Brandy Vega wasn’t exactly thrilled with the Armed Intelligentsia’s response to her last video on off-body carry. So, in the great tradition of Margaret Thatcher, Ms. Vega is back, handbagging her on-body armed antagonists. Sure, Brandy repeats a lot of the points from the first video, but she also took the opportunity to re-enact her purse draw (after I pointed out that it was a bit, uh, hesitant). As Lola is wont to say, BA-BAM! As for me, nope. I reckon the downside of losing control of your firearm with off-body carry is greater than the downside of a slower draw. Once again, your thoughts?
She can live her life anyway she wants, and enjoy the consequences, despite Evolve’s loving interference on behalf of ‘Responsible Gun Ownership’!
What does r(evolve)r (whatever the false flag is called this week) have to do with this discussion?
Same thoughts as before. It isn’t optimal and as far as I’m concerned its a very situational way to carry.
Better than nothing, but shouldn’t be a womans first choice for carrying.
Well said Ms. Vega.
Carry on.
I like ENDO’s motto: Everyday No Days Off. Is off-body carry the best option? I do not believe so. However, if off-body carry enables someone to ENDO instead of not ENDO, then I say go for it. I carry Isreali-style in a belly-band holster during the warmer months of the year. Is it ideal? No. However, it enables me to ENDO, and that’s better than not.
Just because someone exercises on-body carry doesn’t make them masters of retention or drawing. Likewise, just because it is off body doesn’t mean that retention and drawing is impossible. Sort depends upon how it is done, how it is practiced, etc. Mastery comes from how something is done, not how something is carried. Someone living in a high state of awareness – and practices either option until it is automatic – is the key, in my mind.
The odds of ever having to draw a weapon are very low. At some point, the difference between on vs. off body carry is like splitting hairs. You pay your money and pick your frame of reference. Pick the way that’s right for you. Practice your butt off. Make it all second nature.
Unless you like arguing with women, which has its own unique charms I must admit.
Whatever. As she said, at least she’s carrying…
Ultimately,there is no one answer to that question.
It’s like picking a home defense weapon when you live in New Jersey;the advice from the Wyoming commenter probably isn’t applicable.
As to her specific circumstance, I’d say she has plenty of room to pack a handgun.I’d chalk up this video to laziness, not logistics.The woman who’s 5′ nothing with a 25″ waistline has a point when she says it’s impractical to carry.Were I to offer a theory ,I’d say the woman in question just refuses to alter her fashions or put forth the admittedly taxing job of trial and error to find out what gun and holster combo works.It took me two years of searching, swapping, and horse trading before I found the “winning combo” of comptac holster + Beretta 92FS.
Also-no offense to the chunkier gun owners, but this must be said- regardless of gender, if you have a CCW permit you’d better have a gym membership card in the same wallet.While violence is common in every society, LDL cholestorol and “the diabeetus” are bigger dynamic threats then any thug or gang.
the best carry method is the one that works best for you. women have more challenges than men. if her purse is stolen, she can always whip out her boob guns like that chick in Machete Kills. I kid.
It is a fairly normal compromise to adapt one’s clothing to accommodate on-body carry. Find a cute cover garment. Guns in purses are a bad idea. Purses are stolen, dropped, rooted through, left at one’s feet out of view, etc. A gun you lose control of is worse than not having one in the first place.
-D
I’d like to make sure she has one of those boob holsters when she demos all the on body options… I AM here for the free show she was offering…
Ms. Vega
You can’t wear that purse cross body, therefore it is far to susceptible to a snatch. If your assailant approaches you from behind, grabs the purse, you have NO defense and the crook has a brand new gun. If you MUST off body carry, cross body carry of the purse is a MUST.
truth
The in-fighting “my way is better than your way”, “my training is better than your training”, “my carry method is better than your carry method” stuff needs to stop.
We have enough enemies without fighting with each other over such useless points. If women choose to carry then more power to them. Period. Who cares what method they use? Who cares the downside or hesitation or what if A happens then B would be the result BS.
We need all the numbers we can get, alienating an entire section of our population because they carry off-body (the blasphemy of it all!!!) is how you lose supporters. Just like how the hunters used to talk down to people who shot “assault rifles” and how some of you look down on open carriers. How stupid can you get? You’re killing your own cause at this point.
Amen we may not agree on carry methods caliber brand type of action etc. but we need to tone down the I’m better than you cause i (insert carry method caliber etc) and you don’t. I think we need to wake up and realize we need everyone regardless of color creed religion or carry method if we are to put up an effective resistance to those united by blind fear and rage.
Sometimes we’re needlessly harsh, but this is potentially life or death stuff for people. Our choices might directly affect our survival if we’re ever unlucky enough to get into a fight. So don’t you think a little debate and discussion over the tools and tactics we use is healthy?
