29 years. Mostly GALCO shoulder holsters. Besides keeping it safe from hard knocks and the weather (hunting in snow and rain as well as street carry) it is always in the same place everytime whether sitting, standing or squatting.

40 years on and off and my carry habits have changed since the early/younger days. for 3-4 o-clock iwb/owb with a jacket, put a couple of rocks in your pocket (if your cheap like me) or a roll of dimes. the added weight helps sweep the jacket back

bunch of years....
always remember an xtra mag
leave the xtra clip at home

I carry a Cent. or M36 in my pocket. A M27 or M29 OWB. I use a speed strip for a reload because I have found it's easier and faster to get bullets from a speed strip instead of a mag. Larry

Thankfully, not since I returned home from Vietnam. Over there four spare mags was all I could manage with all the other gear I carried. A total of thirty-six rounds for my .45 semi-auto.

Every police officer I have had dealings with (friendly or business) has carried two spare reloads. Speed loaders, speed strips, dump pouches, Mags, you name it, they all carried at least two.

Now to answer your first question: Two spares because sometime, the person may have to do a tactical reload and wouldn't it be a shame if he couldn't do two and thus lost his life?

Muss Muggins, the OP asked for tips and this is my tip and my choice for me and others.

Taking my own advice I'm in real trouble if I ever have to use my Llama .32 auto as I only have one spare mag for it. Hopefully I am never in a position where I even need the ammo carried in the gun all the time.

Ps: I am not offended by your inquiry.

Don’t believe everything you read from internet experts. Unless it’s me. Then yeah, everything.

Been carrying now 50 years, 9 months, 5 days....including today.

First CCW permit New York, issued 1-19-1971, then through several states as we moved around the country, Texas, Missouri, Ohio, New Jersey ending up in 1988 in Virginia.

First carry was S&W Model 36, then Model 60, then around 2002 a Model 637-2, 2 speed strips of Speer Gold Dot, all in S&W leather OWB at 3 o'clock on stiff (usually Galco) gun belt. Somedays a Model 64 in Bianchi for hiking/camping yard chores.

Lately have been practicing and EDC with S&W 2.0 Compact (4") 9mm. I know fantastic plastic and striker fired with wonky flappy thing trigger but a neat, handy, lightweight EDC. Draws and presents well from Kydex. Decent capacity, don't have need of the extra mag. If 15 won't get me out of trouble...then I am definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time.

My only tip is put your EDC on in the morning just like the rest of your clothes...then forget about it! No need to show-off and nobody else will give you a second glance in my opinion (and experience).

Attached Images

	M 36-G.jpg (51.7 KB, 26 views)
	Model 60-A.jpg (55.3 KB, 27 views)
	S&W 38 spl-2.jpg (43.0 KB, 30 views)
	Mod 64-1 g.jpg (74.5 KB, 35 views)
	M&P 2.0-C.jpg (116.8 KB, 34 views)

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Charlie B
SWCA#3083, SWHF#570

Over half a century of CC & OC....Still learning new tricks.

EDC the same ol', same ol'....
A 1911 design and or a 4" N frame S&W.

I shoot these platforms purty regularly,
jest to keep the ol' muscle memory sharpened


///

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"IN GOD WE TRUST"

Messed with belt holsters and steel guns when I first got my ccw license. Was very self conscious of them. It felt like they were always printing. I eventually got a scandium airlite J frame and went to pocket carry. Also bought a Colt Mustang lightweight. Swap up between the two and forget it’s in my pocket. Carry a couple spare mags or speed strips along with a tactical light and a crikt folder every day.

It's just a discussion, nothing more. I guess you could call this another tip from me. Police officers and the military have a different mission than citizens carrying to protect themselves and theirs . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Roughly 1,045 years of EDC admitted to by posters in this thread. This does not include those who preferred to say something nebulous like “lots”.

43/60 posts actually contained poster tips, although some contained multiple tips. A few tips have been repeated.

Tips:

Dry practice is necessary and helpful and should be done regularly. For revolvers DA trigger pulls are endless and pretty realistic.

For SA or DA/SA pistols, not so much. One trigger pull is all you get with any realism. Practicing multiple shots on one target is important, and practicing shooting multiple targets is important.

For those who carry S&W’s that take standard M&P mags, I have found a great product I use regularly: Dry Fire Mag(.com). It allows multiple trigger pulls very close to my real trigger feel without running the slide/cocking the striker. They are available for some other pistols too, especially Glocks.

