The Wandering Minstrel

I sent the CCW holster I was using with my 9mm Glock 26, “Little Boy,” back to the factory to fix the broken plastic belt clip. Since I still want to be able to CCW in Arizona, I needed an alternate carry holster. I decided to order IWB holsters with metal belt clips for both Glocks.

Clickable image - Fat Man in the new Don Hume H715-M leather holster for Glock 30

The holster for “Fat Man,” the Glock 30, .45 caliber pistol, came in the mail on Monday. I have been breaking it in since then. Break-in seemed easier this time. I guess that could be due to the holster not having a strap over the butt of the gun. Insertion and removal from the holster now seem nominal. The gun is snug in the holster but can be withdrawn with a smooth pull.

I’m also surprised at how little a difference there is carrying Fat Man compared to Little Boy. Both guns feel the same in the waistband and the latter has the advantage of extra stopping power by virtue of the 230 grain Hornady +P hollow-point ammo in the 10 round magazine.

Just after the conclusion of our latest excursion to Arizona, the belt clip on my Don Hume IWB Strike Holster failed. The Kydex thermoplastic belt clip fractured at the top of the loop where it fits over the top of my belt.

I like the holster, so I contacted the manufacturer to inquire about returning it for repair. They promptly got back to me in an email this morning with instructions for mailing it back. I dropped into our mail service store and shipped the holster back to them this morning. They should have the item by Thursday.

I decided that the tuckable feature for this holster will not generally be needed, so I ordered another IWB holster with a metal clip for “Little Boy,” my Glock 26. I also ordered the same model for “Fat Man,” my Glock 30.

Since the new holsters do not have the strap that holds the gun in, it should be easier to get the gun out of the holster. I visited a website a while back that recommended that IWB holsters should not have the strap. I’ll give it a try.

Very soon now, The Better Half and I will be in Arizona, a place where this concept is understood and accepted.

In the aftermath of the McDonald victory, Pro Second Amendment organizations gear up for more battles to be waged against anti-gun laws. Wayne LaPierre’s remarks after the 5-4 decision favoring the McDonald case seem to indicate that the NRA will begin picking off some of the more onerous gun grabbers . . .

“This is a landmark decision,” said NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre. “The Second Amendment — as every citizen’s constitutional right — is now a real part of American constitutional law. The NRA will work to ensure this constitutional victory is not transformed into a practical defeat by activist judges defiant city councils or cynical politicians who seek to pervert, reverse or nullify the Supreme Court’s McDonald decision through Byzantine labyrinths of restrictions and regulations that render the Second Amendment inaccessible, unaffordable or otherwise impossible to experience in a practical, reasonable way.”

Emphasis added.

Clickable image - The Better Half’s S&W .38 special “Rosie the Riveter” and Old Glory.

In preparing for a trip to Arizona in the not too distant future, I reviewed the prohibited carry rules at HandGunLaw.us. We wouldn’t want to unwittingly be in violation of the law, so I thought it would be important to take a look.

Here’s the prohibited places:

Places Off-Limits Even With A Permit/License

Prohibitions on carrying firearms in these venues apply to both open and concealed carry.

• Any establishment or event open to the public where the operator makes a reasonable request for you to give them custody or remove the weapon from the premises. A sign would qualify for such request. By law, cities and counties are required to offer on-site storage if they ban weapons but not all are in compliance.
• The grounds of any school, other than the parking lot. In order to be legal in the parking lot the weapon must be unloaded, and, if left in an unattended vehicle, such vehicle must be locked and the weapon out of sight.
• Commercial nuclear or hydroelectric generating stations.
• Polling places on Election Day.
• Correctional facilities (this includes the parking lot of such facilities).
• Game refuges (except during an authorized hunt).
• You can take a firearm onto school property if you follow the procedure below.

You are an adult in a vehicle and the firearm is unloaded before entering school grounds. Furthermore, if you must exit your vehicle, the firearm must remain unloaded and be secured (locked) within the vehicle, out of plain view (ARS 13-3102.I.1) Use caution and common sense if you must exit the vehicle with a firearm to secure it in the trunk (avoid causing a potentially serious disturbance)

One of our new Arizona friends told us that you could not carry within 1000 feet of a school. Since there are several schools in town (2 on a major thoroughfare) that worried me. I’m relieved to see that the rules won’t affect walking or driving past a school.

I have been reading some articles available at ShootingIllustrated.com on the general topic of in-home defense. There are three articles in particular that get you thinking about how you would go about defending your home, your property and your loved ones.

Home Defense motivational poster - clickable image.

The first article I read discusses techniques for operating your pump shotgun from a prone position. The article “Running a Pump Shotgun from the Ground” asks what would you do if you were to trip and fall or be knocked down by an assailant.

The next article I read was “Using Cover in the Home.” You might think your home is full of things that can stop a bullet, but you’d be wrong. Learn what makes for effective cover inside the home and what won’t have much effect on incoming fire.

Finally, in “Dealing With Home Invasions,” Sheriff Jim Wilson discusses methods and tactics for dealing with an armed intruder or intruders.

I spent a considerable part of the afternoon researching the whole “becoming an Arizona resident” thing. I looked into getting drivers licenses, registration plus Arizona plates for our vehicles and a number of other details about moving there. Everything I looked up seemed straightforward and should be easily accomplished on our next trip.

Image courtesy of HandGunLaw.us

I also looked into important firearms law topics including obtaining a concealed carry permit. Now, if we were always going to stay in Arizona, we wouldn’t have to get a permit since after July 29 of this year, anyone who can legally own a gun can carry concealed. The fact is, we’re going to travel a lot and since the Arizona CCW permit is equivalent or better than our Utah permit for reciprocity, we can CCW in states where it will be honored. For information on states that don’t reciprocate, we will consult the HandGunLaw.us website before traveling.

The Arizona CCW permit requires an eight-hour training session and will cost $60 for the first 5 years and $43 for each 5 year renewal. It seems ironic to me that we have to get a CCW permit and maintain it in a state that doesn’t require one, just to use it elsewhere.

Last week, I ordered this holster for my Glock 26, “Little Boy.” I had been considering carrying “Fat Man.” my Glock 30, when we go to Arizona, but I decided that the 9mm with HP rounds would be adequate. It’s also thinner and lighter than the .45 caliber pistol. I have an adjustable shoulder holster, but it’s not exactly comfortable when I carry the Glock 30 and if I wear a T-shirt, the gun prints fore and aft of my shoulder. Forget about wearing it under a tank top or muscle shirt.

So, I ordered a Don Hume IWB Strike holster custom for the Glock 26. The holster is made from cowhide leather and the belt loop is Kydex thermoplastic.

Product description:

The IWB Strike holster tuckable with a 1 1/2″ Kydex belt loop is designed as an inside the waistband that will permit a shirt to tuck between the holster and belt so as to provide maximum concealment. The holster is made of two pieces of cowhide leather for strength and durability and also features a thumb break with a safety strap.

I don’t normally tuck my shirt in, but if I ever have to wear the ol’ Sunday-go-to-meetin’ outfit, I can still pack.