Concealed Carry

[Mike of Oregon]

Let's talk about carrying the 21 concealed. The only handgun I own is the 21 so it's my all purpose weapon.

What are some options? I have Uncle Mike's paddle holster for OWB and C-Tac slide for IWB. The 21 seems to stick out like a sore thumb with either one. I may be self conscious about it but I think the 21 is pretty big for CCW. I wear the C-Tac at about 3:00 or even a little more forward to keep the receiver grip from sticking back too far. I also have a Galco escort (fanny pack) that is a quality product but the 21 is too big for it also. It fits with a lot of effort.

What are some better options for concealed carry of the 21.
Mike
The 21 Club #2

[G22C]

Mike... I have the same problem as you do with CCW for the G21. Part of the reason for me is that I'm not all that big of a guy (5'8" tall, average body weight, etc.), and the G21 is simply too large for someone like me to comfortably conceal. My primary CCW is my G22 .40 S&W, which works out just fine for me.

I've only carried my G21 in public twice before... it was last year during the winter months when I could wear a large jacket to help keep her concealed within a Safariland OWB paddle-style holster. After that one time, I realized it was just too impossible for me to comfortably carry the G21. :sad:

[steel]

Install a New York trigger and carry it Mexican style at the 1:30 position. Get a cheap web belt to cinch it in tight. Wear a baggy Hawaiian shirt. I know I'll probably get grief for advising to carry a Glock Mexican style, but I've been carrying like this for a long time with zero problems.

Another alternative is to get a cheap Uncle mike's foam/cloth holster (size 5) and wear the gun at the 3:30 position. These cheapo holsters work great, last a long time, and don't kill your pocket book. When it wears out, toss it and buy a new one. Again, wear a baggy Hawaiian shirt.

I'm 5'9", 195, and I've used either of these methods for a while. I don't feel safe with the normal Glock trigger carrying Mexican style, hence the New York trigger.

[collim1]

Originally posted by G22C
Mike... I have the same problem as you do with CCW for the G21. Part of the reason for me is that I'm not all that big of a guy (5'8" tall, average body weight, etc.), and the G21 is simply too large for someone like me to comfortably conceal. My primary CCW is my G22 .40 S&W, which works out just fine for me.

I've only carried my G21 in public twice before... it was last year during the winter months when I could wear a large jacket to help keep her concealed within a Safariland OWB paddle-style holster. After that one time, I realized it was just too impossible for me to comfortably carry the G21. :sad:

On paper there is a size difference, but I cannot tell when CCWing either.

I cannot imagine a G21 being grossly large for CCW and a G22 swooping in to save the day with its slighlty smaller size frame.

I do understand that CCW is a game on mm' and oz's.

[GMAN40]

For the winter months I simply use a shoulder rig with good results. In the summer months I simply carry my G23!

[oldman2]

I have either carried a 1911 and just started carrying the G-21. Im not a small guy or a big guy. I have never had any one stop me and say are you carrying. Don't be so paranoid just be happy.Semper Fi. The oldman.

[stmcelroy]

It's really going to take changing your wardrobe to conceal the 21 effectively. It's all your cover garment.

What do you where normally?

The Ctac can work, but cover it up good. People really will not know you have a gun on, remember most people wouldn't have a clue that some carry.

Steve

[archipimp]

I am 6'3 and about 240 and even I have to be wearing a winter coat or leather jacket to feel confident hiding a 21.

[Mike of Oregon]

...is dressing "baggy" to cover up. I'm 51. I was brought up when you had dress code at school and if you didn't measure up, literally, you sat in the office all day or got sent home. Dressing neatly has been with me ever since and this whole "baggy/saggy" way the young people dress now-a-days just looks sloppy. I have trouble buying clothes when I can't find blue jeans that aren't "loose fit". So when I cover up my 21 I'm doing it, usually, in clothes that fit and look nice. I will wear a jacket over everything and keep it on even if it's uncomfortable because I'd rather look neat.

I'm real hesitant to go XL when L fits better and looks better.:fred:
Mike

[Smithy]

Try a Safepacker (Govt. size) by Wilderness Tactical Products in Phoeniz, AZ. Hand carry it, belt attach or buy and use the optional shoulder strap. I have some in different sizes, when I'm not dressed to conceal a large frame .45, but don't want to leave home without one!

[Mark9Fogger]

6 feet 250 pounds here. Recently I concealed carried my new G20 with an X200 light attached in a FBI-canted BladeTech IWB at the 4 o'clock position. With a big black sweater covering the rig, I had no problems concealing it.

BTW, I spent all last week in your neighborhood (Williamette Valley). Besides the wonderful rain and snow that I saw EVERY SINGLE DAY I was there, I had a great time visiting with friends in their mansion in the woods, though.

[Mike of Oregon]

Yeah. November's not the best month to visit the valley. We're expecting freezing rain over night.

I too like a good sweater this time of year and it can be a good cover garment. It's that or a "hoody" this time of year. 4:00 doesn't work as well as about 2:45 with my C-Tac slide. The grip of the 21 tends to stick straight back and is more visible at 3:00. In the back kind of wraps the handle around so it doesn't stick out but I like it closer to the front for easy/quicker draw so that works better for me.

Willamette valley in May-June is the greenest place I've ever seen. The trees, all the fields and the snow's melted off the hills. Green.
Mike

[Arc Angel]

I use a Blade-Tech Kydex holster fitted with a quick release Tek-Lok clasp. The Tek-Lok can be angled at 3 different positions. The setting I like best is a 15 degree forward cant. (FBI carry) I wear my pistol at 4:00 o'clock; but I could, also, carry it as a cross-draw or over my appendix if I wanted to.

I use a standard left-hand holster that I wear inside my belt on the right-hand side. In order to wear this holster inside my pants I can remove the 3rd lowest screw and, then, slip the top of my pants between the holster and the clasp.

