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Posted: 5/22/2026 9:26:20 AM EDT
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I've carried AIWB for several years and have experimented with various holsters, wedges, pillows, ride heights, and belt setups. I'm curious what experienced AIWB carriers still find uncomfortable despite today's premium holster options. Specifically: - What causes the most discomfort? - What have you tried to fix it? - What worked? - What didn't? - What compromises do you currently accept to maintain concealment and retention? Looking for honest feedback from people who carry regularly. |
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I'm not lazy, I just really enjoy doing nothing.
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I still have a problem with large guns (G19 size and up). It's just to much bulk to be comfortable, not even worrying about printing issues. WML is just out completely unless it's very compact (like a TLR6). With smaller subcompact guns (G26 and smaller), I think there are solutions to every problem. It's just a lot of trial and error to get there. It's unique to every person, and every different holster. You also get into a one fix causes another problem loop. For one thing, I cannot stand the hard surface and edges of kydex pressing against me. Pillows, soft wedges and padding help but you can't pillow the whole holster or you get back to the bulk problem. So I solved that problem with a hybrid holster (Kydex with a leather backing). But I won't trust that with anything with a light and short trigger and I don't want a manual safety on any defensive gun. So I require a DAO or DA/SA gun, which is a class of gun that is mostly considered obsolete and no longer produced in subcompact form. So I can't always make any gun and any holster work. For me it's pick a gun size (subcompact best for me), find the right holster, then find the right specific gun for me and that holster. And then you're still always going to do some trial and error with positioning clips, claws, wedges and all that. |
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Jmcustom and tenicor tend to work pretty well. I recently got a ronin leather aiwb and its very comfortable. Attached File Attached File |
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I would rather have leather but I'm ok with what I have, a Galco nylon AIWB Tuck-N-Go. I am left handed so the choices are pretty limited. Not so good when I don't wear a T-shirt. Pretty good otherwise. |
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Gun control is literally Hitler.
Trump's actions? Watergate does not bother me, does your conscience bother you?
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One of the biggest issues I have seen with folks who can't make AIWB work is obesity. It isnt my intention to be a dick in a technical forum, but body shape really does affect holster choices. At 5'11", 185, Im the heaviest I have ever been. In the last 20 years I have AIWB'd just about every sized gun short of a Desert Eagle. The only one I legit could not make work was the Glock 17L because it would poke me in the grapes when I sat down. In the right clothes, I can AIWB a Mojave 45 attached to a USP Compact 45 while standing, I just can't sit. I regularly carry a full sized, steel frame 1911, Beretta M9, 17,and 19. My p365 can be hidden in almost every outfit and the LCR with Hamre Forge grips disappears in my UDT shorts and a tank top. Claws/wings help, wedges help, choosing a holster that puts the clip over the trigger and not the widest part of the holster, making a flatter profile helps, a good belt helps, dressing around it helps.None of it will matter if the wearer has a prodigious paunch and wears pants on the hip like Sidney Sweeney. I didnt see this mentioned and it isnt meant to be a dig, but size matters. |
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Originally Posted By gunmonkey: One of the biggest issues I have seen with folks who can't make AIWB work is obesity. It isnt my intention to be a dick in a technical forum, but body shape really does affect holster choices. If you think about it, with the belt acting as a lever in the middle, a gut is going to push the top of the gun out, and push the muzzle end of the gun into your pelvis. You can mitigate this somewhat by using a longer holster (longer slide gun or not) to spread out that pressure (and put more leverage towards the pelvis), and you can use some kind of soft wedge or padding on the back of the kydex to help make it more comfortable. But no matter what you do, it's not going to be optimal. |