The UnderTech Undercover Concealment Shirt is extremely comfortable. Despite being clingy, it’ s not hot, and as a woman who wears an undershirt, it’s not even noticeable when worn on its own. It does tend to “ride up” along the bottom as the day goes on, but no more so than any other women’s camisole or undershirt.
The UnderTech is advertised as being “true to size” and is made from compression fabric for comfort. It’s intended to fit snugly, and the size small fit my frame quite well (I’m 5’6, 115lbs). As you carry a gun around, though, it does become more uncomfortable through the day. Because of where the gun is positioned, my Springfield XD Sub-Compact rubs on the inside of my arm. Not to the point of pain, but it does make it uncomfortable after about four hours of wear. The gun doesn’t dig into my ribs though, resting comfortably against my rib cage.
The Tank Shirt comes with two holsters and is fully ambidextrous — you can carry under either arm or both if the mood strikes you. I’m right-handed, so I used the tank top with the gun under my left arm, but you can tote two guns or pack additional gear like extra mags there if you’d like The holsters snap the weapon securely in place. While I don’t use the second one, I was able to put extra magazines and my cell phone in it securely. It also easily accommodates the laser sight I have installed on my XD.
In a deep concealment carry situation like the UnderTech, access to your gun is the key. In my opinion, access is a little limited. The outer shirt must be lifted quite high to get to the firearm and even then it takes a few seconds (even after practicing with my XD).
As far as access goes, the roomier the top is, the easier the gun is to access as well. The purple chiffon blouse above hid the gun very well. Carrying under a cardigan or t-shirt…not so much.
Specifications:
Sizes: XS to 3XL
Colors: Black, nude or white
Price: I purchased mine on Amazon for $49.99.
Ratings (out of five stars):
Comfort * * *
The top is easy to wear and looks good, just like a regular tank top. But especially with a larger pistol, you will experience rubbing on your inner arm as time goes by. It was not as comfortable as I would have preferred.
Accessibility * * *
Because the gun is held with a retention strap, drawing your gun will take some practice. Plus it’s a very snug fit, so pulling the firearm out requires some oomph.
Security * * * * *
The gun is held firmly in place in the elastic holster. It won’t fall out or go anywhere until it’s removed by the wearer.
Concealability * * *
Under the right clothing, you can conceal even a good-sized double stack pistol like my XD Sub-Compact. Under tighter-fitting, more clingy clothes, not so much.
Overall * * * *
Based on how most women dress, they need all the options they can get. The UnderTech top is machine washable, attractive and comfortable to wear. If you plan your outfit accordingly, it’s a very good option for a woman’s concealed carry wardrobe.
First!
Good article.
Exactly what I’ve been hoping to see from this site; articles by women, for women.
If you’re wearing a Molon Labe shirt, you might as well open carry and not worry about it. Just sayin’. 😀
I CC in my Ares Armor, Hornady, and TTAG shirts. Heck, NCSO shooting competition shirts, even. That’s how you legally “open carry” in SoCal.
I carry in such a way that no one sees a guy carrying a gun, or a guy who is interested in guns, or a guy who is even familiar with guns. I seek to be the zen cuddly fuzzball. I’m just a harmless, lovable fuzzball, I seek to appear like the Golden Retriever of humans.
The fact that I can nail head shots at 10 yards with very high consistency… well, that’s a quirk in my character. Surprise is a much larger asset than making a profound statement.
DG a zen cuddly fuzzball? Say it ain’t so!
I prefer to maintain my persona as a crotchety old basterd in all things. It just suits me.
Ralph, I’ve always figured you were crotchet and cranky. DG as a fuzzball (of death) would definitely throw me. Although my yellow lab just killed a baby bunny this Easter weekend, and even Golden Retrievers have their violent moments.
Making people fear you makes them dangerous. Be benign and kind. If someone takes it as a weakness, they’ll never see it coming.
Deep concealment shirts, for M or F, are very slow to draw from and nearly impossible to draw from when running.
Considering the speed in which most lethal encounters happen, deep concealment will most likely be useless. Unfortunately, we have to dress around the gun to get an adequate draw.
I can draw from mine plenty fast.
The buttons on my shirt suffer immediate departure, however. Re-holstering is more problematic than drawing.
