The 4506 for CCW

[HOUSTON RICK]

As a civilian, the J frame is all the carry I need. At the range, I enjoy shooting the 4506 and 5906 for the reasons given. If I were an LEO these days, I would want the Battleship Missouri. I hope that you are lucky enough to have a safe, boring career.

 

[Veracity2371]

Timely thread. I have a 10mm I would like to carry at certain times, and have been looking for a holster. I prefer IWB with a forward cant, as I am most comfortable with the gun at 4:00. My EDC is an H&K subcompact, and I keep it in a Vedder lighttuck. It is comfortable and conceals pretty well, particularly with a maximum forward cant.

In a different thread here I read that 4566/1066/1076 can fit into some leather Sig P220 holsters, and have been looking. Obviously something made for the gun is probably better, but this will never be an EDC for me, so I'm not rushing to throw $200 or more at it.

I don't have any old Bianchi Gunleather catalogs I can put my hand to, or catalogs from other brands, so if anyone made a holster for this gun, it's hard to find cheaply on auction sites. The seller has to list it as fitting a 4566/1066/1076, and many just list it as "Bianchi 3s XXXXX" or something like that.

It would be really helpful to get some manufacturer part numbers, like Galco XXXXX which could be searched, even if they can't be located immediately.

I'd prefer Kydex, but I figure that is probably out of the question, so I'll go with leather if necessary.

 

[DanRod_LA]

Timely thread. I have a 10mm I would like to carry at certain times, and have been looking for a holster. I prefer IWB with a forward cant, as I am most comfortable with the gun at 4:00. My EDC is an H&K subcompact, and I keep it in a Vedder lighttuck. It is comfortable and conceals pretty well, particularly with a maximum forward cant.

In a different thread here I read that 4566/1066/1076 can fit into some leather Sig P220 holsters, and have been looking. Obviously something made for the gun is probably better, but this will never be an EDC for me, so I'm not rushing to throw $200 or more at it.

I don't have any old Bianchi Gunleather catalogs I can put my hand to, or catalogs from other brands, so if anyone made a holster for this gun, it's hard to find cheaply on auction sites. The seller has to list it as fitting a 4566/1066/1076, and many just list it as "Bianchi 3s XXXXX" or something like that.

It would be really helpful to get some manufacturer part numbers, like Galco XXXXX which could be searched, even if they can't be located immediately.

I'd prefer Kydex, but I figure that is probably out of the question, so I'll go with leather if necessary.

Finding holsters for these older firearms can be challenging depending what you're looking for. I'd say the easiest would be from a custom holster maker. However they're pretty much all leather and have a long turn around time. There are all kinds of kydex holsters out there. I was pretty lucky to find one for a 4506 on eBay. Considering how close in shape a 4506 and a 1066 are in shape, you could purchase the same holster and use it. If the extra length bothers you its pretty easy to shape kydex. Just place your unloaded pistol in the holster and heat up the excess with a heat gun, blowdryer or even bake it (be careful!). Kydex is super pliable when heated up and you can easily shape it around the end then cut off the excess. Let it cool down and BOOM! New holster! I'll leave the link here just in case you're interested.
S&W 6906/S&W 5906 / S&W 4506 / 4006 TSW Custom INSIDE WAISTBAND Custom Holster | eBay

 

[DanRod_LA]

18DAI, Finally got one of those 5.11 shirts you wrote about and its a great! It comes down farther than my regular dress shirts and that helps a lot for concealment. Also love the material, nice and light weight. It's pretty hot here in SoCal and the short sleeve with light material makes a difference. I got one in plaid. Casual look that doesn't scream "I'm a cop" or look tactical. Blends in well. My wife even liked how it looked on me. Ordered another and will wear this to my first IDPA match tomorrow.

 

[ContinentalOp]

Been thinking about trying one of those 5.11 shirts. Right now I wear button-down short sleeve shirts untucked. They do a pretty good job of concealing my gun. The one downside is that they don't have a lot of freedom-of-movement in the shoulders. When I draw from concealment and go into an Isoceles stance, it gets tight in the shoulders and sometimes I worry about possibly ripping a seam when I practice at full speed (main reason I keep older shirts of a similar style around for practice).

Any issues like that with the 5.11 shirts? I remember reading some time ago they were constructed to give more freedom-of-movement in the shoulders for that reason. Not sure if that's still the case.

 

[18DAI]

Glad the 511 shirt works for you DanRod_LA! They are really comfortable in the miserable heat and humidity. I have a grey plaid and a rust/orange plaid. Only my wife despises the orange one.

Good luck at the games tomorrow! I look forward to hearing how you make out with the 4506-1. Bring plenty of water! I use to freeze two water bottles and stick them in the outer pockets of my range bag. Gave me ice cold water through all 6 stages.

ContinentalOP no issues like that with the 511 shirts. I wear a size 46 sport coat and take a 17.5 x 34 dress shirt. I buy the XL size 511 shirt and have full range of motion. Even seated in the car. And they are made to wear untucked. They have an even hem along the bottom. They hang loose, which enables one to cover up a lot of gun.