However, nothing ingrains safety and competence more than actual loaded carry, draw, and firing. Since many ranges don’t allow this type of shooting, I believe a lot of concealed carriers don’t practice it enough. One nearby range requires a class they teach for holster certification. Each time I shoot now they give me my “drawing from the holster” card that I post with me on my lane, and I can practice from any carry position I want.

Training courses are the best way to practice firing from concealment, under instruction and supervision. However, many courses restrict the type of carry they allow. I have attended only 1/8 handgun self defense courses that allowed me to carry AIWB, but all loaded practice is helpful. I have heard of only two that teach pocket carry and neither was within 1,000 miles of me.

Remember that speed comes after precision. Break down all the steps from concealment through hitting where you aim and do each slowly, repetitively, until it is right and natural, dry. Then speed up. Laser cartridges and targets help a lot with this.

Then do the same thing loaded. Slow. KISS at first. Then speed up. Use a timer, even an app on your phone.

Make practice interesting. Use photo targets. Practice in different places. Seated. Kneeling. With movement. Point shoot. Aimed fire. Longer range stuff (20+ yards). One handed. Off hand. Both hands. Head shots. Hostage shots. Shooting around barriers. For each of the guns you carry, from each position you carry.

Training courses put most of this together for you with many reps, and you get the benefit of learning not only from instructors (check out their competency beforehand) and other students. They have always been worth the time effort and $$$ for me.

I don't understand your meaning of "realistic" here, and later in your post. Why is SA not realistic?

Every day since May 66-May 69, again every day since 81. During this
time I have carried 1911's in .38 super and ,45, today an N frame .44 special. Also most of the time a mouse gun as backup .22 mag.
Always in a outside holster, shoulder and waist band. Mouse gun in
a scalloped top cowboy boot. Truck gun a sawed off dbl 12 gauge
which I sold and should have kept.
When shooting I always do some point shooting at about 15-20 feet. My
thoughts on that is time involved in using sights to aim may not be
available. As we age we tend to slow down from our prime.
I vote against vest in warm/hot weather, to much attention garnered.

A realistic dry trigger press will have some take up, hit a wall, and progress through pulling until the firing mechanism actuates, but there is no actual firing.

Pulling a trigger on a loaded gun fires it. The gun feels different because of that firing compared to dry practice with no firing.

DAO guns (revolvers and a few others) that allow you to keep pulling the trigger in dry practice and actuating the firing mechanism repeatedly are good for training.

A SA (striker fired or most semi-auto pistols) depend on slide movement to reset the firing mechanism, so you can only get one dry practice press (without recoil) that is realistic. Subsequent trigger presses do not have a realistic feel with take up, wall, actuation, unless one manually works the slide to reset the trigger. Without resetting the trigger, it just travels with no resistance. This is not realistic.

Any subsequent realistic trigger presses require operating the slide to reset the firing mechanism—not something you do when actually firing.

I have no idea what a realistic trigger press is, but perhaps it's best to avoid dry firing if at all possible. I think most of us will derive far more benefit from shooting live ammo and working on shooting technique and skill at the same time. Maybe it's a bit difficult for some of us to do that in light of the shortages, but it seems the advantages far outweigh dry firing.

Snap-caps are your friends:

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Sounds good in Grizzly country.

But in the real world you find yourself shooting a larger number of less "powerful," but equally effective rounds, e.g. 9mm.

In my post #37 I mentioned the importance of speed getting your gun
out and into action. If you carry concealed you should do some practice
of your quick draw wearing the clothing that you typically wear. I was
reading a magazine article by Dave Spaulding titled "What really happens
in a GUNFIGHT?" Here is a small excerpt: "FBI Special Agent Melvin Purvis
tore all the buttons off the waistcoat of his three-piece suit in trying to
draw his gun on the night he and his fellow agents closed in on John Dillinger."
You don't need a surprise like that when you need to defend
yourself.

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In Omnia Paratus

Once in a while, I shoot my pocket carry pistol, filled with lint (I don't keep it immaculate) right out of my pocket on the range. That keeps my trust at a high level. So far, not one failure with the Sig P365.

The advantage of dry firing vs live practice is that you need not be at the range. Nothing is a substitute for range time but dry fire can keep you sharp in between trips.

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Front sight and squeeze

For many, and I may be included, when cooler weather approaches, you can get by with carrying any size handgun you wish.

Printing? Phfffttt!!
No one cares about 'printing'! If you're old enough, that would be easily dismissed as some sort of colostomy attachment, or loop an O2 line over your shoulder and voila'! you're carrying your porta-oxygen. No problems!

