Have a Sig 365 with manual safety. If my T-shirt is long enough I carry in the top of my right pocket with an IWB Kydex holster. If the T is shorter I carry in my right pocket with a Kydex pocket holster. Does pocket carry slow down the draw and by how much? Not comfortable with the IWB inside my pants. Larry

Pocket carry has been my primary method of deployment for nearly 20 years.

Depends on the pants.

I dont think so, high OWB works better for me

I think quick draw is over-rated. The nice thing about pocket carry is being able to have your hand on your gun when you first think something is afoot.

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“What you got, ain’t new.”

Pocket carry is about the element of surprise, not a quick draw contest. Not looking dangerous to a thug or shooter until you get the opportunity to prove him wrong. Was at a NC gunshow and grabbed lunch in the snackbar that was part of the venue. When I got my order I sat in the far corner table facing the doors. After a bit a uniformed officer came in and ordered food, he sat in the other corner facing the doors. I do that in real restaurants too.

I think quite a few of us do that. When an individual is in the habit of staying cognizant of his or her surroundings, that type of behavior is just standard operating procedure.

Now, when it comes to pocket carry, it shouldn't be a real problem for the person described above...someone who is paying continual attention to the surroundings, i.e. "condition yellow." They are aware if a situation is turning "questionable" and usually have time to retrieve their firearm if needed.

On the other hand, if the person is one who is happy to walk down the street with his/her headphones plugged in and busy texting on the phone....well, that's a whole different story. Pocket carry is definitely not for them.

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Pack light and cinch tight.

Drawing from the pocket is slower than just about any other mode of carry, short of off-body or ankle. Drawing from the pocket with your hand pre-positioned on the gun is faster than drawing from any other concealed mode.

As to how much slower or faster, that depends on the person and which carry modes are being compared. A timer will answer the question for you definitively.

You should at least look into CCW Breakaway pocket carry pants and shorts. The P365 is a perfect fit.

I believe the key to pocket carry is extra situational awareness, which should already be high in any circumstance. Pocket carry really shines in hot temps where concealment shirts are less desirable, and it’s not much slower than a holster when standing. As for sitting, driving, etc., you can weigh it against other placements.

Starting with hands in the surrender position, a good hand can present his pistol and score a center mass hit in 1 1/2 seconds.

It takes a real master to accomplish the same from a pocket draw in twice the time.

My P365 in a DeSantis Nemises pocket holster has been my edc method for many years now. I still do use a Kramer OWB holster, however since I’ve moved and the weather dictates shorts and a T shirt most of the time, pocket carry is my prime method.

One great advantage of pocket carry is that if trouble looms, you can put your hand on the pistol and be ready without being conspicuous, so I’m some instances pocket carry can be an advantage. The biggest disadvantage is while sitting down and if driving. But hey, for standing walking and casual dressing it can be fantastic and relatively fast/practice is essential with any carry method! IMHO there is really no perfect 100% of the time best carry method if carrying concealed.

Not with my Wrangler's ...............cargo shorts..... I'm with Sig220.

For me and many I know and have known, pocket carry is perfect when pretty much all other forms of carry (OWB, IWB, AIWB) are out of the question for some reason. The only thing lower on the list is to go unarmed.

Don't get me wrong, I have carried a J frame or a P365 many many times and still do. But only when I have to rather than leave everything home, OR when the gun in my pocket is my second gun (maybe even third).

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BT
EGO VOLUNTAS HAUD OBEDIO

We walk 2 miles a day and 1/4 mile is on a busy road with enough questionable people driving on it. True, some pockets on the Levi shorts are slightly tighter. If the gun is needed i would not have time to have my hand in the pocket before pulling it out.

When traveling in the car the gun is propped with grip up between the seat track and the counsel, easily grabbed. Or it’s on the counsel top in the front. No pocket carry here.

I feel the pocket carry is a little slower but not knowing what situation will develop there may be more then enough time. Better then nothing!

Lot of great replies so far, I like the different angles we all see on the question. The gun I decide to carry is with me 24-7, Larry

I don't find it significantly slower, and like the ability to have my hand on it inconspicuously.

I think the issue with pocket carry is more how it limits the size/type gun you can carry.

Lots of times with quick-draw............The first bullet goes in you(leg).

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S&W Accumulator

Pocket carry isn't fast enough for walking down the street to the OK Corral and shooting it out with the Clantons ... for that you want...
" Open Carry " and a fast draw holster and belt .

There is a lot to be said for "Legal Open Carry " and getting in a shootout with the bad guys .
I'm lucky ...Louisiana has always been a legal Open Carry state for law abiding citizens ... no permits required !
Gary

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Certified Cajun
NRA Member

Depends on how slow the other guy is.

