You have some preconceived notions about holsters that you need to get rid of!! Shoulder holsters for guys are nice if you're in a Miami Vice episode, but not so good in real life. Guys have wide chests, which really makes EASILY reaching for the gun almost impossible, and there is the problem that in summer months this approach won't work at all. Swapping holsters (or guns) for self defense is not a good idea, as if TSHTF, you'll be running on adrenaline and muscle memory and grabbing for your armpit in the summer when the gun is on your hip. On the other hand, shoulder holsters for women can be a very good approach, as women have small rib cages, and can EASILY reach across and draw a gun. In addition, women have the advantage of the "camouflage factor"
or more properly misdirection factor, and with a good push-up bra and just the right number of buttons undone, the woman can have a Smith 500 in a shoulder holster and no guy will EVER see it! Seriously!!
Three choices are pocket holster (P226 is too big for that) IWB (Inside the waist band) and OWB (outside the waist band) belt holsters. Cop duty holsters are all OWB with various retention features, which if you're carrying concealed are not absolutely necessary. Under a shirt or T-shirt an OWB holster will "print" WAYYY more than an IWB holster, which will make you paranoid until you get used to carrying (like 6 months or more) and realize that nobody notices and you don't give a rat's behind (Sorry Rodentman...) if they do.
Attitude is all-important, and if you're nervous and paranoid people WILL pick up on that. If you really don't give a rat's behind (hey!! Got some fresh green sour apple SweeTarts from Fleet Farm!!!) if the whole EFFEN world sees the gun, you can walk through large crowds and maybe 5% of the people will actually see the gun. I know, because I did it for several years at the Lake Harriet OC picnics at the bandshell on Sunday afternoon among all the yuppies and soccer moms when Joel Rosenberg was organizing those picnics. Those who saw 35 people all having a picnic with guns everywhere assumed it was a cop picnic and ignored it.
I use an IWB holster with a 1 3/4" web belt, and a fairly tight pair of pants, which is counter intuitive, and carry a full size 1911 that's a 50 caliber. (Google "Guncrafters") The belt and the snug pants moosh the grip into my love handles, so half the frame just disappears, and with an untucked t-shirt this cannon is flat out INVISIBLE. Wilson's used to have a leather sale at the Fairgrounds every fall, and you could get great deals on leather jackets if you kept looking. The place was of course posted, and I of course said "so what", and walked between a St. Paul cop and a Renta cop who were 5 feet apart and checking people out wearing an untucked turtleneck, and they never saw a thing. Tried on leather coats for an hour, and found a nice aviator's 2XL Long coat for like 20 cents on the dollar.
My daughter was with me, she had no idea I had the hardware on, and freaked out when I hauled out the ordinance in the car after we were out of there, and she knew I carried almost all of the time.
My carry gun always goes in the same spot. Muscle memory will save my butt in the event I need to draw whatever is there. Practice, Practice, Practice!