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

I think my objective is the right one for "bad-guy country" also. I'm responsible for every bullet that leaves my barrel. I want to minimize that number of bullets ... no "spray and pray" for me. To do that, I want a bullet that is very likely to stop a bad guy instantly, provided I hit where I'm aiming. If I can do that, any other bad guys that are there will likely run away. If not, I've got 5 rounds left.

gun always if possible, it helps you become very familiar and comfortable with it. "Beware the man with one gun, he is probably very good with it"

Anything 9mm NATO or bigger will do this, if and only if you do your part. EDC guys should ignore bullet type, weight, frontal area, and all that. Either a bullet hits the vitals or it doesn't.

And after I fire one shot, I want 15 more, not five.

G19 > any revolver.

I'm really not qualified to tell others how to do it, but......I've been carrying a gun a long time in a hot swamp. I've had a Florida permit since 1988. So:
1) Big shirts, I look like a hobo in a 2XL but that's the point.
2) A gun that is 100% reliable, even if it isn't the one you shoot best.
I've carried the 6906 almost daily for 27 years; it's 100% and I'm likely to have it with me. I have 5 magazines for it and another 8 or so 5906 mags loaded and stashed where I might need them.
Recently, I was forced to drag an 02 tank around when out of the house. Since I had only one hand free I switched to a 5 shot Jframe with speedloaders stashed around (like I could use them in that condition).
3) Don't get too fat. No disrespect intended but I have gained 10# sitting around since the Covid tried to kill me. When I slide the 6906 in my waistband it's OK until I sit down, then it's like a Boa Constrictor has got me. Someday soon I hope to be able to go further than the mailbox without gasping for breath.
4) Don't mess with your gun when you are out in public. If'n you need to, you shoulda done before leaving the house.
5) Probably most important: We ain't the "quasi-police" as the instructor said (Florida had 4hr range+ 4hr classroom requirement originally) to us. "You strap on a gun and you become your 'brother's keeper'." I have always remembered his words and acted accordingly.
It's too bad we live in a society that each day seems to require more vigilance and "strategic pre-planning." Don't see that as improving soon. Joe

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Wisdom chases me; I'm faster

You give people way too much credit. 99.999% will just think you lost the button. And most likely 99.99999% will never notice it’s not there. Those of us who carry daily have a keen sense of situational awareness by the mere fact we chose to strap a gun on. The rest of the planet is busy sending pictures of their tuna salad sandwiches to friends on Instagram.

So Leave the button…take the cannoli.

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

I've been carrying since Feb 10 1995 (my last day in the Army was Feb 9).

Being a Retired Career Security Guard,(As opposed to a high speed, low drag, operator) I'm only going to say two things and I'm only going to tell you I do, YMMV.

1. Unless I'm going someplace where it is illegal for me to even have a gun in my car, l don't leave home unarmed.

2. I started out carrying an all steel CZ75B, them an Aluminum framed 4006, then a 6906, then an M&PFS9, then(sometimes still) a Glock 19 and now mostly a Glock26. Each lighter than the last.

It's going to happen, you're going to get old, that all steel gun is going to get heavy. Pick the light gun now.

Y'all have fun now.

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Retired Career Security Guard

Many people will not even see an openly carried gun. Was in a restaurant and guy at next table had a semi in holster on belt for world to see, wife did not until I brought it to her attention and had to direct her view. Garage sale, maybe a 20x 24 garage with several tables, young guy, open carrying revolver in a shoulder holster, with a knife just below it. Later in the car when asked neither wife nor mother in law notices despite being close to the guy for about 10 minutes.

About 1/2 the population wouldn't notice you wheeling a cannon down isle 5 at the grocery store let alone a slight bulge in your shirt or the tip of a holster peaking out.

I'm 78 years old, and just a rickidy old codger. But I carry an all-steel 5" "Classic" N-Frame 629 .44mag, every day, from pajamas-off until pajamas-on. In a homemade, under-the-shirt vertical cloth shoulder holster rig. It's comfortable, and well-concealed. And I'm not a big guy ... in my old age, I've shrunk down from 5' 11" and 165 lbs, to 5' 6" and 125 lbs.

Or you could just not button it.

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Stay protected my friends.

There you go, making sense again. 😂

When did you retire?

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Stay protected my friends.

I joined the police dept in May of 1971. Became full time in May of 1972. Carry a gun off duty, then retired 99 % of the time. Started with a 2 1/2 66, and a few J Frames, my latest is a SIG 365.

