Horizontal Mag pouches - where to carry?

[fastk9dad]

I like the idea of a horizontal mag pouch as it could be more comfortable and easier to conceal. I've seen people wear them strong side (right handed) at 1-2 o'clock, but that seems like an unnatural reach and could be hard to get to laying down or kneeling. And forget about it in a car with your seat belt on. I'm thinking 7-8 o'clock for a righty might be a better choice. It would allow grabbing the mag from all postions and possible even belted in a car seat. If there is one with an adjustable cant or just slightly off horizontal might make the removal even easier.

Thoughts? Anyone have anything like this?

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Beachbumcook]

I tried a horizontal carry pouch for 2 days and sent it back due to not likeing it.

Why....

1) If I wore it on my weak side, it was un-natural to open cover and pull magazine out... and if I pulled hard enough, the pouch would pull/slide forward on my belt (LEO's use belt keepers top keep things in place and from moving and sliding).

2) If I wore it on my strong side (in front of my firearm) for easy reach, it to slid along my belt when I grabbed for it... or it became just too much to wear on one side and hindred my ability to reach into my pants pocket (weight was also an issue).

I am looking for a verticel carry, single, magazine pouch that will fit my firearm pouch. I want a duty pouch that snaps shut and will protect the magazine fully from bumps and stuff and look like a "knife sheath" if someone were to accidently see it.

I will wear it on my weak side and the motion of drawing the magazine in an upwards motion will not allow for the pouch to "slide" on my belt... so it will stay put.

I personally only wear 1-1/2" reinforced gun belts... and duty gear is designed for belts up to 2" and/or 2-1/2"... but I will take my pouch to a local show repair guy and have him stitch the "belt loop" smaller so it will not ride/slide up when I draw the magazine out of the pouch.... basically I want the "loop" to only fit a 1-1/2" to 1-3/4" belt since this is all I wear.

I am buying the Safariland Duty holster line (plain black with chrome snap) which starts with their model number "76" which is for the single pouch design.

Good luck,

[ksholder]

I don't have horizontals, but do wear my mags at the 7-8 o'clock position. That works well.

[snakatack]

I wear a horizontal and like it. Wear it about ten o'clock, bullets down with the magazine releasing to the rear. The belt loop on my jeans keeps it from moving rearwards when extracting a magazine.

[HotGuns]

The horizontal mag is best worn at the 10 to 11 position, IF you are right handed. It facilitates a rapid reload and thats the reason that many LEO's choose to carry in that manner. When the gun is in the strong hand, the off hand can unsnap,snatch and pull the mag forward. With a simple turn of the gun hand it can be done in one smooth motion and with practice it can be done very quickly.
Wearing a couple of mags on the off side of the gun will make it more comfortable to wear after a long day as it tends to balance out the weight of the gun.

Wearing a couple of high caps on the same side as the gun puts one at a disadvantage in a quick reload and will have one walking with a list to starboard at the end of the day.

[retsupt99]

I don't have horizontals, but do wear my mags at the 7-8 o'clock position. That works well.

Same for me...

[luke213]

I personally don't care for horizontals might be my size and build but I can't seem to conceal them anywhere. I got a special request back maybe 8 months ago for some that I built out for a guy. He loved them, but I built some testing versions for my 1911 before I built his order and I still have them but they just plain don't work for me. I've tried them again recently and same result just too hard for me to conceal, I'll take my double IWB 1911 mag carrier any day of the week. Comfortable and super concealable.

Like I mentioned though the guy who got them really liked them so to each his own;) I also like being able to hang some weight off my weak side to be able to balance my load on my belt a bit more, works allot better for me with all day carry.

Take care!

Luke

[muddy]

I carry mine at the 8 to 9 position behind my Fox foam also in an elastic horizontal holster. For bigger guys its more comfortable to carry the mag horizontal so it doesn't dig into the soft belly. Horizontal dose take up more belt room.

[tmoore912]

I wear horizontals and like them. I find I can conceal them better and they are more comfortable. I wear them about 10 O'Clock. Mine are bullets up.

[trev869]

Tmoore-I like that holster. On duty I carry horizontal mags located around my 1 to 2 o'clock position. This allows me to be able to "get small" and reload fast with my body tucked in for a tactical shootout. It keeps the total reach and reload movement to a minimum. Off duty I prefer vertical mags somewhere on my weak side. This spreads the weight out and makes it more comfortable. Horizontal mags tend to move a lot if you do not wear belt keepers. If you get some that have a snap top then you could loosen the retention so it doesn't move much. If you use open top then you will have to keep the retention tight and it will move when removing the magazine. Don Hume makes some great vertical magazine pouches and Safariland makes some good horizontal ones.