Appendix Concealed Carry Draw: The Fastest Access - With Zero Room for Sloppy
- Rick Hogg
- 8 hours ago
- 7 min read
The Truth About Appendix Carry
Appendix carry is popular for a reason. It can be fast. It can be accessible. It can be consistent, especially when you’re seated, moving, or working around everyday life.
But let me give you the straight talk: appendix carry also has zero room for sloppy.
If your garment clear is lazy, you’ll snag. If your grip is inconsistent, you’ll spend the entire presentation fixing problems you created at the holster. If your trigger finger discipline is weak, you’re playing a game you can’t afford to lose.
That’s why this month’s War HOGG Skill Builder focuses on the appendix concealed carry draw. It builds off the foundation we’ve been laying with the War HOGG Self Eval and the holster draw work, because skill stacks like bricks. You don’t get to skip the base and expect the house to stand.
Our goal at War HOGG Tactical is simple: support your firearms training program and help you become more efficient and effective with your firearm. And we do it the same way every time, measure, train, re-measure.
Be 1% Better Every Day.
How the Skill Builder Works
Here’s the system, and it’s the same system that keeps shooters honest month after month.
You start the month by shooting the Skill Builder, cold. No “settling in.” No “let me run a few.” You shoot the drill, you record the data, and you don’t lie to yourself about what happened.
Then you use that data to build a dry-fire plan and work that plan throughout the month. Toward the end of the month, you return to the range, shoot the War HOGG Skill Builder again, and compare results. If you did the work, you’ll see measurable improvement.
That’s not motivation. That’s accountability.
Equipment That Keeps You Honest
You don’t need a science project to get better. You need a few critical tools and the discipline to use them correctly.
Bring your normal range and firearms equipment. You need a live-fire range and a dry-fire area. Use a shot timer, this is how you stop “feeling fast” and start measuring fast. I also want you recording your reps, because video will show you what your brain tried to hide from you. And yes, I’m a big believer in tracking your work in The Firearms Training Notebook.
For targets, keep it simple. Index cards work. 3×5 and 4×6 will expose everything you need exposed.
The War HOGG Tactical Skill Builder: Appendix Concealed Carry Draw
This drill is clean and repeatable.
You’re going to run 10 draws from concealment with your hands above the waist, firing one shot each rep. Then you’ll run 10 draws with your hands below the waist, firing one shot each rep.
And I want you to do it cold.
No warm-up. Just shoot the drill.
Why? Because life doesn’t give you warm-up reps. If you want “performance on demand,” your first rep has to matter.
Record your time in your copy of The Firearms Training Notebook, your marksmanship, the target you used, and the distance. Then use the notes section like a professional: capture what went wrong and what needs work. Poor grip on the draw. Shirt snagging on the pistol. Anything that stood out. Those notes become your dry-fire plan.
Clothing: The Most Overlooked Part of Concealed Carry
People love to talk about guns and holsters. They’ll argue optics, belt stiffness, clip placement… and then they throw on whatever shirt was on top of the pile and wonder why their draw falls apart.
In my opinion, the shirt is often overlooked. Shirt size and shirt length matter. I’ve found that some shirts have tails that are too long, and that can cause them to bunch up or bind when I draw from concealment.
If your cover garment consistently hangs up, your “fast draw” isn’t fast. It’s a gamble.
Your concealed carry draw must work with your real clothing, because you’re not going to be wearing range gear when the moment shows up.
The Progression: Clear the Shirt, Build the Grip
Here’s how I build the concealed carry draw progression for appendix.
I start by lifting the shirt and establishing a solid grip on the pistol. That serves two purposes.
First, it helps me identify the best place to grab the shirt to clear the holster. With some shirts, especially depending on length, I need to grab the hem. With others, it’s easier to grab closer to the pistol itself. It’s personal preference, and it varies based on your clothing.
Second, it lets me work on acquiring a proper grip on the pistol from concealment. I keep my palm open and slide my thumb down along my body to get behind the grip. As the gun clears the holster, I rotate it so my support hand can receive it and I can drive the pistol presentation.
That’s the point: the draw isn’t “yank gun, figure it out later.” The draw is a sequence, clear, grip, draw, meet, present, press.
