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This poll is designed to find out the most popular Sweet Spots Around....Now we can talk gun we can talk knife...bottom line is if it's not comfortable to wear, for some: if it's not easy to conceal, if it's not quick on the draw stroke, if it's not user friendly and or convenient to use....chances are you will leave that gun or knife home....So....I'm talking about the stuff we tote around with us...Now adding steel hardware to your body is not as easy as Iron Man makes it look...We have different body types and we all come in different sizes and shapes. We all wear different styles of clothes and we all have specific and different needs for our Steel and how we will use them. Putting all that aside, this poll concerns itself with the sweet spot, that perfect favorite place or places on your body or off that makes your steel not only comfortable to have or wear, easy to conceal, quick on the draw stroke and convenient to use. Feel free to comment, post some pics of those sweet spots (no exposed beer belly or Groin pics please) Knife and Gun People may reply to this poll,(maybe flashlight people too) I'm only giving you three choices so we can get some more focused and pointed results, so pick your most often used favorite sweet spots and tell us why it works for you.....Doc :cool:

I had to put down "other", Doc, as there was no option for "pocket carry (inside, not clipped)". I've carried a knife that way in my left back pocket most days for over sixty years, so it's either comfortable, or I'm a glutton for punishment.

As for handguns, if I'm totally honest, I've yet to find a "sweet spot", at least not one that works year round. Probably because, for me at least, there's a completely different set of parameters involved between carrying a tool I use nearly every day and a weapon I hope I will never need to use. Love my A.E. Nelson shoulder holster, but it doesn't work well when it's 95º and all I have on is a t-shirt and a pair of cut off jeans. Pocket carry is about the only viable option then. It's fine while walking, but not ideal when driving.

Riding on the outside seam of my pocket- Jeans, dress trousers and TDUs
Riding on the inside seam of the thigh pocket- BDUs and cargos shorts

I had to pick other because all my pockets are accounted for and play a specific role. RFP is always knife, LFP is always cell phone. RRP is always wallet, and sometimes my flashlight next to it, LRP is keys tucked in hanging from a belt loop, and then sometimes a bandana depending on what I'm doing. There's not much room for variation.

Here in Canada we are not permitted to carry a weapon (for defense or offense) but have very few restrictions on tools. Right front pocket against the seam. Have been carrying there for so long if I change I still go to that spot first.

Cargo pocket. Inside. Clipped.

I picked pocket carry (inside, clipped) and neck for my knives because those are my primary knife carry locations; also in pocket sometimes. There's always a knife on my key chain, as well.
Inside the waistband appendix carry for my concealed handgun. A choice that was heavily influenced by range of motion issues with my shoulders. I can carry a gun inside the waistband at 4 o'clock. Just can't draw it from that position.

The Deacon wrote:I had to put down "other", Doc, as there was no option for "pocket carry (inside, not clipped)". I've carried a knife that way in my left back pocket most days for over sixty years, so it's either comfortable, or I'm a glutton for punishment.

As for handguns, if I'm totally honest, I've yet to find a "sweet spot", at least not one that works year round. Probably because, for me at least, there's a completely different set of parameters involved between carrying a tool I use nearly every day and a weapon I hope I will never need to use. Love my A.E. Nelson shoulder holster, but it doesn't work well when it's 95º and all I have on is a t-shirt and a pair of cut off jeans. Pocket carry is about the only viable option then. It's fine while walking, but not ideal when driving.

Hi Paul, Sorry for not being clear but what I meant by the first option Pocket Carry Inside, Clipped is meant to read (Inside the pocket loose or un-clipped and or Clipped to the pocket itself either inside or outside. I also set this poll up so you could go in and change your votes so please feel free to do so.....For me I carry a lot of steel, but my sweet spots are the Pocket Clipped and Pocket Loose, Strong Side behind the hip and Cross draw in front of the hip...Doc:)

FRP for the knife. For a long time I carried FLP, but realized I was always deploying the knife then immediately switching hands with it, so I reorganized my pockets to adapt to the Spydie being front right (on the outside corner of the pocket)

At first glance, I was thinking "Wow, that's kind of a personal question, Doc." Then I read your post and realized what you meant by "sweet spot..." (Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Sometimes I am too facetious for my own good). :o

Back on topic:

I chose 1, 3, and 7 on your poll (which is also in order of my carry preferences). My #1 "sweet spot" is carrying a knife loosely in my RFP (usually a Dragonfly2). This is mainly because I work in a healthcare setting (desk job), wear dress pants, and am otherwise restricted from carrying my knife clipped/exposed due to company policy. :rolleyes: I also carry a small knife loosely in my LFP (such as a Manbug). On weekends/vacations, I carry a larger knife (Native, PM2, Delica, etc.) or even a "special" model (Kris, Phoenix, Centofante II, Starmate, etc.) clipped or loosely in my RFP. I used to carry a larger knife (Starmate) at about 5 o'clock clipped in my waistband, but this was never very comfortable for me so I seldom use this method anymore.

I believe it was over 20 years ago when I first discovered knives with pocket clips. I've carried using clips almost exclusively ever since.

Almost always a knife on my key chain and I usually carry clipped inside the RFP. The pistol goes behind my right hip. :D

Oops!

Standard clipped right front pocket in the corner. I bought some shorts this summer and my knife would not sit comfortable in the pocket. I moved it to the back pocket. I could not get used to it. I kept going to the right front pocket first. I bought new shorts!

