Tips on concealing the Shield

[shawn mccarver]

I typically wear fitted clothing and didn't want to sacrifice how I dress too much. My goal is to be able to carry without really sacrificing (too much) how I dress.

If you really intend the firearm to be a permanent part of your lifestyle/wardrobe, then you need to dress to accommodate the firearm.

A good tailor can, during a fitting, work around your firearm and make it disappear. If you don't wear tailored clothing, then you will simply have to buy your pants one size bigger IF you really intend to wear your firearm all the time.

If you don't buy your clothes to fit you AND the firearm, you will be uncomfortable and you will simply not carry. And that is fine if you don't want to, but trying to predict when you might need your self-defense pistol is a real drag.

Remember the Texas Ranger who wore his pistol to a party. A lady asked, "are you expecting trouble?" The Ranger answered, "no ma'am, if I were expecting trouble, I would have brought my rifle."

Once you decide to carry, it is best not to dabble. Either all in, or not at all. Get some bigger britches, and a real belt, and wear a covering garment, or use a pocket holster, and carry always where the law allows.

 

[redwood0_7]

Go to your clothing store. Wear your gun IWB. Take a pair of 33 pants into the dressing room and put them on wtih your holster and gun. See how it looks and feels. Also a quality belts makes a world of difference. And, of course, shirt out.

 

[Neumann]

A Shield carried on the belt is no more concealable than any other pistol with a grip that size - about 5" from the top of the slide. It has to stick out enough you can get a good grip around the handle. If you are going to carry that way, why not get a full sized pistol?

On the other hand, a Shield fits nicely in a side pocket, using a DeSantis Nemesis or Galco leather (horsehide) pocket holster. I had one made by Ryan Grizzle, which is no larger than necessary. Fitted pants actually work better than loose fitting ones, since the gun is less likely to flop around and slap your thigh. When shopping, the pocket needs to be deep enough to cover your wrist, and wide enough to fit the holster (hand, fingers relaxed and spread).

You always feel self conscious when carrying for the first time or two. Soon you find that nobody notices, even if it prints obviously to your eyes in a mirror.

The advantages of pocket carry to tucked IWB are many. It takes a lot of practice using the "Hackathorn Rip" to clear and draw from a tucked holster. Your shirt always blouses around the holster, so it must be loose fitting and bloused all around. In the pocket, you can put your hand on the grip if you sense something going south, without alerting anyone, and draw within a second or so. I've carried this way with jeans, shorts, casual pants and dress pants, even a Tux.

 

[wtburnette]

I'm 30, 6' and 195lbs. I like to wear "fitted" clothing too(medium and large polo's with 33-34 waist bootcut jeans) and I prefer not to dress around the gun. I have found that low ride height holsters with extreme forward cant work best for me. I'm currently using a Kusiak Leather canted iwb holster for my shield and it disappears under just a t-shirt. It's also comfortable and cheap at $35. I've also heard good thing about remora/sticky holsters but have no first hand experience. Good luck with whatever you choose.

I have DeSantis and Safariland holsters that are similar and I agree that they're comfortable and work well for concealment. Easy to put on, easy to adjust and inexpensive. I'm a similar build to you, but I prefer looser clothing and untucked shirts, so I can carry about any way I want without any problems.

Curious about your current IWB holster, is it adjustable? I know the hybrid holster I had for my Glock was. If there are height settings for adjustment, play around with them to see if that helps with the printing issue. Might save yourself some money by spending some time playing around with it.

 

[dixie_boysles]

Carry mine in a Foxx Hybrid on lowest setting right behind right hip at 4-5 o'clock position. Never had a problem concealing except for bending over which any holster will not really hide.

 

[LimaCharlie]

You can dress around your gun or dress for your vanity. Pick one.

My routine urban concealed carry is a 5" 1911 with one spare magazine in .45 ACP or 10mm on my belt. My remote rural concealed carry is either my FNH FNX-45 Tactical .45 ACP or Glock G20 SF 10mm with two spare magazines on my belt. You have to dress around it for concealed carry, but it can be done with an oversized un-tucked shirt. I have conceal carried my six inch Desert Eagle 50 AE and two spare magazines all day at work around senior law enforcement officers to win a bet. Ya gotta wanna!

 

[hbaird]

Try a Pocket holster in the right front pocket.

I find good concealment in my right front pants pocket with a Pocket Holster to break up the outline. Cotton slacks, Levi's, and shorts work well for my Shield.