Be great if someone would design a shirt, shirts, blouses, etc. that appear to have buttons but are really snaps or better yet, Velcro. Rip it open and grab your gun. Seems like a great idea to me. Anyone see fault with this for the shirt that goes over something like this?
5-11 makes some concealed carry short sleeve shirts with snaps behind sewn on buttons at the top and bottom of the shirt. I don’t know if they make them in women’s sizing, but the men’s are pretty tapered (not for OFWGs). I would also say the men’s sizing runs small.
The shirts also have a couple layers of fabric to minimize printing. The downside here is the shirts are a bit on the stuffy side in hot weather.
I had 3 of them and ended up taking them to Goodwill.
Snap-button shirts are very common place, even among modern fashion. Probably would be great for this kind of application.
Here’s a ready made solution! It’s called the Magnaready, it’s technically clothing designed for people with disabilities such as Parkinsons or rheumatoid arthritis that have trouble with the fine motor movements of closing shirt buttons. The buttons are actually just magnets that hold it together nicely, and would likely adapt rather well to concealing a firearm.
Woolrich Elite Tactical shirts are also nice.
Somehow, I think your definition of plenty fast and the Rabbi’s is different
As a professional who has to wear suits often, I really like them for men. The white ones basically are your undershirt, and since my suit dress shirts aren’t too fitted, it conceals my G26 very nicely. With the suit jacket on, you can’t tell it’s there. Easier to rip buttons than it is trying to lift a shirt. Is it the best? No. However, it’s better than no carry.
If you can’t belt carry, pocket carry would be MUCH faster than deep concealment shirts.
SneakyPete! WAY more useful than this rig, I can’t even imagine how long that gun would take to present.
If you’d like to be able to practice your draw, and not bust your buttons every time, and still have a good looking shirt, I suggest you check out the series by Magnaready, it’s technically clothing designed for people with disabilities such as Parkinsons or rheumatoid arthritis that have trouble with the fine motor movements of closing shirt buttons. The buttons are actually just magnets that hold it together nicely, and would likely adapt rather well to concealing a firearm, for drawing and putting it back, repeatedly for practice.
Where did Sara come up with these ratings? I’d give accessibility a negative * As far as comfort, that’s BS also. With her arms dangling down naturally, the inside of her arm is going to be right on that gun. That is NOT something you could carry all day comfortably like I do with appendix carry. Obviously I have not tried it, but at 58 years old and tried every carry method there is, it’s obvious comfort would be compromised There are many many times that my EVC is carried all day until I go to bed. That is comfort.
“but at 58 years old and tried every carry method there is, it’s obvious comfort would be compromised ”
Comments like that are why women wont bother sharing articles like this.
I’m not a 5’6, 115 lb chick.
Neither are you, which means us guys have exactly 0 years, 0 hours, and 0 seconds’ worth of applicable experience between us to say she’s right or wrong on the matter. Saying otherwise is like a woman grading the comfort level of a condom.
+100
I don’t know what is or what is not comfortable for a woman. However, what damn near all of us can agree on is that getting more people (especially women) to carry in some way shape or form is preferable to having them be unarmed. If this is the way that more women will enter into the EDC of a defensive pistol, than I am all for it.
Yes it may be confusing for a man, but if you are anything like me, you are almost always wearing something with a belt and almost never wearing completely form fitting clothing. Which is a direct contrast to what most women wear on a daily basis. For me it wouldn’t be comfortable so I agree with mlloyd on that but its not for me. So if it works for women than great.
I carry in a shoulder rig a lot, and it isn’t uncomfortable, I don’t see this under shirt being much different. The only plus for men, is the availability of UA, and 511 shirts with access slits in them, to make drawing easier. I have a few of them, for “tuck in” occasions.
Saying otherwise is like a woman grading the comfort level of a condom.
http://www.womenshealthmag.com/health/best-condoms
These comments quickly went downhill. GIFT theory?
You dont need to be a woman to know that a gun carried just under the armpit will be uncomfortable and that a gun burried under a shirt will be slow to draw.
That was my point. I care less what sex a person is or if they are both. You’d be hard pressed to get that gun out ESPECIALLY seat-belted in a car and carrying a gun under your arm, I don’t care who you say you are, that’s not comfortable. I carried in shoulder harness and it SUCKED! They can defend her all day long, but I stand by my comment.
