CC belt question

[TheShanMan]

Thanks everyone for the feedback. It was very helpful. I'm sure I'll get a gun belt at some point but right now it doesn't seem like there is any reason to rush out and get one since my setup is working well for me. I'll check out the links people have shared so I have an idea of what I want to get when I'm ready for a new one. Maybe I'll even decide to just bite the bullet... who knows?

 

[Norwestr55]

Yeah they are nice, and the price suggests that.
I know you get what you pay for, but I can't see paying more than $50-$60 for a belt.
I don't carry for work (can't) and this would be a belt for after work and weekends. All in all it's a small piece of material.
It should cost that much.

Well I'm just a cheap SOB. With how often I wear it I wouldn't know the difference between a $50 belt and a $100+ belt.

I'm a cheap SOB also,so I went with the Original Instructors Belt. I've worn it 7-8 yrs and its still as good as new. If you ever need new or a rebuild send your buckle in and they credit you for it. Just follow their sizing instructions carefully. The real advantage is being to adjust how ever you want with out being limited by the hole placement on leather belts. Oh and go with the 5 stitch.

Original Instructor Belt

 

[Hawaiian]

Another Wilderness belt fan here. Went with the frequent flyer. I also really like being able to adjust it to right were I need it.

 

[clearconscience]

Thats one thing holding me up from buying a leather belt.

I have a 5.11 web belt in the 1.75" but it doesn't fit half my pants.
Need to get the 1.5".
I usually end up drilling holes in my leather belts.

 

[HB of CJ]

This is through experience. Respectfully. Go with the widest thickest stiffest belt possible. Consider removing and resewing all the pant belt loops. Add more where needed. Make them closer together. Consider suspenders if your carry outfit gets too heavy to carry.

Remember: ... you will need multiple reload mags with Zombies!

Consider customizing your holsters removing clip on or snap on type retainers for a belt loop type captive retaining system. Consider gun grabbing retention drills where the pretend bad guy can literally strip your gun and holster off and away from your gun belt and from you.

A high level gun retention system is a good idea. Custom make your own?

We finally made up our own very heavy duty gun belts using belt blanks bought, (purchased) from our local friendly Grange Farming store. Suspenders also. We also customize our Wrangler and Levi pants with more and relocated belt loops. Suspenders already mentioned.

Lenix Mint 17 spelll chzk sucks totally. Even the American English version. Yikes!

 

[L84Cabo]

I'm a cheap SOB also,so I went with the Original Instructors Belt. I've worn it 7-8 yrs and its still as good as new. If you ever need new or a rebuild send your buckle in and they credit you for it. Just follow their sizing instructions carefully. The real advantage is being to adjust how ever you want with out being limited by the hole placement on leather belts. Oh and go with the 5 stitch.

Original Instructor Belt

I started out with Wilderness belts and thought they were pretty good until I tried some others. Wilderness belts are very thin and they aren't exceptionally rigid to start with (comparatively). My experience has been that they loose a good amount of that rigidity after about a year of hard daily use. As an everyday belt to keep your pants up, they're great and will last many years in that role. And they might work ok for a light EDC load...like a small subcompact and a single mag. But for a carrying, say, a full size gun with multiple mags and/or a full range loadout, there are just a lot better choices if rigidity is important to you...Ares Gear, SOE Gear, and if you're looking for an outstanding Riggers Belt, 215 Gear all make exceptional products that are much stiffer than the Wilderness belt. If you do go with Wilderness I would absolutely opt for the model that has the insert. Just my opinion. YMMV

 

[TheShanMan]

Hey, thanks again everyone for the feedback. I decided I needed a new belt for more than just CC, but figured it didn't make any sense to try to save a few bucks buying a regular non gun belt at this point so I bought a Hanks Gunner Stitched while it was on sale and free shipping. With that deal it really ended up being almost a no-brainer. It may be somewhat overkill for my LC9s IWB but man, is it a nice belt, and it certainly is nicer for carrying even if not strictly necessary. I'm glad I decided to bite the bullet and you guys helped me decide to do that.

 

[mkwerx]

Having a purpose made belt makes a world of difference, even with a small gun. I did the soft, cheap belt thing for years. When I broke down and got my first Wilderness gun belt - it was amazing how much easier it was. Cheap belts don't last, period. The money you piss away on buying cheap, flimy belts every year or two adds up, and two cheap belts from Wal Mart cost the same as one Frequent Flyer from Wilderness, or one of Ted Blocker's simple, stylish leather belts (@clearconscience )

I still have my original Frequent Flyer, but after a couple years with it, I bought the wider version, because I wasn't smart enough to listen to people the first time who said "get the inch and a half" - I got an inch and a quarter wide belt. It worked - and I carried Glock 17's, M&P 9 full sizes, a CZ75, and a couple of Sigs with that belt. Not exactly light guns. But I wanted more comfort, and that extra quarter of an inch really made a difference - that's a lot of extra surface area to distribute the weight over when you think about it.

I got my belts with the polymer stiffener and with 5 rows of stitching. You cannot get this belt to roll and edge. I've been wearing the same belt now for something like 6 or 7 years now, and it's still as tough as it was when it was new. I'm not nice to my gear either. Up until a few months ago - I was a tow truck operator, and was constantly rolling about on the ground, bumping into things, rubbing against sharp objects, occasionally having to hike through nasty brush - and got all manner of fluids on it. I wear it every day from the time I pull on pants, till it's time to strip for bed. The Wilderness belts I've had are damn near bullet proof - and unless you're "plus sized" like me, they can be had for less than $50. Since I'm a bigger guy, I had to pay $5 extra for a bigger size. No problemo!