It is but not to the point the .45 vs 9mm war or the concealed vs open carry thing has gotten to don’t get me wrong I love a .45 but 9mm is just as lethal. Hiding a gun under clothes is great so as not to scare gunphobes but if you don’t have the money to put into a ccp and open carry is legal goferit.
Agreed. I don’t think purse carry is optimal, but there are women in this world who keep pretty good tabs on their purses. My wife sure as he’ll isn’t one of them – she won’t keep tabs on her favorite $250 purse worth a sh!t. IV told her so many times to keep tabs on it, but she’s only marginally better.
Then again, there are women who keep track of their purses. Likewise, OC exposes the carrier to a quick snatch and grab as well. Even a gun properly looked up can be stolen. Each carry method has positives and negatives. Since that’s the case, I’m not gonna be a carry nazi. Unless its an AR in Starbucks, which is retarded.
A purse? No way. I won’t even purse my lips much less my gun.
But then again, I’m a guy.
Capital! Another debate to throw in the pile with 9mm vs 45 and semiauto vs revolver. When I first started carrying, I only pocket carried a .380 because IWB holsters and bigger guns looked uncomfortable. If I listened to you “only a full-size duty pistol IWB will do” guys, I wouldn’t have gotten accustomed to CCW and eventually moved up to carrying a subcompact 9mm IWB.
If a woman (or man) wants to carry off-body, it means little to me. My wife has declared her first CCW is going to be a .22, probably in the purse. I can respect her decision or go to the gun store and pick out a nice .357 for her. Guess which route I’m taking.
Live and let live, folks.
Debate and disagreement is what makes a horse race. If someone proposes an idea and you feel you have a valid alternate opinion it is fine for you to state your reasons and open the discussion. Perhaps you know something the other person hasn’t thought of. Perhaps they have reasons for what they do that you hadn’t thought of. It’s all about the give and take and coming up with the best possible solution.
That said, any carry is better than no carry. Maybe. IMO, a carry method that has a fair chance of the bad guy grabbing your gun and getting away before you can react is a serious problem and that “getting away” issue needs to be addressed. We like to call photog or hunting vests “shoot me first” signs. What about a woman in tight clothes with a BIG purse over her shoulder? It says just as loudly, “Steal me first.” Once that purse is in the physical possession of the thief it matters not if she left the house armed.
Two things concern me in this debate: 1) A false sense of security on the woman’s part believing she is protected when her weapon is at high risk of being lost, and 2) Once that weapon is lost the bad guy’s NEXT victim (and there will always be a next) will not be a snatch-and-run, but at the business end of your former carry piece.
And as I mentioned yesterday, if you think any purse snatcher is going to be gentle or polite about getting that bag off your shoulder you are living in a dream world. If it is hanging from your shoulder rather than semi-permanently affixed to your person you WILL lose it and take some lumps in the bargain.
If I were a handy DIY’er (which I am) and a purse user (which I am not), I would conceal thin aircraft cable inside the straps so it could not be broken or cut.
Good in theory, but not in practice.
I did that for a friend, at her request.
As she is a good friend, she forgave me when a sh¡thead dislocated her shoulder in an attempted snatch.
It’s rather like how the $6,000,000 Man would’ve need a steel spine to go with the legs and arm in order to lift heavy things without getting an owie.
Oops.
Her argument is still invalid.
She is naive if she thinks she is going to have time to stage her weapon (take purse off shoulder, open purse, get weapon out of holster and ready to draw). There are only two ways to carry that purse, either holding it by the handles, or have it hanging on your shoulder. Neither are very good for retention and make her more likely to lose her weapon to the most probable type of criminal she would face, a purse snatcher. A bag with a longer carry strap that can be draped over the head and neck as well would be a better choice for retention. There is also the matter of when the purse isn’t being carred. If she ever goes some place like a restaurant or coffee shop, I highly doubt she will keep it on her shoulder the entire time. It will probably end up either on an empty chair or on the floor next to her chair giving her zero retention of her weapon.
What it boils down to is her making excuses for a lack of effort on her part. While more difficult for some very small women, she has a body type where it would be relatively easy for her to conceal a handgun on her person if she made the effort. The problem is she either doesn’t want to put in the effort of finding a gun/holster combination that conceals well and is comfortable for her or doesn’t want to make the effort to dress around a gun.
As a contrast to her, faliaphotography on youtube has some very good videos with on-body carry for women.
It seems to me the choice for Brandy is either to not carry or purse carry. I don’t think any of us, given those choices, would recommend not carrying.
There will be some percentage of encounters in which you will not have time to stage your weapon, and some percentage in which you can stage your weapon. If you have no weapon, neither percentage makes a damn bit of difference.
