Your appendix is a funky and kind of useless organ that dangles off your intestines. It’s below your belt and to the right of your belly button and looks like a shriveled finger. It’s actually pretty gross.
What’s not gross, however, is appendix carry, also known as AIWB, or Appendix Inside the Waistband carry. As the name implies, appendix carry puts your firearm inside your pants, right in front of your appendix. If you were a clock, your belt buckle was 12 o’clock and your buttcrack was 6 o’clock, AIWB puts your piece at 1 o’clock for a right-handed shooter, 11 for a lefty.
In case it isn’t obvious, this carry style only applies to handguns. Storing a full-sized concealed rifle in your jeans isn’t a thing. No matter what you’ve told that cute girl at the bar, you ain’t packing heat down there otherwise.
All jokes aside, appendix carry position is a style of concealed carry that’s quickly growing in popularity. But first, we know what you’re thinking:
“You’ll Shoot Your Junk Off!” (Is AIWB Safe?)
Yes, the “there’s a gun pointed at my junk and I’m none too happy about it” line is the chief complaint about AIWB. We get it, we truly do. If your meat and taters weren’t enough to worry about, your femoral artery is in the same neighborhood and should raise even more concern than your tender parts. But with crime on the uptick nationally, concealed carrying is on the rise among legally armed citizens, and many are opting for appendix carry inside the waistband.
So is AIWB actually dangerous? As with anything, there are pros and cons to AIWB. Where you choose to tote your heater needs to be the result of your own experience, comfort with carrying, and confidence in your gear. If any of these are lacking, you need to carry more and educate yourself about your gun, plain and simple. With that in mind, there are a couple of factors to consider when evaluating the safety of this carry style, such as:
Modern Safety Features
Most modern striker-fired polymer pistols like Glocks and Sigs have oodles of safety mechanisms built in (even if they don’t have a manual safety lever). They’re designed in such a way that it’s all but impossible for one to go off without a deliberate pull of the trigger. Heck, they’re not even cocked when they’re loaded! Pulling the trigger completely cocks the gun while a firing pin block stands in the way, until the last instant before it’s released. These combine to ensure a complete pull of the trigger is the only thing that’ll make the gun fire.
The Likelihood of Negligent Discharge
In terms of having a negligent discharge (ND), appendix carry is no more or less likely to induce an ND than any other carry position. In fact, because you can see the whole holster right in front of you, it can be argued that AIWB is safer than carrying at the 3, 4, or 5 o'clock. These on-your-hip positions require you to crane your head and neck to the side to see what you’re doing as you reholster, which is when virtually all NDs with carry guns occur.
Similar Carry Styles
A notable exception to concealed carry safety is what’s colloquially known as Mexican carry. This is where you cram your blaster into your waistband without a holster and hope your gut keeps it in place. Without a holster, the trigger is exposed and is a junk-removing accident waiting to happen.
Do not do this. Use a holster that covers the trigger. (More on holsters later).
But let’s assume that you’re all trained up, carry either regularly or somewhat regularly, and are wanting to test AIWB to see what it’s all about. Here’s what you need to know:
Advantages of Appendix Carry
By its very nature, concealed carry has a set of challenges that need to be addressed if you want to do it right. But when done correctly, the appendix carry position can be one of the most practical ways to carry a firearm.
Keeps it Hidden, But Ready
First and foremost, your gun needs to be hidden (duh) but also accessible. The tradeoff here is that the more hidden it is, the harder it is to access in a hurry. AIWB is popular because it’s more discreet than carrying on your hip at 4 or 5 o’clock. Why? Because this is where most folks expect a gun to be, based on where cops and spaghetti western outlaws pack heat. If someone is looking for a gun, they'll usually look at your hips.
Perfect for Shorter Shirts
When you get “made” while carrying — when someone can tell there’s a gun on you—it’s usually because you’re wearing a short T-shirt and either bend over or reach up, revealing your holstered piece. Like so:
Exposed holster when carrying outside the waistband.
This peekaboo may or may not bother you, depending on where you live. But carrying AIWB completely eliminates getting made when bending over, solving half your problems.
When reholstering AIWB, MAKE DARN sure the holtser is clear with no trace of shirt in it, and look the gun all the way into the holster until it clicks. Otherwise, a stray piece of cotton could get caught between the holster and the trigger — say goodbye to the family jewels.
Avoids Printing
A big concern of concealed carriers is printing, which is when your gun makes an unsightly bulge under your cover garment. T-shirts are the worst offenders because they're lightweight.
But the reality here is that almost no one is looking at your stinkin’ gun. Do you walk around the Walmart staring at everyone’s hips? Even though people likely aren’t looking for your gun, AIWB virtually eliminates printing because the gun is pancaked against a wider part of your body instead of your hip. Dad bod bros might have more real estate and squishy matter to deal with on a daily basis, but this is actually a plus here. A few extra pounds is a Godsend for packin’ heat!
Furthermore, people can’t see your gun sticking out, they don’t know it’s there. By that logic, carrying AIWB makes it less likely your gun will be taken. When’s the last time you reached down someone’s pants to take their gun away? Exactly.
This is a dramatic case of printing. The handle of the pistol makes a super obvious bulge where there usually isn’t one. AIWB avoids this.
Big Guys Love It
For our larger friends, AIWB may be the position you’ve been looking for. Many bigger people actually like AIWB better than carrying on their hip. This is because the cushion of your gut helps take the OUCH out of the feeling of the muzzle in your thigh and stomach when you sit down. A little extra padding up front also helps conceal the gun better. In fact, thin guys actually have more trouble with appendix carry (but most issues are overcome with a good holster).
