Questions about Printing...

[jeremya]

So when I took the CHL class our instructor basically said he wear Hawaiian shirts because they concealed well and if the breeze blew it back exposing his gun it was no big deal because it was unintentional. I got the impression that as long as you were making a decent attempt to conceal it was no big deal and I didn't think much else about it.

I know concealed means concealed, but to what extent do you have to test your concealment. I see these videos of people on YouTube in all these contrived positions looking for printing. And I hear on a video mention in Texas if you get caught printing they will take your CHL away. Seems like if it was that important more time would have been dedicated to discussing it during the course.

Thanks,

Jeremy

[brianko]

(3) "Concealed handgun" means a handgun, the presence of which is not openly discernible to the ordinary observation of a reasonable person.

Also:

(a) A license holder commits an offense if the license holder carries a handgun on or about the license holder's person under the authority of Subchapter H, Chapter 411, Government Code, and intentionally fails to conceal the handgun.

It's rather difficult for a "reasonable person" to detemine that you're carrying a gun and not a cellphone, PDA, Blackberry, measuring tape, etc. In any event, you only have a problem if you intentionally flash your piece. If you carry IWB, it's highly unlikely whatever "prints" (if anything) will even resemble a firearm.

[anygunanywhere]

The sheeple are clueless. Those who do not carry are either dreaming of one day living in a lord BO commune gulping kool-aid or where to buy their next latte or i-toy. Act like you know what you are doing and even if the wind blows or some other cover malfunction occurs jut adjust and go on about your business. You only have to worry when some panty wetter birkenstock shod girly man screams like a twelve year old girl that there is a man with a gun. When you hear the scream don't throw your hawiaan shirt back, draw your handgun, drop into a low crouch stance as you scramble for cover while scanning for the BG.

Anygunanywhere

[Purplehood]

I don't recall any law that specifically describes "printing" or addresses the issue. Is there?

[Lodge2004]

You only have to worry when some panty wetter birkenstock shod girly man screams like a twelve year old girl that there is a man with a gun. When you hear the scream don't throw your hawiaan shirt back, draw your handgun, drop into a low crouch stance as you scramble for cover while scanning for the BG.

In the last 10 years, I've only had one person scream "he has a gun" in reference to me. It was before I got my CHL and I was carrying a pager on my belt. Since getting my CHL, I am convinced that I could open carry for days before anybody noticed. The vast majority of people do not notice and even if they do, they convince themselves it is not what it appears to be.

[The Annoyed Man]

Don't worry about printing. Avoid it if you can, but don't spend time worrying about it. As others have said, 99.9999% of the people who even bother to wonder what that shape under your shirt actually is won't be able to tell. And most of them, even if they could tell, won't care - as long as you don't look the part of a gangsta and are not acting in a threatening manner.

That being said, slightly looser fitting shirts, with printed patterns in a darker color will conceal your pistol better than a t-shirt will. But choice of holster and firearm also are factors. Even so, there are at least a few members here who carry full sized pistols OWB and don't have printing problems. I used to thing that being (ahem!) "beltline challenged" would make it harder to conceal a pistol, but I've seen enough posts on this site from people who describe themselves as beanpoles who complain that they have trouble with concealment. So, I think that firearm choice, holster choice, and clothing choice have more to do with it than physical build - that and attitude. If you act with that "I'm nervous because I'm hiding a gun" attitude, people are going to pick up on it. If you take appropriate measures to conceal, and then forget that the gun is there until you need it, nobody will be the wiser.

I'm a believer in, "put it on, cover it up, forget about it."

[jeremya]

Thanks! Got word my plastic should be coming in the mail any day now!

-- Jeremy

[atxgun]

I'm a believer in, "put it on, cover it up, forget about it."

Were you a slogan writer for Ron Popeil?

[bryang]

Don't worry about printing. Avoid it if you can, but don't spend time worrying about it. As others have said, 99.9999% of the people who even bother to wonder what that shape under your shirt actually is won't be able to tell. And most of them, even if they could tell, won't care - as long as you don't look the part of a gangsta and are not acting in a threatening manner.

That being said, slightly looser fitting shirts, with printed patterns in a darker color will conceal your pistol better than a t-shirt will. But choice of holster and firearm also are factors. Even so, there are at least a few members here who carry full sized pistols OWB and don't have printing problems. I used to thing that being (ahem!) "beltline challenged" would make it harder to conceal a pistol, but I've seen enough posts on this site from people who describe themselves as beanpoles who complain that they have trouble with concealment. So, I think that firearm choice, holster choice, and clothing choice have more to do with it than physical build - that and attitude. If you act with that "I'm nervous because I'm hiding a gun" attitude, people are going to pick up on it. If you take appropriate measures to conceal, and then forget that the gun is there until you need it, nobody will be the wiser.

I'm a believer in, "put it on, cover it up, forget about it."

Very good advice! Since I have had my CHL I have intentionally tried to see if I could tell if anyone was carrying and only once did I suspect a guy may have been carrying, but could not tell for sure. The general public simply does not look that closely and could care less, they are caught up in doing their own thing and are oblivious to what is going on around them.

-geo

[JackRR]

Before I got my license I was concerned about printing,being "made" etc. Now that I have gone out into the real world outside my house, It is nothing to it. I learned to wear loose shirts for sure. Nobody is looking for a gun, just dont call attention to yourself.
I spent plenty of time practicing at home with different shirts and pants. Even marginal shirts you cant tell a cellphone bulge from a CCW. I am pleasantly surprised how easy this was.

Glock 27 OWB
Now that it is cold, Glock 17 sometimes.

[The Annoyed Man]

Last night, one of my friends from church and I were leaving a Bible study we had been to together, and we started talking about rifles. After a few minutes, he straight up asked me, "do you ever pack heat, or do you have a CHL?" Well, he's a pretty good friend, and he is gun friendly, so I confessed that yes, I carry and have a CHL. He said "me too," and showed me his Glock 17 which was hidden under his sweater. He then asked to see what I carry - a Kimber Ultra Carry II - so I showed him. We talked for a few minutes more, and then each went on our way.

Now, the point of all this is that he is right handed, I'm left handed, and we have been sitting in the same spots on the same couch for the past 6 weeks on Thursday nights - with him on the left end of the couch, and me on the right end. Thus, my gun side was facing toward him, and his was toward me, and neither one of us ever realized that the other had been carrying all this time until last night when it came up in conversation.

The odds are practically nil that an uninitiated person is going to realize that you've got a pistol concealed about yourself.

[scootergeek]

To me the whole Haiwan shirt just screams I got a gun. Good luck with what you decide on. Welcome to the life of a CHL'er.

[Liberty]

To me the whole Haiwan shirt just screams I got a gun. Good luck with what you decide on. Welcome to the life of a CHL'er.

I always thought jackets screams "I got a gun."
I guess it depends on where you live and ones lifestyle. I've been wearing Hawaiian shirts long before I ever started packing. Hawaiian's and Galvestonians must be the most armed men on earth.

[striker55]

Personally I think more time should be spent on concealing/carrying in the CHL class. When you're new at it you really dont know.

[Keith B]

To me the whole Haiwan shirt just screams I got a gun. Good luck with what you decide on. Welcome to the life of a CHL'er.

To me the whole Hawaiian shirt just screams 'I am not married or my wife doesn't pick out my clothes.'

I wear an OWB holster most of the time with a cover shirt, but it is just a button-up casual shirt and a t-shirt underneath. Works just fine and no one has ever noticed I am carrying.