All posts tagged Beretta 96 holsters

Sometimes it’s not about the holster, it’s how big the gun is

I’ve been more aggressive in attempting to try out various types of firearms for concealed carry and i’ve found more than a few holsters that I will be adding to my rotation.   I think it’s a good idea to have more than one type of holster for each gun  you have because there are situations where you can get yourself into where one method of carrying will not work very well.   I have been growning tired of carrying guns IWB because I’ve hurt  myself one too many times and sometimes it takes weeks for the discomfort from a bruise to go away.   Rolling around on the ground with a paddle holster can be a revealing experience and you will quickly find out where all of the sharp ends on your firearms are.   It’s all necessary to know what different positions feel like so you hope your body will understand discomfort under stress and you can concentrate on getting hits on target.

I find ankle carry to be very close to dressing  up for Halloween.   It’s not really practical but it’s fun to do every once in awhile.  I find ankle carry to be a good backup method for someone that does a lot of driving.   Pocket carry is nice when you don’t have to carry a lot in your pockets, but I still always prefer to carry with a Don Hume Jit holster because I really can’t feel the gun on me unless I grab it with my hands.   I’ve been working my way towards smaller and smaller firearms and the Galco holsters that I am using now are all the Speed paddle holsters for a j-frame.  This gun is so light already that the paddle holster barely bothers me.   I’ve found the heavier the gun the less I’m going to want a paddle holster, and this is my least uncomfortable paddle carry holster.

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Blackhawk guns for CCW and Duty

I am replacing many of my Fobus gun holsters for the Blackhawk Serpa CQC holsters.   The CQC holsters can be attached to the belt or they can be made into a paddle holster, so you are actually getting 2 for one.   I have had circumstances where I needed to change the way I carried a gun and there are times that certain firearms really begin to wear on you and paddle holsters and IWB can get uncomfortable. Much of it depends on what type of physical work I am doing, but once you get a bruise in that area, it’s not going to heal if you are constantly carrying it in that manor.  A few years ago i hurt myself while bending over and couldn’t CCW with an IWB holster, but didn’t have many options to try out, I picked up a Blackhawk Serpa holster and tried that, but even though it was advertised as Concealed Carry, it really protruded out to far for me to wear under a shirt, and it really only could have been used if I wore a vest.  I guess I’m too thin to do that in the summer around here.

I have through pocket carry into the mix because I have had one too many times that I was extremely uncomfortable with the way I was carrying and couldn’t enjoy the places I was going.  Ankle carry has been tried, but it still feels funny to have something on one leg and not the other.  Blackhawk holsters are very good for duty work and Winter carry, but carrying a small Kahr PM9 or a Walther PPK is enough Semi-auto for me, but I have tried a Smith & Wesson lightweight 637 and have been very happy.  Throw a knife, flashlight and mace into the mix and you’ve got plenty of self-defense to go around.  No need to try and get too frisky with larger firearms and end up being made in a bad situation.

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The FN 5.7 as a defensive weapon

I first saw the 5.7  in all it’s glory with what I would consider to be AP ammo.   I heard a few people mention that they thought that this gun should be illegal, but ballistically it couldn’t do anything that the much more common M855 or SS109 could do.   Yeah I know that a criminal might prefer a handgun to defeat a police officers armor, but the last Police Officer killed here in Pennsylvania was killed with an SKS with standard ammo and a 30rd magazine that actually jammed.   The SKS can take detachable magazines, but I have never seen them hold up as well as the AK family of guns with these mags.   The 5.7 has the ballistics of something close to the 22 magnum, and even though that is not a very powerful stopping round it is as effective as the person carrying it.

I don’t know of any reliable 22 magnum semi auto guns, I know a few pocket revolvers that were fun to shoot, but if you want a small and light semi auto with similar 22 magnum ballistics and has a much  higher capacity, there’s nothing wrong with packing the 5.7 FN.  I think there are better calibers for duty officers, but there are a number of gun holsters like the Blackhawk Serpa that can be had for this gun.  Unfortunately the piece of crap that killed our soldiers at Fort Hood used this firearm arm very effectively, but hopefully anyone reading this will know that every firearm used in the hands of a good and law abiding citizen is an asset to society.

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