Carrying a 5" 1911 is hard

[kells81]

Since my plastic has arrived I have carried exactly twice.

#1- Glock 43 in my pocket. That's easy. Fishing and outdoorsy stuff etc and went into a store for worms.

#2- 5" 1911 in an owb holster. Drug the muzzle all over stuff today. Had it show so many times I finally just left it in the truck. On my way home I stopped and picked up a iwb holster made of kydex. It's uncomfortable but will work until I get hands on a good leather iwb holster.

Is anyone else packing a gov model? I don't care about carrying in general but prefer to carry while fishing and doing outdoorsy stuff. Pretty much have to suck it up until I can OC but until then it's a hide it challenge. Anyone know a good shop in DFW with a good selection of holsters?

[RPBrown]

Been said here many times, it supposed to be comforting, not comfortable.
The more you. Arty, you will start getting used to it.
I've been carrying a 1911 of some size for years. Just takes awhile

[mrvmax]

Raven Concealment or Bravo Concealment have both provided me with great OWB kydex holsters that work well with large pistols.

[cheezit]

Im a small guy, ive done it. I have other options so I dont have to leave my gun at home.

[kragluver]

Two keys to making it easier: 1) a good double thickness leather gun belt (I use a Galco); 2) a good IWB holster with widely spaced belt loops to spread the load- I recommend a Milt Sparks VS2. I've been carrying this way for several years and it works well. A cotton undershirt (yes, even in summer time) keeps the gun butt from digging into your skin.

[aaangel]

check out GT distributor in garland. good guys there!

[Taypo]

I tried an OWB for my 1911 and failed miserably.

Went with an IWB and a gun belt, works like a champ!

[AJSully421]

Glock 19.......

[joe817]

I could Never get away with carrying a full size 1911 even though I'd love to. The Lord blessed me with a "compact size" and at 5' 8" and weighs soaking wet, 180 lbs., a compact gun, or sub compact gun is what I am most comfortable with and I NEVER have any probs with unintentional exposure of my gun. besides, it's totally comfortable for carry all day, every day.

Now then a guy who is 6' 2" or better and weighs 200 or better could MUCH easier totally conceal a full size 1911, and I say how lucky you are! (except when you try to squeeze into a sub-compact car!)

Compacts and sub-compacts were developed for people like me. Just saying.

[carlson1]

check out GT distributor in garland. good guys there!

Probably the largest stock of "good" holsters I have seen in the DFW area.

[Right2Carry]

DM Bullard in Azle. Great IWB holster.

[Jago668]

DM Bullard in Azle. Great IWB holster.

I have to agree. I have an iwb holster and magazine holder from him. You do have to wear an undershirt if you are going to wear leather iwb. I have an aliengear holster and stealthgearusa magazine holder and those I can do without an undershirt even on hot days. Nothing holds up like leather though if you take care of it. D M Bullard does do good work though, does custom work also. Also does belts if you need a better belt to hang your stuff on.

[The Annoyed Man]

I am not tall (5'10"), and I have been "horizontally challenged" for years. Contrary to popular myth, being overweight can make it harder to conceal a large-framed pistol because - and I know no delicate way to describe this - fat will push the gun outward away from your body, which makes a larger bulge under your shirt. Nonetheless, I have easily concealed my 5" 1911 any number of times, in an OWB holster. You can too; but to make it work, you have to make some concessions/adjustments to how you do things that you might not already be making. The degree to which you are not willing to do all these things is the degree to which you will have difficulty carrying your 5" 1911. Here they are, in no particular order of importance because they are equally important:

• RULE #1: Buy a GOOD holster. Under the dictum that you get what you pay for, be willing to spend in the $100 range if necessary (yes, it turns out to be necessary most of the time). I carry my 5" 1911 in a Galco Concealable Belt Holster: http://www.galcogunleather.com/conceala ... _1064.html. This particular model costs $119.95, but it is a top quality holster and will last you a lifetime.....like your gun will. Here is what it looks like:
  
  There are other manufacturers who make similar holsters, some are a little more or a little less expensive, but they will all look similar to this one. Also, consider a good pancake holster, which will carry the gun the same way as this one, but spread the weight out over a wider area of your belt. But the main thing is you want a HIGH QUALITY holster that gives your gun FULL LENGTH COVERAGE to protect the muzzle and front sight.
  
