Small of back Holsters

crazyphil · May 12, 2021

Kid44 - Your Commander is nice and flat. The best advice you got so far
is to carry it in a pancake at 4 O'Clock. Too many things can go wrong
with small of back carry. If it can go wrong it will go wrong sooner or later.

Steve912 · May 12, 2021

sigp220.45 said:
Thousands and thousands of cops wear gun belts will all kinds of stuff in the small of their backs. They are far more likely to go rolling around than the average gun toting citizen.

Apples to lug nuts--we carry #$@! there and everywhere
else, because there's usually nowhere else to fit it (especially
if you carry more than one set of cuffs). A citizen carrying
concealed, might have a single mag carrier competing for
waistline 'real estate'.

And...

Know any retired cops with lower back problems--or, know
any retired cops, without lower back problems?!?

sigp220.45 · May 12, 2021

Steve912 said:
Know any retired cops with lower back problems--or, know
any retired cops, without lower back problems?!?

Yep, lots of cops have back problems. Buts its from lugging all that stuff around all day. Not from falling on it, which is what everyone warns Joe Citizen about.

I'd like to see one actual case of a gun-toter getting spine problems from flopping backward onto a small-of-the-back holstered gun. Just one, to justify the incessant warning against it by people who've never carried there.

stansdds · May 13, 2021

Uniformed LEO's carry items like handcuffs and flashlights at the small of the back position, but where you do see the sidearm, taser, and ammo?

Kid44 · May 17, 2021

Yes, everyone seems to think...

sigp220.45 said:
Yep, lots of cops have back problems. Buts its from lugging all that stuff around all day. Not from falling on it, which is what everyone warns Joe Citizen about.

I'd like to see one actual case of a gun-toter getting spine problems from flopping backward onto a small-of-the-back holstered gun. Just one, to justify the incessant warning against it by people who've never carried there.

Everyone seems to think that if you fall the ONLY place you will land is on your back, not necessarily so.

BAM-BAM · May 17, 2021

*** holsters fall into the same category as; .45 vs 9mm, What caliber for Bears,.... there will never be a answer that everyone will agree on!

Frankly I don't think many folks carry that way so .... no you don't see a lot of actual injuries.

When I experimented with one back in the mid- 80s with a walther PPK I found it very uncomfortable/painful and almost impossible to get to when sitting in a car or chair..... so that along with the the thoughts of falling on it, all the arguments listed above have been around for at least 35 years, made me switch to a Sparks Summer Special at 4-5 O'clock.

sig220.45 is a big proponent of miami vice style shoulder holsters.... there are a number of cross-draw holsters that conceal well at the 9 O'clock position ....... great if your driving or sitting a lot. Even a couple of models that were designed to meet the needs of Air Marshals

LenS · Jul 5, 2021

Very many years ago there were two times that I caused a stir because I was carrying in the small of the back. Once the jacket rode up over the butt of my Det. Spl. causing a lot of people behind me in an auditorium to gasp for air. The other time I was in a restaurant and had taken my sports jacket off after sitting down. But I got up and put the jacket on . . . not realizing that the wall behind me was a mirror. The staff by the bar was in a stir over their view . . . and this was in the People's Republic of Cambridge (MA), a liberal bastion. Nope, never again would I carry that way.

jscott · Jul 6, 2021

It only took one attempted gun grab to learn to keep that bad boy where I could put two hands on it.

crazyphil · Jul 6, 2021

As an NRA Certified Instructor teaching Concealed Weapons Licences Classes,
I can tell you that a lot of new gun carriers think the Small of Back is a cool
place to carry. I would never wear a gun there for all the reasons
outlined in this thread, and I always tried to discourage students from doing so.

xtrtsqrt11 · Jul 23, 2021

I tried it briefly in my early carry days and found it lacking. I didn't hurt myself but then it was too brief a time to really be able to say one thing or the other. I agree that it is too easy to flash (I experienced this) or print the weapon in too many occasions make it a poor choice. It also is too easy to make a loud clank when you sit down. I also agree that weapon retention is a consideration worth looking into for many people.