Given her preference for purse carry though, I might recommend she invest in a derringer or small revolver, and an ankle holster. Lets call it a purse recovery system!
Here’s an option: get one of those purses with a built-in holster that you can access from the side of the purse by sticking your hand through a slot. Attach a lanyard to the butt of the pistol and the other end to your belt. If the purse is snatched it goes away but your pistol stays with you.
Don’t say it can’t be done, the Brits fought the whole of WW II with their pistols at the end of lanyards.
That is a great point why not purse carry but have a lanyard on you piece so if the purse is stolen the piece slips out its not perfect by any means ( gun could get caught on the purse, fail to release from holster, lanyard could break, or come undone) but better than not trying to retain the weapon better yet mount holster in a break away pocket and have the holster on a lanyard purse gets ripped away but holster stays due to the pocket ripping away.
Great point. Quite often I carry 2 firearms. I have a derringer (I really don’t like it) I carry a ruger lcp & I’ve got a few .22s in addition to the glock 19 in my purse. I change it up. But almost all of the time I’m packin 🙂 thanks for the comment!
Brandy:
You are wearing jeans in the video. Do you know how my wife carries when she wears jeans? A holster on the belt. Then she wears a blouse or shirt in the summer that covers the gun. Winter is much easier. When she wears a dress or skirt she doesn’t carry because she is at work in federal office building in DC..
Yes, I’m wearing jeans & occasionally I do that. I DO carry on the body just not as much as in my bag. I also have a shoulder holster. Winter is easier because ill keep in my hoodie or jacket! Thanks for the feedback!
As long as she maintains positive control of her purse or bag I don’t see a problem with it. Here’s an easy scenario for all you mouth breathers out there:
Bad guy says: “Hey lady, gimme all your money!”
Lady says: “Please don’t hurt me”, and reaches in her purse and pulls out, not money, but a .45 caliber Glock.
Bad guy shits himself and runs away.
Now where is this problem with a woman carrying in her purse?
Here’s an easy scenario for you:
Bad guy runs up and snatches her purse.
Bad guy now gets a free gun and whatever was in her purse.
I guess I must be the only one here who thinks that a handgun open carried in a hip holster is just as easy to snatch as a purse hung over the shoulder.
I agree with you A81.
For me this comes down to situational awareness (SA), first,
and then balancing risk vs return- where return is the comfort/practicality.
And thats very much a personal decision, that doesnt fit a one-size-fits all dogma.
For example, for me, (assuming I could get a CCW for self-defense in SoCal – right now no one can, other than a vanishing small %, due to CA’s “may issue” law and the local Sheriffs interpretation as NOT including “self-defense”),
I’d more than likely carry OWB, under a shirt/jacket, since anything IWB is going to be so uncomfortable that I might not bring it for an all day use. I’m a big guy, and dont need to be buying even bigger pants to stuff more in.
But OWB has its problems- cant take it to the beach, and IWB wont work in most shorts, and wearing a vest or large enough shirt in hot weather is a give away. Also cant use OWB riding a bike – where a fanny pack for your primary, or a pocket pad for a mouse gun makes more sense, or maybe an over shoulder messenger bag is even better.
Both IWB and OWB are NOT invisible to someone looking for a gun – and a crook smart enough or desperate enough, will be looking to disarm you.
Heres a video showing how a typical kydex holster can be stripped off from behind: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDeKtgkZKmQ
This would be an example of bad SA.
See the many examples of psychotics/ people on drugs who have near superhuman strength, and take officers guns.
http://www.oregonlive.com/beaverton/index.ssf/2013/07/beaverton_police_officer_who_l.html
Bend down or move in such a way that your gun prints,OWB or IWB, and you have the chance of being reported by a member of the public,
perhaps in a panic, such that a first responder would be ready to fire.
(see Las Vegas Costco shooting)
So its a trade off of risk vs return for the likely situations you might envision.
If Ms Vega feels the risk of a purse-snatching is low, and the cost of carrying on-body is higher, in terms of discomfort, loss of concealment, etc- then thats her decision and by virtue of her training and practice, I’d say she’s probably better qualified than most on the internet to hold that informed opinion. I would probably do same in her shoes, if I had confidence in my SA.
Nick…thank you! I agree 🙂
Doing an unwise thing well doesn’t make it a wise thing.
Get a holster, even if it limits your fashion choices.
Gee, Ms. Vega, butt hurt much? When you do a video and put in on THE INTERNET, you open yourself up to criticism.
If you can’t take it, don’t make videos.
Oh Chas…I can take the heat! Not butt hurt at all 🙂 it’s just a good ole back & forth! Everyone has an opinion. I’ve been doing tv for over 15yrs I’ve got a thick skin!
Comments are closed.