Wedge for AIWB Holster

[hookemhorns]

The only holster I've seen that includes wedges is the Keeper, which is way to expensive for me. I'm looking for an AIWB holster where I can attach a small wedge at the top of the holster to push it out away from my stomach slightly, I'm willing to print a little bit more in exchange for the gun not digging into my stomach when I sit down.

Does anybody know any other holsters that might have wedges, or a suggestion for one to buy that could be modified as such? I've read good reviews about the Shaggy, G-Code Incog, and a blackhawk leather AIWB holster but all of those will dig the gun into my stomach without something there to push it out a bit.

[Corlissimo]

Hmmm... Most folks use a wedge on the bottom to tuck the grip.
You can always get some foam and Velcro and place them on the top of the holster to achieve you goal.

Maybe the problem you're having is just a matter of getting the right ride height and positioning sorted out. Could be the holster too. I went with a JRC AIWB for my first one, and while its not as inexpensive as the G Code, it's custom made with top notch workmanship and materials. There's also the JM Custom Kydex. Both offer excellent range of adjustment so sorting out the comfort issues should be do-able.

Then there's also the possibility that AIWB just won't work for you since it tends to be somewhat body type specific. If that ends up being the case for you you should have no problem recouping a majority of the money spent on either of the above rigs.

HTH


~ Typos brought to you by my lazyness & in attention to detail.

[Clusterfrack]

I'm still new to AIWB carry, and have been experimenting with pads on the bottom of my excellent JM Custom Kydex holster for my G17 and G19. The holster works nearly perfectly for me as is, but I wanted to try a pad to push the muzzle end out a little bit. Here's what I've done so far:
1. Added a strip of industrial sticky Velcro loop side to the back of the holster.
2. I cut some foam pads using microcell foam kayak rack blocks from REI (http://www.rei.com/product/672421/riverside-universal-canoe-replacement-foam-blocks)
3. Covered the holster in plastic wrap and tape, and used sandpaper to grind the back of the pad to the holster's shape, and added a strip of hook side Velcro.

This worked quite well, and yielded pads a lot like those on the Keeper. I also tried something that is working even better: I sewed some Velcro-backed pads out of cloth, and stuffed them with polyfill. After experimenting with size and shape, I have a small pillow at the bottom 1/3 of the holster. It's super comfortable, and keeps the grip from printing when I move. See picture below.
http://img.tapatalk.com/d/13/07/29/a8asu2uz.jpg

[hookemhorns]

I've been carrying AIWB for about 6 years with the Uncle Mike's Softy, it's comfortable because it rides SO low. Only downside is you can't get a full grip to draw quickly and it collapses after you draw. That's why I want to find something different, but most of the ones I have seen like the G Code Incog and Phlster dig the gun back into your stomach, which is the opposite of what I want.

The softy has been by far the most comfortable way for me to carry AIWB, because the most annoying part for me is digging in to my stomach when I sit down.

[Corlissimo]

I've been carrying AIWB for about 6 years with the Uncle Mike's Softy, it's comfortable because it rides SO low. Only downside is you can't get a full grip to draw quickly and it collapses after you draw. That's why I want to find something different, but most of the ones I have seen like the G Code Incog and Phlster dig the gun back into your stomach, which is the opposite of what I want.

The softy has been by far the most comfortable way for me to carry AIWB, because the most annoying part for me is digging in to my stomach when I sit down.

In my somewhat limited AIWB experience (14mos.) I've found that:

Low ride = more comfort in abdominal area but grip issues (as you've described)

High(er) ride = more ab poking but superior results obtaining a master grip.

Either way, IMHO a reinforced mouth is mandatory for AIWB. It's already too easy to put a hole in yourself, why add to that risk? Unless, of course, you plan on removing the holster for every re-holster action. In that case, if you're running a Glock or M&P, you might as well use a Vanguard 2.

http://www.ravenconcealment.com/vanguard-2-holster-full-kit


~ Typos brought to you by my lazyness & in attention to detail.

[hookemhorns]

I like the Vanguard or the Advanced Holsters Mini for their simplicity, but they ride too high without something helping push them away from the body.

http://www.advancedholster.com/Mini.html

That's why I'm interested in something like the Incog if there was a way to fashion a small wedge for the top to push it away from the body.

http://www.tacticalholsters.com/product/INC/INCOG.html

[hookemhorns]

Or if there would be a way to have velcro sewn onto one of these blackhawk leather holsters and then attach some kind of wedge or spacer.

http://www.lapolicegear.com/blcqcleinho.html

http://www.lapolicegear.com/blackhawk-inside-pants-holste.html

[RoyGBiv]

Hmmm... Most folks use a wedge on the bottom to tuck the grip. .

