Skinny guy IWB carry

[nc76]

I recently acquired my CCW and would like to carry IWB but I cannot find it comfortable at all. I am about 5'9" 150lbs and I am not skin and bones, but I lack too much extra meat also.

My issues are two fold:

1. My pants do not really want to stay up, but if I tighten my belt too much it makes the pistol really dig in.

2. My pants really bulge on the side I am carrying.

Any recommendations from others experienced with this predicament?

 

[t3rmin]

Being new myself, I've discovered it's quite an art.

I did SOB for a while, but that was horrible -- you could never bend over without printing or flashing it outright.

But right on the side of the hip, it stood out like a giant tumor under my shirt.

The trick, for me, was to kind of cradle the gun around the front of the pointy part of the hip bone. I tip the gun forward (muzzle points back a little) until the grip stops printing badly. So the trigger guard is pretty much on top of the bone, but the thick parts of the weapon can sink in a little. I've got about 30 lbs on you at the same height, but I think the same principle applies even if you don't have as much for the gun to sink into. ;-)


Of course I'm carrying a Kel-Tec with a metal belt clip, so I'm not sure how applicable this is depending on your holster type.

I also noticed that perspective is important. Looking down at myself, I can usually see the print. But standing in front of a mirror, seeing myself from the angle everybody else does, it's much more forgiving.

 

[mgregg85]

Any recommendations from others experienced with this predicament?

Eat!

Not only will your pants then stay up, you will have 50 lbs of stored energy ready to go, just like me!

 

[CWL]

Do you have wide shoulders? If you do, the drop from your shoulders to your waist should give lots of loose clothing to conceal at your waist.

If you happen to be built like a rail and any waist bulge prints terribly, you may need to consider pocket carry.

 

[nc76]

^^I have tried the eating thing. I does not work.........I have always wanted to bulk up a little but I have never been able to.

I guess it is a blessing, but aggrivating at the same time. I now have a double stack gun but I am about to get a SA 1911 Champion. I believe it will be a little thinner (about the same weight) and help some with the bulge. Every bit counts!

 

[AK103K]

What kind of belt and holster are you using? You need to use decent stuff, or you'll never be comfortable.

I'm 5' 6", 165# and wear a 32/33. I normally use either a Blade Tech kydex IWB or a Milt Sparks VMII both with a Wilderness Instructors belt. The belt and Blade Techs have been my normal carry gear for about 15 years now.

You have to give IWB a little time. Its not going to feel right until you start to get used to it and find your "spot". Once you do, the only time you'll notice it after that, is when its not there. I wear mine at about 4:30, in that nook just
under your ribs where its naturally covered and protected by my arm.

Kydex is generally easier on your gun over leather. Its also a lot easier to care for and eliminates the sweating problem. If you sweat, are the least bit active, and plan on wearing your gun a lot, especially in warm, moist climates, pretty much forget about leather holsters. The kydex holsters will also last you pretty much a lifetime.

One advantage to the Wilderness type belts is, they are infinitely adjustable through out their adjustment range. You dont have to try to hit that next hole to get it tight enough. The Wilderness allows for daily or even hourly changes in dress and eating. Getting it "just right" is very easy. The only downside to them is, they are somewhat distinctive, and readily identifiable to those who know what they are.

This pic is a few years old, but everything but the Commander (I now carry a P229) is still the same. The belt is the Wilderness, the holster, Blade Tech.....

 

[nc76]

^thanks for the pointers. That is something I will definitely look into.

 

[The Bushmaster]

I carry at 4:00 IWB pretty much as the above photo. It takes a little time (a week or two) to get comfortable with that particular location. I carried around the house for weeks and now I don't really feel it any more. As far as holding your pants up...Make sure you have a belt made for carrying a gun. Most store bought belts are just too flimsy for carrying a gun. It should be at least 1 1/4" wide too

 

[Kind of Blued]

Well, I'm a beanpole. 6'4" 160 lbs.

I just got a Comp-Tac M-Tac and have been trying to find "the spot" and I think I figured it out. It's on a 1 3/4" Desantis leather duty belt and I'm carrying a Sig P226.

The holster is at about 3:30 and it is canted enough so that the grip comes up and under my ribcage on the right side. It does make me a little visibly wider, but I plan on stuffing a couple mags or a mag and a flashlight in the left side, so that should even things out and help with the balance as well.