Hands Above the Waist: Mechanics That Prevent Snags
When you start with hands above the waist, the first priority is not “go fast.” The first priority is to clear the garment fully so your firing hand doesn’t get caught in your shirt.
On the first beep, your support hand moves quickly to grab and raise the shirt, making sure it clears the pistol.
At the same time, your firing hand moves to the pistol with an open palm, and your thumb slides down your body to get behind the pistol at the waistline. Use the web between the thumb and index finger as a reference point to make solid contact with the beavertail and establish a proper firing grip. If you miss that beavertail contact, you don’t “make do.” You drive your hand forward and get the grip right.
Once the grip is established, draw the pistol. Keep it controlled and consistent until it clears the holster. Once it’s clear, orient the muzzle horizontally, bring the support hand in, and build your two-handed grip near your ready position. And remember this: the ready position is a reference point, not a pause point.
Then you present and press. After the shot, don’t rush to reholster. Follow-through and recovery matter.
Hands Below the Waist: Fast Doesn’t Mean Lazy
Now run the second half of the drill: hands below the waist.
On the beep, both hands move into action. The support hand gets to the shirt first to lift and clear it. At the same time, the firing hand moves up, establishes the grip, and draws the pistol clear.
As the firing hand draws, the support hand moves toward your centerline with an open palm, ready to receive the pistol. You establish a solid two-handed grip, present to the target, and execute the shot.
A lot of shooters find hands-below easier because the motion feels more natural and the garment clear can be more aggressive. That’s fine, just don’t let “easier” turn into “sloppy.” The standards don’t change. A clean draw is a clean draw.
Reholstering: Slow Is Safe, and Safe Is Professional
If you only take one thing from this article, take this: there is no rush to get the pistol back into the holster.
Look at the holster before reholstering to make sure nothing is obstructing it. Reverse your draw sequence. Finger off the trigger. Then, as the pistol goes back into the holster, place your thumb on the rear of the slide to ensure the pistol isn’t accidentally bumped out of battery. Once the pistol is safely holstered, reset your shirt and get ready for the next rep.
This is where adults separate from amateurs. The fight is over, the string is complete, and the only way you lose now is by doing something careless.
Don’t be that guy.
Build Your Dry-Fire Plan With Par Times
This is where the War HOGG approach pays off.
Take your 10 concealed carry draws (hands above) and calculate your average time. Do the same for hands below. Open a new page in The Firearms Training Notebook and title it “Draw from Concealment.”
Then set your starting par time by adding 0.25 to 0.50 seconds to your average. Once you can make consistent dry trigger presses with sights on target at or below par, gradually lower the par, by 0.10 or even 0.05 seconds at a time, until you reach the best time you can own with clean mechanics.
And don’t get wrapped up in what others are doing for time. This is your firearms journey. If you put the time into dry fire, you will get there.
One more thing: dry fire has to be treated like live fire. No live ammo in the dry-fire area. Period. Control your environment, because you can’t out-train negligence.
Check Your Work and Prove the Improvement
Toward the end of the month, go back to the range and shoot the same 10 draws above the waist and 10 draws below the waist. Compare your times and your hits to the beginning of the month.
If you did the work, you should see measurable improvement.
That’s how confidence is built. Not by hype. Not by opinions. By reps, recorded data, and proof.
Accountability: Don’t Train in a Vacuum
Accountability is key to progressing. You can do this on your own, but a shooting partner, tribe, or group will keep you in check.
And if you don’t have that, we built a place for it. Mark Kelley and I do bi-monthly interactive Zoom calls with our OTR “CREW” members where we break down the skill builder work. We’ve even reviewed video from members and given immediate feedback on where we see they can improve.
You don’t need cheerleaders. You need standards, structure, and people who will tell you the truth.
Conclusion: Put In the Work
If you want to improve your appendix concealed carry draw, there’s no shortcut.
Run the drill cold. Track your time and your hits. Fix the garment clear so your firing hand isn’t fighting fabric. Build the grip correctly at the holster so you’re not correcting it under pressure. Set par times from your averages and earn speed through clean reps. Reholster like a professional, slow, deliberate, and safe.
Train Hard, Stay Safe, and I’ll see you On The Range - Rick
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