If you print, do you worry about it alot?

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Moparmike

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Oddly enough, a downwardly-plunging firey handbask
I have given it some thought, and I determined that it would be nearly impossible to dress for the weather and never print with a big fat Witness in 10mm.

Do you worry excessively about it? What alternatives might one have, besides a parka in July? (ok, so I exagerate)

If you had to decide between mildly printing (occasionaly a gun shape, but usually a large bulge around kidney), or not carrying, which would you choose?
 
99.9% of the people you come in contact with on a daily basis are not observant enough to notice you printing. People just don't go around looking for unusual bulges in your clothing(no gutter jokes here):D
I often carry with a sweater vest over my weapon. and I know that there is a bulge there on my right side at 4:00, but most people are just oblivious. They don't pay any attention.
As long as you aren't doing anything to draw attention to yourself, no one will be "checking you out".:scrutiny:
 
I work in an office everday and I am in close visual contact with my coworkers.
In three years nobody has ever noticed. Now I will grant you I am not wearing a full sized Witness, but even with my Glock 33 if you look you could see that under my sweater was a the general outline of a handgun. As Sherlock Holmes would say most people "Look but don't see".
 
Interesting question. I would have said that if you were printing enough so "something" was obvious under your clothes your concealment failed. Anyone else think that way?
 
I try to minimize it, but I don't particularly worry about it. Most people (even cops) just plain don't notice. With beepers, cell phones, etc., worn on the belt nowadays, what's another bulge.
 
Exactly, JC. I have four pouches (two knives, zippo, surefire) on my belt and I don't carry yet. What is another bulge added to that?
 
No, I don't worry about it a lot for the reasons given above. I try to conceal it, and think it is concealed, but you never really know. I know I look a lot fatter in pictures than I do when I am looking at myself in the mirror. On the other hand, when you are looking in the mirror to see if you are printing, you know you have a gun on and are specificallly looking for it.
 
Only ones that notice are other gun carrying people that worry if their gun is printing too.;)

Actually, like others here, with cell phones and everything else on the belt it is no big deal anymore.

BUT, I still do my best to keep the handgun print free as much as possible. I think I do a pretty good job of it too.
 
Yep. Kinda worried about the sheep freakin' out and calling the sheepdogs and getting whacked by friendly fire :eek:

And the wolves...arrr arroooooo!
 
Well you guys havent been around my 7 year old daughter. Being a holster maker and having her help me in my quest for years now......she's a bloody pro at spotting printing on damn near everyone.

She once told a cop she could see is J frame in a Tuckable holster.......
And he thanked her for it.......:D

Its not a big deal in MOST cases.......but steer clear of BOO, or she'll tell you that you are Printing! Beware............

Shoot well.
 
After some experimentation with printing I have determined the following...

I could open carry with a white shirt that says "Hello, My name is Chris and I am currently carrying a fully loaded .45 caliber semi automatic handgun. Have a nice day!" emblazoned in road hazard orange letters and still most people would be clueless.

I do worry a little bit and I don't open carry but all in all most of my carry is for my comfort more for absolute concealability. It just happens that pocket carry tends to be my carry of choice and that is very concealable.

Chris
 
I don't really sweat it. I make a token effort not to print, but like was said, 99.9% of people live in their own little bubble and are completely oblivious. And even if someone does see a print and figures out what's what, big deal. If you don't look like a child molester, people figure you're a cop or just go with whatever rationale their minds come up with.

- Gabe
 
I could open carry with a white shirt that says "Hello, My name is Chris and I am currently carrying a fully loaded .45 caliber semi automatic handgun. Have a nice day!" emblazoned in road hazard orange letters and still most people would be clueless.
Click to expand...
LOL! Ain't that the truth :)

- Gabe
 
Versa Max 2

After experimenting with numerous holsters, I tried a Milt Sparks "Versa Max 2".

I have a Government model 1911, it disappears with no printing while i carry.

Best holster set up i've tried.

12-34hom.
 
People tend not to notice details that they aren't specifically looking for. I am as guilty as anyone. There's a guy I used to work with - not closely but I saw him irregularly for 10+ years - and I never noticed until very recently that he is missing the last joing of each finger on his right hand.

I managed to make a hole in the elbow of my brown leather jacket recently. As a temporary fix I made a very neat and symmetrical patch with black electrical tape. You know what? I've been walking around with it for 2 months and nobody has noticed unless I brought it to their attention.
 
