CCW questions

[N3rday]

This is for autoloaders in general, no particular brands implied...

1. Would you CC on a rainy day? Is it safe to do so? Going even further, If I fell in a lake or something with a gun on me, would it be OK? Would it still fire, assuming the rounds are waterproofed? Please, no Glock references...

2. What about sweat? There have been posts about this one, but which guns are...um....sweat resistant? Which finishes are best?

3. Anyone had issues where your gun was clearly visible? I mean, if you have a holster that clips to your belt, it seems as if it would be easy for the gun to be in plain view with normal daily activities i.e. running, etc.

 

[schapman43]

A gun that falls into water will fire fine. Most cartridges are sealed and are fine submerged in water for a short amount of time.

I sweat allot and have never had any problems with rust. I carry parkerized and stainless firearms. I will usually take the gun apart once a weak to clean it and oil it even if it hasnt been fired (I like to hit the range once a week so most of the time it has been fired). After assembling the gun I wipe it down with a thin coat of oil and back into the holster it goes.

Never had my gun get wet when it was raining. Probably because it remained concealed. If it does get a little wet just wipe it down with some oil when you get a chance.

If you want to wear a gun while running our whatever find something that can be concealed while doing so. There is a company that makes a elastic belly band for small firearms that would be perfect for sports.

 

[James Bondrock]

1. Yes. The gun is pretty well protected by your holster and covering garment. If the gun does become submerged in water, it will fire after being removed from the water, but be sure there is no excessive water, mud, twigs and such inside the barrel.

2. The surface treatment/finish on the metal determines the "sweatproof" quotient of a handgun. Blued steel is the least sweatproof, metal finishes like hard chrome, Metalife, nickel and the various polymer coatings are much more sweatproof, as is stainless steel.

3. Running, a normal daily activity? Not for me. But if you jog (I assume this is what you meant), devise some method of carry that totally conceals the gun and does not allow it to flop around and bang against your body. There are very few clip-on outside-the-waistband holsters, but there are a lot of inside-the-waistband holsters with clips. With a IWB, only the gun butt is visible, but when running it is easy for your cover garment to swing away from your body and expose said gun butt. It can also be "printed" or even exposed altogether by such innocuous activities as bending over at the waist or reaching up over your head.

 

[N3rday]

Ahh, well i guess thats the price you pay for being a responsible CCWer...

I kinda always assumed the gun would be on the outside of the body, but thats just me. So most holsters have the gun slip into your pants, not hand on the outside, huh? Cool!

Good to know the gun won't get messed up by rain, too.

What's Parkerized mean?

Also, there was a big discussion on the Sig's habit of rusting. Whats the deal, isn't it stainless steel?

p.s. No, i don't run, but I work out alot, climb trees, bikeride, etc..
You know, all the stuff I won't be able to do 30 years from now and regret not doing more often

 

[tech]

Well I run and haven't found a way to carry comfortably. Even a beretta .22 in a fannypack bouncing on your leg for 6 miles gets way uncomfortable. As to rust I found my stainless kimber with rust starting one summer evening. After only carrying it a couple of days and wiping it down often. My Makarov has gone three summers carried iwb right against my body. It just started showing freckling at the end of this summer. The blue ended up being more rust resistant against sweat. Sweat is what you will have to worry about not rain. Parkerising(sp) is a type of finnish that gives a little corrosion resistance but provides a porus area for oils to adhear to. Someone will probably set me strait on that one.
HTH
Mike

 

[Tamara]

1. Would you CC on a rainy day? Is it safe to do so? Going even further, If I fell in a lake or something with a gun on me, would it be OK? Would it still fire, assuming the rounds are waterproofed? Please, no Glock references...

It's been raining off and on for the better part of a week here, and none of the three guns I've been carrying has gotten wet.

2. What about sweat? There have been posts about this one, but which guns are...um....sweat resistant? Which finishes are best?

Well, first, I don't sweat; I glow. Second, my shirt is usually between my skin and the gun. If it's going to be beastly hot or peeing down rain or some other unpleasant environmental condition, I am more likely to carry a stainless or Black-T'ed 1911 than one of my blued ones.

3. Anyone had issues where your gun was clearly visible? I mean, if you have a holster that clips to your belt, it seems as if it would be easy for the gun to be in plain view with normal daily activities i.e. running, etc.

No, my CCW weapons are not clearly visible. The one in the IWB holster is under a covering garment. The two BUGs are in purse and pocket.

 

[jar]

Also, there was a big discussion on the Sig's habit of rusting. Whats the deal, isn't it stainless steel?

I've seen those discussions and also the ones about how badly the XDs rust and how XYZ is better than ABC. It's like the discussions about which caliber is better or whether bolt action rifles are better than lever actions or blued vs stainless (which should be two words, stain less. Even stanless rusts). They come around and seem to go on forever.

But I have a bunch of old blued high carbon steel guns, some of which spent 50+ years in the Amazon Basin, and they all still work. My SiGs haven't dissappeared yet, nor has my Croation Sensation. Take care ov a gun and it will take care of you. Wipe it down after you use it and don't leave it sitting in a puddle and any gun finish will be just fine.

Also, some SiGs do use Stainless slides, many are folded stamped steel while a few are alloy and even some polymer frames for spice.

 

[Hardtarget]

As I recall, the worst thing about sweat is the "salts" that are found in it. If you get sweat on your gun, the salts need to be removed. Oil doesn't do that very well. I wipe my carry gun with a damp cloth, rinse it out, wipe it again, DRY IT VERY WELL, then oil. Works good for me Besides...they're fun to have and to hold so I like to mess with them whenever I can.
Mark

 

[carpettbaggerr]

For jogging, a small gun can be concealed right in your hand. High standard derringer, or a NAA mini-revolver will not be noticed if you palm it properly. Seecamp works too, if you've got the $$. If you have small hands, you can hold it in a small towel (for wiping your brow) and it will never be seen.

 

[Deepdiver]

You might try a Galco bellyband (underwrap) for jogging. I run a lot, and frequently carry a 38 snubbie in a tight bellyband. It works great for me - but wipe the gun afterwards to remove an sweat that worked thru the bellyband.

 

[BerettaNut92]

For jogging, GOOD STURDY belt an a Beretta 92G. Heavy, but the stiff belt helps

(me don't have a mousegun)