Field Carry: Cross Draw vs Straight Draw

One of the reasons I like a crossdraw is easy access with the left hand in a twist draw fashion. Or I might even wear a left hand crossdraw and twist with the right hand. Call me old fashioned but if I get in a gunfight with an outlaw and my right arm is disabled, I want the left hand option. ;)
 
Driftwood Johnson said:
Howdy

First off, Ruger does not make a Blackhawk with a 4 3/4" barrel. Although one of the standard barrel lengths for Colts is 4 3/4", Ruger barrels are 1/8" shorter at 4 5/8".
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Yes I know, but you seem to understand which gun I’m referring to so I think I successfully got the point across.
 
Three Star General in WW2. That is probably a custom rig. Crossdraw.

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A Gun Club bud, was a Company Commander in Vietnam and he had a custom cross draw holster made for this 1911. He carried it in the field, and he carried it cocked and locked. And he said, the retention strap went over the grip safety, so he was checking his safety frequently, to make sure it was still on!
 
I like straight draw. I machined a high rise adapter for the belt loop attachment to make it comfortable in UTV or tractor seat. I have a couple cross draw holders and never warmed up to them. Too much time shooting competition where cross draw was not allowed.
 
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I like BobWhite’s “near side draw” terminology. To be a pedant, for a moment, “vertical draw” can be true, whether the weapon is worn on the same side as one’s dominant hand, or on the opposite side, with the gun’s butt oriented forward. I have some straight-vertical holsters that I have used to carry a second weapon butt-forward, left of center, to be readily reached by my right or left hand. Most holsters marketed as “cross-draw” have far too much forward rake of the muzzle to be useful to me, for concealment. A weapon worn on my off-side, or support side, is most concealed when the barrel is oriented vertically, toward the ground. This was true when I was a skinny as a rail, and has not changed much, since I acquired a bit of a grandpa body.

33+ years of wearing a police duty rig seem to have hard-wired my brain and nervous system for vertical draw from a holster on my right hip, for the go-to “primary” weapon. 5+ years of retirement have yet to change that. I do, however, like cross-draw, situationally, especially when carrying two weapons. (When the go-to weapon is a short-barreled revolver, it is quite normal for my first “reload” to be a second handgun, and, my aging back muscles appreciate the balanced weight distribution.)
 
I like cross draw carry when driving back roads and trails especially if I am getting in and out of my truck a lot. But I also like strong side carry if I am walking / hiking without a pack. With a pack a cross draw is the way to go for me. It mostly depends on what I am doing.
I haven’t tried a real chest rig yet. I am considering one for carrying my S&W 25-15. I figure it will be a little more comfortable with a big heavy revolver.
 
KansasTrapper77 said:
I have done that before but I’ve lost my footing one too many times going down creek banks and caught myself on an arm and the tush and can just see myself stuffing the barrel in the mud.
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Regardless of how you carry it, try putting some electrical tape over your long gun muzzle before each hunt, with a bit more in your gear or wrapped around the barrel to replace the muzzle tape with if you end up firing the gun. Keeps debris, mud, and water out of the bore, but you can safely shoot right through it when you get a shot opportunity.

curtste said:
Cross draw is hard if you have short arms and a big gut like me.
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kinda depends on where you locate the holster. If you’ve got a big ol’ Buddha/beer belly going, put it more centerline and you should still be able to reach it. If you actually have t-Rex arms, that still might not work. ;)
 
When hunting I prefer a chest rig allowing me to open jacket vs lifting it for access. I use the nylon strapped plastic (can't say if it is kydex) option over the non-formed option. I bought one for my 44 revolver, 1911 and M&Ps for cheap at a small show. When carrying concealed I'm not built for cross draw, If I get it around my side where it is comfortable to carry I can't reach it easily with my short arms (can't be my belly size) and If it is easy to reach it pokes me both in my belly and leg. Something to keep in mind is if you wear it forward while driving your seatbelt could create a pressure point whereas strong side it is held off by the seatbelt catch.
You might look at Alien gear holsters, some can be canted either way so if you don't like it you can adjust it back to strong side
 
For CCW or Handgun hunting, Straight draw. For tramping around the woods, waters and fields, a straight draw holster worn of the opposite side, half tailed cross draw. Keeps it out of the way of my fishing pole, shotgun, axe, chainsaw, what not. Sure, a canted Crossdraw would work better but I'm cheap and this same holster and gun has worked for 50+ years guess it will work for the rest of the years I have left.
 
I wonder if some are using a straight holster worn crossdraw? That doesn't work so well.....o_O

ETA
No offense @Fatcat3. I must have been typing my response when you posted yours.
I like my crossdraw holsters sharply canted, and worn at 11:00 with the grip just left of my belt buckle. That puts the gun basically in my lap, arced over my left thigh when seated. It is much more convenient there than at 4:00 with the butt of the grip rubbing on a metal tractor seat frame or gouging the Mrs while riding double on an atv.
 