  Make sure that holster has a forward cant, like the one in the above picture. This will make it conceal better. Wear it at about 4:30 if you're right handed, 7:30 if you're a lefty. This will cause the grip to lay up against your body without protruding as much, and with the forward cant, the gun will be at the right angle for a draw with the holster positioned behind your hip like that. This picture is a forum member here, but not me, showing such a holster, at that approximate position:
  
• RULE #2: Get a REAL gunbelt. Don't cheap out and try to buy just any old heavy leather belt. THEY ARE NOT THE SAME THING. This picture (again, not me) will illustrate what I mean:
  
  THAT is what a true gunbelt will do. Now, granted, that is a small lightweight single stack 9mm in that holster, but this belt would be good for your 1911 too. Belts that were not manufactured with carrying the weight of a gun in mind will lose their shape and sag outwards under the weight of your gun. A typical steel-framed 5" 1911 weighs in the vicinity of 40 ozs unloaded without a magazine. Add 8 rounds of 230 grain .45 ACP plus possibly a backup magazine, and your regular belt simply isn't up to the task. Your gun will sag downward, making the muzzle visible, and the grip will sag outward making a more obvious bulge under your shirt. People who are new to CHL or who don't carry very often frequently ignore this guideline, and they end up with an unsatisfactory carry experience. But in terms of equipment, a true gunbelt is one of the most important things you can do.
• RULE #3: Dress around the gun, stop trying to make the gun fit your wardrobe. If your gun is sticking out below your shirt, it isn't the gun's fault.....especially if you are wearing a properly canted holster.....It's the shirt's fault (and yours, for picking a shirt that won't cover the gun adequately). Buy and wear longer shirts. Wear shirts that are just a size too big.....just like you would have to do with your pants if you were going to carry IWB. And collateral to this, buy shirts that have a pattern of some kind, and buy shirts that are darker in color. It's almost a cliché joke that if you see a guy wearing an untucked Hawaiian shirt in Texas, he's probably packing. But the fact is that patterned prints and darker colors help to breakup the outline of a gun under the shirt to the casual observer's eye.
  
  As a matter of personal comfort, like others, I always wear a t-shirt under my overshirt, to keep the grip away from my skin. I can't carry IWB any longer because I have back issues and it causes me pain, so I've been carrying OWB for years now, with no problem. But whether IWB or OWB, I always keep a t-shirt between me and the gun......and it has the added benefit of helping to keep sweat off the gun too.

Now, all of these "rules" apply whether you are wearing a holstered 5" steel-framed 1911 OWB, or a Glock 43 IWB. Good holster. True gunbelt. Dress around the gun.

You also have some alternatives.....

• I realize that you might have an emotional attachment to that particular 1911, but if not, then consider trading that steel 5" model in for an alloy-framed 4" or 3" model. Unless you're a bullseye shooter, a 4" or 3" 1911 will give you as much combat accuracy as you'll ever need. If the sight radius on a 3" barreled pistol is too short for you to use in a real fight, then you need an AR15 or a shotgun, not a pistol. But a lighter-weight, shorter-barreled 1911 can be a true joy to carry, and it will conceal MUCH more easily than your 5" steel gun can ever hope to match.
• If it is the ergonomics of the 1911 that you like, but you don't want to get rid of your 5" pistol, consider purchasing a polymer framed compact model that straddles the size range between your 1911 and your G43 and that mimics the grip angle of the 1911. The entire M&P line and the entire XD/XD(M)/XDS line have the same grip angle as the 1911. The alternatives abound. I love shooting my 1911, but I rarely ever carry it anymore, having substituted a XD(M)-45 Compact 3.8" and a XDS-45 3.3" as my primary carry guns. Even the larger of those two pistols weighs less than my 5" 1911, and holds more rounds. With either of those two guns, I have as much firepower as I had with my 1911, with less weight, and better concealability. I have a full-sized M&P45, and it weighs less than my 1911, but overall it is about the same size and no easier to conceal - but the compact version of the same gun is a great concealed carry pistol, as is the 9mm version of the same. If you are partial to your Glock, consider supplementing your collection with a G30 or G36. I also own a G17 and a G19, both of which are lighter than my 1911 and are easily concealed following the three rules in the first list.
• As of 1/1/16, you will be able to open carry with your CHL, and concealment becomes moot unless you really WANT to stay with concealed carry. But even if you decide to OC, a good holster and a true gunbelt are pretty much requirements to make it work.

On a final note, the more you work at getting this right, the more likely you are to end up with a drawer full of unused holsters because you tried to go about it on your own without accepting the wisdom of the CC community. That will cost you a lot of money over time. The GOOD news is, you won't be alone. I've got holsters that I paid good money for and haven't touched in years. Most of us do. But if you observe the dictums that you get what you pay for, and to dress around the gun instead of trying to force the gun to fit your sartorial choices, you can have a satisfactory carry experience.

[oohrah]

I don't carry my gov model, because it's too dangerous cocked and locked, with a round in the chamber. And what would be the point if it was not. So I got a PX4 Storm .45, which I can de-cock to DAO.

I know a little off-topic, but you might want to rethink your EDC.

[joe817]

TAM, once again, an excellent analysis of proper holsters, belts, and clothing for successful and concealed carry! Thank you.

I think this should be put in a sticky somewhere, the info is so valuable.