Summer pocket carry in cargo shorts is either a 337PD or Colt Pocketlite .380.... both about 12oz. usually something in the outer pocket to break up any outline. Like the Colt because it's flatter; the 337 cus it's a .38 revolver.

I don't know about the Clantons but me with my gun in my pocket and my hand on my gun, 3 fingers and thumb on the grip and one finger on the trigger is going to be difficult to beat. Larry

Larry, someone is going to scold u for the finger on the trigger comment. LOL but most of us know what your saying lol

Drawing against an already drawn weapon is not the place you want to be in.

I guess a notable exception in the favor of pocket carry would be a jacket or vest. In that situation a shot fired from the pocket might just prevail.

Like any other carry method you have to put some thought into it when choosing the pistol/revolver, holster, pants/belt and pocket. Add to that the build of the person and how appropriate is the clothing for the occasion/climate. Inconspicuous is the keyword.

Pocket carry is fine, for people who carry but rarely shoot.

At best pocket carry limits you to what is more often than not a marginal sized pocket carry gun, usually in a marginal caliber.

Don’t get me wrong, I like pocket carry. I like it so much I sometimes pocket carry a back up.

But my primary will always be a more capable gun in a more capable caliber carried IWB, OWB, or in some rare circumstances in a shoulder holster.

It will also be a gun that gets shot on a regular basis to maintain proficiency.

For example a friend showed me his LCP a couple years ago.
- It had the greenest ammo I’d ever seen and he admitted he hadn’t shot any carry ammo in years.

- He also admitted he hadn’t shot his LCP (or any other handgun in months, and

- when he does it’s usually less than 50 rounds of range ammo.

——-

Way too many people get wrapped around the axel about what handgun or ammo to carry and what to carry it in, while ignoring the much more important issues of becoming and remaining proficient with it, so that they can actually hit an assailant if they are ever faced with an imminent threat.

When you choose a small pocket sized handgun in a marginal caliber you greatly increase the need for precise bullet placement. Shooting once or twice a year isn’t going to cut it with a full sized handgun and it’s not nearly enough for a pocket sized handgun.

With more practice, you would know the answer to that question. The old saying is, "Train the way you fight."

my choice of pistols are a little different, but i'm in the same camp as Chief. i pocket carry 6-7 months of the year and in cool months an OWB Wright Predator holster with a 9mm of various manufacturers. this is a law abiding area with very little violent crime. that said, i'm always armed.

A full-auto high-capacity assault rifle locked and loaded - with a grenade launcher and flame thrower for backup.

This assumes you are wearing pants

The real advantage of pocket carry is being able to stage your gun w/a firing grip w/o alarming anyone. Cooler weather provides the additional advantage of jacket pocket carry & the ability to shoot your J Frame through the pocket should it become necessary.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

Not being a police officer, if I knew the Clantons were waiting for me down at the OK Corral I would just stay away from it.

I carry every time I step out of the house, and it's been months since I carried other than in my pocket. I'm comfortable with it. And it's limitations.

I've never had to draw my LCP in a hurry, but I honestly cannot imagine that the time it takes to reach into my pocket and draw it would be excessive, and the very thought that it might be to slow just seems to border on paranoia.

If anything, I would imagine that drawing from a pocket might very well be the smoothest, fastests, most instinctive, intuitive method of drawing a gun imaginable.
Honestly, we all have to reach into our pockets to draw out things of all different shapes and sizes on a daily basis. Wallets, Keys, Phones, you name it.
I dunno about you, but I've never fumbled having to pull my phone out of my pocket quickly to answer a call, and my phone is a lot less ergonomic and easy to grip than my LCP, so I'm not the least bit worried about having to draw my LCP from my pocket in a hurry.

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Shooting Comfort is bilateral.

I'm puzzled by no one mentioning the whopping drawback to pocket carry: getting the gun out if you're seated. OK, there might be some pants out there somewhere with pockets big enough, I'm talking about regular pockets-and not having to look like you're scratching it where it itches while doing so.

Now, if you're been paying attention but haven't had the time/smarts to leave the scene before festivities begin, I suggest you get both your hands in your pockets and try to look more clueless than you are.

Good thread.

This can be 1) carried deep in a pocket, 2) clipped to the upper hem of the pocket with the grip sticking out, or 3) shot right through the pocket.

I like having options.

Attached Images

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Opinions are like............What works for one may not work for the other. Since 1996 I've pocket carried a 642 or 9mm Shield......I'm NOT worried about fast draw.

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S&W Accumulator

I only pocket carry. I am comfortable, confident and proficient with it. I have tried IWB and OWB and they are not for me.

I believe that if I am actually going to present my gun then the threat has probably already materialized and I am most likely playing catch up or my Spidey Sense tingled and I had already crept my hand into my pocket.

