Untapered or flared polo-type shirts?

[LoneStarWings]

Hi, I am awaiting my CHL in the mail and in the meantime am looking for some polo-style shirts which are not tapered or perhaps flared slightly to help break up any printing in the waist area caused by the grip of my full size .40 in an IWB holster.

Does anyone know of a good brand of shirts for this? I am typically an XL size if matters. Big baggy t-shirts or sports jerseys just aren't something that I pull off real well.

 

[Chuck Dye]

I cannot help with the shopping task but would like to suggest you experiment on the cheap (i.e thrift stores) before investing serious money. I have found that knit fabrics seem to highlight rather than conceal (picture vacuum molding, where a hot plastic sheet is sucked down onto the shape to be copied) anything I may have on my belt unless I have bought well over my regular size. The only exceptions in my wardrobe are a couple of bulky sweaters which are only slightly over sized.

 

[Glockman17366]

I do not think polo shirts will do the concealment you want. Well, they don't work for me.
I've had decent luck with Hawaiian shirts as long as the material isn't too clingy. Patterned shirts tend to conceal better.

As far as tee shirts and polo shirts, I ended up buying a safari vest from Cabela's. That did the trick.
Another option is a lightweight sportscoat. A casual design can be worn with jeans/tee shirt combo or with much dressier clothing. Nice thing about sports coats is you can leave them on inside and not get any looks.

BTW, my carry is a Glock 19.

 

[LoneStarWings]

Thanks for the tips, fellas. I live in the southwest so coats, vest, and jackets aren't good options (hot down here). I will look into more patterned typed shirts. My full size conceals fairly well with my minitour holster, but the bottom-outside edge of the magazine/grip doe present a bit of an "egde" on my back with most knit shirts.

 

[Dan Crocker]

I've stuck with the untucked linen or cotton shirts. They don't look out of place in hot weather, they're comfortable, and they conceal well.

 

[rcmodel]

Getcha some of these!

rc

 

[Hungry Seagull]

Ive got a dickies work shirt for both winter and summer that is fairly good. Then again it's the pants that are a bit bigger that matters in summer.

No one seems to pay a worker any mind, particularly with clothes that are rather plain.

Some CCW's in my area sometimes wear suits. Somewhere in that suit is the gun and we aint gonna fish for it, they are too old and fat to be wearing anything else and still be... presentable to the public in summer.

 

[armoredman]

I agree with confusing pattern shirts, though your friends might find your wardrobe change amusing. I have few friends, so that wasn't an issue for me. WalMart blows out camoflauge t-shirts at the end of hunting season for $5 each, look there. Any shirt a size oversize, with some sort of pattern to it will help conceal.

 

[Mike J]

Dang rcmodel that hurt my eyes

 

[David E]

If you want a polo shirt, get one that has a banded bottom. That is, one that has a light elastic hem. This creates a small amount of blousing at the gun height, but looks perfectly natural and has a neat appearance.

It requires the Hackathorn Rip draw or the better "Thumb Hook" draw, but you can carry a decent gun in a decent holster with this arrangement. I've successfully done this with a 1911 in a KyTac Braveheart IWB, but a smaller gun, like a Glock 26, works even better. A Kahr P-9 is almost cheating.....

Land's End has the shirt: http://www.landsend.com/pp/BandedBo...CM_MERCH=IDX_00001__0000000018&origin=indexts,

www.kytac.com has the holster.

 

[hankdatank1362]

Fortunately for me, polo shirts work quite well.

Even though I have love handles and could stand to lose 4"-6" off my waistline, my chest, back, and shoulders are still much larger than my waist. This means that I have to wear at least a XXL, or sometimes an XLT (I'm 6'4") in most styles and brands of shirt.

However, one problem for me has always been the vibrant pastel colors I am so fond of wearing. I dress like I'm an extra on the set of Miami Vice, so it's a lot of light colors. I'm trying to break the habit, as light colors tend to highlight any printing that may occur.

 

[Hush]

5.11 covert concealment shirts....best prices seem to be on lapolicegear.com. They are subtle.