Not since I came home from overseas.
EDC back then was a .45 1911. Still have it. Non issue.

End of June.

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Retired Career Security Guard

I couldn't disagree more. Trigger control is king, whether firing with sights or point shooting. Ball and dummy is good training also. Live firing will hide bad trigger manipulation.

My tip is to clean, lube, and check your firearm, magazines, ammo etc., often. If you are concerned enough about self defense to CCW make sure it is in good working order and ready to go.

I haven't been able to do any live firing for several years now. So dry-firing is all I've got, to keep me familiar with the handing of my gun, and I do it every few days. The biggest difference between dry firing and live firing is that dry firing doesn't expose a "flinch". Flinching is the source of the biggest misses, by far. If you can eliminate flinching, you're 99% of the way there.

So, my question still stands . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

5yrs now, and all I can say is; buy the highest quality equipment you can afford, stick to the gun you shoot best (no rotation) and don't overdo it.

Attached Images

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Jorge

Or at least, guns with the same general manual of arms; that is, a Glock and a revolver, or "Glocks" and "revolvers", just for example.

I would not (and do not) bounce back and forth between a single action 1911 style, and a no-external safety striker pistol, or a traditional double action and a striker.

Just too different, in my humble...


Oh, and about thirty years for me.

EDC tips:

1. Carry the same gun every day. No “carry rotation.”

2. Carry the biggest gun you can, consistent with your clothing and any other factors.

3. You can almost always carry a bigger gun than you think you can.

4. Pick a carry gun and dress to accommodate it, rather than accommodating the gun to your existing mode of dress.

5. If you carry a semi, make it a 9mm. 40 and 45 have more recoil and less capacity and don’t do anything different to the bad guy than 9mm does. Same rule for revolvers: carry .38 spl.

6. This goes double if you carry a compact. G30 and Shield in .45 are too much. Compact 10mm is ludicrous. .357 in j-frame is way over the top.

7. Cheap holsters flop around, can lose the gun, and can cause bigger problems. Throw Uncle Mike in the trash and get Desantis, Galco, etc. Avoid cheap gunshow kydex and get Neptune or similar.

8. Shoot your carry gun.

9. Whether you shoot it or not, every six weeks, strip, wipe out and oil. Halve this interval if your EDC is a 1911.

10. 1911s need to run wet. Light grease is OK on 1911 rails and locking lugs. Something like Pro-Gold; avoid heavy wheel bearing grease. Before you shoot it, wipe grease out and replace with oil. Or split the difference and use 90 wt synthetic gear oil.

11. Use only OEM magazines on pistols. Exception is Mec-Gar on Hi Power, Berretta.

12. But if you carry 1911, throw away the mag that came with the gun and try Ed Brown, Wilson, Tripp, etc.

14. Test a new or new-to-you EDC gun 500 rounds, along with the EDC magazines. Do it all in one setting, get it good and hot and dusty. Double this if you carry a 1911.

15. Do what the lawmen do: test your EDC magazines, then set them aside for carry. Use range beaters at the range.

16. When practicing, don’t load full mags and just shoot. Grab half a dozen range beaters, load a few rounds. Practice mag changes. Punch ‘em out and let ‘em drop and slam a new one in.

17. The thing on the side of the gun is a slide stop, not a slide release. Reload by reaching overhand and racking the slide. This is a surer method and will work with any gun. Competitors like the slide stop because it saves them a fraction of a second. You want certainty.

18. Play CQB airsoft. This is a humbling experience and will teach you how much you don’t know, and how easy it is to get killed.

19. If you have to think about the gun when you’re shooting, you’re not ready to save your life.

20. If you must carry a revolver, carry three, for New York reloads. Reloading with speed strips or speed loaders is impossible in a short range firefight.

21. Always carry a spare magazine. Two if you’re running single stack.

22. Put a long gun in your car. It’s good for set piece situations like a flat tire on a remote road. But know that in the city, things happen fast; you’ll be fighting with what you have on you.

23. Don’t stick your EDC in center console, glove box, under the seat. If you get separated from your car, you’re out of luck. See 1986 Miami FBI shootout.

24. Sitting in your car: Gun under jacket, seat belt on, it takes forever to get your gun out. If you’re suddenly accosted, game’s over before it starts. Rig a dedicated car gun so you can deploy it in one second.

25. Bullets are bullets. I carry Q4318 NATO. A bullet either hits a vital spot and penetrates, or it doesn’t. Don’t waste money on the expensive stuff. Absolutely avoid the new generation of trick bullets.