I don't dwell on 'hypothetical quick draw' scenarios. Just being armed puts me ahead of the curve.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Well, when I do pocket carry, say for a quick run to the supermarket or a visit to the doc so I want to be able to take the gun off easily and leave it in the car, I more often than not carry a 640-1 in a Kramer or Mika pocket holster. Don't think I'd call either the gun or the caliber marginal..

For CCW, if a gun won’t fit in my pocket, I ‘ain’t carryin’ it. Period.
If I am out in the woods, or fishing, working outside around my place or someone else’s place and someone seeing me with a gun is not an issue ( no one around, or nobody cares ) then I may use a regular holster.

Nobody wants to be shot with even a marginal caliber.

Depends on the threat level, where you live work and travel. Around the clock violent crime large urban city or a quiet small suburban town where everyone is asleep by 9pm.

I would say, ‘it depends”.

I have pocket carried year round for years. My level of situational awareness is above average because of where I live. So pocket carry is to my advantage.

When the situation dictates I can have my hand on the gun whether it’s in my jacket pocket or pants pocket. My draw is extremely quick.

The only time when my draw is slower is when I’m seated. But there are ways around that too.

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Life Is A Gift. Defend it!

My thinking is opposite of you. I figure my need for self defense will be fast and close up so my pocket gun is my primary gun. My backup gun in an OWB or shoulder holster will be a "N" frame .357M or .44M. A .45ACP could also be used for a BUG but I usually stay with revolvers. Larry

Not to nitpick, but the old saying is that you will fight the way you train.

There is a SIGNIFICANT difference in the two statements.

Originally....

“You can only fight the way you practice”

― Miyamoto Musashi, A Book of Five Rings: The Classic Guide to Strategy

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BT
EGO VOLUNTAS HAUD OBEDIO

The 365 seems easier to carry then the K frame in the pocket and don’t consider it a sub caliber. Tonight when we walked the gun was clipped to the top of my right pocket easily accessible. I have to admit I don’t practice drawing and need to start. Practice with my hand in the pocket and with my arm down by my side as when walking. The big city crime is coming to a suburb near you. Glad to hear a lot of you pocket carry, Larry

Interesting Post----Thinking Matt Dillon "Gunsmoke"

I pocket carry because it suits my lifestyle of wearing shorts and a tee most of the time.

Either a LCP MAX, Seecamp, or P365. All are for self defense distance, not target shooting.

I don’t need to shoot them every week either, they are all reliable.

My days of lugging around a full size gun are past, except for hunting big game.

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Sure you did

It is not practical for me to pocket carry. 1) I wear jeans. Jeans or jean shorts. 2) I carry my keys in my strong side pocket. If it is just a key fob, fine. If it is for my old truck, I need to physically access those keys to use. 3) I am of short stature. I carry either a s&w shield 9 2.0, an m&p .45 2.0 c, or a mossberg mc2c I will be adding to my carry rotation. Neither one of these will fit comfortably nor discreetly in my pocket. But, this is just me. It is different for everybody.

Faster or slower only matters depending on the situation... and situations can vary in MANY ways.
To the guy sitting in the corner of the restaurant watching the doors it probably doesn't matter how fast his draw is if something happens because the threats eyes probably aren't on him. To the guy walking through the parking lot to his car and seeing three doors open on the car next to his... draw speed matters more! All the potential situations in between those two will each have their own requirements.

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Stay protected my friends.

"Is Pocket Carry Fast Enough" Quote OP.

Well I sure hope so! I find in reasonably normal times and places a pocket carry works out quite quite well. (make your own definition of reasonable)

I have been carrying since the early 1970s. I have carried all sorts of guns in all sorts of holsters in all sorts of places. Living in the city area a serious gun in a serious holster was paramount.

Now where I live and where I end up I find a small gun (Ruger LCR .38) in a pocket holster works quite fine. Just grab it going out the door, insert in pocket without even breaking stride!

Can I out draw Wyatt Earp in a gun fight heck no, but I have it with me and over the course of time I consider myself quite street wise! In my car its impossible to get to fast or even sort of fast. At times I have been known to put gun in another more favorible location when driving! Like said I have a good mind set and normally have a way out with a 4,000+pound weapon controlled by my right foot.

Afoot, again I am aware of my surroundings and hope that will be a big factor in what might happen.

In a more serious situation/area I will be packing much stouter weaponry in a belt holster.

Due to circumstances my legal carrying days MIGHT be over or heavily restricted soon, a lot is going on right now that I will have to figure out.

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14 S&W Revs none with locks!

Trouble is when somebody is really on the fight, all calibers are marginal!

They won't quit until they are dead, and even if you've killed them, they may not die fast enough to keep them from killing you.

I pocket carry and waistband carry every day all day. I also try to go to the Range twice a month. Hopefully I’ll not need to draw or shoot anywhere els.

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Two Handguns every day