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I've only experienced with nylon with this type of carry what I prefer the across the chest that's kind of modified so what's not really under the arm sort of like what's pitchered on page one with a leather rig.
 
If undecided, you could always get a holster that will allow both crossdraw and strong side carry.
I use a Bianchi Cyclone 111 holster and a DeSantis Speed Scabbard. They both allow crossdraw or strong side carry and are good quality and comfortable. The Bianchi has a thumb break.
Might be worth a look.
 
Armored farmer said:
I wonder if some are using a straight holster worn crossdraw? That doesn't work so well.....o_O

ETA
No offense @Fatcat3. I must have been typing my response when you posted yours.
I like my crossdraw holsters sharply canted, and worn at 11:00 with the grip just left of my belt buckle. That puts the gun basically in my lap, arced over my left thigh when seated. It is much more convenient there than at 4:00 with the butt of the grip rubbing on a metal tractor seat frame or gouging the Mrs while riding double on an atv.
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I know what you mean, but, this varies by individual. I have long arms, and a short waist. My elbow and wrist joints remain quite flexible. I am used to pivoting so that my left side faces a threat. In this defensive position, a straight-vertical draw does work well, for me. (0900 position, butt forward, with right hand perfroming the draw stroke.) The draw is not across my belly, but to a high position, ending with my right thumb being on or by my right pec muscle, a position not much different than the #2 position of a “strong-side” vertical draw. A strongly canted/raked draw angle, built into the cross-draw holster, would actually not be ideal. The less-strong amount of rake/cant built into the Kramer Crossdraw is better. Or, I can simply use a straight-vertical-draw holster, especially with short-barreled weapons. This also works well if I am seated inside a vehicle, in the driver’s seat, if the threat is just outside the driver’s door.

Chic Gaylord’s now-classic book on holsters and handgunning shows a person who is much slimmer than Chic Gaylord performing this type of cross-draw. (The more-portly Chic Gaylord, himself, poses for most of the images, in the book.) It has been a LONG time since I looked at books on medieval and Renaissance swordmanship, but there are named techniques for drawing a sword in a similar manner.

I have the added problem of a strongly-canted/raked holster not working very well, to hide guns. The barrel, grip, or both, will tend to print. When I was younger, it was because I was a skinny as a rail. I am now less-skinny than before, but what little butt that I did have has, well, fallen off. Concealing a full-sized fightin’ pistol is best done with the weapon as vertical as practicable.

To be clear, the position that you like is comfortable for me, if concealment is not important. I agree that it is a good position, if working on a tractor, and if I buy a tractor, to start mowing my mother’s land, I may well use your method, situationally.
 
Driftwood Johnson said:
Howdy

First off, Ruger does not make a Blackhawk with a 4 3/4" barrel. Although one of the standard barrel lengths for Colts is 4 3/4", Ruger barrels are 1/8" shorter at 4 5/8".

OK, School Marm mode off.

Here is my SASS gunbelt. Two 2nd Gen Colts, one with a 4 3/4" barrel, the other with a 7 1/2" barrel. These holsters have a bit of forward cant. I wear the 7 1/2" Colt on my left side with the butt forward as a cross draw holster because I discovered a long time ago it is difficult to draw a 7 1/2" barreled Colt on the strongside without getting my elbow tangled in my arm pit. Cross draw eliminates that with a long barrel.

Although I do not carry every day, my experience with the 4 3/4" Colt carried on my strong side is that I do not have a problem sitting down. The long barrelled Colt tends to bump the seat when I sit, but the 4 3/4" Colt does not bump the seat.

Of course, this is wearing the holsters on a wide (2 3/4") gunbelt. Wearing the holster on a narrower belt may cause the holster to ride differently.

If it wuz me, I would get a holster that I could wear on either side until I decided which way I liked best.

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Good heavens. Taking someone to task for 1/8”? It’s like that silly little millimeter longer cigarette commercial.
 
I like how Bob Wright describes it as “near side.” In my EDC scenario, I am OWB at 3-4 o’clock. Therefore when out and about at the hunting camp, I stick with what I know, am familiar with, and is ingrained in muscle memory.

Cross draw makes sense if I’m sitting or riding a horse or any other activity that puts my hands toward my mid-section, which is still unnatural compared to hanging down by my side, which is probably 95% of the time.

There are rare occasions when it’s colder and I am wearing my HPG recon bag and go chest carry. Still easier for me than cross draw or shoulder harness carry.
 
I love my 5" SBH 44(yes, actually 5", I cut down a 7.5") and I wear it in a cheap holster I modified to make it cross draw. It's a beater, and so is the holster, but at 10:30 position in front of my left hip it works for all my campsite needs, and walking hunting too. I do put the holster on my pack waistband when wearing a pack, but I like cross draw for a bigger revolver. My 7.5" redhawk goes vertical on the left hip for a modified cross draw when carrying a slung long gun. Perfect for elk hunting.
 
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