Carry a full-size pistol?

[Irfan]

Does anyone of you carry a full size pistol like SIG P226, Beretta 92FS, Glock 17…etc? I’ve been carrying a full size pistol for a long time, sometimes a Beretta 92FS Inox, sometimes a Glock 17 and for the time being I carry a CZ85B. I DO find a problem carrying it concealed when the outside temperature is above 40 degrees Celsius, but on the other hand I really like the feel of the full-size pistol.

I’d like to hear your experience regarding this. Why do you carry a full-size weapon? I’ve been thinking recently about getting something smaller for pocket carry, a G26 maybe (I wear a vest most of the time but I’m just not sure if it would be comfortable) and my other option is to get a S&W MP340 or MP360 revolver but my budget is not so high (I’m a student). Not sure if I need a smaller pistol? I’d really like to hear your advices and experience. :)

[skyugo]

i carry a G19 any time i can wear a button down shirt. (ie under 65 degrees)
the rest of the time i carry a G26 either in a smart carry or my NEW mr. softy holster.. which i actually like quite a bit... feels like mexican carrying without the trip to the ER. ;)
if you like the G17, you will feel quite at home shooting a G26. it's smooth and accurate.

I've never had any real desire for a G17. the 19 fits my hands well, and is relatively easy to conceal.

[Marcus L.]

Hell, I don't even carry a full sized pistol on duty. Compact sized pistols like the Sig P228/P229, Glock 19, HK P30,.....etc are plenty large enough for good handling and offer a more managible package. When it comes to concealed carry, the length of your grip and slide/barrel will determine just how "concealed" you are. I don't know about you, but when I do day to day things such as picking something up off the ground a full sized gun will be plain as daylight. I used to carry a P220 on duty and it was getting pushed around on my belt getting in and out of vehicles......wore a hole in the seat and broke two Serpa attachements.

In practical defense, there is really no measurable benefit to using the larger gun. Larger pistols are NOT more accurate than smaller ones. Only the last inch or so of barrel determines a pistol's accuracy. This is why there are guys that can shoot playing cards at 100yrds with a snub nosed .38spl. The larger pistol does give you a "slighly" longer sight radius which can improve your sight precision, but longer sight radius lengths also take longer to line up on target........everything is a tradeoff. The size of your sights also playes a role. Smaller sights means better precision......but they can be harder to find under stress. The key elements to shooting are maintaining a solid sight picture, and pulling the trigger with minimal jerk.

Compact pistols are far more versitile. If I could only own one pistol......it would be a compact pistol.

[silentsod]

So long as I can wear a sweatshirt I can carry and conceal a full size M&P45 with a fair amount of comfort.

T-shirt weather means I have to get some length off the stock of the gun and a compact pistol about the size of a G19 does it for me (I'm really annoyed there isn't a G19 sized M&P9). This is with a t-shirt that isn't terribly tight fitting to my body, of course :p. I'm also not a Greek god in terms of physical shape at 5'8" and ~175lb.

Holster being used is an M-TAC adjusted for larger amounts of cant than is standard.

[bkb0000]

i carry a g17 in an IWB, and have pretty much always carried full sized weapons, including two large doubestack 45s when i was younger and slimmer.

the holster and your clothing dictate concealability.. being a not-large man, i've found the difference between a the 19 and the 17 is basically nill as far as concealability. both will poke when you bend over. if i need "deep concealment," i'll go with the 26- which is like wearing nothing. since i shoot the 17 better than the 19, and i see no advantage in concealability with the 19, i pack the 17.

i almos always wear some form of un-tactical vest- im partial to carhart's vests as well as a few generic fleece vests i have.. these definately help. jackets are a no-brainer... a winter coat will conceal a desert eagle or two.

there are different levels of concealment to consider.. i don't shit my pants if my weapon pokes through my clothing for a minute when i drop my keys in the parking lot. if that's unacceptable to you, then you'll need to assess your own situation.

[macman37]

I carry a full size 1911 because it has proven itself reliable to me. It is quite flat and conceals relatively easily, even in the Summer. I have taken to wearing short sleeve button down shirts that are cool yet conceal a gun nicely.

I have a SIG P226 I am going to try it with once I make a Kydex holster for it (though I don't anticipate it being anything but a Winter piece because it's bulkier than the 1911)... The thought of carrying 55 rounds of good 9mm HPs compared to 25 rounds of .45 is pretty attractive.

