How to Spot a Concealed Handgun

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Here in the United States many people (good and bad) carry concealed handguns (legally and not). Being aware of the indicators that someone may have a concealed weapon is a useful skill for anybody to have, not just police officers or secret agents. Now, you don't have to be all "Colonel Cooper's Combat Colors" every time you run to 7-11 to get a gallon of milk, but it does help to be aware of your surroundings and it certainly would be to your advantage to size up people when you find yourself in a stereotypical crime-wanna-happen setting (going into a relatively vacant parking garage alone, walking the street at night by yourself or with your significant other). This post isn't supposed to make you paranoid, it's supposed to raise your awareness. The more you can draw from what you're looking at, the quicker you can react appropriately. By the time a gun is in your face, it's too late to play hero. As my 6th degree black belt AFK instructor often says: "I've got world champion hands and feet... neither are faster than a bullet."

Always remember the first rule of self defense: avoid, run away or deescalate before you resort to confrontation.

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Now, for the main course:

How to Spot a Concealed Handgun​

This article was written for law enforcement officers but I think anybody interested in avoiding bad situations can learn from it:

Here’s a cool graphic from the New York Times illustrating some of the things covered above.



TFP Question:

Have you ever spotted someone with what had to have been a concealed weapon given the said behaviors? What gave it away?

I've never spotted a "criminal carry" (as I rarely spend time in high crime areas except for the few days I went to Baltimore to visit another TFPer) but I've noticed my fair share of what I assume to be civilian concealed carry permit holders out and about. The primary difference between the two, aside from the side of the law they operate on, is that legit carriers almost always have their weapon in a holster. Failure to dress appropriately (clothes too tight), wearing certain brand names (5.11, Blackhawk, gun logo or Infidel t-shirts), bending over at the waist (peekaboo muzzle) and nervous "playing with the lump" are all common problems a lot of new concealed carry permit holders have. There is a lot of paranoia involved for these people as they are worried about safety issues (will it stay in the holster?) and worried about "printing" or "being outed" (will somebody notice and make a scene?).

Further reading on the topic

 

Lots of good info there.

The only person I have ever "spotted" was a friend of mine who was carrying. The give-a-way...every time he moved his right foot forward, I heard his paddle holster squeak.

I have a CWL for my state and agree that new carriers (as I have been one) tend to "play with the lump" a lot, just to make sure it is still there or hasn't shifted.

When carrying, I always try to be conscious of the clothing I am wearing and make sure my shirts are long enough to adequately cover my sidearm with 2 or 3 inches to spare. I have only failed to do this once that I am aware of. Went to the grocery store and as I was reaching for something on the top shelf, I felt my coat and shirt rising up farther that I felt comfortable. There was only one other person on the isle, at the complete other end, so no one said anything to me, but then again a black coat, black gun, and black holster also helps to hide.

For those new to concealed carry (who don't use a purse or fanny pack) I always recommend carrying around your house (unloaded) for awhile getting used to the feel for the weapon and how it rides. Practice drawing the weapon from the holster (making sure it is unloaded first), and try several different carry positions until you find the best comfort and easiest draw. I started with middle of the back but it killed me in the car, then moved to side of the back...more comfy, but terrible for drawing. Finally got around to my side about 3 o'clock. Tried the 4 o'clock thing but kept bulging out.

Anywho...after getting used to the feeling of your gun, a good practice run would be to do the Wally Walk.

 

i've only over spotted one person. his shirt got caught when he tried to take his jacket off at a restaurant. he gave that look back like 'did anyone see that?' our table just looked over and him and chuckled.

i consciously find myself looking for ccw's on people, but never really see any that i can tell at least.

 

I've spotted a few but mostly where I would expect it (at the range). Most of the guys I've spotted weren't trying very hard to conceal. In Arkansas printing is still concealed and I've actually seen guys wear tight t-shirts to show off the fact that they were carrying. Dumb, but not much you can do about it.

 

Living in IL, you don't see anyone with a concealed weapon. Too bad. I've learned quite a bit about guns and gun accessories in the past few months due to my job.

 

I usually look for bulges, weird clips, touching the waist, tucking the shirt, or flared thumbs.

 

I've only spotted one other person CCW'ing, I was at Costco over the winter and an older gentlemen probably in his late 50's was with his wife shopping. I noticed him at first because he had a camoflauge realtree hunting baseball hat on. He was pushing the cart and I saw the bottom of his holster sticking out a bit from the bottom of his jacket. I wouldn't have noticed at all though if I wasn't also a CCW'er, would have just thought it was a blackberry holder or something.