He's a Longhorn. Theyre a litte different. ;)

[hookemhorns]

He's a Longhorn. Theyre a litte different. ;)

Darn right. I don't care if I print a little, everybody packs heat in Texas. I just don't want the gun digging into my stomach on those long road trips across God's country.

If I were to make a homemade modification, what have people used to attach something to kydex? Just regular super glue??

[Default.mp3]

I just used http://www.velcro.com/Products/Adhesive-Backed/Heavy-Duty/Industrial-Strength-Extreme.aspx for mine on an RCS Phantom. Haven't had any issues with it peeling off the Kydex or the Gorilla Tape (used to tape together the foam weather stripping I folded up to get a foam rectangular prism), got it at Home Depot.

http://i.imgur.com/JRvJWl.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Y9evKl.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/wEZgrl.jpg

[JDM]

Keep in mind, adding something to push the top of the holster away from your body will result in the gun being directed further towards your body during reholstering.

The most often suggested method of reholstering an AIWB carried gun involves rotating the gun and holster slightly, so the muzzle is not pointed at your body while you push the gun into the holster. Modifying your holster in the fashion you are proposing will make this potentially life saving maneuver much harder.

[JMS]

BOM's point is very valid.

What you're proposing has a strong "Well, everybody can see me carrying the gun, now...but at least the muzzle's pointed DIRECTLY at my sac instead of in the viscinity...!" kind of vibe to it. If you want near-guaranteed comfort and don't care about printing because you're incorrectly keeping other legit gun-carriers foremost in your mind...just go back to a more traditional concealment method or open-carry the thing.

If you're interested in a reasonable level of comfort that allows you to keep the thing from the eyes of the bad guys...I'd give some thought to trying an AIWB holster that provides some deliberately engineered height/cant adjustability, before trying to bubba-rig two wrongs into a right.


If I were to make a homemade modification, what have people used to attach something to kydex? Just regular super glue??

I suppose SuperGlue would work, but ShoeGoo or similar can be put exactly where you want it because it's thicker stuff, can be spread like peanut butter (which does NOT make an effective adhesive...); it won't run off. Degrease and rough up the surface of the kydex, first, then glue loop velcro to the holster. If you put hook velcro on the holster....well, good luck wearing it without a pad in place. Ask me how I know.... ;)

My pads are made of unused morale patches ShoeGoo'd to equally unused spare Aero or MSA helmet pads, which use the foam found in motorcycle helmets and the like.

I'd not try to just glue some kind of pad to the holster. No matter what kind of padding you use, it's gonna compress or wear over time, and you'll want to replace/refresh it.

[Prdator]

Guys,

The Keeper is Patent pending. So please keep that in mind. Ive had to send a few letters to folks already...

[robertwhite]

Guys,

The Keeper is Patent pending. So please keep that in mind. Ive had to send a few letters to folks already...

So you are saying that if anyone takes a piece of foam, cuts it into a wedge shape, and velcro's it to their holster they are violating your pending patent?

That's a good way to gain new business. :(

[Steve S.]

Guys,

The Keeper is Patent pending. So please keep that in mind. Ive had to send a few letters to folks already...

My upcoming AIWB holster utilizes foam as the wedge. Should my lawyer be ready for a cease and desist letter?

If it matters, I've got email correspondence, with pictures, dating back to at least October 2012. I have no idea when you started using it or, more importantly, applied for the patent, since I've just recently seen your design in the last couple months.

Is this something I should be concerned about? PM me if necessary.

I don't think a consumer can violate patent or trademarks if said consumer modifies his or her own item without the intention of resale.

Your designs look solid and I'm by no means saying you copied my design, since I kept it very private. It's just not a far fetched idea to look at a bunch of foam used for compression molding and discover a use for it. What exactly are you patenting?

[Wendell]

...I've got email correspondence, with pictures, dating back to at least October 2012. I have no idea when you started using it or, more importantly, applied for the patent, since I've just recently seen your design in the last couple months...Your designs look solid and I'm by no means saying you copied my design, since I kept it very private...

See this thread (http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?3933-Keepers-Concealment-AIWB-Kydex-Holster), and then this thread (http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?4022-The-Keeper-New-Favorite-AIWB-Holster).

