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sitting down in public

10K views 88 replies 61 participants last post by  soserius 
#1 · (Edited)
I realized something on our usual Sunday trip to the library threw me a curve today. My girls were getting books and I was looking for a chair to wait and surf on my phone. I usually sit in the same chair weekly but today there was someone in my spot. I had on a slightly shorter than normal shirt and the only spot where I could sit with my back relatively unexposed had chairs with seperate backs instead of the solid back I usually sit in. I browsed for a minute til the girls got their books then we left.
It's just another thing a new cc has to watch for.
I suppose I will eventually figure out what to do when I can't get a booth at a restaurant . I carry iwb small of the back. If I have to sit in a regular chair I will reveal my weapon. Was looking at vests today with a large enough pouch for my weapon so I could transfer to that pocket if need be.
 
#2 ·
I wear a t shirt and a short sleeve button down (unbuttoned and untucked) to see me through the summer. Too hot for a vest this time of year.

If you are going to carry SOB, you need a shirt with long tails. Period. In my opinion, SOB is far and away the most prone method of carrying for printing. And catching the shirt tail on the grip so your gun is not so concealed. And making driving miserable. And getting caught in a hammerlock when you are trying to draw. And........
 
#12 ·
If you are going to carry SOB, you need a shirt with long tails. Period.
Full coverage is the first criteria for a covering garment, true. Whether it's SOB, IWB, 4 o'clock, appendix carry ...

Of course, I have yet to find a decent way of avoiding the "clunk" when sitting down into bench-style seating, short of a cautious and deliberate style of easing into a seat. I've had it occur at a restaurant table, church pew, park bench and elsewhere. Always feels like everyone within hearing distance is looking for the source of the noise. Such is life.
 
#47 ·
Yes, the two times I outed myself were both with SOB carry. First time in a restaurant when I got up and put my jacket on to leave, not realizing that the entire wall behind me was a mirror. Waitstaff at bar was agitated as they saw the gun (I had taken off my suit jacket after sitting down, but put it on after standing up . . . my bad!). Second time was at Town Meeting in the school auditorium, wearing a short jacket that rode up over the butt of the gun (nickeled Colt Det Spcl . . . for extra visibility :smile:) as I got up to speak. I heard the gasps from behind me and just chuckled to myself . . . nobody said anything but if they did talk to one of the cops on duty they would have just told them "he's one of us" and that would have been the end of it. But I did learn a lesson.

Well movie theater is one thing and church is another. But I understand what your saying yes I understand that a bad guy can come in and shoot up a place anytime but. But I think that the likely of it happen in a church is far less then any way were else. Church is probably the only place I have not carried into. But I dont mine carry any were else. Sign or no sign.
Apparently you are unaware that pastors/priests/rabbis are frequently turned to for marriage counseling. And if a marriage falls apart after such counseling, you really don't think that the aggrieved party might not seek "revenge" in a twisted way? Thanks but I wouldn't want to bet my or my Wife's life on that.


I read about people that were carrying SOB and fell down on their back and have broken vertebrae and been paralyzed. Something about that completely turns me off of SOB. I prefer 4 o'clock
I've heard/read the rumors, but have NEVER seen any first-hand accounts of such. I used to carry this way on occasion, it's a bad idea for a number of reasons, but this isn't particularly one of them. Our spines tend to curve inward at the waist anyway, so if you lie flat on your back, you probably have room for a small gun back there (try it as an experiment) without problem.

I remember probably 25 years ago clearing ice off my concrete steps, I slipped and fell, sliding down each step with my back slammed into each step along the way. I was stunned (don't recall if I hit my head or not, I think I did one time) for a bit, but no damage! I was NOT ccw'g, but trust me there was a lot more potential for this alleged permanent injury in that event even w/o a gun.

It is way better to not need the gun you have on you when you take it EVERYWHERE (like I do) than to need it and not have it.
This reminds me of a conversation I had with one of my Sgts one day when he told me that he finally convinced the Chief to put the shotguns in the cruisers (up to then "heavy artillery" was always left at the PD unless we went on a raid)! I said "why, we don't need them in our sleepy little town" and his response was "What are you going to do if you do NEED it? Go back to the station to get them?" Point well taken about "being prepared". Same goes for everyday life. If I know that going somewhere is going to endanger me or mine, I simply will NOT go there! Going prepared is for those times you thought everything was going to be OK, but something bad happened anyway.
 
#4 ·
Last week at church, I was asked to fill in for an absent elder in handing out the communion meal. I had to sit down on a wooden bench with the other church elders prior to passing everything out, and since I had been sitting in a cloth-backed chair in the very back row of the church, I didn't even think about my carry piece being noticed when sitting down. Well, I sat down nice and firmly on the wooden bench and it made a very loud *thud* sound as I sat and the butt of my Colt made contact with the wooden back. I felt like everyone was staring but I think only my father-in-law knew what it was, since no one else knew I was carrying. Needless to say, I will be paying much better attention to how I sit while packing.
 
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#5 ·
This is one big reason, in my opinion, that restrictions against responsible gun owners fails.

Without making this a CC vs OC debate, I feel that someone who is CCing should not have to fear any repercussions of exposing their gun. Of course I mean legal repercussions not the unavoidable joe ignorant, "why do you have a gun?" If your LEGALY carrying a gun then there should be no worry of brandishing or printing. This is why I like the idea of OC, not because I can but because if I CC I dont have to worry about being arrested or fined if my shirt rides up.
 
