DIY Wedges vs. Pro Gear: Is It Worth the Upgrade?

In the concealed carry world, ingenuity is everywhere. This community is full of tinkerers. When something isn’t quite right—like a holster that prints or digs into your gut—the first instinct is often, “I can fix this myself.” So you hit the forums, search “how to stop printing,” and suddenly you’re drowning in DIY holster Wedge ideas.

We’ve seen it all:

Chunks of yoga mats duct-taped to holsters
Dr. Scholl’s gel insoles glued to Kydex with superglue
Folded socks stuffed down the front of pants as “emergency wedges”
Segments of pool noodle zip-tied to belt clips

And to be fair, sometimes these homemade concealment hacks actually work… for about three days.

The DIY spirit is admirable. It’s part of what makes the CCW and 2A community so resourceful. But there comes a point where saving a few dollars with a DIY holster Wedge costs you more in comfort, frustration, and long-term reliability. Upgrading from a hacked-together foam block to professional-grade gear—like the Cloudster Pillow holster wedge—can be the difference between “tolerating” your carry and legitimately forgetting it’s there.

In this guide, we’ll look honestly at the pros and cons of the DIY holster Wedge approach, where it shines, and where it fails. Then we’ll compare it to purpose-built solutions so you can decide whether it’s time to upgrade your comfort and concealment game.

What a Holster Wedge Actually Does (and Why It Matters)

Before we compare DIY vs. pro gear, it helps to understand what a wedge is supposed to do.

A DIY holster Wedge or professional wedge all share the same mission: they add a soft, shaped buffer between the body-facing side of the holster and your torso. That wedge:

Tilts the grip of the gun into the body to reduce printing.
Spreads out pressure from the muzzle and corners to reduce hot spots.
Fills in the gaps created by your curves, belt line, and posture so the holster sits consistently.

In other words, wedges are the missing link between a rigid, gun-shaped piece of Kydex and a very non-rigid, human-shaped body. Whether you build a DIY holster Wedge out of scrap foam or buy a professional holster pillow, this is the core job you’re trying to accomplish.

If you want to dive deeper into why wedges are so important specifically for appendix carry, check out Cloudster Pillow’s guide:
Appendix Carry Comfort Tips.

The Appeal of the DIY Holster Wedge

So why do so many people reach for a DIY holster Wedge before pro gear? The reasons are pretty straightforward:

Cost: On paper, a cheap foam block plus Velcro looks like a $5 solution.
Speed: You can hack something together in 10 minutes with a knife and some tape.
Curiosity: You’re not sure wedges will help, so you want to “test” the concept.

At first glance, the logic seems solid: “It’s just a piece of foam. Why pay $25–$30 when I can build a DIY holster Wedge myself?” So you grab a yoga block, a craft foam sheet, or a mouse pad, attack it with scissors, and stick it to your holster using whatever Velcro you can find in a junk drawer.

The result: it feels better… for a while. Then the failures start.

Where DIY Holster Wedge Hacks Usually Fail

Failure Point 1: The “Yoga Block” Problem (Durability)

A yoga block DIY holster Wedge seems like a great idea. It’s firm but slightly squishy. It’s cheap. You’ve already got one in the garage. Perfect, right?

Not quite.

That foam is designed to support weight occasionally during stretches—not to be crushed, heated, and flexed against your body all day long. In daily carry, it quickly starts to:

Crush: Within days or weeks, it permanently flattens. Your wedge loses its shape and leverage, and you’re back to square one.
Crumb: Constant friction against your clothes makes cheap foam flake apart, leaving colorful bits sprinkled inside your waistband.

By comparison, professional wedges like the Cloudster Pillow use shredded memory foam designed to be compressed thousands of times and bounce back. They’re engineered for repeated daily use, not occasional yoga sessions.

Failure Point 2: The Sweat Factor (Hygiene & Comfort)

Most materials used in a DIY holster Wedge—mouse pads, shoe insoles, packing foam—are closed-cell and non-breathable. They trap heat and sweat against your skin. That means:

You get a hot, humid, sticky hotspot under the holster.
The wedge starts to smell… “interesting” after a while.
You’re more likely to get rashes or irritation, especially in summer.

