Welcome back to another edition of Concealed Carry Corner. Last week we took a look at how less truly can be more and how keeping it simple can sometimes have more benefits than installing a ton of accessories on your handgun. If you happened to miss that article, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, I wanted to take a look at some of the keys that allow you to be successful when it comes to carrying a concealed handgun.
One of the biggest issues I’ve seen with people in the concealed carry space is the concept of forcing a handgun to work no matter their body type or carry style. Some people are hell-bent on carrying a specific handgun, whether it's a full-size 1911 or even something larger like a Desert Eagle. There was an individual I met in the Detroit area who carried a Desert Eagle in 50 AE by having it in an OWB leather holster. I saw him walk into an indoor range where he proceeded to almost miss the target, hitting the D Zone 5 out of the 7 shots he fired.
If a firearm's too heavy to easily carry all day long and you can't shoot it accurately under pressure, why are you carrying it? Carrying a handgun that isn't sustainable for all-day carry sets you up for failure and I cannot tell you how often I see this happen. The biggest key to carrying concealed is actually having a firearm you can accurately shoot and have on you every day. Looking at your body type and capabilities, you can decide what works best for you, whether it's a Glock 43X or something a bit larger like a full-size Glock 17 with accessories. Larger-built body types can typically carry a much larger handgun without worrying about printing or showing any signs of carrying a large handgun and vice versa. Being able to look at what works best for you based on your body type and what you can comfortably carry will be the biggest deciding factor in whether you carry every day comfortably or end up leaving your gun at home most days because it's too difficult to carry around.
One of the biggest issues we have in the shooting community is not doing enough training with your actual carry gun. In most cases, people will take their full-size handguns with their gun belts and practice with those, but there's hardly any time spent with the gun they carry every single day. One of the best ways to improve your skills is with that carry gun. Even at a bare minimum, I try to put 100 rounds through my carry gun every 2-3 months. Of course, I always encourage people to shoot more than that, but this is a baseline minimum.
In previous articles, I have gone through some of my favorite range drills to help practice for carrying concealed, and having a few easy-to-set-up drills makes training with your carry gun incredibly easy. With simple drills like the Bill Drill or El Presidente drills, you only need a target and timer. If you're just starting out, you don't even need a timer, truthfully. Having a rough plan at the range to have purpose with training makes all the difference. Having a plan, even if it's a basic one, still allows you to have structure when training rather than just shooting 100 rounds without direction or purpose.
Once you figure out a handgun that you can carry every single day without issue and start training on a regular basis, it's really not difficult to start carrying every day. Having a solid belt and holster combo will make a significant difference for overall comfort and stability. Another mistake I see fairly often is people carrying different guns, from 1911s to DA/SA handguns to striker guns, all in the same week and in different carry positions.
This lack of consistency makes it more difficult to draw from concealment effectively and get your gun up on target as fast as it could be if you carry the same way with the same gun every single day. The more you carry and practice either dry firing or at the range, the more your muscle memory will kick in, making your draw second nature. Oftentimes, you don't have to have the perfect setup; you just need to train with your gear and understand where everything will be in case of an emergency.
There's no secret to being able to carry comfortably every single day. Finding the right firearm for you, training with it and consistently carrying it in the same position are the small things you can do to easily carry a concealed firearm. What are some other things you guys do to make sure you carry consistently? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. If you have questions about carrying concealed or firearms in general, feel free to shoot me a message on Instagram @fridgeoperator. Stay safe out there and we will see you in the next edition of Concealed Carry Corner.
