Since I retired from my cop job and I only teach a couple days a month, I spend most of my days wearing gym clothes.
Most often, when I leave my house, I’m either going to the gym or going hiking. For those activities I find it exceptionally easy to carry my gun in a fanny pack.
The problem with most fanny packs is that the pull tab used to quickly access the gun is usually too small to reliably grab under stress.
Here is a quick tip for you. Attach a small flashlight to the pull tab. It hangs outside the pack. You can grab the flashlight and pull to get quick access to your gun. Plus you have an extra flashlight if you need it.
I’ve used several different lights for this purpose. The photo below shows the two fanny packs I carry most commonly.
The one on top is made by Desantis and contains my Glock 26 9mm pistol. It has an older discontinued blue photon light attached to the pull tab.
The lower bag is made by Vertx and is set up for a J-frame snubnose revolver. I have the Streamlight Pocket Mate attached to the pull cord.
The lights on both these bags make for a much more certain draw.
Some manufacturers have gotten the message and put larger pull cords on their bags. Unfortunately, some of these cords are actually too long. Take a look at the photo below.
That’s the Vertx SOCP Sling Tactical Fanny Pack set up for a Glock 19 9mm. The long cord you see comes attached to the pull tab. The cord is so long that it gets tangled in things. I prefer using the RovyVon A3 Gen 4 Keychain Flashlight instead of the pull cord.
I’ve used two other lights in this role. I really like the Olight IMini. The only downside is that this light is detachable from the keychain. You must grab the base of the light to pull open your pack. The Streamlight Nano isn’t the brightest light, but also serves the purpose well.
I don’t think it matters what you attach to your fanny pack pull tab. Just make sure you can find it easily and it provides a good grip under stress. I think a small flashlight works really well.
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