#6 ·
Well you could carry your gun on your side instead of your back I carry mine at about the 3:00 to 4:00 position. Works well when sitting any were and no one even see it. Of corse not sure what you carry I have a .380 body guard.


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#10 ·
Stop wearing shirts that are too short for you to sit in ANY seat that might be available. If you are new to carry, you may not have heard the rule, Dress around the gun. Carry is a way of life, not just a small addition to your normal lifestyle. Dress AROUND the gun. That means dressing in such a manner that you can sit in any chair that might be available, or do anything that you may be required to do without exposing the gun or making it known to others that you are armed.

My question is I carry as much as possible but why carry in a church?


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Florida church shooting suspect had killed a previous wife - latimes.com

Church Shooting Leaves Pastor Injured, But One Dead | EURweb

Texas Church Shooting: 1 Dead at Northpointe Baptist Church | NowPublic News Coverage

These are just a few of the many, many shootings in churches. Scum bags see churches as easy targets. If you are going to carry, carry all the time. Bad things can and do happen everywhere and any time.
 
#14 ·
I would change the sob carry for one it slow to draw and your shirt could get hung up on your pistol. Another reason is if you fall on your rear you will dislocate your back and give yourself spinal damage
 
#15 · (Edited)
JDlewis:

Just do a quick Google search of "shootings in churches", and you'll see why people carry in church.

As far as the SOB carry, if you choose to carry in that position, try finding a holster that allows using a palm-out draw, similar to a cross-draw holster. You'll be able to draw much easier, faster and more comfortably.
 
#16 ·
I'm a firm believer in the maxim of "If you feel uncomfortable carrying, then don't" and if for you that's church, then that's fine. And yeah, maybe there's some cops, but I personally am not going to risk my life to the assumption that someone else is going to be there to protect me. I will handle that responsibility myself if given the opportunity. That and church isn't always a one stop shop. Today I went to church, then to the store, got some gas and then went home. Certainly wanted my gun for all those places too.

I don't always carry 100% of the time, I admit it, but I don't carry because I feel a place is more safe. I bet everyone in CO never would have guessed a madman would've ruined a totally epic and amazing opening night movie...but it happened.
Just my honest opinion, sorry OP for getting off topic
 
#17 ·
Well movie theater is one thing and church is another. But I understand what your saying yes I understand that a bad guy can come in and shoot up a place anytime but. But I think that the likely of it happen in a church is far less then any way were else. Church is probably the only place I have not carried into. But I dont mine carry any were else. Sign or no sign.


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#23 ·
I wish I COULD carry in church. It's attached to our school & in my state that's a felony. Makes no difference if school isn't in session. We've had 3 episodes of deranged men (non-members) that suddenly stood up & yelled at the pastor about one thing or another. They could have just as easily been armed. Fortunately they weren't. I saw people shoving their kids under the pews - myself included.
 
#25 ·
I wear one of several vests, most in leather, I leave them unbuttoned and can conceal anything worn on waist (waist, below the belly button, not the hips) with no problem. Even a Colt Python full size on my rt will conceal fine under an unbuttoned vest. My way to go.
 
#36 ·
Unfortunately, it might well take a "Luby's Cafe" style massacre at a church before the people rise up to change it.
 
#28 ·
Most of the time I appendix carry a subcompact Glock, which eliminates any printing issues when seated.
If I carry strong side IWB, I use a Blade-Tech UCH with the pistol canted forward enough that the grip doesn't extend past my side.
 
#35 · (Edited)
Regarding the posts about paranoid etc. I think Carry can become so hyper-focused that it's way beyond the frequency of dangerous events usually seen, I'd say the same for anyone practicing fire-drills daily at home, or installing two emergency brakes on their car.

I Carry when I objectively know the odds increase of danger, usually after dark. other times while I know something could happen, where I live and usually go that would be on the same likelihood of many other things I accept as highly unlikely random events none of us concern ourselves with - flash floods while driving, or picking up the Ebola virus, or the store we are in having a catastrophic fire. There's hundreds.

But with the Movie massacre it may be the OP, who is with his family, is now acutely aware of danger in crowds where we wouldn't expect a shooting. I usually Carry in a Movie Theater, but more on chance of fights if gangs show up, that kind of thing.

Anyway, just some thoughts, I bet folks that Carry are going to be quite conscious of crowded places for awhile. Who could not be, least for awhile - too bad it won't likely keep up for everybody, armed or not.
 
#37 ·
I've talked with my pastor about the issue and he has actually encouraged me to carry my firearm while present at church. Out of respect, I didn't want to carry there if it was going to be an issue (for the elders/leaders), but he's all for it. I just need to be more careful when sitting, apparently :smile:
 
#43 ·
So as I'm reading your OP I thought "library = 'government building' = gun-free-zone = you committed a crime". Fortunately I pride myself on doing my homework before opening my mouth and discovered: Recently passed bill ends gun ban at city facilities (Texas CHL)

I wish they'd pass that law in my neck of the woods.
 
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#56 ·
I carried a PM9 SOB for about a year, that holster became worn so I went with a Kydex and then started trying other positions. I never carry SOB now, 3:00 some of the time, 2:30 or so works good too (conceals very nice) if the weather permits I carry 4:00. My point? Try some other methods you might be pleasantly surprised.
 
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