My belt keeps my pants up, and carries the load. It keeps my holster exactly where I want it, it keeps my pants where I want them, and when I'm practicing dry draws, or out doing live fire practice - I don't have issues of the holster trying to come with the gun, I don't have the belt pulling away from my body, and I'm not worried that I'll ever have the belt break on me. I've snagged it on things before and found myself coming to fast, sudden stops and the belt has not been worse for the wear. Were it not for the fact that I have the Delrin loop buckles, I've no questions that this belt would support my weight vertically for a long period of time. If you opt for the steel riggers buckle, you actually could hang from the belt, as they were originally rock climbing gear before the tactical ninjas discovered them - kind of like 5.11 pants

In the long run you will be much happier with your new gun belt, than you would a soft dress belt. It's money well spent.

 

[old11bravo]

I see you've already purchased a belt for your needs but since this topic was on CC belts it really caught my interest. I find it very enlightening to see what everyone else is using.

I started out with Blackhawk Instructor belts and eventually bought a Tactical Tailor Instructor belt that was very similar to the Blackhawk version. Eventually I came to realize that I didn't like all of the extra bulk that these rigger belts came with. Never found any use for the "D" ring either. I shopped around quite a bit, much like the OP before I finally settled on a Bushido Tactical shooters belt. Very light, very rigid and I absolutely love the Cobra belt buckles. The difference between the Bushido belts with the Cobra buckle and other belts with the Cobra buckle was that Bushido designed a system whereas you can thread the female end of the Cobra buckle through your belt loops. I was sold! Lovin' my Bushido Tactical belt.

 

[B3dlam]

I'm glad you got yourself a good belt they make all the difference especially if you ever look at carrying a full size pistol.

 

[HuckleberryFun]

5.11 belt in my 5.11 pants.
I'm nothing if not imaginative.

 

[clearconscience]

Man I tried a few different belts and hated all of them.
Then I bought a slide belt off Amazon.

WOW, what a difference. Perfectly tailors to your size everytime. It's fake leather, but looks good. The buckles are really nice.
And the first belt I've used carrying that felt really comfortable, held the extra weight nicely and is easy to adjust to take the holster in and out.

I can't say enough about it.

 

[Nick Burkhardt]

I did order a steel core belt from Bigfoot Gun Belts but sent it back for exchange for two reasons. First is length. While the total belt length measures true with a tape and against other belts, the THICKNESS of the belt restricts the space you have. Bigfoot says to order two sizes up, but this is too much. I should have ordered on size up. The Second problem was height or width. They advertise that their belts are 1.5" but they are MUCH narrower. It is a noticeable difference compared to my Carhartt and Army/Navy store belts. I figure they are only 1.25" to 1.3" wide.
Hopefully they will make it right, but I am still out return shipping.

 

[Brownstone101]

Riggers Belt

Found a used one at the flea market for 10$ too replace my carhartt leather belt and i thought Wow this is way more comfortable

its rigid but being able to cinch it down to where its perfect is real nice too. plus it does have the rigger loop that i haven't used but heard storys of people using them to drag deer out. it might come in handy someday.

 

[Tony617]

I have couple of Hank's Amish CCW belts both a black and brown non-stiched ones. They are very thick leather and I use these belts every day. I also have two other Hank's black CCW belts that are stiched ones as well that I also wear at times. I have a cell phone with a belt clip but I cannot clip it on the stiched belt. When I wear a jacket then I use the stiched belt since the jacket has pockets.

 

[clearconscience]

I wear dickies for work and they won't handle a belt that is 1.75" or that is super thick.

And my holsters I use don't retain well with anything over 1.5"

 

[snarlingdog]

I carried a Glock 43 with my Kore essentials belt and loved it it made it so much more comfortable and enjoyable. There is no way I can say 'I forgot I even had it on' BS but at least it feels secure and comfortable so a gun belt will help even with a poly gun. Belts you get at Walmart or Freddy's are made to hold you the weight of your pants so adding a loaded gun makes those cheap leather belts hard on YOU and you always look like the fool who is pulling up one side of your pants every 7 steps lol. Look in to it bro trust me.

 

[ikemay]

I have two of these Daltech Force belts, though their price has gone up a bit over the past 2-3 years. One is the standard 3/16" thickness and the other one is the full 1/4" thickness. I like the standard 3/16" thickness better.

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I carry OWB using Wright Leather Works Predator holsters for a variety of firearms. My wife carries OWB using MD Whitefield Leather for some of hers (and a belt from them), along with a Wright Leather Works Predator holster for another one of her firearms. Good holsters and good purpose built gun belts make carrying safer and more comfortable. Though it might take awhile to find a combination that works for you.

 

[The Quiet Man]

I've been spending a lot of time looking for a new belt. I like the web belts but feel the leather would be better for support.
Problem I'm finding with leather gun belts is they all look like 80s police belts, or 90s butch belts.

I'm trying to find a somewhat stylish leather belt in black.
The brown ones look way better But I wear black a lot.

I've been wearing these belts for years and they easily support full size 1911's or heavy single action revolvers. Original Instructor Belt

 

[Pops1911]

I agree with what has been said before. Get a belt that works for you! It may not work for me. That's cool. It works for you. Also don't expect your very first belt to be the "best" one. Wear it. Give it some time. Does it stretch? Make your pants droopy? Try another one. They are like holsters to me. One size does NOT fit all. Best Wishes. Pops