Good idea, bad idea

Readers that are about the same age as I am may remember a sketch cartoon called Animaniacs.  One of the repeating sketches in the show was called “good idea,  bad idea“.  Hit the link for a delightful Youtube compilation of the sketch if you’re not familiar with the concept.  Today at Gun Nuts, we’re going to do a little “good idea, bad idea” ourselves.

Good idea: Having a holster that allows quick access to your pocket pistol.

Bad idea: Having a holster allows quick access to your pocket pistol by leaving the trigger

Bad idea

exposed.  Meet the “Shoot Through Wallet Holster” from HolsterPro.  Aside from the fact that using this holster makes your gun an AOW, any pocket holster that leaves the trigger exposed is a bad idea.  Ever had the fabric of a pants pocket bunch up and make it hard to get your keys/pen whatever out of that pocket?  Now imagine it’s bunched up inside that trigger exposure, and when you sit down “BLAM”.

A pocket holster should never allow access to the trigger guard.  Just like you should never have any other “stuff” in the pocket that your gun is carried in, because you don’t want something to work its way inside the holster and then the trigger guard.

Galco pocket holster

That’s a proper pocket holster.  Made by our friends at Galco, it holds the gun in a proper orientation to help give a faster draw, and it also covers the entirety of the trigger guard.  For people that carry pocket guns, remember these two rules in addition to the 4 Rules:

  1. Use a holster
  2. Don’t put other junk in your gun pocket

I guess now I’ll have to add that you also should make sure that the holster covers the trigger guard.  A holster for pocket carry serves two important roles – the first role is to keep the gun oriented “butt up” so you can draw it easier.  The 2nd is to keep the trigger guard covered so your pants don’t bunch up and cause an ND.

Because the hilariously named “Shoot Through” holster fails to meet even the most basic holster safety requirement, I would strongly recommend that anyone thinking about that holster go buy a Galco or Uncle Mikes or any other pocket holster.  The Shoot Through holster is aptly named though, since you’ve have a great opportunity to “shoot through” your own leg.

18 Comments

  1. Federal firearms regulations and safety aside, how the heck are you supposed to grab and point the durn thing with that clunky holster on your gun?

    If you decide you REALLY need this holster, first you have to deal with the baloney that are the Federal NFA laws, then you take the risk of your holster allowing a negligent discharge in your pocket (Plaxico Buress, anyone?), and then, after all that, you probably couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn with it if you needed it.

    This re-defines “Epic Fail” for a new millennium.

    1. Actually if the slide is exposed it is legal look it up. I did. and also i have been using a belt clip on my ruger for years and anyone with any knowledge will never have an accident with an exposed trigger. I also use the ghost stealth gi on my glock also have never shot myself with it either..

  2. Great post. I immediately discount the opinion of any person claiming they either use or have considered using a holster like this. I discount the mfg completely for manufacturing such a turd.

  3. I pocket carred for years with a proper holster, I’m just curious what makes that Shoot through gun/holster an AOW?

  4. Many, many years ago, I had a High Standard .22 Mag. derringer that came into my possession with a leather shoot through holster (I forget the holster maker). Fortunately I traded the combo off on something more practical long before the BATFE ruled the shoot-through holsters AOW’s.

    Yes Scott, Caleb is right, they were declared AOW’s because that’s what the BATFE says they are. As an AOW it’s only a $5 transfer but you have to hassle with it like it is a $200 tranfer machinegun.

  5. The holster is a terrible idea obviously. In regards to it making the gun an AOW, the holster maker claims that because the slide is exposed, it isn’t actually an AOW. Any possible truth to that. You can see the claim in one of the videos published on his site.

    Thanks for the great blog!

  6. Bad Idea — my jaw dropped, literally.

    I mean, if that’s a pocket holster, what’s the point? May as well just put the gun in your pocket.

  7. Speaking of pocket holsters-i am always uneasy while sitting with my LCP in a pocket holster knowing that it is muzzling anyone that walks in front of me. I am infinietley more uneasy when one of my kids climbs up into my lap from that side or settles on that side.

    The holster is a DeSantis Nemesis, and I put nothing but the gun in that pocket. I’m so anal about this that when not carrying this pistol, that pocket remains empty.

    My question is, am I worrying about this too much, or is it safe to have young uns climbing on dad with the holstered heater?

  8. Ok, so the trigger is well exposed, presumably for the purpose of actually pulling it. I have to wonder what kind of shot you’re going to be able to take with that thing wrapped around your pistol. There’s no way to grip it. You would most likely muff the first shot, then follow-ups would be problematic, to say the least. And in order to be fireable, the holster exposes most of what a holster is there to cover up. And there are people that would buy this.

  9. The main idea behind that kind of holster is to break up the outline of a gun in your pocket, there was one like that made years ago called the wallet holster, it literally attempted to make any print thru look like a regular wallet in your pocket. Usually all you could count on was the first shot in the chamber as cycling was iffy at best.

    Forget the holster, but a small SA auto with an external hammer and a inertial firing pin or a transfer bar system and carry it hammer down on a loaded chamber. Thumb the hammer as you draw it out of your pocket and you are ready to go.

    Also be sure your pockets can hold the weight of your gun, damn embarrassing to have your pocket rip while walking thru WalMart and you end up kicking your gun down the isle as you walk………

    Damn flimsy pockets on some pants is sickening, dress pants and Fubu jeans are the 2 worst examples I’ve run across, they use crap thinner than a Victoria’s Secret pair of panties and expect it to hold anything heavier than bus fare change?

    Not for long buddy………

  10. Don’t be so quick to badmouth a holster maker. Galco, among many others, made a wallet holster along that line. Not in their current catalog, I see. They used to be popular with cops, but most states banned them for regular people.

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