[Steve S.]

See this thread (http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?3933-Keepers-Concealment-AIWB-Kydex-Holster), and then this thread (http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?4022-The-Keeper-New-Favorite-AIWB-Holster).

I gave an honest date, I didn't go back, find the earliest review, and say I started a month earlier.

But it still doesn't change that I'd never heard of the company up until recently. I still haven't found a website even.

A new Kydex shop pops up every time I fart. You're going to see ideas come about simultaneously.

That said, the holster looks great. But if you take away the implementation of foam, our designs are completely different.

ETA: The October date was when the first T&E got dropped to a tester with that feature - that's why it sticks out.

[robertwhite]

My upcoming AIWB holster utilizes foam as the wedge. Should my lawyer be ready for a cease and desist letter?

If it matters, I've got email correspondence, with pictures, dating back to at least October 2012. I have no idea when you started using it or, more importantly, applied for the patent, since I've just recently seen your design in the last couple months.

Is this something I should be concerned about? PM me if necessary.

I don't think a consumer can violate patent or trademarks if said consumer modifies his or her own item without the intention of resale.

Your designs look solid and I'm by no means saying you copied my design, since I kept it very private. It's just not a far fetched idea to look at a bunch of foam used for compression molding and discover a use for it. What exactly are you patenting?

I am not an attorney, but from what I have read up on.............

You are correct. Any end user can do whatever they choose with an item they purchased as long as there is no intention to do so for resale. Is Mr.Prdator going to come knocking on my door because I put a piece of foam on a kydex holster? That would be highly amusing.

Secondly, patent pending means just that. A patent has been applied for (and if a business lies about it but uses the term, they can be heavily fined). A person or business is free to do whatever they want with their own product. If your design is like the other guys design, once his patent is actually granted, then you must cease production IF your product is very similar in all manners. Or you can change a thing or two and go about your business. Look at Milt Sparks VMII as an example. There are TONS of makers who have a VERY similar product. Do you see MS threatening people on an internet forum? I think not.

In my personal view, just the fact that "prdator" came on and spewed about how people better watch themselves because he "owns" the rights to a piece of foam wedge, is enough to NEVER even think about buying his product. Others are free to make there own decisions.

[ToddG]

If anyone has questions about Prdator's patent application, please contact him directly via PM or email.

As there have been no specifics provided in this thread and apparently no one explaining things is actually a patent attorney, I'm going to ask that further speculation and vitriol cease.

Thank you.

[Mruseless]

So has anyone found a good source for foam for DIY wedges?

[EMC]

I read about one guy adding a cut piece of gel insole to the bottom of his aiwb rig. Seemed like an interesting choice. I wonder how a gel material would do comfort wise compared with foam.

[TheTrevor]

I sacrificed one of the foam blocks from a rooftop kayak carrier kit to make mine in various shapes. I didn't come up with this idea on my own -- one of the folks pioneering the use of foam wedges mentioned this as a good source of material and I decided to give it a try. Took me a few tries to make one with the compound angles needed to tuck my holster in just right, but it wasn't terribly difficult, just time consuming.

"Kayak roof rack" foam is a nearly ideal material, in my experience using wedges of the stuff in conjunction with a Blade-Tech Nano carried AIWB. My biggest problem is that I've been using Gorilla Tape to hold it in place, which tends to creep over time when kept at ~95F due to its close proximity to my body. Really need to get some Shoe Goo to bond some industrial-strength velcro onto the holster and wedges.

[MGW]

I Velcroed a piece of dense foam to a Desbiens RCHC#4. With out fabric it created a real hotspot for me while walking and moving around. It definitely helped grip the grip on closer and eliminated the feeling that the holster was rolling out but it killed the comfort level of the holster for me.

I tried a pad out of an army Kevlar (ACH) but the thickness was overkill for me. I've gone back to a leather wedge above the trigger guard only. For my body type it's perfect.

[Rich@CCC]

Deleted as I did not see Todd's admonition prior to posting.

[Rich@CCC]

Take a look at The Foam Factory (http://www.thefoamfactory.com/) for just about any kind of foam known to man.

[TheTrevor]

Take a look at The Foam Factory (http://www.thefoamfactory.com/) for just about any kind of foam known to man.

That probably has a higher Wife Acceptability Factor than hacking up the kayak carrier pads when she's not looking, yes. :cool: