i am considering buying a jacket with a built in holster. the brand is coronado leather.

http://www.coronadoleather.com/view.aspx?i=142&c=1&p=0

it seems like a really good idea as you will never see the holster and can remove your jacket and not expose your gun. i was wondering if anyone has any experience with this brand or style of holster. it would not be perfect for all year but i think it would be a good compliment to an IWB. i appreciate your help!!

I think it's kind of a clever idea; I think a cloth vest like this might be a good alternative in hot weather.

My only concern would be the garment "flopping"; it almost seems like you'd want a shoulder holster-like set of strraps on the inside to provide primary support for the firearm so there'd be no flopping and perhaps to keep the garment balanced. It'd be less of a concern with a heavier, full jacket and/or a smaller, lighter gun.

But it kind of also begs the question why you wouldn't have someone sew in a strong mounting point to an existing coat and use an IWB, or just wear a vest with your existing holster. The site seemed a little thin on details about what makes their carry system better than just modifying an existing coat.

And under what circumstances would you actually remove your coat and leave your gun in it? That sounds like a questionable proposition except in a few small circumstances.

By "flopping" do you mean just swinging back and forth? The page says there's a ballistic nylon panel in it that would probably provide some structure. I'd be more concerned with the front of the jacket rising up along with the gun if I ever had to draw it, since there's not much anchoring the bottom.



None, as long as you get a really good haircut in October that will last till spring.

I've never tried the jacket, but I do have one of their vests, and like it quite a lot. I'd like it better if it was longer -- my combination of a longish torso and a largish belly makes it just a little short -- but it's really quite good, and conceals quite well.

The only problem I would have with the jacket is that it compounds the issue of what to do when you take off the concealing garment -- in this case you have to deal with the problem of there being a gun inside the concealing garment. What do you do with it, then?

I've used concealment vests in the past, and still do. The flopping has not, in practice, been a problem -- but the question of what to do if/when you take the vest off with the handgun inside most certainly is.

I have had a Coronado Leather jacket (Classic American) and found it warm, comfortable and effective in concealment. The only advice I would pass on would be to order the jacket a little larger than the directions on the web site give you. I found it a bit snug...and no, I did not expand beyond what I measured at the time