They weren’t designed to live under your waistband for 8–14 hours a day. A purpose-made holster pillow uses skin-friendly, moisture-wicking covers (like Cloudster Pillow’s plush bamboo-style fabric) that feel more like high-end clothing than raw foam. That’s a massive difference when it’s mashed against your stomach all day.

Failure Point 3: The Adhesive Disaster (Reliability)

This one is extremely common. The adhesive backing on standard “craft-store Velcro” was not designed for body heat, friction, and sweat. So with many DIY holster Wedge builds, you get the same story:

The Velcro peels away from the holster in the heat.
The wedge shifts constantly because the hook-and-loop isn’t strong enough.
Worst case: the wedge falls off mid-day and slides down your pant leg in public.

Industrial-grade hook-and-loop, the kind used on professional wedges, is made to survive high temperatures and repeated stress. It stays put until you intentionally remove it.

The Hidden Cost of DIY: Time, Consistency, and Carry Confidence

Even if your DIY holster Wedge “works” in the short term, you’re still paying hidden costs:

Time: Cutting, shaping, re-gluing, re-building when it fails… it adds up.
Inconsistency: Each time your wedge crushes or shifts, your holster feels different. That inconsistency can affect your draw stroke and confidence.
Comfort-driven non-carry days: If a DIY wedge gets gross or painful, you might start leaving your gun at home “just for today.” That defeats the entire purpose of concealed carry.

For something as serious as concealed carry, building your entire comfort system around a fragile, improvised DIY holster Wedge can be a weak link in your everyday readiness.

If you want a pro-level overview of how holster fit, ride height, and support gear factor into safe carry, sources like the USCCA’s holster resources and Lucky Gunner’s holster selection guide are worth reading alongside this wedge discussion.

What You’re Really Paying For With Pro Gear

When you move from a DIY holster Wedge to a professional concealment pillow like Cloudster Pillow, you’re not just buying “foam and fabric.” You’re paying for design decisions made specifically for the hostile environment of inside-the-waistband carry.

1. Engineered Foam That Actually Bounces Back

Cloudster Pillow uses shredded cooling memory foam, not a single solid block. Solid foam wants to keep its original shape and will fight your body until it crushes flat. Shredded foam flows and redistributes, conforming to your unique curves, the shape of the gun, and the angle of your belt line.

That means a pro pillow can keep working for months and years, while most DIY holster Wedge builds are on borrowed time from day one.

2. Skin-Safe, Moisture-Wicking Covers

A professional wedge treats comfort like a first-class requirement. With Cloudster Pillow, the outer cover is soft, breathable, and designed to handle sweat without turning into a wet sponge. That’s a universe away from raw foam, gel, or neoprene slapped directly against your skin.

Comfort isn’t a luxury here—it directly impacts whether you carry consistently. If your holster feels like a torture device by lunchtime, that’s a problem. The right wedge and cover can turn a previously “unwearable” rig into something you genuinely forget about. That’s the level of comfort we talk about in our article:
Best Concealed Carry Positions for Women.

3. True Adjustability (The Secret Weapon)

A chunk of yoga block is one shape, one density, forever. If you cut your DIY holster Wedge too big, it feels like wearing a brick. Too small, it doesn’t provide enough leverage. You’re stuck.

A Cloudster Pillow wedge has a zippered cover and adjustable fill. You can:

Remove a handful of foam to soften it.
Add a bit more to increase pressure and concealment.
Shift the fill around to build a steeper angle or flatter profile.

This lets you dial in your wedge for your body, your gun, your holster, and even your day (heavier wedge for tighter shirts, lighter wedge for hoodies, etc.). That level of control simply doesn’t exist with a static DIY holster Wedge.

4. Industrial Adhesives That Stay Put

The Cloudster Pillow uses industrial-strength hook-side Velcro sewn into the pillow itself, plus adhesive-backed loop strips you attach to your holster. The adhesive is rated for higher temperatures and constant flex.

Translation: once you stick it on, it stays on until you decide to move it. No more wedges bailing out on you in the grocery store aisle.

For more examples of what serious holster setup looks like (and how wedges fit in), forums and communities like r/CCW and training-focused outlets like ConcealedCarry.com’s holster articles can give you a lot of real-world context.

The Value Proposition: Is It Really Worth Upgrading?