This design has really worked quite well for me and has done so for the past 4 years.

The only drawback is that you can't use this setup for repeated fast draws at the range without, sooner or later, catching your shirt. The big advantage is that the pistol is always held in, tight, to your body.

Here's pictures of the rig as seen from the viewer's (outside) perspective.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/Me_2U/Blade-Tech7.jpg

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/Me_2U/Blade-Tech1.jpg

Here's a picture of an open Tek-Lok clasp.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h39/Me_2U/Blade-Tech4.jpg

[Tom in Ohio]

I just purchased a C-Tac for my G21. I have been carrying a full size 1911 IWB for years. I am 5'10" 175 lbs. I think the trick is to adjust the holster so the grip is tucked into the spot just under your rib-cage. The C-Tac is great for this. I think this is pretty dependant on your build, though. I have a 42" chest and a 32" waist so the bigger guns are able to fit in below my ribs.

As for maintaining a neat appearance: I find that in cooler weather a heavy sweater with some type of pattern (cable knit or whatever) or a fleece pullover allows me to still wear dress slacks and shirts and conceal well without looking sloppy. In the Summer it is more difficult. I will usually wear two shirts at a time - a t-shirt underneath and either another heavy t-shirt or a polo shirt on top. I conceal the gun between the two shirts and it conceals well and is still comfortable. I don't like having my 1911 (with its 20lpi checkering) against my skin.

[MSgt Dotson]

Originally posted by steel
[B]I know I'll probably get grief for advising to carry a Glock Mexican style, but I've been carrying like this for a long time with zero problems.

I would indeed *never* recommend anyone carry a Glock in the waistband without a proper holster!!!

But, it's your safety at stake , not mine,....

[Backfire]

I'm 5' 10" and weigh 210. I carry my G21 on my strong side (right) in a Blade-Tech IWB Kydex holster with J hooks. At roughly the 4:00 o'clock position, it conceals nicely with a pull-over sweater/shirt (size large) in the winter. For summer, I usually carry my G19 in a Blade-Tech IWB with a Hawaiian shirt worn outside the pants, but the G21 will also conceal well this way if I wanted to wear it in the summer.

In the cold, low humidity winter weather of the Northeast, the G21 isn't any more or less uncomfortable to me than the smaller gun is when I carry it in the nasty, hot, and extremely humid summers we have (when everything is irritating!).

Every time I shoot the 21 at the range, I'm reminded of the reason I'm so motivated to carry it when I can. It spits out those big 230 grainers with mouse fart ease and nearly rifle-like accuracy at normal pistol combat distances.

Plus, that big grip allows it to come out of the holster very quickly and reliably.

Finally, pants made of sturdy fabric (jeans or equivalent heavy material) and a sturdy leather belt are mandatory for reasonably comfortable carry - they make all the difference.

[jb241970]

Is the hawaiian shirt the official shirt of pistol carriers? I'm going to start assuming if I see soemone wearing a hawaiian (which I never do), that he's got a gun. Just like the guys that used to wear fanny packs.

[Arc Angel]

:upeyes: Yes, among the more sophisticated of us, it is! However, don't waste your time with the Aloha shirt crowd. This precaution applies to ANYONE who's wearing an unbloused shirt that's open at the waist.

In particular if a subject is, also, wearing baggy clothing that tends to sag around the waist, then, you should DEFINITELY assume that he's packing a, 'felony carry'. (I've watched young, 'bangers' do this; if you know what to look for this is, just, sooo ... obvious !) ;)

[Backfire]

Originally posted by Arc Angel
:upeyes: Yes, among the more sophisticated of us, it is! However, don't waste your time with the Aloha shirt crowd. This precaution applies to ANYONE who's wearing an unbloused shirt that's open at the waist.

In particular if a subject is, also, wearing baggy clothing that tends to sag around the waist, then, you should DEFINITELY assume that he's packing a, 'felony carry'. (I've watched young, 'bangers' do this; if you know what to look for this is, just, sooo ... obvious !) ;)

In New York, most clothing stores carry a large supply of tropical or "Hawaiian" style shirts, so wearing one in public attracts no attention at all. On the other hand, most of the younger folks dress like slobs with the very loose/ill fitting styles and are not particularly suspect for carrying guns. In a rotten neighborhood you can assume many people are carrying some kind of weapon - it's not just a matter of how they are dressed.

I think it depends on the community in which you live/work/carry and your style of dress should more or less blend in.

Most people go around in a deep, self-obsessed fog (unfortunate in some ways) and the question of whether you are carrying would never occur to them in a million years. In thirty plus years of carrying all sizes of handguns, I have never to my knowledge come across a situation where I was "made" or questioned.

If your environment is a place where everybody checks everybody else out for possible weapon carrying, then you have another set of problems to deal with....I just think that in most places today, you would have to walk around with an AK-47 dangling from your neck to get any attention from the general public (exaggeration here to make the point ;)

[blinddog]

I spent YEARS with a G21 concealed and more years with uniform carry and concealed. You have to dress for it tight jeans can work but they are not compfortable. Looser fitting trousers and loose shirts (even tucked) and sweaters. Use the IWB type holsters mounted just below the belt line with a covering garment vests work well also. But your body size and type play a big role. if you are small statured you need a smaller pistol. Think G30 or G36. Sveral types of holsters are needed if you plan on 24/7 carry. The safe packer type man purse can work as well, if you can get to the point of useing one but you need the pack that fits your pistol.

[archipimp]

I do endorse the safe packer also. You will need the largest size available for a G21 I think. I am not super meticulous about the whole thing as some people are, but I still think my 21 is a bit big to conceal for most occasions. I love and will never part with it, but is just not my first choice for carry.