View Full Version : Spare Gun ... Kept in Shoulder Holster?
SonRunner
07-27-2007, 03:16
I've been considering keeping a spare gun in a shoulder holster; that is, and keeping my primary on my hip. I don't really like the additional weight on my ankle, even if it is only the Glock 27 with the nine round magazine. Any thoughts/considerations?
Also, it's hot where I work, and I can imagine that a leather shoulder holster gets kind of messed up. Anyone recommend a brand of non-leather shoulder holster?
Also, how is the conceal-ability of a shoulder holster under a t-shirt?
There have been quite a few discussions about backup weapons, concealment and otherwise… the opinions expressed are as varied as the Members here.
Under a T-Shirt you will have some issues; imprinting through the shirt, accessibility and such.
It comes down to your particular circumstances and preferences, what works for me may not work for you.
Options: Belly Band, Fanny Pack, Inside the pants holster, pocket holster, etc
You might look at the TRUSS holster system made by a company called SpecGear. It's similar to the belly band holsters produced by some other companies, but has shoulder straps to better support the weight of the weapon and increase stability. I think it is more comfortable and better concealment than most shoulder holsters. If you wear body armor while working there are holsters designed to mount either on the front or side of the vest.
Concealment of a shoulder holster, belly band, body armor holster is going to depend on how you wear it, your build, weapon size, and your clothing. A large enough T-shirt can conceal anything, but accessing the weapon may be either a minor or major problem depending on how and where it is carried. Although I think there is a time and place for carrying in a shoulder or belly band type holster, I'm not sure it is a great option for a backup weapon for most people in most circumstances. You might consider something a little simpler, especially with a baby Glock, such as a cross draw holster on your weakside, which can give most people (not everyone) a good degree of concealability under a t-shirt while still being readily accessible.
SonRunner
07-30-2007, 02:46
Hey NSEDET, thank you very much for your very informative reply. I have never heard of SpecGear or TRUSS. And it looks like what I'm looking for. I'll prbably give it a shot.
universible
07-30-2007, 09:06
I recently had to go through buying all new holsters for my issued Glock. I had problems with my back from carrying IWB for 3 years and had finally had enough. I ended up with an Alessi CQC/S for my belt, and one of the TRUSS holsters that I mess around with for an alternative carry method.
I did this meandering review for another forum, mostly because I had a heck of time finding any real user experience based info on this thing. I'm reposting it here because Nsedet brought it up. Obviously, I'm not pimping this thing, just a customer. Hope the info is helpful and feel free to ask any questions. Oh, and I removed the photos I had posted, folks can feel free to hit me up on PM if you want links to photos of what this thing looks like when being worn.
When looking for a new/alternative carry method for my Glock 19 I stumbled upon a mention of the TRUSS holster on the Socnet forums. I had saved the link and dug it up recently to do more research on this thing. Basically my problem is with my lower back. I had some muscle cramping in my lower back from carrying IWB all the time...basically giving myself a charlie-horse for 10 hours a day, just about every day...so when I finally had the chiropractor look at it and do an adjustment I couldn't go back to the IWB carry. The TRUSS is somewhat similar to a belly band, but is made to be a bit more of a complete gear carrying system. It has space for spare mags (up to 3), cuffs, and extra slots for knives and/or flashlight. It comes in strong side or cross draw configuration for both left and right hand shooters. My gripe about this is that it would be a much more versatile product if you had the option of using strong or cross draw from one platform. I can definitely see times where cross draw makes more sense and vice versa. Of course you could spend another $59.95 for a complete set, but having it in one package would be great (more on that later). Oh, it also comes in white or black, which is a nice option to match up with how you usually carry. I bought white because it blends with my clothes a lot easier, though it does outline the gear a bit more if wearing thinner weight clothing (see faint black through some shirts, etc).
The holster itself is made up of a belly band that has pockets stitched into it integrally. The band is made up of different layers of elastic (not sure of the exact material) that are sewn together, some edges are left unsewn to create the pockets. Hook and loop is then sewn in certain areas to create mounting points for the shoulder straps and gear holders. The shoulder strap/suspenders are elastic with buckles on the front section. They are held onto the belly band in the back with hook and loop and then they clip into movable clips (movable via hook and loop) in the front. To set the holster up you first remove the straps and just get the belly band section set up where you want it...seat your gear and make sure you like where its at. Then you make note of the best placement for the straps (a mirror helps) and remove the band, put the suspenders on it, and then put the band back on with the suspenders. Then you tighten the straps up so that they take up some of the weight of the gear. It was easy to set up.
The gear is held in nicely...the mag pockets have tabs with hook and loop to keep them in place, and the holster section comes with configurable tabs with a snap for a thumb break. I think my thumb break setup is mismatched (one piece has the snap on the wrong side of the hook and loop) so I have been using the setup without the thumb break...seems to work fine without it.