26. Small semis like Shield and P365 like warmer ammo to ensure functioning. Three inch 1911s can be finicky, too. Test.

27. Shoulder holsters look badass in movies. On the street they’re bulky, hot and uncomfortable.

28. Inside waistband appendix carry, if something goes wrong, will cost you your gonads. Or your life, if the femoral artery is struck. You’ll have one minute to contemplate your choice of holsters. No one can save you.

29. Don’t put stickers on your car that say “Terrorist Hunting Permit” or “Protected by Smith & Wesson.” This tips people off you’re armed, and is bait for car burglars. Don’t wear hats and t-shirts that say “Second Amendment Citizen” or “Cold Dead Fingers.” Crooks will know you’re armed. And this stuff might not look good if you have to use your gun.

30. Open carry is idiocy on several levels.

31. Always sit facing the door.

32. If you EDC, don’t drink a drop. You want to be able to say your last drink was when Millard Fillmore was president. No pot smoking either.

33. If you carry a G17 and a G19, depending on dress, carry only one type of spare magazine, a G17. This prevents mix-ups.

34. Know your local laws.

35. Know that if you do have to shoot somebody in a public situation, your big worry will be some other EDCer or off duty lawman shooting you, thinking you’re a crook or active shooter.

36. Give much thought to what you’ll do right after you pickle somebody. Cameras are everywhere; if what you say is different from what they see, you might have a problem.

37. Do not be a bit surprised if you hit the bad guy many times with solid chest hits, and he doesn’t even notice. It ain’t like the movies or the keyboard commandos would have you believe.

38. If you’re limited to 10 rounds, the temptation is to make them more “powerful,” like 40 or 45. The fallacy here is that energy is somehow additive, and/or that the heavier rounds do more to the bad guy than 9mm does. On the contrary, everybody shoots 9mm better rapid fire than they shoot the bigger stuff; rapid effective placement is even more important when limited to 10 rounds.

39. You’re in the cell phone store; two thugs come in. One’s carrying a pistol, the other a shotgun. Hit the shotgun man first.

40. When you strip your gun for periodic cleaning, don’t re-use the round that was in the chamber. Cycling it several times can cause bullet setback. Toss it in the range ammo box and start fresh.

41. Keep it stock. People buy a new gun, like a Glock, and immediately install “upgrade” parts. Reliability goes down. Sights would be the exception.

42. The gun that feels best in the hand when you pick it up is not necessarily the one you shoot best in rapid fire. This is counterintuitive but can be true. Shooting rapid fire is the test.

43. Use the proper sight picture and technique for slow fire, to learn how to shoot. When you carry, learn “flash sight” technique.

44. Stay in Cooper’s “condition yellow.” Especially in banks, gas stations, and other places that are targets for hijackers.

That's why I carry a CWP badge that I can loop around my neck (if I have time before I shoot, or else after the shooting stops and my gun is still visible).

Street experiences taught me to always carry one reload, plus extra ammo in the center console of my car.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

I suggest that if you have time to mess around with a unofficial badge before your gun, you don't really need stick around for tthe gun part. After it is over your better off holstering or dumping your weapon and getting your EMPTY hands up in the air . Cop show up while your digging for that badge he may well think your messing with a weapon.

Not a single actual LEO here has supported the idea of such a badge, before, during, or after a shoot.

In my time here (and I read this sub forum a lot) I can't recall anyone with a badge icon approving of or advocating a Concealed Carry badge.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Could be that some just like j frames. I’ve carried a J frame of one type or another for backup or off duty use for 43 years and have never felt the need for more. I pocket carry mostly but also use an upside down shoulder rig when traveling. My advice- concealed means concealed!

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Support your Police, & NRA

For a long time I carried a big smart phone case on my belt under my T shirt, stuck out like a sore thumb, could have been a gun, nobody ever noticed or commented..... so if my EDC prints, nobody really cares.

Great advice here - the “carry rotation” that many speak of, brag about or just have so many guns they want to carry them all is not a good idea. In a time of “need’, the time it takes for the brain to identify the “gun of the day” and how it operates can be all the time you needed to protect yourself before the bad guy gets you. A seasonal carry with practice to hone the skills could be an exception as long as the brain is trained.

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S&W factory revolver armorer

Carrying for 43 years. Last 18 years with permit. Mostly a 642.
Past few years thou have been carrying PC Shield in Air Marshall 3 by Kangaroo Carry, with shirts that have a button removed for ease of access. If it ever comes down to a situation I plan on feigning a heart attack, clutch chest & come out with Shield blazing.