I have no problem wearing a 4506-1 or 4566 OWB in an Askins Avenger style open top holster, concealed under a 511. I am a lefty so I wear the holster back around 7:30 - 8:00 and have no problems. Hope this helps! Regards 18DAI

 

[ContinentalOp]

Thanks for the info.

 

[GaryS]

A trick I learned when freezing a bottle of water is to put it upside down in the freezer. Water freezes from the top down, so I've been told, so you can half freeze the bottle and still have water to drink why the rest thaws out.

Glad the 511 shirt works for you DanRod_LA! They are really comfortable in the miserable heat and humidity. I have a grey plaid and a rust/orange plaid. Only my wife despises the orange one.

Good luck at the games tomorrow! I look forward to hearing how you make out with the 4506-1. Bring plenty of water! I use to freeze two water bottles and stick them in the outer pockets of my range bag. Gave me ice cold water through all 6 stages.

ContinentalOP no issues like that with the 511 shirts. I wear a size 46 sport coat and take a 17.5 x 34 dress shirt. I buy the XL size 511 shirt and have full range of motion. Even seated in the car. And they are made to wear untucked. They have an even hem along the bottom. They hang loose, which enables one to cover up a lot of gun.

I have no problem wearing a 4506-1 or 4566 OWB in an Askins Avenger style open top holster, concealed under a 511. I am a lefty so I wear the holster back around 7:30 - 8:00 and have no problems. Hope this helps! Regards 18DAI

 

[18DAI]

DanRod_LA how did it go at the IDPA Match? Regards 18DAI

 

[Veracity2371]

Finding holsters for these older firearms can be challenging depending what you're looking for. I'd say the easiest would be from a custom holster maker. However they're pretty much all leather and have a long turn around time. There are all kinds of kydex holsters out there. I was pretty lucky to find one for a 4506 on eBay. Considering how close in shape a 4506 and a 1066 are in shape, you could purchase the same holster and use it. If the extra length bothers you its pretty easy to shape kydex. Just place your unloaded pistol in the holster and heat up the excess with a heat gun, blowdryer or even bake it (be careful!). Kydex is super pliable when heated up and you can easily shape it around the end then cut off the excess. Let it cool down and BOOM! New holster! I'll leave the link here just in case you're interested.
[...]

I bought a leather IWB holster for a Sig P220/P226 and tried it, but there was no forward cant, just like the holster you linked. The gun prints like crazy, at least on my bod, without some forward cant to help conceal the grip. Even with an oversize shirt as a cover garment, it's plain to see, like the guy pictured in this thread.

I have an all-purpose nylon Uncle Mike's OWB holster which I tried. It has about 15° of forward cant and conceals better than the 0° cant leather holster I tried.

I'll keep searching. I'm patient.

 

[DanRod_LA]

DanRod_LA how did it go at the IDPA Match? Regards 18DAI

I left there all smiles. It was my first time shooting in a match of any kind and I was not disappointed. For some reason the timer screws with you and has you fumbling the simplest of moves. But I had a ton of fun. I used the 4506 in my Kramer IWB holster. It showed the the draw backs of my set up. My shirt tail kept getting caught in the holster as I reholsted, and the holster was tight enough at first it would move the slide out of battery. I was the only one in my squad shooting a steel framed gun. Kinda had a laugh during the inspection. The SO took one look and said “Seriously, that’s your ccw?” Not so fun was having my $20 eBay special mag pouch come apart on me. Get what you pay for I guess lol. Can’t wait for next match. Gonna use my duty gear.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[BAM-BAM]

I've been concealed carrying since about 1980...... first a Beretta 70S .380..... later a 2 1/2" or 3 inch K-frame on weekends and a Walther PPK when wearing a suit.............................


Today ( since 1990) I carry IWB..... generally a 3913 and 2 extra mags ( mags carried between belt and pants) or a Beretta 92 Compact with a 15 round and spare 18rd Mec-gar mags in a Safariland 123 horizontal mag pouch..... holsters are all Milt Sparks Summer Special IIs or Executive Companion.

I've also been known to carry a Beretta Centurion..... but with the new 15 rd Med-gar mags for the Compact the Centurion (18rd mags) tends to stay home................to take advantage of the shorter butt on the Compact.

I have for the past three years I've been using Wilderness Tactical Frequent Flyer 5 stitch belts with jeans...... infinitely adjustable allows ease of adjustment when carrying or not. I highly recommend the WT belt.

While I have a Smith 4566 if I want to conceal carry a .45 I tend to carry a Sig either a 245 Compact or a full size W German 220...... again in a Sparks Summer Special.

 

[18DAI]

Good job! We are proud of you!

Funny how people react to a 4506-1. The two things I hear most often are "Is that a Sig?" and "Smith makes metal guns?".

Thanks for "taking us along"! Regards 18DAI

 

[18DAI]

DanRod_LA you shot any more matches lately with the 4506-1? Regards 18DAI

 

[03hemi]

I was lucky enough to get a brand new DeSantis forward cant thumb break holster with the purchase of my 4506, it rides very nice and secure, but I haven't even shot it yet much less carried it. Soon though, maybe?