While I make every effort to minimize printing I don`t really worry about it. I almost always carry IWB which keeps it tucked in nice and tight. A really good stiff gunbelt is a must. That does as much to prevent printing as anything else. The Witness is not all that hard to conceal,nor is it particularly large. My 10mm Witness fit the same holsters as my CZ-75. The only thing larger about it was the thicker rubber grips. An issue I solved by having Hakan make a set of custom wood grips for me. I carried both guns and my S&W 1006 10mm for that matter which is larger and heavier but slimmer,under a dark colored untucked heavy weight T shirt with no problems and very little printing. IMO the holster/belt combo and body language are the most important factors. If you know your gun prints when you twist a certain way or something,just don`t do it. A good friend of mine carrys an HK USP Compact and it often prints (sometimes very baddly). He wears shirts that are too small and often stands or moves in such a way that it makes it print more. That said he`s never been made that I know of so people really must be oblivious! Marcus
 
:scrutiny: Yes, I definitely worry about printing. In the past 7 or 8 years I’ve been, ‘made’ at least 3 times; and, on each occasion, by someone I didn’t want to know.

My solutions are to: (1) Wear an IWB rig, for the right-hand locate it at the 4 o’clock position behind your belt, (2) wear shirts and jackets that are, either, full-cut or a size too large. (3) Teach yourself not to reach with your gun arm and, (4) always, bend over by kneeling with your gun-side knee. (5) Remember to smile, a lot; and, (6) always, try to approach other people from your support-hand side. (7) Finally, don’t confront others or engage in conversations by standing directly on the other person’s body centerline. (Keep, just off, to your gun side.)

Hopefully, this information will help you as much as it has helped me. To the best of my knowledge I haven’t been made in the past three years – not even at the S.P. barracks, nor the local police department! My biggest thrill was, one day, when I stopped for lunch, walked into a restaurant, and suddenly found myself (and my IWB 4 o’clock carry 45acp) surrounded by, at least, one SWAT team and an entire class of S.P. cadets. All of them were trying their darnedest to look observant! (Nobody seemed to make me, though!) If you're wondering who the last guy is that made me, are you ready? A game warden! :)
 
When I was the civilian security oficer for a telephone company in the mid 1980's (amongst my other duties), this same conversation came up. My opinion was that people were too self-absorbed to notice.

To prove the point, I carried a full-size stainless 1911 .45 ACP Govenment model in a Bianchi right kidney thumb-break holster OUTSIDE my jeans and covered only by a practice football jersey--the kind with cheese-cloth holes in it.

I worked the entire day (meetings, working with staff, customer service meetings with clients and the other management staff who were not 'in' on the experiment) and not one person mentioned anything from this slipshod attempt to cover a large pistol.

Vindicated, I went back to a Colt Officers ACP and a Detonics .45 in a proper concealment rig and never got flak from the managers again (on how it might look to a client).

edit: One of the best jobs I ever had. Even the bosses were gun guys. It was standard procedure that when you bought a new pistol, you brought it in for the owner/CEO to see and fondle. It was common to see a guy sitting at his desk cleaning a Colt. Try that kind of behavior today in our PC environment!
 
Marcus & All;

I also carry an H&K USP compact & I'm not a large guy. However, I carry it in a Milt Sparks Exec's Companion IWB. I'm a locksmith & carry at work. LEO's are in all the time. Nobody's said anything so far & it's been years.
I just wear the company Henley shirt loose over it.

As was said earlier though, the belt has a lot to do with it. I got the Milt Sparks belt with the holster & have been happy with both for over 6 years.

900F
 
I'm not too worried about it, Indiana allows open carry if you really wanted to cowboy.

I have been trying lately to see who is carrying...and I haven't made anyone I've known for sure yet (I did catch a shoplifter though looking for CCWs at work).

I'm still waiting for my CCW to come back from the city...When it comes back I'm not sure how I'm going to carry...probably small of the back. I tried strong hand at the 4 o'clock and I just could get used to that.
 
I carry my Browning HP 9MM at 3 O'clock in a Galco IWB. I wear a cotton t-shirt and layer a sleeveless golf vest over it in one size larger. I asked a court security officer to point out my pistol. He looked me over and thought I must have a J frame in an ankle rig. I call that a success.
 
Sure do! Cause where I come from concealed means concealed. When I did my original training for a concealed carry permit here in Oregon the DA who was on the training team kept emphasizing two points over and over. The first - "concealed means concealed". The second -"if you have a permit it is YOUR RESPONSIBILITY to do WHAT EVER IT TAKES to keep your weapon concealed". So, I have always lived by those two points. So, if you can't carry the 10 mm the way you are dressed either dress differently or carry something else. Good shooting;)
 
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