If I had the money I'd get an M&P 45 compact, but until I have that money (not likely any time soon because there are a lot of other things on the list before it!) I will keep carrying the 1911.

FWIW I carry it canted slightly at 3 o'clock in an IWB soft De Santis clip holster. I have other much more expensive holsters but this works for me. :)

[Alex F]

I've been carrying a SIG 220 for years now but I'm getting tired of it.

I've been eyeballing some smaller pistols lately, like the G26 and the G30.

[DSand]

I wear a full sized 1911. I have a Springfield MC Opreator I use on duty and a Springfield Loaded for off duty.

[tpd223]

Over the past 23 years of my LE career I have carried a Ruger Security Six 4", a 5906 (later a 5903) and most recently a Glock 17.

Currently off duty I am using a Glock 19 most of the time.

All have been in some variation of a Summer Special style IWB holster.

[awm14hp]

I carry a G17 and 22 all the time even in summer with right belt and holster most things are possible also a Sig 220

[Alpha Sierra]

With either a Wilderness Instructor belt or a leather belt from The Beltman and this holster, a full size M&P disappears even under the untucked button down shirts and polos I wear in summer. Make sure the shirts are square cut and not close fitting and you will be fine.

The secret of narrow holster such as this FIST #20 (and the various Summer Special types out there) is that they force the butt of the pistol to tuck in against your side, drastically reducing print when you move around.

http://i420.photobucket.com/albums/pp290/JRossy/guns/DSC00610.jpg

I've also ordered two different IWB holsters for my 226 and will sell off whichever suits me the least.

One is a Secret IWB from Tucker Gunleather
http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/rlcompanyusa_2089_8908608

The other is a Summer Cruiser from El Paso Saddlery
http://www.epsaddlery.com/images/Product/medium/254.jpg

Or I might keep both.

Only reason I didn't go for another FIST #20 is because their price has gone up significantly since I last bought one.

[the_fallguy]

I currently carry a Glock 19, but I have carried full sized pistols in the past, most commonly a Glock 17. For cover garments, I use a button up shirt in the summer time, or a hoodie in the colder months. I typically wear an IWB holster around the 4 o'clock region.

It isn't as easy as concealing an LCP, but I have a lot more confidence about getting a larger gun into the fight under stress. During scenario training, trying to get a pocket pistol out in a struggle is too slow and much too difficult. The larger pistols are much easier to draw even if one hand is tied up controlling an attacker's arm, etc.. The added capacity isn't a drawback, but it isn't the reason why I prefer a larger pistol either.

[shittercrewchief]

I carry a Hk 45. OWB in the winter, Iwb leather holster in the summer. Sometimes the grip prints a little. But usually not a problem.

[BAC]

I’d like to hear your experience regarding this. Why do you carry a full-size weapon?

Because, like you, I'm a student, which means I'm poor. :D

My full-sized 1911 is my only pistol. I'd like to add a snubby revolver in the near future. After a year and a half of carrying more or less whenever I'm not on campus, I'm also looking for something slightly smaller (G19 sized) that carries a little better. I'd be happy as a clam if I could get a 9mm CCO-style 1911 for under a grand, but more than likely I'm looking at a platform change (M&P and Glock being the most likely suspects).


-B

[dbrowne1]

Because, like you, I'm a student, whichmeans I'm poor. :D

My full-sized 1911 is my only pistol. I

I was in the same position a dozen or so years ago. The only gun I had was a G17, and I made it work pretty well. I could and did carry it, and conceal it effectively, with any type of untucked shirt. Even just a t-shirt and even in the very anti-gun environments where I was carrying. I never got made and it worked fine.

I always prefer to carry a full size or what I consider "close-to-full size" gun (a G19 being an example of the latter). Generally speaking they're more reliable than their smaller cousins, they're generally easier to shoot well, and then there are the obvious advantages of higher capacity and longer sight radius.

I have a G26 and have had a PM9 in the past, but for size/shape/weight as well as reliability reasons, I always seem to default to a 642 if I need to carry in a manner that doesn't allow for a G19 (pocket, smartcarry, etc.).

[andre3k]

I carry a full size sig 226 stainless elite. Its a heavy ass gun, but I'm used to wearing it all day at work. When I cant wear that I use a kel tec p3at with a belt clip.