Now for the actual carrying of the gear in this thing. The practical part....I couldn't find any real info on how well this system works...how much I'd have to alter or allow for concealment with my clothes...that sorta stuff. The presenting of the gun is of course a bit different, but that's easy enough to figure out with some dry runs. The real test is how it actually works for carrying around...moving, getting in and out of cars, shopping...the every day stuff.
I should note that this system was designed for undercover LEO's...they say other military and private security folk use it...but the thing to keep in mind is that I don't feel its something to throw on to run to the store and some milk...its a bit involved to put on at first, and unlike other holsters I've had or used, you pretty much always KNOW you are wearing it. The belly band isn't really constricting (doesn't need to be worn tight like traditional belly bands because the shoulder straps carry a lot of the weight), but you can still feel it pretty much the whole time you are wearing it. Especially when sitting or bend at the waist.
I wore the holster (mine is the strong side carry model) all day on Saturday. I was wrangled into some shopping with the wife (with the promise of dinner and a movie...tricky!) and decided it'd be a great time to see how the TRUSS works for every day use. I don't have pics of what I actually wore...but pretty much it was jeans, tank top undershirt and a Patagonia button front short sleeve shirt. The shirt isn't too baggy, but isn't fitted either. I'd say it looked kind of like this pic below:
In messing around with wear to actually place the holster on my body, I found that I can conceal it better if it is actually rotated from the intended (guessing from their pics) position under the arm (3 o'clock?) to just behind the arm (4 o'clock or so). Its not that much harder to get at the gun, and then I don't get this weird shape on my shirts where the slide sticks out. I don't think this would be as much of a problem with a G26...a shorter grip would hide better of course. Also, I like wearing the rig lower on my abdomen...the bottom of it sits pretty much right at my belt line.
For Saturday I just carried the Glock and one spare mag. I usually carry cuffs elsewhere, and felt that it was a bit much to have cuffs riding right in front of my chest for off duty wear...maybe some of those new ASP cuffs would work nicely, since you wouldn't really notice them. That said, I did notice the spare mag quite a bit...the mags sit towards the front section of the band (think of wearing a tac vest or something...they're right there in front) so I kept brushing my arm against them and it was a bit odd. It might be nicer if they wear riding more to the side, under the off arm.
Saturday was pretty hot in the Bay Area....especially walking around to different stores. I'd say it was mid 80s...I thought the TRUSS might get too warm and promote lots of heavy sweating...didn't notice that at all. It breathed quite well, and wasn't uncomfortable or hot at all. The main problem I ran into was feeling like it was moving around too much. Primarily it felt like it was riding up my abdomen when I'd get out of the car. This is likely because I have the shoulder straps a bit too tight...but I found myself pulling it down towards my waist quite a bit. My wife said it didn't print too much. She's usually my go to for these things and has gotten use to letting me know when the "stepchild" (as she calls it) is too noticeable.
As for comfort...it was nice not having anything hanging off my waist or pulling my pants down. I had gotten so use to wearing a gun IWB that now it feels weird not having one there. Also, moving the gun up on my body will take some getting use to. It just FEELS like everyone can see it...though its probably no more noticeable than wearing an OWB in plain clothes. I did find that parts of the gun kind of jabbed me at certain times...either when sitting or moving my body a certain way (reaching for something on a shelf, etc). This is caused by the gun being held in tight to the body via the elastic belly band. No really way around this. A smaller gun wouldn't be so bad. I've already mentioned feeling the spare mag quite a bit...I actually think the spare mag printed more than the gun, since it was more at the center of my chest (10 o'clock or so)...something to think about.
With a baggier shirt this setup would be great. If you check out www.specgear.com you can see a number of videos...mainly showing how to draw and fire from the holster. The guy demoing the gear is wearing a Dickies work shirt with velcro under the buttons...Work shirts would be great for this gear...they are baggy and made to be so. That said, I think its very manageable to wear the TRUSS with a button front or polo shirt. A t-shirt might work (just as well as the polo) if it was baggy enough not to print too bad. Of course, the thicker the material of the shirt, the less forming to the outlines of the holster you get.
I'd say this is a good option for people who can't carry in a more traditional method...UC work, on a plane...shirt tucked in...in a car a lot (cross draw would be ideal for that)...still not sold on using it every day (don't know that it is intended for that anyhow), but its a good option to have. The TRUSS kept my gear in place and accessible. If I needed my gun, I could get it faster with the TRUSS than any ankle holster. A pocket holster would be faster, but I am quite certain that carrying a G19 (or even a G26...heck a J Frame S&W is too big for that as well) in a pocket holster is out of the question for me.
