"Gotcha Covered"......tell the truth!

[flintknapper]

Dear forum members,

I am asking you to participate in this poll for a very specific reason.

The poll questions presented are NOT to “bait� you in any way, and I promise there is a good and purposeful discussion to come of it.

The poll results ARE a “lead in� to another subject I would like to ask you about when we are done.

The subject matter of this poll is: Do you cover yourself or others
(point the muzzle) with your firearm during a normal week of carrying, transporting, or using your weapon for sporting events.

Listed below are some common methods employed. Please take a minute to contribute additional information. But I ask that you refrain from any “debate� at this point.

IWB
OWB
SOB
Cross draw
Appendix
Ankle
Pocket (vest) (pant) (coat)
Shoulder (horizontal) (vertical) (inverted)
Fanny pack
Purse
Briefcase/Man-purse/Organizer
Bellyband
Smart-carry
In vehicle not on person
In a building but not on person

I am looking for raw data. Please be “brutally� honest!

If you don’t already know the answer, then scrutinize your mode(s) of carry in the following week…and report your findings. If you have doubts about covering yourself, put a straight edge along side your weapon, imagine it being about ¾� closer to you and note the “bullet path�.

Hint:

Look hard to see if that IWB has your weapon pointed at your leg or buttocks.

When you draw shooting IDPA do you cover your foot or leg?

Horizontal shoulder or purse carry is a shoe-in.

Vertical purse carry (if you put it in your lap) has you good to go!

Smart-Carry/ Bellyband pretty much insures you made the team.

Just take a hard look and let us know. There is a point to this “really�.

Thanks in advance,

Flint.

[flintknapper]

I'll dive in first!

I primarily carry in a horizontal shoulder rig. I routinely "cover" others when in public.

I also place my pistol in the center console of my vehicle occasionally. The orientation of it would not present a problem though.

I keep a pistol on a bedside table at night. Our home is not brick...so a firearm discharge would penetrate the exterior wall. It might hit a horse, but nothing else.

Tell me about yours!

[seamusTX]

I think it's impossible to carry in a way that does not cover yourself or others at some time.

IWB, probably being the most popular for CHL, covers your leg and foot much of the time. We tend to ignore our feet until something goes wrong; but they contain dozens of bones and are very disabling if injured.

Also consider how IWB might cover other people when you bend over or climb stairs.

Ankle holster just might not cover yourself or others unless you kneel.

- Jim

[longtooth]

Shoulder carry covers others.
My Sunday pocket carry covers me.
IWB covers my right buttock.
Drawing while moving to my right I would be hard pressed to say I never covered a right leg.
Practicing draw from a car seat is hard to never cover a leg.
Night stand position would cover anyone passing its position in the bedroom on the other side of the wall.
Lockbox between the seats would have to go through the engine so I guess that is a no.
My Sunday pocket carry while seated & playing my guitar covers everyone on the stage at some time.


Since we have been over this before I will say no more.

[fm2]

IWB cover's my gluts a little while seated.
Pocket carry covers my toe, others while seated.

[KRM45]

It took me a while to figure out what you ment by "cover"... I generally think of it as 'muzzle', and yes, I am guilty.

[Lumberjack98]

Absolutely cover myself or others. I'm not aware of any way around it 100% of the time.

[HighVelocity]

I am extremely conscious of the muzzle of my gun and it's literally impossible to have it 100% safe 100% of the time. What I do have 100% control of is the location of my finger.

[flintknapper]

It took me a while to figure out what you ment by "cover"... I generally think of it as 'muzzle', and yes, I am guilty.

Sorry, I should have included the term "muzzle" in my explanation.

Thanks for the clarification.

[flintknapper]

Come on folks, don't be shy.

I promise there is no sinister motive for my questions.

The poll just "sets up" another question I have about the "anti's" and how our own words and "catch phrases" might be working against us.

Thanks,

Flint.

[Crash]

I carry exclusively in my right front pocket and I don't think I have ever covered anybody else. I don't think the holster orients the weapon in a way that if it fired it would hit my leg, however, I guess it's covering my right foot.

Crash

[flintknapper]

I carry exclusively in my right front pocket and I don't think I have ever covered anybody else. I don't think the holster orients the weapon in a way that if it fired it would hit my leg, however, I guess it's covering my right foot.

Crash

I would be surprised if when seated (in public) it wasn't pointed at someone, but maybe not.

Also, where is your weapon when it is NOT on your body? Think hard.

[Skiprr]

It took me a while to figure out what you ment by "cover"... I generally think of it as 'muzzle', and yes, I am guilty.

Agreed. "Cover" is not a term I'm familiar with in this context. "Sweep," maybe.

And I think it mixes apples and oranges. If no hand is on the gun, I don't consider it sweeping a target (intentional or unintentional). Despite what the Brady Bunch might believe, guns don't shoot themselves. Carry in a shoulder rig does not sweep unintended targets just because the muzzle of the gun is moving during daily activities.

Too, I don't think you can even mix apples and apples in this case. From a purely theoretical standpoint, I don't think you can carry a concealed handgun without the muzzle pointing at some point of your own body--or others'--at some time. It just ain't possible. Because human bodies move.

If that's the answer you're looking for, I think it goes without saying.

However, I do--sorta--agree with the hierarchy of gun safety proffered by the NRA (I'd better, since I've taken a bunch of their practitioner and instructor courses). They list "Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction" as number one. Number two is "Always keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot." I'll skip number three for this discussion (my point of disagreement), but number four is "Know your target and what is beyond."

Can you "always keep your gun pointed in a safe direction?" Nope. You have to move your firearm from point A to point B, and when you daily carry on your hip, you may even have lunch on the second floor of a restaurant with other diners on the floor below.

But when you have your hand on the hilt of the handgun, can you always do your best to make sure the gun is pointed in a safe direction? Yep; I think you can. And that's why the NRA puts that rule at number one: if--99.9% of the time that your hand is on the gun--it's pointed in a safe direction, should your trigger finger mess up and you experience an ND, it will hurt no one.

If you have a wide shooting stance, do you sweep your own leg in IDPA? Sure you do. It's unavoidable. It's hard to imagine someone who could draw IWB from a seated position and not sweep their own leg. You simply can't draw from a horizontal shoulder holster without sweeping a solid 45- to 90-degree arc (which is why shoulder holsters are illegal in IDPA).

Sorry I didn't refrain from debate, as you asked, but I frankly didn't find the question rationally presented. As a Six Sigma and analytics kinda guy, it's a flawed poll that has only one logical outcome. It's pretty obvious you have an agenda you're promoting (and I luv ya, Flint; honest...and I probably support that agenda.)

[RubenZ]

OWB carry. Muzzle points at my Wallet. I carry at 4 o'clocl. When I'm at home, its in bed stand pointing towards living room. When I'm driving I have it in my trucks console pointing towards the rear of truck.

[flintknapper]

You simply can't draw from a horizontal shoulder holster without sweeping a solid 45- to 90-degree arc (which is why shoulder holsters are illegal in IDPA).

It's pretty obvious you have an agenda you're promoting (and I luv ya, Flint; honest...and I probably support that agenda.)

Yes, there is a purpose for my poll...and you are very close to exposing it.

It is quite innocuous though, and may not go exactly where you think.

As concerns drawing from a shoulder holster, I would like an opportunity to demonstrate the "proper" way to do so from an horizontal rig.

It will cover no one. Even the weak hand draw covers no one (unless you are laying right by my left foot).

I am always flabbergasted that so few people know how to safely draw from the shoulder. I guess I need to make a DVD covering the three basic draws and include weapon retention.

Anyway, you are on the right track...just wait and see.