Upgrading your EDC

If you’re like me and carry your firearm just about everywhere, you probably have noticed overtime that you need to upgrade some things. No handgun out of the box is going to be a complete, perfect carry gun (I’m looking at you, Glock). So here’s what I’ve found to be the best, worth-your-hard-earned-cash upgrades you can make to get the most out of your Every Day Carry (EDC).

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The Holster:

If you’ve been on that gun part of the internet in the last 10 to 15 years I’m sure you’ve seen many discussions on holsters and which is best for your concealed carry. I’m not here to argue or even discuss WHICH particular holster is best, but I will tell you what to look for: You want something sturdy, preferably kydex, with strong-as-hell retention clips.

The holster should accommodate your preferred carry position. A hip or small-of-back holster COULD work as an appendix rig, but you’ll want a holster that’s reliably crafted for appendix carry (if that’s how you carry, which, full disclosure, I’m a big appendix guy, so try not to trip over my bias there).

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The holster should provide you with a consistent draw from the carry position and not move around on your body. This is supplemented by the belt you choose (more on that below). You also want the holster to retain it’s shape AFTER the draw so if you need to re-holster your firearm, you’re mitigating a negligent discharging directly into your genitals or ass (depending on how you carry). This is why I DO NOT recommend one of those minimalist nylon “one size fits most” sleeves you see fudds rocking. The “just as good” argument does not apply when your life and “bits” are at stake.

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The Belt:

Like the holster, you want something sturdy, stiff, and will keep your holster (and pants) in one position. The stiffer/sturdier the better when it comes to belts. I also offset my belt one belt loop on my pants so I can get a true 12 o’clock positioning on my appendix, which minimizes printing and gives me a better draw (YMMV). Avoid dress belts, or cheaply made belts that sag. If you’re using a braided belt, tell Babs down at the yacht club I said hi.

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Sights:

Now on to the gun itself. Depending on what you’re carrying you may want to upgrade your irons. For instance, Glocks are a very common EDC gun, however their stock sights are total dogshit. The ball-in-basket is difficult for untrained/new shooters to pick up, oppose to the more common three dots, or a luminescent front sight and blacked out rears.

Anyone buying a Glock, the first thing I tell them is to upgrade their sights. I prefer Trijicon or AmeriGlo sights, but that’s a personal preference. Any local gun store can swap out the sights for a small fee, or if you want to invest in a sight pusher and a front sight tool (if you think you’ll be buying multiple guns and wanting to swap sights) you can do it easily at home in just a few minutes.

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Some handguns DO come with quality sights right out of the box and it’s up to you to make the decision if you want to upgrade if that’s the case. My HK VP9sk’s sights are perfect the way they are and I have no real desire to swap them out.

You want Night Sights, those sights with just a little exposure to light will shine extra bright in the day time and be readily seen in low/no-light settings. Fiber optic sights are great for daytime shooting (like competition shooting outdoors) but don’t work great if there’s no ambient light for them to catch. Like a holster, a good investment today could pay dividends tomorrow, and you don’t want to cheap-out on your EDC’s primary aiming device.

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Grips:

An affirmative purchase on your firearm is integral to accurate engagements, so I tell people, if possible, enhance the grip of your handgun. There are many ways to do this, some permanent, some less so.

For plastic grip pistols, like Glocks or some Sigs, I recommend stippling. Stippling is the checkering of the plastic grip to give more rough texture, hence more purchase. I would seek out someone who’s competent in doing this, because it’s super easy to fuck up one’s grip with a bunch of messy heat gun holes. I’ve seen absolute horror shows of stippling jobs.

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You can also add grip tape/hockey tape/”goon tape (+$20 upcharge)” to a grip to give you a less permanent option. A few wraps of grip tape around the grip of the pistol will not only improve your grip but allow you to index the pistol (the idea that you will “feel” a proper, familiar grip as you begin your draw). Just keep an eye on the grip tape because over time it WILL deteriorate and could become a problem for you at the very worst moment.

Lastly, a lot of modern pistols have various grip modules that allow the shooter to “customize” the grip to their hand size. Many of these come either with the firearm on purchase or can be purchased relatively cheaply from the manufacturer or third party for around $60 (or three rolls of “goon tape”).