This leads me to my main gripe...the strong side vs cross draw. I'd like to have the option of either, depending on what I am doing. With such a well thought-out design it would have been nice to be able to configure the TRUSS for either cross or strong side carry. When I looked over how the holster was made I realized that all of the belly bands are initially sewn for both types of carry. The holster section of the band is sewn for one type of carry on one side of the band, and then on the opposite side (mirror image) is the same holster pattern sewn in, except the mouth of the holster is sewn shut. Same goes for the different pouches...the mirrored pouches are sewn shut at the opening. I'm not sure if this is to add stability to the design (making it not an option to have them open)...but if they wear left open, or possibly opened up by the customer...all you'd have to do is remove the shoulder straps, flip the band over (essentially wrapping it around your body upside down...kind of hard to explain) and then put the straps on that way. The straps are held on with hook and loop anyhow, so it'd be easy enough to do. Why they didn't do this in the first place I'm not sure...but like I said, you can buy a cross and strong side draw model...but it'd be nice to have the option to use either method with one holster.
Hope the review helps anyone interested in this system. Again, I searched all around for more info on this before buying it. In the end I would have and did buy it to see for myself...but it is always nice to get a bit more info before making the leap. Feel free to ask any questions about it. Its a very useful piece of gear, and well worth the price. Its constructed very well and the company was great to deal with. They took PayPal and I got the holster very quickly.
As an alternative, Galco makes a very high-quality belly band that is a lot like this TRUSS system. It has options for carry on either side and the weapon pouches are actually made of thin leather. It also has mag pouches, a cuff pouch, a knife pouch, etc. I can load it down completely and have never needed any type of shoulder support. And of course, not having integrated shoulder straps means you can rotate it around your torso for different carry methods.
If someone really wanted that multi-carry ability AND to have the shoulder straps, you could get a belly band and add some suspenders - the fabric kind with the claw grip. Back in the Marine Corps., we used to use them to hold up our trousers underneath our dress blues. I also once bought some for use on a pair of wool hunting pants. They hold a lot of weight and never come loose. They are also very thin and low-profile (Marine dress blues are pretty form-fitting; all you normally wear under the blouse is a t-shirt, so bulky suspenders would never work, anyway).
You could attach the suspenders anywhere on the band, meaning you could carry it whichever way you wanted, with the weapon in any position. You could also get shoulder straps that are a bit wider, maybe more comfortable, able to bear a bit more weight (or less if you don't need to carry much) and you could simply remove them as the occasion necessitates. They're pretty cheap, too, so you could get several in different colors to match a particular bellyband or shirt.
k
SonRunner
07-31-2007, 00:50
Awesome, thank you very much for ye'all posts.
Does the mouth of the TRUSS system stay open for easier re-holstering.
What is the retention like on the TRUSS system, standard button snap?
Also, anyone know about the mouth of Galco's belly-band, does it say open for easier re-holstering?
Awesome, thank you very much for ye'all posts.
Does the mouth of the TRUSS system stay open for easier re-holstering.
What is the retention like on the TRUSS system, standard button snap?
Also, anyone know about the mouth of Galco's belly-band, does it say open for easier re-holstering?
I have yet to see a belly band-type system that stayed open for easy re-holstering. The materials involved and carry location tend to make re-holstering pretty difficult compared to a standard holster.
The TRUSS system has a thumb snap, although the design itself is secure enough that you may not need it and it can be removed. The shoulder straps/suspenders are also removable so it could be worn like a regular belly band if you are so inclined. They can also be moved around to pretty much any position on the front or back, which works well in finding out what is comfortable for you.
The Galco belly band, and other similar designs, are not bad but may not be secure enough. Having tried them I find they tend to slide down over time and can move around so that the gun ends up someplace other than where you want it.
Again, all of these style holsters have the advantage of offering good concealment and some additional flexibility in how you can dress (such as being able to tuck in a shirt), but may not be ideal for normal duty carry in many situations. The gun is usually not all that easy to access compared to a standard holster, and reholstering can be an hassle, although if it is for your backup gun and you have gotten to the point of drawing it from the holster then I'd offer that may be less of a concern.
I have yet to see a belly band-type system that stayed open for easy re-holstering.
The Galco isn't all that different in that respect, but it's better than some of the others I've used (which are now relegated to carrying recording devices, when I wire up informants, etc - they weren't much good from a weapon-carrying standpoint because they were too lightweight, cheaply-made, whatever...). It's also never slid or moved when I didn't want it to. If movement of the band becomes a concern that can't be alleviated by using the aforementioned suspenders, you can always wear it slightly under your belt instead of over it.
