If you’re familiar with the principles of concealed carry, you’re likely familiar with “printing.” If you haven’t heard the term before, it refers to your concealed carry weapon making an outline beneath your clothes. This, in turn, gives away the fact that you’re concealed carrying, which sort of defeats the entire purpose of doing it in the first place. Luckily, there are a few options available to you when it comes to minimizing your CCW printing. One of them is a concealed carry holster wedge. In this post, we’ll look at the concealed carry wedge and how it stands up vs a holster claw.

What is a Concealed Carry Wedge?

When it comes to stepping up your concealed carry game, you have two options. First, you could opt to use a foam concealed carry holster wedge to minimize CCW printing. Or, you could opt with a concealment claw.

A concealment wedge is a great choice for anyone who uses the appendix inside-the-waistband carry method. This involves keeping your firearm just to the right (if you’re right-handed) or left (if you’re left handed) of your belt buckle. It’s useful since it allows you to draw and fire quickly. It also keeps your weapon in a place where you won’t lose track of it: right in front of you.

However, keeping your concealed carry holster front-and-center does make it more likely that someone talking to you may notice it. After all, if you print while appendix carrying, it’s going to be hard to miss.

A concealed carry holster wedge can help with this. Usually, you’ll attach a wedge to your holster. Then, the wedge rests between your holster and your body. The foam of the wedge will naturally push the muzzle of your gun slightly outwards while allowing your belt to pull the grips in towards your body. Since the grips are the part of your gun that prints the most, this will work to minimize printing.

Concealed Carry Wedge vs Claw for CCW Printing

Concealment wedges aren’t the only way to reduce printing. You can also opt with a concealment claw (we’ve covered those in-depth in a previous post). In short, it’s an attachment to your holster that will hug your weapon’s grips closer to your body. As we said earlier, the grips are the part of a gun that prints the most, a concealment claw can significantly reduce printing.

There’s no “right answer” to using a concealed carry wedge vs a claw. Both of these techniques have their own merits. One advantage to a holster wedge is that you can make your own. You can also add it to your holster after you buy it. That’s in contrast to a concealment claw, which is an integral part of your holster that needs to be built into it. A concealment claw may be a little more rugged, though. There’s also no rule saying that you can’t use both a concealment claw and wedge in conjunction with one another.

Ultimately, regardless of whether you decide on a concealed carry wedge or a claw, you’re still going to need a holster. Fortunately, Southern Trapper is here to help. Check out our guide to choosing the right concealed carry holster for your specific situation here.

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