Whatever option you chose, take time to get used to the new, modified grip. Practice your draws, learn the indexes, and ensure the firearm is “meeting” your hand in a way that gives you a reliable draw every time.

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Light:

This is an extraneous upgrade, but I also feel that, if it’s in one’s budget, it’s worth it.

Adding a weapon-mounted light (WML) to your EDC improves target identification in low/no-light settings and, unlike a carry optic, and does little to increase the overall footprint of your firearm. Surefire and Streamlight, the two biggest names in WMLs, each make a “micro pistol light” that tucks neatly up under the muzzle and puts out a significant amount of candela.

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I was running an XC-1 from Surefire on my G19, however twice the lights failed within a year due to battery compartment issues. I do not have any experience with the Streamlight TLR-7A, however my TLR-1S has been going strong on another pistol for the last six or seven years.

Why a WML on your EDC? Like I said above, being able to light your target up, … before lighting your target up… by allowing for greater target acquisition, identification and engagement, while also potentially distracting/blinding a threat. This gives you the decided advantage in a self-defense shooting, which means you get to go home that night. Less so for the other guy. Running a WML also allows you to keep two hands on your firearm, for maximum control, oppose to carrying a small "tac light."

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The Extra Mag:

This is a no-brainer. Your EDC SHOULD have an extra mag. Your EDC ammo should come in a box with enough rounds to fill two mags (depending on the capacity you choose). It makes very little sense NOT to carry a spare mag.

Imagine you get into an engagement and you fire all your rounds without hitting your target. Now you look like a total asshole, your gun all at slide-lock and such. Sheesh.

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Don’t think it’ll happen to you? In a high-stress, life-or-death situation, you could conceivably fire an entire magazine and not hit or neutralize your target, leaving you to, what? Throw the gun at them like some 1940s Superman talkie bad guy?

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No, you SHOULD be reloading and re-engaging. Also, oftentimes threats come in packs and how dumb are you going to feel if you don’t send the pack running after mag dumping into their leader’s face? Pack an extra mag, either in a pocket or if you’re a huge nerd, one of those single mag pouches on your belt, Pointdexter.

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Upgrades to avoid:

Ok, this will rustle jimmies, I assure you, but bare with me: here are the upgrades to your EDC gun that I find useless or will create bigger problems for you.

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Carry Optic:

​I covered this extensively in a Dispatch a few weeks ago so I won’t do the deep-dive here, but I just don’t think it’s a good idea. Not when reliable, high quality irons exist.

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Slide cuts:

I don’t even know why slide cuts exist other than an aesthetic choice. Something-something reduced slide weight, something. If you want a snappier feel to your handgun, go up in grain on your carry ammo, don’t put fucking speed holes in your gun. It’s just an invitation to gumming up the weapon’s internals, which will lead to failures. Of the firearm and your heart.

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Compensator:

Want to increase the overall dimensions of your carry gun and blind yourself in a low-light situation? Go ahead and stick a comp on the end of your muzzle. Let’s put all that aside for a second, when you’re running a comp off a pistol you have to account also for the grain weight of the bullet and the pounds in your recoil spring. It takes A LOT of tweaking to get it to be just right, so you don’t have a failure to feed. And for what gain? Quicker follow up shots? This isn’t USPSA bub, you don’t need flat recoil.

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Trigger:

Just keep it stock. Fucking around with your EDC’s trigger is potentially creating a legal nightmare for yourself. Yes, Glock triggers are swampy, but in the event that you DO have to defend yourself or a loved one, and end up in court, a prosecutor will have a fucking field day picking you apart for having an aftermarket trigger on your carry gun. They will say you went out of your way to make the gun EVEN MORE lethal, or some such nonsense. Also, if you bubba it up, you could end up cooking your EDC into a fucking brick.

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Slide plate (Glocks only):

These are fucking corny already, but imagine you go to trial, like above, and the prosecutor shows the judge and jury your super cool Punisher skull slide plate. Or the one that says “You’re fucked” or whatever. Yeah, it’s a tough one to be sure.

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Plus, on Glocks, when you replace the slide plate, you potentially could alter the fire control group in the receiver, again, rendering your firearm useless, or … dare I say, “too useful” as I once found out in a quarry a few years ago.

Want to know specifically what I would recommend to YOU for your EDC? Shoot me a DM or email and I’d love to sit down and consult the perfect EDC gun for you. Packages start at $150.

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