Mexican IWB carry?

DustyGmt said:

Anybody here carry inside the waistline with no holster (mexican carry)?
Any of you guys go gun commando so to speak?

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Nope.

At the very least I'd pick a simple clip on holster, I have no desire to experience my gun sliding down the inside of my pants.

The closest i come to Mexican carry is using a raven concealment vanguard. Its a minimalist trigger guard holster that does away with most of the bulk of standard holsters, while still covering the trigger guard.

My opinion?

Get a good holster and wear it.

Your gun is MUCH safer to carry in a proper holster.

It's also much easier to retain in position with no shifting, no danger of slipping out, and much more difficult for others to remove it from you.

"Mexican carry" is a stupid way of carrying.

And dangerous.

I Mexican carry a J frame in my pocket sometimes.

JERRY said:

I Mexican carry a J frame in my pocket sometimes.

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I that a bit too.

In the past I would grab my Beretta 92 to do quick errands around the house. Take the dogs out or for a mini walk or such. I never did and still don't think it is a bad idea, strictly speaking. I would only suggest to do it with a gun that has a manual safety.

I'm probably going to regret admitting this, but it's not uncommon for me to carry my lcp on the techniclip.

I EDC this pistol in a variety of ways. I use the techniclip on the bib of my hunting overalls and work bibs. Also I have clipped it in the waistband of my sweats or gym shorts, or the vest pocket of a sportcoat. I do stress that when I carry without a holster, I dont have round chambered.
Usually, I carry in this Desantis SofTuck. The techniclip works well with it too.

I use a Sticky holster for that type of carry.

Not me. I carry using an IWB holster worn between the belt ad pants, a technique known as ITB (inside-the-belt) carry. I guess that could be done without a holster, but it still requires as long a cover garment as OWB carry does. If I really need simple, "grab-and-go" concealment, then I'll drop a pocket-holster containing a pistol in a front pocket.

Closest I ever came was this, mostly as a feasability study;



Better than nothing. I carried 8 1911's that way in the Army once; once we got to the field, (but still on post, so I had to make the chow run) the officers in HHD decided they didn't want to carry their pistols anymore, and once dumped on me were not leaving my body. I rigged up 8 'shoestring rigs' with para cord like above and clunked around the rest of the day until the chow run, when I stopped at the Arms Room and locked them up.

Mexican carry is a good way to blow your tortillas off

I discourage the practice. Too easy to lose your gun either out the front or down your leg if you get into a scuffle.

Cannot recommend the idea. I fit a J frame with an aftermarket grip that featured a hook-like projection meant for the purpose. One day, while freeing my car from a snow drift (another story for another time), the gun fell free... I imagine it happened while I was digging the tires out. (Squat down, thigh hits muzzle, pushes gun up and out.) I didn't realize something was missing until I got back behind the wheel. Half an hour groping through the snow turned up nothing. I was afraid I'd have to wail 'till spring. Police were notified.

Luckily, a search through local rent-a-centers turned up a beachcomber's toy mine detector. It worked! Police couldn't care less.

If you must, by all means avoid squats.

No , no and for sure no.

A simple Bianchi IWB holster breaks in beautifully and makes the gun safe , secure and comfortable - all the things the gun is not if it is simply jammed into the waistband on it's own.

I use to carry a Glock that way with an empty chamber.

Just one of the reasons I chose the Curve.
The trigger guards lanyard loops around my belt(easy pop off when I draw) and the belt clip stays very snug on the belt and it’s comfortable to wear IWB.

I think you need to put some things in perspective and use a little common sense here too. A little actual experience goes a long way too.

I carry a handgun on a daily basis and use a good holster with it. Makes no sense not to, especially if youre the least bit active.

Ive also stuffed handguns into my waistband without a holster, when the need arose and felt perfectly safe doing so.

As the old saying goes, "there's a time and place for everything", and this is no different.

Now, if youre inexperienced with what youre carrying, and have poor gun handling skills, holster or not, youre probably going to have a problem. Just look at the number of people who seem to have problems with guns "and" holsters.

If you are familiar with the gun, and reasonable in your handling skills, it shouldnt be an issue.

1goodshot said:

I use to carry a Glock that way with an empty chamber.

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A few years back, after being constantly told you had to have a Glock in a holster or it would go off, all by itself, I took to carrying a second. "unloaded" 17, just stuffed in my waistband, pockets, and a few other places, sans holster, pretty much every minute I was home, for about a year and a half.

I didnt baby the gun, and actually did pretty much everything I was told would make the gun go off, even constantly picking it up off the table "by" the trigger.

In all that time, I never once found the trigger tripped, and the only time that happened, was when I intentionally pulled it.

For the past 10 summers or so now, Ive carried a loaded 26 in a Smart Carry holster on a daily basis, in a very active and demanding environment, and its never been a problem. I vetted that method of carry, just like I did the 17 without a holster, for a few months to make sure it wouldnt be a problem, and it wasnt.


As with most things, the only way youre going to know if what you want to do, is going to work, is to do it for a period of time, with what you intend to use, as you intend to use it (empty of course) and vet it.

We all have different needs and lifestyles, and what works for one, may not work for someone else. You need to prove things for yourself. Just dont take someones word for it, that its going to work, or couldnt possibly work. Only you can prove that for yourself.

A few years ago I stuck a handgun in my waistband and carried it around the house to see if it would work out for a few hours. It did just fine. I worked in my garage, mowed the lawn, hung some blinds for my wife.
I decided to run an errand so off I went to Bi-Mart to buy some tape and look at some paint. I crouched down to pick up a roll of tape I dropped and somehow the little J frame I was carrying slipped down inside my pants. I quickly pressed my hand against it and headed for the restroom. It was just below my belt line on my right hip. I got to the restroom and readjusted everything. Paid for my tape and headed home.

I would never do that again. Imagine if I hadn’t have caught the gun and it slipped out onto the floor in public. At the very least it would have made things awkward.

My wife commented that it was probably a good thing I didn’t have it down the front of my pants. I would have looked pretty funny holding my crotch and rushing to the restroom.

The only way I would mexican carry is with a lanyard and a trigger guard cover. Otherwise no.

NOT. EVER.

It is a very bad idea and TarDevil summarized it. Closed.