As far as reholstering, remember that a belly band or something like this TRUSS system, a shirt holster, etc. isn't really meant to be a primary weapon platform, a la a strong-side holster on the firearm range. If it were, more agencies would actually issue it, right? It's an alternative for certain situations or a backup. And for some, it's also a personal preference: I wear the band when it's hot outside/in the summer and when I'm off duty, but I recognize the fact that it has limitations that my issued gear doesn't. Having a weapon this tight to your body and the ability to have it this concealed is going to involve certain tradeoffs, with easy reholstering being one of them.
There is no retention strap or snap on the Galco, but again, it's meant for concealment - not retention (that applies to many open-topped leather hip holsters).
Now, if you're talking about retention in a simple "I-hope-I-don't-drop-this" sense (as opposed to a "keeping-it-away-from-a-bad-guy" sense)...I carry a 229 in it and it doesn't move at all. It goes in fairly deep and actually sticks out through the bottom slightly, though the bottom section is sewn small enough that the entire weapon would never fit through, so no worries of it falling out that way. Mags go in pretty deep, too. I actually thought of sewing some tabs on the outside when I first got it, but I've never needed them.
k
Can the TRUSS system be worn over body armor? I haven't yet found a holster system that's comfortable for my Sig 239, which I like to carry as a BUG.
Can the TRUSS system be worn over body armor? I haven't yet found a holster system that's comfortable for my Sig 239, which I like to carry as a BUG.
For what it's worth they sell a "tactical extension" to extend the belt between 1-5" specifically to allow for accomodating body armor. I'm not sure how comfortable it would be though.
Have you looked at belly band/body armor holster made by Uncle Mike's? It can be worn on their belly band but is also designed to be attached directly to body armor straps. Never tried it but seems like it might a simpler alternative than adding an entire other layer of gear to the mix.
For what it's worth they sell a "tactical extension" to extend the belt between 1-5" specifically to allow for accomodating body armor. I'm not sure how comfortable it would be though.
Have you looked at belly band/body armor holster made by Uncle Mike's? It can be worn on their belly band but is also designed to be attached directly to body armor straps. Never tried it but seems like it might a simpler alternative than adding an entire other layer of gear to the mix.
My vote is for the body armor holster. I wore a Sig P230 in one when I worked in uniform. Just make sure your shirts are sized right. You may loose a few buttons on the draw, but it is very handy and comfortable.
SonRunner
08-06-2007, 03:09
I've tried my belly band (with no over-the-shoulder support) with my Glock 27 in the muzzle down, under-the-arm-pit, cross draw position, for the first time, I might add. I was surprised how stable it was. I was also surprised how slow it was to reach under a t-shirt. Even getting a good grip on the gun was cumbersome. I think re-holstering is even harder than I had originally expected and thus am now leaning towards Galco's belly-band, since the leather will help keep the holster mouth open.
I think re-holstering is even harder than I had originally expected and thus am now leaning towards Galco's belly-band, since the leather will help keep the holster mouth open.
It actually doesn't keep it open - like I said, the leather is thin. It's still better than fabric on both sides because the leather provides some friction and a better grip on the weapon, but it's not stiff, like on a typical holster.
k
On the Galco belly band, the leather also helps protect against sweat, which is very easily accumulated when wearing it tucked into a pair of pants/shorts. But like K said, it doesn't help with reholstering.
I think you're going to have a tough time reholstering with ANY belly band-type holster (or anything that's meant to be worn that close to your body). That said, I wouldn't give up on the ankle rig just yet. I have a Galco that has a normal leather holster which DOES stay open. It has a comfortable neoprene band with a wide, strong velcro section that stays put, even when running and jumping up and down (I've tried to jar it loose, to no avail).
It's the Ankle Glove - it's essentially a regular leather holster with a thumb break attached to a neo band.
k
SonRunner
08-07-2007, 03:03
Yeah, I've got the Galco ankle holster. It is just that for me, I don't like one ankle that much heavier than the other. But as far as ankle holsters go, yeah, I like my Galco.
I don't mean to be argumentative ... I realize that the mouth of the holster will not be like the standard reinforced mouth holster. But the mouth of Galco's leather belly band must stay open more than the non-leather belly band, comparatively speaking.
When you're planning to spend your own money on a piece of gear, nothing is argumentative - so no worries.
No, it really doesn't stay open. I mean, the leather is realllly thin. The only benefit I notice from having the leather, at all (instead of fabric on both sides) is that it grips the weapon better and keeps it from sliding up, the way some weapons tend to do in belly bands that have no straps to secure the weapon from the top.
k
Another thing too.. the fabric is spandex-like neoprene (fairly stretchy). Add that to the fact you're wearing it under shorts/pants (which usually also has either a belt or elastic of some type), and the mouth doesn't stay open at all for reholstering.
That being said, I've had two belly bands in the past. The first was an all fabric (spandex-like neoprene) belly band and the other was the Galco. I still have the Galco... the leather is great to have, and the weapon doesn't slip up or down like K was talking about.
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