I live in Northern Lower Michigan and going to deer camp in our Upper Peninsula for a few weeks. Not grizzlie country but we do have wolves and cougars. I decided to carry my S&W Shield 10mm. I do have my CPL so I'm legal. Looking for advice regarding best carry practices and holster recommendations. I did a quick search and didn't find any relative threads regarding this info. Thanks in advance and God bless!
Advice for carrying side arm while deer hunting
- Thread starter riprau
- Start date
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When i archery hunt I carry a razco chest holster that attaches to my bino harness. I haven't found an acceptable way to carry a pistol on my belt or my pack that isn't annoying. It's either uncomfortable under the pack belt or less than desirable on the pack belt. I find my pistol gets trashed on the pack belt and about the only thing that is on my person all day without removing (accept for maybe shedding a layer or doing some paperwork) is my bino harness. And what good is a pistol if it's not on you at all times.
Thanks for responding. I just switched to the Kuiu Pro bino harness so maybe I can find an option there. I agree that it needs to be readily available or why bother?
med358-boise
Well-Known Member
A lot is going to depend on how you hunt and what your wear. Day pack? full size pack? stand hunt? still hunt? Carry your rifle via a sling - right side? left side?
I wear a large, backpack style fanny pack. I plan to stand hunt in the blind early in the day and then still hunt several hours. I use a sling usually on the left side. My first lite clothing has several pockets but I would rather have a dedicated holster.
brcfo_outdoors
Well-Known Member
I like carrying on the pack belt because I find it easiest to access and I have some amount of muscle memory from other shooting disciplines. If I am hiking in far I don't have my bino harness on because it is extra pressure directly on my lungs that I don't need. Adding extra weight to that seems counter intuitive to me. I tried a Kenai chest holster too, and there is no way I can make a kydex holster directly on my sternum comfortable. If you are carrying a small enough handgun a mount that goes under your bino harness might be ok, but the ones that mount behind it I would avoid for the same reason. The grip on my Sig P220 is somewhat aggressive and does pill the sleeve on my jacket, but I buy things to use them so its part of the hobby. Everyone's mileage may vary.
TonyRumore
Well-Known Member
While hunting, I prefer a shoulder holster.
Tony
Tony
memtb
Well-Known Member
I prefer a "cross chest carry for any handgun carry……except for concealed carry! memtb
med358-boise
Well-Known Member
Not sure how wide the belt is on your "backpack style fanny pack' or if it also has shoulder straps. From what you have described, it seems you already have a bino harness on your shoulders and may have straps from your fanny pack over your shoulders. Adding a third set from another chest rig or shoulder holster could be problematic. Plus your shield is going to be over 2 lbs when loaded that may be a lot to comfortably add to your bino harness.
If the belt on your fanny pack rides low enough, you might consider, a IWB on your right side if the fanny pack belt does not interfer with access.
If the belt on your fanny pack rides low enough, you might consider, a IWB on your right side if the fanny pack belt does not interfer with access.
Last edited:
TRG65
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- Dec 21, 2017
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I use a holster attached to my bino holders for my S&W 329. It does shift a bit when I draw with only one hand and makes the draw a bit inconsistent. But if one hand grabs the holster/bino pouch and the other draws, it works very nicely. I've found this works best with a backpack that has a hip belt.
Bob Wright
Well-Known Member
My buddies carry a thigh holster supported by the waist belt and thigh straps. It's a pretty good way of clearing bino packs and back packs.
JJMoody
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LDHunter
Well-Known Member
I have a nice Galco leather shoulder holster I used to carry my Glock 20 10mm with but honestly I started feeling it was pretty silly because any rifle I carried for medium or large game was more than enough to fend off anything short of a charging grizzly. The feeling of being overly burdened by gear when hunting quickly left me feeling like a wannabe when I hunted since 90% of that gear almost never got used and I didn't like feeling like a pack mule.
I quickly figured out that water, food, extra ammo, a simple first aid kit including snake bite kit (I'm in the south) and some compact binoculars were about all I needed to carry. If I was going to be very far away from roads there was more I'd add but really a handgun was deemed to be something totally unnecessary.
I quickly figured out that water, food, extra ammo, a simple first aid kit including snake bite kit (I'm in the south) and some compact binoculars were about all I needed to carry. If I was going to be very far away from roads there was more I'd add but really a handgun was deemed to be something totally unnecessary.
