The grey man is one who simply blends in to any scene or situation. He does not stand out. He does not boast about his skills or abilities, but he is ready to use them the instant they are needed. He is hidden in plain sight but is ready for action. You have seen the grey man; you just haven’t noticed him. That is the way it’s supposed to be.

One of the great conflicts of publishing on the topic of concealed carry is that it is often difficult to present with fanfare something that is typically hidden, but that is what we do.

The other side of this coin is that we constantly remind people that concealed carry is intensely personal. It is up to you to make your EDC (that’s “everyday carry”) kit right for you. So, I set out to combine those two elements, and I think I have done it in a most impressive way.

Unless this is the first time you have read anything I have written, you must know that I am fan of the Glock 19 pistol. I think it is the right size, the right caliber and the right capacity and has the correct functionality for an everyday carry gun. But could I make my EDC gun even better?

Well, I have a computer, and I have just enough brainpower to operate Google. That led me to Lone Wolf Distributors, where, as it turns out, I could make my Glock into anything I wanted it to be. I mean anything. Lone Wolf offers everything, including truly custom components, for Glock pistols. But I’m not a flashy guy. I own six pairs of khaki cargo pants. I went nearly a decade without owning a pair of blue jeans.

So you can bet when I looked into upgrading my Glock 19, I was going to make it even better without making it flashy. And you know what, I think I hit upon the right combination. And the guys over at Lone Wolf liked what I put together too (well, it took some convincing). A couple phone calls actually began with the words, “Kevin who?” (It appears the guys at Lone Wolf are a bit too busy making cool gun parts to be following the actions of some guy from Wisconsin.) But after I grabbed all the parts that I wanted and got really happy with the outcome, the experts took a look at it and said, “You might be on to something here.”

And so, we have the AlphaWolf Signature Series “Grey Man” pistol from Lone Wolf Distributors. It is the gun I created from the company’s parts. Lone Wolf assembled it, and I could not be happier.

I went with what the company called the “featureless slide,” but I wanted it beveled at each end, both for good looks and for daily carry comfort. That might knock off a little weight, but not much. The bevels give me just the look and feel I want. I did get all crazy and ask for custom-cut serrations on the slide. The waves on the fore and aft remind me of the ocean. I went with the standard G19-length barrel, but I added a custom flush-cut crown. I went with a tungsten guide rod underneath the barrel. This adds about an ounce of weight to the gun but puts the weight up front to reduce muzzle jump. This guide rod also improves the lockup of the action because the tungsten will not flex the way the factory plastic guide rod does.

I chose a lightweight firing pin for inside the slide. This enhances drop safety and reduces lock time. For those not familiar, lock time is the amount of time between the release of the striker and the ignition of the primer. Faster lock time means greater accuracy. The firing pin is 60 percent lighter, which decreases lock time by more than 30 percent.

I went with the Lone Wolf Gen3 Frame Completion Kit, which replaced all the internal components. Most important to me, it smoothed up the trigger pull and included a trigger over-travel adjustment in the trigger mechanism housing. In my stock G19, the trigger felt a bit like a two-stage military trigger with an audible click during take-up. That is gone now. The trigger on the Grey Man has a smooth, crisp break that even the most ardent 1911 fan should not complain about.

The internals include a slide stop lever that puts the OEM part to shame. It is low-profile but easy to use if you ever have to run the slide home with one hand. Because of the design, it also allows even a rookie to lock the slide open easily to show the pistol is clear.

Finally, I topped the entire thing off with AmeriGlo three-dot night sights. These sights make my old eyes feel young again.

At 10 yards, this gun produced a 1.8-inch group with a full magazine from a Glock 17. That’s impressive performance for a compact EDC pistol.

This gun still looks and feels pretty much like a standard Glock pistol, but in the spirit of the grey man principle, the improvements are hidden deep inside, ready for hard use when required. This gun is not flashy, but it is ready for action. It does not brag or boast, but when it comes to getting the job done, the modest exterior belies the performance. The Grey Man is built to be unnoticed until it is needed. At that time, actions speak louder than words.

The guys at Lone Wolf did me the ultimate honor by taking my entire components list and creating a page on their website. Now, anyone can buy the Grey Man as a complete gun, or you can buy all the components and build the Grey Man on your current Glock 19 frame. You can get your own Grey Man pistol here.

My Grey Man is in my holster right now, ready for action if needed. But no one will notice it until I need it. That’s the whole idea of the Grey Man pistol. And I kind of like that idea.