I have rolled on the ground with a duty belt and all the gear and it does hurt when you take a heavy fall wherever. I would think that that would be a clue as to what could happen to your spine.

But lastly, I try to learn from others rather than learning the hard lessons for myself. My former (now retired) Chiropractor, who also was a street cop (10 plus years) in his early days, was very emphatic in his reluctance to carry or encourage/endorse *** due to potential injury.

jscott · Jul 23, 2021

Looks cool in the movies but movies are fiction. The reality is that having someone grab your gun with the implied reasoning that he is going to kill you with it is terrifying. Add the facts that you may be surprised as he approaches from the rear and that you will have little ability to utilize gun retention techniques, ups the experience to beyond terrifying.

safearm · Jul 23, 2021

I have worn a small of back holster before; carried a S&W 3913. All of the other comments regarding access, covering garment, etc., are all relevant, but what caused me to stop wearing it was not the fear of a fall and injury, but it was the the extreme discomfort. Whenever you sit, you have to shift position to keep the pressure off of your back, whether it's in a vehicle or a chair. Depending on the vehicle you were entering/exiting, it could be an exercise in gymnastics. About the only time it didn't matter on how you sat was on a motorcycle, but then the covering garment argument starts again.
If you're standing in place, like on a security detail, it's as good as any holster, and for me, it was just as fast to draw as my normal strong side carry. In fact, if you're standing against some type of backdrop (wall, fence, draperies, etc.) you could actually have your hand on the gun and it would be less obvious than a strong side draw.
I won't say don't use one, but it's not the perfect one-size fits all holster, despite what all of the TV cops do.

SammyJoe · Jul 31, 2021

Personally, the entire idea that it is dangerous to your back and spine to carry Small of Back is pretty absurd. If you are positioning your holster correctly, by positioning it slightly to the dominant side of the small of your back (5:30 to 5 o'clock for right handed shooters), it is very comfortable and safe.
It will not "break your spine" as I have heard soo many times before.....

I have been a fan of Small of Back Carry ever since I watched the movie Blood Diamond many years ago.

In the film, a diamond smuggler (Leonardo DeCaprio) carries a Glock 26 in a Small of Back leather holster until the gun is seized by border forces near the Sierra Leone border.
It is a great movie, currently free to watch on YouTube.

I have a DeSantis Small of Back holster that my 26 rides in on occasion. It is very comfortable and as long as you have a good cover garment it is undetectable by the untrained eye in public places.

***the above pictures are not mine, found online at (Blood Diamond Archer's Leather holster replica movie prop)

-Sam

ColbyBruce · Jul 31, 2021

Notice that the spare is not a Glock mag?

Iggy · Jul 31, 2021

If someone grabs the gun from behind, you have to go into a potential hammer lock position to try to defend it.
Not a good situation at best.

bulletslap · Jul 31, 2021

Many years ago I for a short time carried a J Frame in a small of the back holster, as a backup. The only advantage I saw to it was it was accessible with either hand. I stopped because I worried that it would be too easy for a miscreant to grab.

SammyJoe · Jul 31, 2021

did not even notice that !!! @ColbyBruce

SammyJoe · Jul 31, 2021

ColbyBruce said:
Notice that the spare is not a Glock mag?

Could it possibly be a USP compact mag w/ an extended baseplate, he carried one of those as well in the movie.
-Sam

ColbyBruce · Jul 31, 2021

SammyJoe said:
Could it possibly be a USP compact mag w/ an extended baseplate, he carried one of those as well in the movie.
-Sam

I don’t think so due to the metal follower.

outta_ammo · Jul 31, 2021

Well, I just did it again, on first glance at the thread title my brain mis-processed it as "small block holsters." Which briefly had me wondering how the devil that would work...

Small of back Holsters

US Veteran

Member

US Veteran

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

US Veteran

Member

Member

US Veteran

Member

Member

Attachments

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

SWCA Member

Similar threads