Practicing drawing from cover
There are multiple ways of carrying a firearm concealed. Each of them may be good for a certain environment, but one way may not work for all situations. Sometimes people get too caught up in one manor of concealment and the reality is that we should probable consider atleast 2 or 3 ways of concealing the same firearm. When I was at a Defensive Pistol course a few years ago, we were asked to bring a concealment garment to practice drawing our firearm. The majority of us didn’t show up with pocket pistols for the Class and having something that would work for a full size auto was difficult.
Some jackets will work fine for winter work, but summer concealed carry is a different animal. Wearing a vest in the summer can make you stand out, but it can also help you fit in depending on the enviroment. Just like the debates about which gun is better a Glock or a 1911, you have to be smart about what your carrying and understand how it functions and if it works for you. A CCW vest like the Elite Operator Tactical Style 102 vest has a generous cut and will hang well over your belt line to conceal a full size auto like a Glock 17, Beretta 92FS or Sig 226. A lot of the students that took the class with me all used these and they worked well.
Back in the 1990s there was a lot of Eastern Com-Block guns coming into the Country. There were also a lot of MAK90s and SKS Rifles coming in from China. Not sure why there were so many Chinese guns coming in, but there must have been some house cleaning from the Militarys over there. You may be able to find a well made 7.62×39 rifle being made in the USA now, but they are pretty expensive and will cost you about the same as a new AR15 or more. Some of the nicest AKs are being by Arsenal Arms and they look and shoot great.