Carry Options: Day-by-Day Concealed Carry Choices
I’ll show you mine if you show me yours. I’m talking about the carry guns that actually get daily “out-and-about” concealed carry use. Around here, we spend a lot of time talking about (and testing) a wide variety of guns and gear, so excepting the days spent doing formal evaluations of new carry guns and holster rigs, I thought it might be helpful to share the guns that have more recently occupied the lion’s share of my more discretionary carry time.
Drinking with the Dead
So, the lesson in this true story from the Old West is that if you give a bunch of rough men enough alcohol, they will do some really bizarre and arguably creepy things. Here’s the story of an armed robber resurrected to finish the drink he paid for. Yep, really.
Miracle Sight Adjuster: Sight Punch vs. Sight Drifter
I’ve always wanted to try one of these as it’s somewhat difficult, bordering on impossible for mere non-gunsmith mortals, to adjust a tight steel front or rear sight without making a mess of either the sight or the punch.
Apparatus Insignis: Remington’s Double Derringer, An Idea Too Good To Die
From a new regular column in American Handgunner, the Apparatus Insignis feature dives into the history, engineering, functions and obscura of interesting guns from the past and sometimes present.
The Joys of Ballistol
You experienced shooters and professional tinkerers out there likely already know many of the uses for this stuff, but for those youngsters reading this, here’s a valuable tip: Look for the green can.
Your Best Defense During Civil Unrest
I met Steve some years ago. He's one of those gray man guys you'd never give a asecond look, but he also has one of those backgrounds that make you stop and listen to what is has to say. You know, the guys in the background of event photos with Presidents and foreign dignitaries.
| The Good |
| Does most of the things a pocket holster should do: protects the trigger, hides the outline of your gun, keeps pocket junk out of the action, and generally stays in the pocket when you draw. |
| The Bad |
| The material is too soft. With a magazine heavy semi-automatic, it tends to bend and rotate in your pocket. |
| The Ugly |
| It can be really difficult to draw when your gun, and the holster, have both turned upside down. |
| Our Rating |
 One Nun. |
The Uncle Mike’s Pocket Holster
Uncle Mike’s Pocket Holster
Suggested Retail Price: $12.95
We wanted to like this pocket holster. It’s soft and squishy, feels great, and is really comfortable in the pocket.
But we didn’t. Like it, that is.
The Uncle Mike’s Pocket Holster takes a universal approach to size and fit. It’s offered in four different sizes as follows:
18744-1Small autos (.22 – .25 cal.)
28744-2Most .380s
38744-32″ 5-shot revolvers; Sigma .380
48744-4Most sub-compact 9mm/.40 autos
So there is no custom fitting for a particular gun. You take your best guess at the right size and go from there.
The material is fairly thick and has a rubbery-suede feel. Is that even a valid description? We’re not sure, but that’s what it feels like. It’s an open top, sealed bottom design and there is a band of non-slip material at about the half-way mark to help the holster remain in your pocket when you draw.
On the plus side…
- The material is sturdy enough that we’re confident the trigger is protected
- The bottom (on our model for mid size semi-auto’s like the Walther PPK) is sealed and does a perfectly acceptable job of keeping pocket lint and leftover Tater-Tots out of the action of the gun. And no, we really don’t keep Tater-Tots in the same pocket as our gun! We store them in our other pocket of course! Duh.
- It’s comfortable. The gun is protected and it feels good in the pocket.
- We had no issues with sweat, or spilled Coke, penetrating the holster material. So hit all the drive-thrus you want – no problem.
On the not-so-plus side:
- This holster, like other Uncle Mike’s models, has very little structure. You wouldn’t think that’s a big requirement for a pocket holster, but when it folds from the weight of the gun, you can have trouble with the whole rig rotating in your pocket. We did most of our testing with a Walther PPK, which, as a steel gun, has some weight to it. Add a full magazine and you have a strong tendency for the grip end to want to follow that gravity rule and find its way to the bottom of your pocket. Not good. In fairness, this problem would not be as severe with a polymer gun like the Kel-Tec or Ruger LCP.
So all in all, we would elect to pass on this one and spend a few more bucks on something a little more substantial. In our next pocket holster review, we’ll be taking a close look at the DeSantis Nemesis Pocket Holster.
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| The instability issue really caused me to fear for my manhood. I found that with normal day-to-day activity, in a variety of pocket styles, the holster had a tendency to rotate so my gun was pointed right at, well, my gun. | I tried it in my purse and didn’t have great success. The non-slip band was not tacky enough to keep the holster in the purse pocket when I tried to draw. I do realize the holster was not designed for this use, but wanted to offer up the feedback to my lady friends out there. |
Read about more carry styles and over 120 different gun holsters in The Insanely Practical Guide to Gun Holsters – available at Amazon.com! Learn more about our Insanely Practical Guides!
