Concealed Carry Clothing.

YOU NEED MORE THAN A HOLSTER TO CREATE AN EFFECTIVE -- AND DISCREET -- CONCEALED CARRY ENSEMBLE.

Instructors for concealed handgun licenses and police trainers whose jobs include preparing personnel for off-duty encounters often hear a common complaint: "I can't figure out how to comfortably conceal a serious defensive handgun." This is closely related to an even worse complaint: "I can't figure out how to comfortably conceal a handgun at all."

The first rule of gunfighting is, of course, to have a gun. The armed citizen and off-duty cop alike are all but helpless if armed violence looms when they are unarmed. People who recognize they are in danger will bear discomfort -- witness what uniformed cops wear every day on patrol, probably averaging 20 lbs. of equipment, radio and armor -- but when the firearm must be concealed under regular clothes, new comfort factors come into play.

There is physical comfort: guns and holsters that don't dig into you or weigh you down or require you to wear a hot outer garment that is inappropriate for the time, the place or the weather. There is also psychological comfort -- the wearer wants to know that the gun is effectively concealed.

If you are willing to research the experience of a lot of people who have carried a lot of guns for a long time, it is possible to come up with compromises. At worst, you end up with discreet, comfortable wear of a full-size combat handgun; at best you have a package that will allow the wearer to be invisibly armed with a handgun that is conveniently small, but still powerful enough to get the job done. The key is to integrate the gun and the carry system with the wardrobe, dress code and body shape of the wearer.

Casual Friday

My fellow geezers and 1 can't say today's young people haven't done anything for us. They have made it fashionable to wear loose clothing. "Relaxed fit" pants and Docker's trousers might as well have been made for concealing compact handguns. in pocket holsters and ankle holsters.