Let’s talk numbers. A decent DIY holster Wedge usually costs $5–$10 in foam, tape, Velcro, and time. A professional wedge like Cloudster Pillow runs more, typically around the cost of a couple boxes of ammo.

Is that $20-ish difference worth it?

Ask yourself:

How many times have you re-made or re-glued your DIY wedge?
How often have you skipped carrying because your DIY wedge got gross, painful, or fell apart?
How much did you spend on all the holsters in your “holster drawer of shame” that were almost right, but not quite comfortable?

If a professional wedge lets you salvage even two or three of those holsters and carry them comfortably, the math flips fast. You’re not just spending money—you’re recovering value you’ve already tied up in gear.

And more importantly, you’re investing in comfort-driven consistency. Gear that’s comfortable gets carried. Gear that hurts gets left in the safe. It’s that simple.

When a DIY Holster Wedge Makes Sense (and When It Doesn’t)

There is a time and place for a DIY holster Wedge:

You just learned what a wedge is and want to test the concept before buying anything.
You’re experimenting with wild ride heights and carry angles and are still in the “science project” phase.
You need a short-term emergency fix and only have socks and duct tape.

In those cases, a temporary DIY solution can be a useful proof-of-concept. You’ll quickly discover that “wedge pressure here feels better than here” or “I need more thickness at the muzzle, less at the trigger guard.”

But once you’ve proven to yourself that wedges work—and want something you can live with long-term—it’s usually time to graduate from DIY holster Wedge hacks to professional gear. That’s when a Cloudster Pillow wedge can permanently replace the knife-and-yoga-mat experiments and give you a clean, consistent baseline for your carry.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Can’t I just use a Dr. Scholl’s gel insert as a wedge?

You can, and it might feel cushy at first. But gel doesn’t breathe. It traps heat and sweat, and the added weight can make your holster feel like it’s dragging down your waistband. Over time, most people find gel-based DIY holster Wedge solutions hot, sticky, and annoying.

2. I used a sock once and it worked okay. Why change?

A folded sock is the classic “in-a-pinch” wedge. It does work surprisingly well for a short time. But socks shift, bunch up, and soak up sweat. They get heavy, damp, and gross. A purpose-built holster pillow is shaped to stay put, designed to wick moisture, and can be washed and re-fluffed instead of tossed in the hamper and forgotten.

3. Why is shredded foam better than the solid foam I have at home?

Solid foam blocks fight you—they want to stay in their original rectangular shape and push back against your body. Shredded foam, like what’s inside a Cloudster Pillow, flows and redistributes. It fills in small gaps and conforms to your curves, giving you better stability and more comfort than a solid-block DIY holster Wedge ever will.

4. Is the Velcro on the Cloudster Pillow stronger than normal Velcro?

Yes. Cloudster Pillow uses industrial-grade hook-and-loop designed for higher temperatures and repeated flex. The hook side is sewn directly into the pillow; the loop side comes as adhesive-backed strips you mount to your holster. It’s a huge step up from craft-store Velcro, which tends to peel off when exposed to body heat and sweat.

5. If my DIY wedge hurts, will a holster pillow really fix it?

In most cases, yes. The pain from a DIY holster Wedge usually comes from the wrong foam (too hard or too dense), the wrong shape, or no adjustability. A soft, conforming, adjustable pillow lets you fine-tune all three. Most people notice an immediate improvement in comfort as soon as they switch from a block of hardware-store foam to a Cloudster Pillow wedge.

Upgrade Your Carry Game

You wouldn’t trust a shoestring as a gun belt, even if you could technically make it work. In the same way, you don’t have to rely on improvised foam scraps for the one part of your holster that directly touches your body all day long.

Respect your own comfort and consistency. Use a DIY holster Wedge if you’re experimenting, but don’t stay stuck in “prototype mode” forever. Once you know a wedge helps, give yourself a solution that’s engineered to last.

Stop fiddling with glue and scissors. Stop rebuilding wedges every few weeks. Upgrade to professional comfort with the Cloudster Pillow holster wedge and turn your carry from “barely tolerable” into “effortless.”

Ditch the DIY disasters and experience what your holster can really feel like when it’s riding on a Cloudster Pillow.

AIWB, Holsters and Gear Recommendations, IWB Holster Wedge

DIY Wedges vs. Pro Gear: Is It Worth the Upgrade?