#Ccw

Just days ahead of the National Rifle Association’s Annual Meetings, Blackhawk announced a new concealed carry holster that offers a variety of ways it can be worn. It is called the Leather Tuckable Pancake Holster.

A good holster is an important piece of equipment and there’s a ton of different kinds on the market. From the odd rifle rail mounted GripShot holster to vehicle mounted holsters to budget priced Kydex holsters for competition use or concealed carry. The folks from Gunfighters Inc have a pretty interesting holster design called the Kenai Chest Holster. As the name implies it’s a holster on your chest held in place with a harness. It’s aimed at hikers, fishermen, hunters etc. Their holster harness system was designed to be comfortable for use all day no matter what you’re doing.

Steve Fisher of Sentinel Concepts shows us an alternative method to remove the article of clothing used to cover a concealed weapon. It is dubbed the “Count Dracula” draw. LOL. Steve mentions that this technique was used by an old Chicago narcotics police officer. The technique is rather simple. You reach back with your support hand as if you are reaching for a wallet. You grab the tails of your cover garment and pull it forward like a cape. Hence the “dracula” moniker for this technique. This will pull the other side of the jacket behind you revealing your firearm. It is a bit of a slight of hand. Your eyes and attention are drawn to the support hand reaching for the wallet. Even as he pulls the jacket forward my eyes were still focused on that side of the body. What are your thoughts?

Simple lightweight minimalist designs seem to be pretty popular these days, one of the first being the Versacarry holsters released a few years ago. Minimalist designs aren’t always a good thing, remember the Bungee Holster? Seriously it’s a thing.

The requirements vary by state. In Washington State you simply visit your local police department and fill out a form, give them your fingerprints, pay a fee, and wait for the results of a background check. If you pass, you get your CPL (Concealed Pistol License). When your CPL arrives it’s just a piece of paper with type-written information listed, so if you want it to survive for five years you need to laminate it yourself. In Kentucky you do paperwork and also must take a class, part of which takes place in a classroom and part on a range. You show proof of having passed said class to the sheriff’s office, which may be some distance from your home. When (if) you get your CCDW, Concealed Carry Deadly Weapons license, it’s in the form of a hard card not unlike a driver’s license, complete with full-color photo. In Wisconsin…well, you get the idea. The requirements vary by state with some requiring a class – or proof of successful completion of hunter’s education – and some requiring only the background check. They even have different titles in different states. Reciprocity varies widely. If you’re moving or traveling, you’d better know the laws in each and every place you will cross.

Buried in their new product announcement for the year, Kimber has announced the release of their Micro 9 9mm sub-compact handgun. The new Micro 9 is the big brother to Kimbers existing Micro .380 series and the slightly-larger-brother to Kimber’s Solo series.

5.11 certainly has a market pegged, but companies are starting to push into niches were 5.11 has not yet tread. Berne, a company known for creating rugged work wear has opted to expliot one of those niches focusing on the company’s core audience.

Techna Clip now has one of their conceal carry gun frame mounted belt clips available for the popular Smith & Wesson M&P Shield. They retail for $34.95 at TechnaClip.com and comes with a money back guarantee.

The Zero Carry holster is another minimalist style holster on the market similar to the Versacarry holster that was released a few years ago. The Zero Carry will work for both left and right handed shooters and works with handguns chambered in .32ACP and larger with barrels up to 5 inches. The Zero Carry is very light and thin but it doesn’t include a trigger guard like the Versa Carry does.

Check out this new minimalist magnetic back-up mag holder from NeoMag. The pocket clip is made out of titanium with a powder coated machined aluminum and steel bracket. Your back-up magazine is then held onto the bracket with a neodymium magnet. They might not work with all magazines however, so be sure a magnet sticks to your mags before considering them. Currently they’re available for single or double stack magazines in .45, .380, 9mm and .40. They currently retail for $44.99 at Theneomag.com.

Many women have (validly) complained that few concealment holsters are designed with their clothing requirements and body contours in mind. Fortunately, as more women enter the shooting world, there are entrepreneurs jumping into the market with a variety of products designed to meet their needs.

Marissa Alexander used warning shots to keep her abusive estranged husband at bay in self-defense. Now she faces up to 60 years in prison for those warning shots.

This is not for everyone. But an interesting concept. Using a ubiquitous plastic shopping bag to conceal your pistol. The benefit, is that you can shoot it while it is still in the bag and it acts as a brass catcher.

There are three questions I seem to get asked as a firearms industry writer on an almost daily basis, which are:

Bondhus Arms showed off their new CL380 fold-up pocket pistol at the 2014 SHOT Show. The CL380 has two barrels and is chambered in .380ACP and also features a built-in laser between the two barrels. Bondhus claims their CL380 is the smallest and most accurate multi-shot .380 pocket pistol, they’re expected to hit the market summer of 2014 and retail for $795. Check out Bondhusarms.com for more info.