I mentioned that irritated the inside of my arm. But it did not hurt to the point of pain. It was uncomfortable.
Very well, but three stars then? I carry ALL DAY with no discomfort and that get’s four or five stars.
I sympathize with you on the difficulties in finding a suitable carry method. No method is perfect for every purpose and I can only imagine it is very VERY difficult for you. Stay at it though. 🙂
My creepy opinion is that she’ll get a lot of attention from guys thinking she has a 3rd (and maybe a 4th) nipple.
Kudos to Sara for the willingness to take on comments like mine.
The PLUS is a lady, tooled ready to defend. Outstanding.
Thanks for the article Sara! I may add one of these to my collection. Concealed carry for women is very challenging. I’ve come to the conclusion that women need multiple options for different types of outfits (kind of like our shoes I guess). I would love to find one system that worked in all situations but there doesn’t seem to be one. I have been using the belly band for a few years. And I like it for the most part. I don’t like to wear it right on my skin because the Velcro closure digs into my hip when sit down, so I need to wear two shirts and that’s kind of a hassle in hot weather. It works best when I’m out for my walk or snowshoeing, when I’m doing things standing up.
On a side note, RF, I am enjoying the articles for beginning shooters, women and the like. Thanks!
The fewer guns jangling around in purses buried under a pile of stuff the better.
“Jackie” would never have been gang-raped by 7 white fraternity members at UVA if she had access to a rig like this.
Warz on womynz…when will the madness end?!?
Any chance you could borrow a smaller weapon to show the concealment of more fitted shirts with it? Something like an M&P Shield with the shorter 7 round magazine installed or a Kahr CW380? Ideally one of each the small single stack 9mms that have been coming out a lot are not in the same size category as the 380 auto pocket pistols.
The shirt has some drawbacks and concerns as a carry system, however if it will help my wife take the last step into carrying every day I would happily buy it.
I also wonder how the guy’s version does.
Thank you for posting this. I’m going to show this to my wife. She’s about the same build as you. Good to see some diversity in content and posters. Thanks again
Ooooo, I gotta have one, would go perfect with my purple skivvies!
At 5′ 6″ and 115 lbs I can well imagine how difficult it is for her to conceal a handgun. Actually, I don’t have to imagine it, because at 6′ 1″ and 165 lbs I know that it can be damned difficult! And that’s with typical guy clothes like jeans and a button down shirt. Not typical girl clothes.
I have not yet found a system that provides good concealment on my “athletic” body. Everything I have tried pokes out somewhere. I even considered an ankle holster! (lol)
Charlie, check out StealthGear USA’s Onyx holster. I’m 5’8″ and 155 lbs, wear fitted diesel jeans and close fitting t shirts and I’m very happy with the concealment I get from that holster and my Glock 19. On me the gun will print if I lean far forward at the waist, but otherwise it just about disappears.
I have a Crossbreed Supertuck as well, but for me at least the Onyx blows it out of the water for concealment.
Like all concealed carry options, UnderTech has some limitations, but snug concealment isn’t one of them. Your gun isn’t flopping around on your hip or getting caught in car seats and seat belts. It’s on you, and you know it. It’s very good for a night out when you don’t want to worry about your sweetie putting their arm around your waist and feeling your gat, or unintentionally revealing to anyone looking, that you have one. The only downside is best displayed in their ads. If you ain’t in peak shape(if your belly is bigger than your chest) you might find Under Tech may not be the concealment option you’re looking for.
I got nothin’…
I’ll keep my hands to myself…………..
Have you tried the shirt with a single stack pistol like a (ugh I’m saying it) g43? Especially in outfits where there is no space to carry on you waist.
Is no one concerned that the retention strap not only makes the gun slower to get out, but it defeats the grip safety on the XD. If you are comfortable having the gun that high in your armpit, it’s probably not going anywhere. I’d get rid of that velcro strap, unless you do a lot of cartwheels!
There is another alternative for women’s concealed carry. I have two and they are great, go to Dene Adams.
http://www.deneadams.com/shop/ check out the corset holster line and the hourglass line. very comfortable and much easier access. Best of all they hardly print even with tighter fitting tops.
Read your review of the women’s tank. I’m looking for something to wear when I go running at home which is out in the country. I carry a 380 Walther. Would you recommend this tank or something else.