When I first started CCW'ing I was paranoid that people might notice the bulge on my hip, but now I don't care. In reality most non-carrying people aren't looking around or even aware of their surroundings. Plus I'm lucky that WA state has legal open carry so even if it were to become exposed I would still be fine.

In general though, whenever I see someone else like me who walks around with their jacket open in the winter or is wearing too much clothing in the summer I just assume they're carrying.

 

Kung Fu grip? Who does that?

 

And I thought Costco had gun buster signs on the door.

 

I have never seen any anti-gun signs at any of the Costcos in Washington state. Heck, they sell the large gun safes and have had floor demonstrations going on of some of the smaller bed-side pistol safes. Even if they had a no-guns sign I would ignore it, the most they could do is ask me to leave the premises.

 

And revoke your membership. Don't forget that one.

I was at a Costco in Minnesota not too long ago and noticed a lack of no-guns signs there - mainly because my customers up there all have them.

 

Yes they could cancel my membership, I split the $50 cost with a relative so it costs me $25 a year. I'm not going to cry over $25.

Let's play out the fantasy situation though. From what I have read in the "open carry" type forums though, the employees in the anti-gun locations ask the customers to put the gun in their car. I would politely pretend like I am complying, and when I got to my car I would simply drive away to the other Costco location which is near my house, albeit slightly further away (Costco started in the Seattle area and there's a plethora of locations here). If they asked to see my costco membership card at anytime during the interaction I simply wouldn't show it to them. Additionally I would make sure I wasn't being tailed back to my car so they couldn't run my license plates. I would start going back the closer location after a month or so to let their memories fade.

The only potential kink in this plan is if they called the police and when the police arrive and ran my CCW permit, the employees overhear my personal information somehow.

/end of mental masturbation

 

Well, according to their rules, you have to show your card upon demand. They can hold you for trespassing if you don't, and under these circumstances, they might. Really, though, all they have to do is note who you are at purchase, run your information, and send you your cancelled membership in the mail. Since they're a membership warehouse, they get to make their own rules. If you break them badly enough, they'll just decide that they don't want your business any more and tell you to get lost.

 

-Here in WA in order to be trespassing you must be first asked to leave by the property owner or law enforcement. If you refuse, then it's trespassing. For shoplifting, yes they can detain you and wait for police to arrive, so maybe you have those two crimes confused.

-Of course they could get my information if they allowed me to complete my shopping and go to the checkout. And this would be the ideal tactic for them. However if you read the interactions that other people have had, the employees stop them while they are still in the process of shopping, so it doesn't get to the checkout stage.
--- merged: Aug 15, 2011 at 6:43 PM ---

I actually was just going through the membership agreement, and like some of open carry forums have said, there actually isn't anything against the carry of firearms, which is why I suppose some Costcos have taken down their no-gun signs.

The "restrictions" list is on page 2, and as you can see if you violate one of these conditions they will ask you to leave and possibly revoke the membership. There is nothing about detaining you for law enforcement.

http://www.costco.ca/Images/Content/Misc/PDF/MembershipConditionsRegulations.pdf

Sort of surprising that there's no taking pictures of the prices. I've done this tons of times in front of employees so I could go home and compare prices.

*Edit* I think first link is for Canadian stores, here's the USA's policies on page 15, they also do not mention anything about firearms.
http://content.costco.com/Images/Content/Misc/PDF/Member-Benefits-Costco-Services.pdf

 

I find watching boobs to be much more rewarding.

 

Ah, yes... indeed. I find getting hit high center mass with jumblies to be much more rewarding, too.

Glad to see you're back in the saddle and contributing like a champ. I was gettin' lonely here.

I look forward to next your thread... Boobs: Open Carry as a Constitutional Right.

 

This isn't 'nam. There ARE rules.

 

From the reading I have done online, Costco does not list a firearm restriction in the membership agreement. However if they catch you with a gun in the store, they will ask you to leave as it is against company policy. There is a big difference between company policy and a membership agreement.

 

Yes I have been researching it further and it does appear to be a somewhat secretive corporate policy that isn't listed on the membership agreement. I suspect they may want to keep it hush-hush as to not rile up some of the rural shoppers who are more gun-friendly, but if it's technically in their corporate policy perhaps they are using it to limit any liability that could occur from firearms.

 

Just a random little tidbit here.

Was walking around a very popular local park with the gf. I see this white dude in his 50's totally decked out in 5.11/tactiool gear. He had the 5.11 pants on, horizontal flashlight or mag holder on his belt, a long sleeve button 5.11 type 'casual' shirt tucked in, but loosely so that it was slightly baggy around the waist area. And of course sunglasses and a baseball hat.

Yeah I'm pretty sure he was carrying.