My waistline and belt are more comfortable when the gun is further back, at about 4:30, but it makes it easier for my shirt to get hung up on the gun every time I get up from a sitting position.

 

[tblt]

I carry my 38 snub w/no holster at all and the shape of the revolver holds it in place.It does dig in sometimes thats why I ground the hammer spur off now much better.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

You have to give IWB a little time. Its not going to feel right until you start to get used to it and find your "spot". Once you do, the only time you'll notice it after that, is when its not there. I wear mine at about 4:30, in that nook just
under your ribs where its naturally covered and protected by my arm.
[...]
One advantage to the Wilderness type belts is, they are infinitely adjustable through out their adjustment range. You dont have to try to hit that next hole to get it tight enough. The Wilderness allows for daily or even hourly changes in dress and eating. Getting it "just right" is very easy. The only downside to them is, they are somewhat distinctive, and readily identifiable to those who know what they are.

Agreed.

A solution to the belt adjustability problem (with a leather belt) is to order Beltman's option of seven holes 3/4 inch apart instead of the usual five one inch apart.

I am also a skinny dude and find that the "pancake" style IWBs with belt loops or clips on the front and rear add less bulk/width and are very stable but are a little harder to put on. Clip retention adds little width as well but is not as stable with heavy guns. The "summer special" type, with straps attached to a reinforced mouth, does add bulk.

 

[knivesandguns]

I'm about the OP's size. If you have a skinny gun, just make sure that you have slightly looser jeans and a good belt and holster. Carrying a 1911 or a G17 IWB in SOB isn't hard at all--just make sure you have a slightly longer shirt, and make sure it is patterned with stripes (just like camo in the forest, it breaks up the gun's outline)
I also carry the gun with the almost an "FBI" cant--muzzle aggressively to the back, and the grip really forward at about 4:30.

Good luck!

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

Also, a major comfort problem with IWB is the fit of your pants. If they fit snugly enough to stay up around your waist without a belt, they will be too tight when a holstered gun is stuffed in there. It also helps to let out the, um, seat area a bit.

 

[AK103K]

I've always found my normal size pants to be the best when using an IWB holster. They are slightly snug when you first put the gun and holster in them, but they do stretch somewhat, and are not uncomfortable. That little bit of snugness holds the gun in place better, and if your wearing the pants without the gun, they still fit.

I wouldnt go changing your wardrobe until you absolutely know its not going to work for you. The other downside to larger pants is, your brain tends to think you must be starving and wants to fill them back out.

 

[Scanr]

Remember with everyone carrying PDA's, Blackberries, and cellphones these days, a few bumps are normal on people.

I am in and out of my truck/car a lot, so for me an owb was so much more comfortable. I bought some shirts that were not meant to be tucked in.

 

[littlelefty]

5' 5", 135 lbs here. I wear a tucked in t-shirt with a polo or looser t-shirt over it. When I go IWB the tucked t-shirt helps some. It may depend some on specific pants for you; it does for me. I have different styles/brands of jeans, slacks, shorts and they all allow different levels of comfort (or not) to my body by the gun/holster combo.
OWB is a really good choice for skin comfort; it just requires a little more discrete-ness since all of the gun/holster combo is potentially exposed.
I've had to try a few combos, but here are the options I currently go with....
full size 1911 OWB Don Hume 721OT, or IWB in a Galco summer comfort.
Kel Tec P11 IWB Don Hume 715, or pocket in Desantis Nemesis.
All except the pocket holster get my Wilderness Tactical 5 stitch belt as the foundation. A house is only as good as its foundation - I firmly believe thru my own experiments and experience that the same is true of gun/holster combos.

 

[bhk]

I am tall and relatively thin. I also wear my gun at 3:30 to 4 o'clock. I find that it really helps to have a gun/holster combination that puts the butt of the gun above my lower ribs (similiar to the photo by a previous poster). This really reduces the digging in. For me this combo is a 1911 commander clone in a Sparks Summer Special. Again, it ends up like AK103K's photo.

When I try IWB with smaller grips and lower holsters, I really experience the digging-in-my-side problem. For this reason, my 1911 is actually more comfortable for me that a small gripped j-frame revolver (IWB).