buy pants that don't have extra pockets.
Nothing personal evltwin but I would never have that much crap in my front pockets. But I have big hands and wouldn't be able to get to it anyway. Those carpenter pockets are perfect for knives and flashlights(though I don't carry one).Cargo pockets get the light stuff so they don't swing around too much

 

[Hawaiian]

When pocket carrying, nothing except the gun goes in that pocket. If you need to use it, you won't have time to fumble with keys or the knife clipped on that gets in the way.

 

[Major Rick]

Please allow another suggestion...Get a key ring or...I hate getting old, what's the term for the climbing device shaped like an oval with a snap opening? Anyway, use that on your belt for your keys. Saves having keys in a pocket to putz up the CC gun. And a belt holder for your phone, if you prefer. Instant free pocket.

 

[David Bowman]

Not a fan of this type of carry. Takes some amount of time to get it deployed, have to wear pants, shorts, sweats etc. with big enough pockets and enough belt to hold it up. I can pick out anyone with pocket carry from across the room (large pocket bulges, "two" wallets in their back pockets). It is difficult to practice as an actual shooting drill, and no place I am aware of will let you shoot a pistol course using this method of draw and presentation.

No one gets anything out of their pocket fast enough be effective. Going for the gun should be a conscious decision combined with ingrained neuromuscular pathways that are hardwired into your brain through training and repetition.

Better to get a small IWB/AIWB holster for the small gun and conceal it with a t-shirt, Hawaiian shirt, etc. than to try to get it out of your pocket in a hurry.

 

[Koda]

No one gets anything out of their pocket fast enough be effective.

I think thats a matter of training myself. Pocket carry has its advantages over other methods in many situations.

 

[wupddu]

When you guys pocket carry, do you have to re-arrange the items in your pockets to make room for the gun, and if so, where do you move or put everything?

I have a few pocket guns, but I almost never carry them because I already have my front pockets full. I put my wallet and smart phone in my right front pocket and keys in my left front pocket. Knife is in a leg pocket, and leatherman is always on my belt. I would prefer to put the gun in my right front pocket, but that means moving my wallet and cell phone. Chiropractor said to get that wallet out of the back pocket, so I did a few years ago. Now its habit.

I want to be able to throw it in my pocket quick for a quick 10 minute trip to the corner store without "installing" an IWB holster, which sometimes seemingly involves an ordeal.

So, what do you guys do?


Edited to add the IWB part - hopefully to clear up some confusion.

Never carry anything but my LCP in a holster in my right front pocket.
Wallet and stuff never goes there. In left front pocket if needed because of the same back problem you mentioned. I practice dry fire and can get the LCP out in a flash if needed.

 

[Derbel McDillet]

I agree with David Bowman. Pocket carry limits ability to quickly draw, especially when you're doing anything other than standing.

That said, I do occasionally pocket carry a Seecamp .32, which is the only small pistol that works for me in pocket carry. Everything else is too large and the combination of my hand gripping the gun makes drawing problematic and slow, especially when my hands are sweaty on a hot day.

I prefer a belt holster with loops that have snaps, like the Milt Sparks Summer Special IWB at 3 o'clock. I just loosen my belt, slide the holster inside my pants, snap the loops around my belt and drive on. Takes 20-30 seconds to jock up in this manner.

 

[edslhead]

After reading this thread I got a cheap little holster for my mustang. Fits great in my front or back pants pocket. The band around the middle of it is real tacky and keeps it in your pocket when you draw. Works good in the front inside pocket of my coats and vests too.

 

[Koda]

the secret to efficiently drawing from pocket is a quality holster that allows a full grip on the gun while inside the pocket and provides a frictionless draw. Its frustratingly difficult to find them, Ive had to make my own but something like this.



https://www.usconcealedcarry.com/a-guide-pocket-to-carry/

with a properly designed holster its not any slower than having to clear a cover garment over an IWB.

 

[Kruel J]

I'm not going to get in a pizzing contest about the need for speed, but I can draw mine comfortably awfully fast. This isn't the wild west. If your threat is that fast and immediate, you more than likely won't have enough reaction time to draw from anything but a duty holster. Conceal carry, IMHO has speed limitations. Pocket, IWB (especially tucked), shoulder holster all requires a small amount of time to clear clothing and other obstacles. Buy some time, a second or two even. Distract, act fearful, look down, or even submit. Then, when the threat is distracted, neutralize. The recent video posted here of the guy able to subdue two suspects from concealed carry shows him backing up, looking away, acting intimidated all while he was calmly and carefully reaching for his IWB carry. The bad guys never suspected or saw it coming.

 

[Kruel J]

"Please don't hurt me Mr. Big Bad Wolf! I'm just a little tiny sheep with a little tiny weener! Please don't hurt me. I know you could. You win Mr. Big!"