[decodeddiesel]

Carry a full size M&P45 in a Comptac MTAC all of the time. With this holster I can conceal comfortably under nothing more than a T-shirt.

[JSantoro]

Same gun, though in a Comp-Tac Infidel. I'm in the habit of wearing UnderArmour or similar beneath a reguar cotton undershirt or some sort of polo in warm weather, and it conceals fine.

I bought a M&P9c to play with the idea of that being my daily carry gun (it fits in the same holster, which surprised me a bit), because that all the control features are the same and . It certainly conceals better because of the lesser butt, but I'm still getting used to gripping it well enough to control it with the reduced real estate, which also surprised me. I'm going to give it another 3000 rounds or so, but my gut is telling me, in absence to evidence of the contrary, that I'm better going with my full-size.

Possible middle ground is to ditch the .45 and go with a M&P9, so that I'm not spending as much on ammo to practice with.

Point being, the more I do this CCW thing and the more folks I talk to that do the same with other platforms, the more I think CCW seems to have less to do with the gun itself (beyond personal preference, reliability and ability to shoot it well), than it does with the arcane mixture of mode of carry, the right holster (I think probably the biggest factor...), and the right clothes.

[ras61541]

I carried a Glock 17 for a while, i didn't have any problems concealing it even with shorts and a t-shirt. Sure it might have printed a little bit but most people aren't aware enough to take notice let alone recognize it for what it is. Now i mostly carry my G23 off duty. I would probably carry the G22 also but i would have to take the light off and just don't want to mess with it.

[Ak44]

I carry a Glock 21SF and recently a Springfield 1911 Professional. The glock sits in a Comp-tac CTAC holster (IWB) and the 1911 sits in a Raven Concealment OWB holster. I prefer larger framed pistols but I have relatively small hands. I like the fact that there's more to hold on to and plus a much larger mag cap.

[RWK]

Carried a 5" 1911 for years and now, a full-size M&P 9. A full-size pistol is going to be generally more controllable, have a higher magazine capacity, and in some cases, be more reliable. The downside is that it's obviously not going to be quite as concealable as a compact model. My preference is to carry the largest size pistol that I can reasonable conceal in whatever platform I choose.

[ToddG]

Full-size pistols I've carried in a traditional 4-5 o'clock IWB position:

Beretta 92G
Beretta 92G Brigadier (Elite, Elite II)
Beretta 92G Vertec
SIG P226R
SIG P220R
SIG P220ST
S&W M&P9


AIWB, I've carried:

S&W M&P9
HK P30


All it takes is the right holster, right belt, right clothing, and right attitude.

[John Hearne]

I carry a stainless P220 Elite Match year round in Mississippi. In the summer, I have a Milt Sparks Versa Max for it. In the winter, I carry in a Comp Tac belt holster. Typical clothing in the summer is a sleeveless t-shirt covered by a button down shirt left open with some weight in the corners.

[750.356]

Glock 17.

All day, every day, all weather, any temperature. This is in addition to 1-2 reloads, a 2-cell surefire, a folding knife, and a can of OC.

I currently carry in a Sidearmor IWB at 4 o'clock with a 15 degree cant. I'm considering trying AIWB if I can get an appropriate holster.

The only situation I'm regularly in where it's not at all practical to conceal the G17 is the gym. It's a compromise I'm comfortable making for 4-5 hours a week, but I'm toying with the idea of getting a Ruger LCP for this reason.

I carry the G17 because it's what I train with. I can't imagine putting ~6,000 rounds a year through a G17 and then carrying a J-frame just because it's easier to conceal.



All it takes is the right holster, right belt, right clothing, and right attitude.

This bears repeating.

[Gutshot John]

Used to carry a Glock 17, now I carry an M&P (occasionally the long).

I'm a big guy so I'm less constrained by size and I just prefer a full size grip.

I invest heavily in Hawaiian shirts for cool weather. :)

[MarshallDodge]

I find IWB carry to be uncomfortable so I if I absolutely have to do it then I carry my Kahr K9. Most of the time I can get away with my 4" 1911 in a Rafter S OWB holster. A lightweight t-shirt gets tucked in then I put a button down or polo over the top.

[Terry]

Glock 17 IWB RC 5 o'clock
spare mag/surefire 7 o'clock