I always thought that pockets are made to carry knives :)

bh49 wrote:I always thought that pockets are made to carry knives :)

They Weren't??? :D

I am still trying to decide my three best choices. One problem is that my comfort sweet spot, appendix, is not very concealable, at least not with serious-sized firearms*, though I do have a Raven Concealment ACR en route, and will soon acquire a G26, to test the theory one more time. I am lean enough for appendix IWB to be comfortable, but anything carried there will print against the cover garment. Fortunately, enough folks carry electronic gadgets nowadays, so printing is not the liability it once was, at least not for square-cornered objects.

My reflexive (training-conditioned) sweet spot is 0300, because my duty pistol has ridden there since 1983, and rather than fight nature, I will normally carry in the same place during personal time. I am left-handed, but right-armed, and functionally amdidextrous with most handguns; drawing a heavy S&W L-frame from the then-issued low-ride swivel duty rig was very much a whole-arm gross motor skill, and the right arm has more elbow room inside most vehicles than the left arm, so carrying right-side seemed the wiser choice during my academy training, and I saw little reason to change when issued/mandated holsters became more sensible, and duty handguns became lighter and more compact.

When I retire from policing, which may be as soon as early next year, my "primary" carry placement may migrate toward appendix, if I can sort-out the concealment issue. One consideration may be dual appendix, which would balance/even-out the slight bulges. Another consideration would be to carry a serious blade at appendix, rather than handgun. This would be especially applicable at "left" appendix, while a handgun occupies the right-side appendix spot.

A major weakness of a clipped-in knife is the clip snagging on things, which can cause the knife to be pulled from the pocket by anything from vines, branches, straps, dog leashes, a seam at the hem of a cover garment, to, one time, the edge of a vehicle's wheel well, which destroyed a Mili's pocket clip. (The clip, itself, was merely bent, but one screw hole was stripped, making it pointless to try straightening the clip.) Inside the pocket, usually surrounded by some type of pouch or sheath, has become a favored means of carrying folders, though I continue to carry an Assist or Rescue clipped-in, balancing the need to quickly access an emergency tool, with the risk of loss.

Another carry method for blades, is a belt-mounted sheath/scabbard, for both fixed and folding blades. Depending upon belt width, I may use a kydex sheath made by either River City Sheaths (Mike Sastre) or Survival Sheath Systems (Robert Humelbaugh) to tote a Gunting, as the Gunting's ramp is ever-ready to partially open the knife unintentionally, so I prefer the security of a sheath to keep it closed, in addition to the extra security of a sheath over clipped-in pocket carry.

I have used pocket holster carry for handguns, up to the Ruger SP101 in size, usually in a Kramer pocket holster. The dynamics of a fight can make access to a pocket problematic, so I have not liked my only handgun to be inside a pocket. As age-related and over-use injuries have made recoil painful, I have drifted away from the small, relatively powerful handguns that I have carried in pockets.

I used ankle rigs in the past, finally settling upon the Alessi as the most comfortable. My lefty Alessi rig for the quite heavy SP101, however, finally failed the "stomp test," so I discontinued routine use of Alessi ankle carry. I can still run with an SP101 in that rig, as running causes less inertia stress than a downward kick or "stomp," but as a downward kick could occur during a defensive fight, loss of the weapon is a concern.

So, ankle carry is no longer a "sweet spot" for me, though I now have an Alessi rig for my Seecamp pistol, and for the G26 I plan to buy soon, so ankle carry for a secondary/tertiary weapon may well be in my future. While seated, such as when driving, the ankle is easily accessible, and there are other scenarios that might render an ankle easier to reach than one's other weapon.

Another idea is to sew, screw, or rivet a magazine pouch, and/or knife sheath, to the Alessi SP101 ankle rig that I no longer fully trust, to give a second life to the rig. I would not want my only spare mag, or only blade, to be at ankle level, but accessibilty options are a good things, especially as so many defensive scenarios could involve being on the ground, or croughing behind low cover.

Well, this post is starting to become a book, so I will close for now.

*"Serious-sized" firearms, to me, fire duty/service cartridges, and have gripping areas that allows a firm grasp and "normal" trigger reach. Thanks to my fingers being thin, especially my ring and pinkie fingers, a long grip is not necessary, but I like a substantial grip volume, and would rather not have to crook my trigger finger "just so," for a too-tiny weapon.

RexGig0: I carry almost exclusively at the appendix position. The photo above shows how it looks with an M&P Shield and a spare 8 round magazine under my single T-shirt. I have used a number of holsters in the appendix position including the G-Code Eclipse, Cook's adjustable clip appendix model, pjholster's kydex appendix, Minotaur, Blade-Tech, Remora and D.M. Bullard. They all look about like the photo, except for the Bullard which had a snap-on belt loop which tends to poke out a bit. I'd opt for a metal clip with the Bullard if you like leather.

I've also carried a Ruger SR9c, which is a double-stack magazine pistol in the appendix position with just a light shirt. No one has ever been the wiser. I think 'civilians' are basically oblivious to printing.

Good luck with finding a holster that suits you. I think the advantages of appendix carry as a concealment and quick access method outweigh others.

Might want to check out Thunderware.....or something similar...Yup it's a groin holster, double slotted You decide Hundgun butt direction....(Nylon waistband unit with velcro)I have carried dual Ruger Sp101 comfortably to the beach wearing swim shorts..(warning: does drive the wife crazy)..that said you can lift the holster up to appendix carry where the butt of the gun is just beneath the waistline (for shirt tucked in or raise it up above the waistline for a T-shirt concealment...In any case it's one of my most comfortable carry positions, but I always seem to go back to my strong and weak side carrys for some familiar reason......Doc:)

In all honesty it depends if I am carrying a gun or not. Or if I am carrying more than one knife (happens most of time). Or what knife I am carrying, For instance I will carry my gun, a pac salt and an endura differently than I will just a sage 1. Weather and clothes can make a difference as well.