At the same time, sitting down while carrying AIWB isn’t that great, frankly. There’s jabbing and poking in your lower abdomen, and bending over can be a pain. But if you’ve got a holster that keeps your gun rock steady, you’ll learn to move with it. As the old saying goes, carrying a gun isn’t meant to be comfortable. It’s meant to be comforting.
Faster Draw
Besides offering more discreet concealment, AWIB offers a faster draw because your non-shooting hand is closer to the gun. This is important, because this hand is the one that initiates the draw sequence as it swipes your cover garment (T-shirt, jacket, or whatever) out of the way so your shooting hand can grasp the pistol.
When the gun is on your hip, you’ve got to move your non-shooting hand all the way across your body to clear that garment before you can draw. That’s way slower than reaching for your belt buckle.
Drawing from on your hip is slower than AWIB because the shooter’s left hand must come across his body to his right side to sweep clear the shit before the draw can happen.
What Gun Is Best for AIWB?
Besides being the stealthiest carry method, carrying AIWB makes it easier to tote a bigger blaster. How? Because the handle of the gun is pancaked against your widest part. If the average torso is 18” wide, sticking a gun in your pants roughly midway gives you 9” from your belt buckle to your hip to hide that handle/grip and an 87-round extended mag too if you feel like it. But when a gun is on your hip at 3, 4, or 5 o’clock, you’re trying to hide a flat gun along a thinner, curved part of your body. This leads to printing (shown above).
The bottom line is that although it might seem counterintuitive, you can more easily stash a full-size pistol in the front of your trousers than the side. Lots of guys these days add lights and red dots optics to their carry pieces, which add more bulk. This is part of the reason why AIWB is growing faster than any other carry method.
Full-size Glocks and Sigs, as well as the venerable 1911, are great for appendix carry. But there are a few guns that aren’t. Teeny, tiny pocket pistols like the Kel-Tec P3-AT (“P 380”) with itty bitty grips that you only get two fingers on are no bueno for any IWB (appendix carry or otherwise).
Sure, you can do it. But have you practiced the draw with it? The grips are so tiny on these guns that you have to gingerly lift them out with one or two fingers, probably fumbling the whole time. Trying to pinch a wee pistol pointed at your gonads isn’t ideal when you’re in an extremely stressful situation.
Another no-go are little Derringers. They're pretty much meme guns to start with, and most don’t even have a trigger guard (not good news for your meat and taters). Also, go shoot one — it’s like trying to hold onto an Altoids tin stuffed with dynamite.
Two solid AIWB holster options. They’re simple, strong, Kydex, completely cover the trigger and have large clips for maximum stability.
What’s the Best Appendix Carry Holster?
No matter what brand of holster you choose, there are a few characteristics that distinguish an awesome appendix carry holster from a crappy one. The good news is that most AIWB holsters on the market these days are pretty solid products. You don’t have to try and make your regular IWB holster work if you don’t want to.
All good AIWB holsters have a couple things in common:
1. They’re Made From Kydex
Kydex is a hard plastic material that forms to something when heated and put under pressure and then retains that shape when it cools. In our case, the something is a gun.
Kydex is great because it’s thin, strong, and malleable to perfectly fit the contours of your exact gun, and it retains its shape well. You want your holster to be made of the thinnest material possible so it doesn’t add unnecessary bulk. You’re already looking at adding 1”-2” to your waistline by cramming a pistol in there, so less is more in this case.
You absolutely do NOT want a cheap generic nylon holster that says it’ll hold “every stinking gun ever!” That’s a lie. They don’t hold anything well. The biggest reason you want to avoid nylon is because it collapses when you draw your gun. That means to reholster you either take it out of your pants or roll the dice and hope the floppy POS doesn’t neuter you as you shove your gun back in. Use Kydex. Nothing else.
2. They Have One Big Clip (or Two Small Ones)
Most good AIWB holsters connect to your belt via either one large, wide clip or two smaller ones. Some use loops that fasten via snaps, which also works well.
What you’re looking for is an absolutely positive connection to your belt. A wide clip or two clips is ideal because it adds lateral support as you go about your day walking, sitting, etc. If the holster isn’t secure, your gun will rotate and slide around, leaving you constantly adjusting it.
3. They’re Adjustable
You’re probably going to want a holster that keeps the gun straight up and down. A lot of holsters that go on your hip either have cant (tilt) built in, or can be adjusted for cant. Having a positively canted pistol (15 or 20 degrees is common) on your hip points the muzzle slightly back behind you, rotating the handle forward making it less conspicuous and easier to draw.
An AIWB holster needs to have 0 degrees of cant so it rides straight up and down, which is the best angle to grip and draw the gun.
4. The Have a Wing or Claw
Finally, a lot of holsters have a “claw” or “wing” on them to draw the gun closer to you. These features push against your belt, pushing the gun into your body. This sounds uncomfortable, but it's really not once you get the feeling of it. It also makes a huge difference in how close it rides to your gut.
Final Thoughts
Like anything, there’s a learning curve to carrying AIWB. It’s not for everyone. Getting used to the idea of a loaded gun mingling with your delicates isn’t easy. But if you have confidence in your firearm and yourself, it becomes a non-issue.
Carrying inside the waistband is undoubtedly the most effective way to conceal a gun, and AIWB is a superior choice that gives better concealment and faster access to the firearm. The biggest objection to AIWB is one that can be overcome by gaining confidence in yourself and your gear.
At Pro Armory, we give a sh*t about you. That means we want you to be as safe as possible when carrying concealed. Don’t cut corners when buying a holster and always be extra careful when reholstering — you’ll do just fine.
Ready to give appendix carry a shot? Check out our selection of quality AIWB holsters and our training material on concealed carry to get started.