I begin this piece understanding full well that someone is going to get their feelings hurt. That being understood it has been my lot in life to be the one who tells the Emperor that he is naked. Quite often, the Emperor does not wish to be so informed and is greatly annoyed by the audacity of the reporter. Nonetheless, I did not begin this journey as a politician seeking to win a popularity contest.
Gun Clips
The topic of this piece has nothing to do with the misuse of the term “magazine” by neophytes and outsiders. When I speak of gun clips I am referring to the spring-steel device mounted to a handgun in order to allow it to be “clipped” to clothing in some fashion thus negating the use of a holster or scabbard.
Gun clips are not new. I would have thought their novelty would have going the way of the .41AE and become a quaint memory. I was recently reminded that there is still a push to so enable handguns with these cloth-ripping, paint-scratching devices.
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The following is are my Top 3 Reasons to avoid gun clips, beginning with number three.
#3 Snagging and Scratching
It is your life, live it like you wish. Spring-steel clips on firearms can and will fray and snag your clothing. While your clothing might be easy to replace, you may soon find yourself leaving the gun behind for lack want of to a nice pair of slacks or skirt.
Any spring-steel clip on your body is likely to scratch objects (your new car’s paint) and snag on seat belts. If your flashlight or pocket knife snags on the seat belt and pulls out it is annoying and inconvenient. If your handgun snags on the seat belt or arm of a chair and falls out, the situation becomes a bit more dicey, particularly in a public place.
#2 Sweating and Shifting
A naked gun placed directly against the body is going to be exposed to more perspiration than a holstered gun, there is no getting around that fact. Perhaps you are a saint and you clean and oil your carry gun weekly, congratulations. Most folks don’t have the inclination. Also, few humans can go about their daily lives comfortably with a pound of aluminum and steel pressing directly against their body. Sure, an hour or two might not be an issue, but how about a ten to twelve-hour day?
While the clip secures the handgun from effects of gravity, it does not keep the gun from shifting forward and backward as your body moves. Are you going to avoid bending, squatting, stretching or lifting all day long in order to keep your clipped gun from moving? Or will you find yourself constantly “fixing” or “adjusting” your clipped gun?
#1 Cover the Trigger, Cover the Trigger, Cover the Trigger
For the love of all that is holy, if you going to carry a firearm on a daily basis, you need to cover the trigger. The list of negligent discharges by people carrying guns naked in their waistbands, pockets, and purses in long. Whether the culprit is an errant finger, a foreign object, clothing or fashion accessory, naked guns too often end up discharging because the trigger was not protected.
Gun clips are a prima facie indicator of someone who in not genuinely serious about being an armed citizen. The gun clip is a tempting accessory as it seems oh so convenient. If you are armed citizen you need to be committed to being an armed citizen.
Convenience or lack thereof leads to poor choices. The moment it becomes “inconvenient” people will leave their guns home. Gun clips are cool add-ons for the hobbyist or occasional gun-toter. If you are serious about being an armed citizen, part of the plan it to secure a quality holster or gun scabbard. Your carry gun should have the trigger covered until needed and be kept securely in place without shifting.
P.S. Still don’t believe me? Take your pistol with a spring-steel clip to a training class and run a day’s worth of shooting drills. I’ll have a box of band-aids standing by.
Professor Paul Markel
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Amen!
I’m relatively new to the firearms camp and I have to say this…… clipping a bare gun to my body sounds unsafe and not smart even with my short history of urban carrying.
And if my common sense wasn’t apparently already in tact, the SOTG discussions sure have made this column’s advise very clear to me with the examples, logic and decades of experience one can glean from tuning into the show.
Ready for the next pearl………keep em coming
Good Job Paul, that needed to be said and thanks to SOTG even a NEWBEE (which we ALL are one way or another) understands!!
WUA, you have taken the Pebble from Master PAUL’S Hand, it is time for you to Go ( & TRAIN and be a FOREVER STUDENT).
Roger that Muncy! I’m heading out to my range later today to re-up for another year & have a quick session:) Quick, because right now it’s 26º !! And don’t worry, I am a Student for Life and have also been working hard to help wake folks up on our 2nd Amendment battle. Here in Oregon it’s about to rage. Sadly, we were not a part of the beautiful Red Map of the recent election results, but we are still in the fight. Let’s hope the RINO’s don’t screw it up in 16.
HUA!!!
All good points. How do you feel about clip mag holders (snagmag)?
never owned one and after reading this never will! good advice!
I completely agree. People in general should have had enough of clips by now, ever have a cell phone clip snag? How about a knife clip snag? Or a tape measure?
Common sense today seems to be so rare as to be considered a super power. So rare that I could not make a living selling capes . . .
Pure speculation but I would bet that the woman in Idaho probably didn’t have her gun in a holster so her two year old was able to shoot her.
No but hurt, but I use gun clips for pocket carry, with a appropriate pocket holster of course.
Good Job Paul, that needed to be said and thanks to SOTG even a NEWBEE (which we ALL are one way or another) understands!!
WUA, you have taken the Pebble from Master PAUL’S Hand, it is time for you to Go ( & TRAIN and be a FOREVER STUDENT).
Roger that Muncy! I’m heading out to my range later today to re-up for another year & have a quick session:) Quick, because right now it’s 26º !! And don’t worry, I am a Student for Life and have also been working hard to help wake folks up on our 2nd Amendment battle. Here in Oregon it’s about to rage. Sadly, we were not a part of the beautiful Red Map of the recent election results, but we are still in the fight. Let’s hope the RINO’s don’t screw it up in 16.
HUA!!!
Amen!
Pure speculation but I would bet that the woman in Idaho probably didn’t have her gun in a holster so her two year old was able to shoot her.
All good points. How do you feel about clip mag holders (snagmag)?
I completely agree. People in general should have had enough of clips by now, ever have a cell phone clip snag? How about a knife clip snag? Or a tape measure?
Common sense today seems to be so rare as to be considered a super power. So rare that I could not make a living selling capes . . .
I’m relatively new to the firearms camp and I have to say this…… clipping a bare gun to my body sounds unsafe and not smart even with my short history of urban carrying.
And if my common sense wasn’t apparently already in tact, the SOTG discussions sure have made this column’s advise very clear to me with the examples, logic and decades of experience one can glean from tuning into the show.
Ready for the next pearl………keep em coming
never owned one and after reading this never will! good advice!