Mr. Big feels like a big man and contemplates his dominance over the little sheep. For ONE second.

From the cloud of smoke the sheep emerges, a smile from ear to ear showing off his razor blade teeth.

The sheep was a wolf. A smart and patient wolf. And the "wolf" Mr. Big was a sheep, an impatient and bullying sheep. Who lays to rest in the very place he tried to be a real wolf.

 

[Derbel McDillet]

with a properly designed holster its not any slower than having to clear a cover garment over an IWB.

A good holster is important, no doubt, but a bigger factor (for me, at least) is the pocket: its depth, contour and volume as well as the size of the opening. With the trousers and shorts I wear, a Seecamp .32, in a Ryan Grizzle front pocket holster, is the only gun that works for me as the bulk of other guns makes drawing difficult (like a monkey with its hand stuck in a bottle). I've tried a KelTec .32 - it was too "tall" and the tang would snag the inside corner of my pocket. I have a Kahr PM9 that's way too big and bulky for pocket carry - I carry it in an IWB holster.

The advantage of pocket carry for me is that I can just put the Seecamp in my pocket and walk out the door to run a quick errand without delay. That's it. I have two identical leather pocket holsters for it, one for right pocket and one for left pocket. If I want to carry it as a backup to my primary CCW pistol I use the left pocket holster. But I don't do that very often.

When I pocket carry I almost always carry a spare magazine in the opposite pocket, in a custom leather magazine pouch I ordered from Meco Pocket Holsters (it's shorter in length so I can quickly remove the magazine from the pouch with one hand). In addition, there are no other items in either pocket (except for a Streamlight Microstream flashlight clipped to the outer corner of my left front pocket.) My keys are on a snap hook key ring that I clip to a belt loop on my left side.

If you have to struggle to get the gun out of your pocket, or if there is any difficulty in being able to reliably draw quickly from your pocket on demand, then pocket carry is a risk.

 

[Gunguy45]

1st, ALWAYS pocket carry in a holster.

Second, make sure you have nothing BUT the gun in that pocket. If you need it, you're going to need it in a hurry and trying to tak out your gun while "rummaging" is a bad idea.

Lastly, PRACTICE (dry only please) your draw, a LOT. Pocket carry is something very useful, but also has a lot of hazards associated with it from NDs. So make sure you've done it sso many times dry that you can do it in your sleep when you really need it. (Without shooting yourself, obviously).

I've done lot of pocket carry, but don't kid yourself about the hazards and the downside of speed of draw. It has the advantage of bing easy and very hard to spot. The downsides are self-hazard and slow draw-speeds.

 

[mjbskwim]

what's the term for the climbing device shaped like an oval with a snap opening? Anyway, use that on your belt for your keys.

CARE a Beener

 

[Certaindeaf]

Cargo pants/shorts. You can carry a bushel of horseshoes in those pockets and still have one clear for your pistol.

 

[Sharpener]

You might look at a Big Skinny Hipster wallet so the wallet won't be such an issue for the chiropractor. Wallet in the back pocket makes lots of room in the front pocket. The wallet is super thin.

 

[mjbskwim]

You might look at a Big Skinny Hipster wallet so the wallet won't be such an issue for the chiropractor. Wallet in the back pocket makes lots of room in the front pocket. The wallet is super thin.

There's a problem there with most guys
Where do you put those business cards you have been carrying for the last 20 years?
Or notes from mom? Idunno
I see guys that pull out these wallets that are about 2 inches thick. Do you really need all that crap on you all day?
Money credit cards and account numbers in my wallet. Well sometimes money
Everything else can stay in the truck and I'll find it if I really need it. Heck get a folder for all that BS to leave in the vehicle

 

[Velzey]

There's a problem there with most guys
Where do you put those business cards you have been carrying for the last 20 years?
Or notes from mom? Idunno
I see guys that pull out these wallets that are about 2 inches thick. Do you really need all that crap on you all day?
Money credit cards and account numbers in my wallet. Well sometimes money
Everything else can stay in the truck and I'll find it if I really need it. Heck get a folder for all that BS to leave in the vehicle

Oh man this is a joke in our family. Few years back my dad shot an elk down in the coast range and at the same time on heck of a cold front was moving in. We were in probably 4 mile from the trucks. Nobody was prepared for that cold! I had built a fire near the elk, but halfway back to the truck we needed another. I was short on firestarter, and dead tired. My pop whips out his wallet and within 1 minute had a grocery bag full of receipts and business cards dating back 10 years I bet!!!

 

[Kid@Heart]

After reading this thread I got a cheap little holster for my mustang. Fits great in my front or back pants pocket. The band around the middle of it is real tacky and keeps it in your pocket when you draw. Works good in the front inside pocket of my coats and vests too.

What brand is the holster and where did you get it?