Does a K frame "disappear"?

[Jeremy45]

Hello all,

I am needing some help finding an AIWB setup that is actually "concealed" and will pass minor scrutiny from passers by.

A little backstory. I live in Texas and until now haven't frequented places where firearms are frowned upon. I currently carry a G17 aiwb and with proper clothing it hides well but would can easily go from "concealed" to "covered" if the clothing isn't just right. Unfortunately I've come to a place where the just right clothing doesn't work for me every day so I'm looking for a slicker setup with less corners and pokey places that stick out.

I am thinking a 3" lcrx aiwb would be pretty slick and much easier to hide. I would love to get a 6th round on board but don't know how much harder it is to conceal a k frame over the smaller LCR? I may could go with a shield. But playing around the house with no holster the lines on a wheel gun are much less defined on me than the auto. But all I have to play with is a 929 so it sticks out just can't tell what it is.

Sorry for the ramble. What does the group think are some solid solutions?

Jeremy

[1slow]

Why not GL19 or GL26 ? Platform you are used to. Have you tried different holsters ?

J frame etc.... are easier to hide, 2-3" barrel K frame body/holster dependent.

Revolvers round shpes blend well in some positions.

[Wondering Beard]

Calling @03RN and @Stephanie B

[Totem Polar]

On my body (5’10”, 160), a K-frame definitely blends in better AIWB than a Glock with a G17-length grip. Neither will disappear like an LCR though. FWIW.

[TGS]

S&W 2.75" Model 66 or 2.5" Model 19 with boot grips and an AIWB holster from JM Custom Kydex ought to do the trick.

If you're very small waisted a wearing tight clothing, then I'd look into the LCR.....otherwise it's mostly a matter of choosing the right grips and holster/position. Or, if you have to wear tucked in shirts, then put an LCR in a pocket holster and call it a day.

[Wheeler]

Can you get the 3” LCRx in .327 Magnum? If so and you’re willing to deal with acquiring ammo and peripherals for a new caliber that would solve your sixth round pretty handily.

If you’re looking to stay with a .38/.357 a model 12 pretty much disappears with an IWB for me and only weighs 18ish ounces unloaded.

[Buckeye63]

This is a Pic of my S&W Model 12 compared to my 856UL .. the 856UL is very close to a Colt D frame and they share the same holsters .. This Model 12 has a steel cylinder instead of a aluminum...

The LCR is basically the same size as a 856UL .. Today I will take a comparison pic of the Model 12 and a LCR327 & get a weight of both guns .. they are close in weight .. but the LCR327 is more compact

[Rex G]

JM Custom Kydex is going to be a leading contender, for the holster recommendation. S&W K-Frame is in the quick-order menu. I have one, for the 4” barrel length. I am trying to convince myself that it is comfortable enough, but I think I am going to have to shorten it, or get a shrter version. My .38 K-Frames have 2” barrels, but a holster made for a longer barrel can aid in conceal-ability, and is more comfortable for SOME folks. Rather than altering this one, I may order one for either 2” or 3” barrels, to compare comfort and conceal-ability, apples-to-apples. (I obtained my 4” sample pre-owned, and because I occasionally will use it with a 4” Speed Six, would rather not shorten the holster.)

Most of my experience concealing K-Frames dates from the Nineties. I mostly concealed OWB or IWB, just behind the hip, to closely match the 0300 location, where I carried on the duty belt. When I did carry AIWB, it was usually with a now-long-discontinued Eagle Industries holster, made of ballistic nylon, with which I sometimes carried a 4” GP100, successfully, at AIWB.

On the weapon, itself, boot grips, or the old-school factory Magna grips, will be leading contenders in reducing bulge. Some like to use a grip adapter with Magna grips.

I know exactly what you mean, regarding truly hiding/concealing Glocks. The blocky rear part of the slide totally defeats my efforts to truly conceal any of the double-column-magazine Glocks, no matter how short the grip frame. Some people that I see, who think they are concealing their Glocks, are not hiding them from my eyes, at all, though a blocky pistol can appear to be one of the chunky mobile devices that are currently trendy. The illusion loses credibility, however, then one is using one’s mobile phone, and the bulge is still there, at belt level.

I can hide a revolver cylinder more successfully that a blocky pistol slide at AIWB, but I have to get that cylinder into the inguinal crease, which is where one’s appendix is truly located. I cannot hide anything anywhere hear the center-line of my abdomen, especially on days my gut is having an irritable-bowel day. My chest and shoulder muscles are not what they once were, to help my clothing drape farther-out from the pelvis. Having that youthful V-shaped physique is definitely helpful, in concealment.

Try to wear patterns and stripes that distract the eyes of observers. Or, all-black or dark gray.

[revchuck38]

My experience is IWB rather than AIWB, so this isn't completely apples-to-apples.

My main carry gun is a full-size PX4, so the grip's about the same as your G17. My K frames wear Spegel boot plus grips, which are narrow side-to-side and extend just past the bottom of the grip frame. The 4" K frames are far easier to conceal than the PX4 due to the relative size of the grips and the fact that the rest of the revolver sits farther below the belt line than the autoloader. The right grips will have a big influence on how well the revolver conceals, and you risk having a box o' grips right next to your box o' holsters as you find the right one.

[callen816]

JM Custom Kydex is going to be a leading contender, for the holster recommendation. S&W K-Frame is in the quick-order menu. I have one, for the 4” barrel length. I am trying to convince myself that it is comfortable enough, but I think I am going to have to shorten it, or get a shrter version. My .38 K-Frames have 2” barrels, but a holster made for a longer barrel can aid in conceal-ability, and is more comfortable for SOME folks. Rather than altering this one, I may order one for either 2” or 3” barrels, to compare comfort and conceal-ability, apples-to-apples. (I obtained my 4” sample pre-owned, and because I occasionally will use it with a 4” Speed Six, would rather not shorten the holster.)

Most of my experience concealing K-Frames dates from the Nineties. I mostly concealed OWB or IWB, just behind the hip, to closely match the 0300 location, where I carried on the duty belt. When I did carry AIWB, it was usually with a now-long-discontinued Eagle Industries holster, made of ballistic nylon, with which I sometimes carried a 4” GP100, successfully, at AIWB.

On the weapon, itself, boot grips, or the old-school factory Magna grips, will be leading contenders in reducing bulge. Some like to use a grip adapter with Magna grips.

I know exactly what you mean, regarding truly hiding/concealing Glocks. The blocky rear part of the slide totally defeats my efforts to truly conceal any of the double-column-magazine Glocks, no matter how short the grip frame. Some people that I see, who think they are concealing their Glocks, are not hiding them from my eyes, at all, though a blocky pistol can appear to be one of the chunky mobile devices that are currently trendy. The illusion loses credibility, however, then one is using one’s mobile phone, and the bulge is still there, at belt level.

I can hide a revolver cylinder more successfully that a blocky pistol slide at AIWB, but I have to get that cylinder into the inguinal crease, which is where one’s appendix is truly located. I cannot hide anything anywhere hear the center-line of my abdomen, especially on days my gut is having an irritable-bowel day. My chest and shoulder muscles are not what they once were, to help my clothing drape farther-out from the pelvis. Having that youthful V-shaped physique is definitely helpful, in concealment.

Try to wear patterns and stripes that distract the eyes of observers. Or, all-black or dark gray.