Belts for Heavy Guns: Leather, Kydex, Steel?

[Benp]

My .02 and observations. I have a 5 stitch wilderness , a Kore reinforced and Tennessee Holster Company leather.

The adjustability of the Wilderness and Kore can’t be denied. It is fantastic.

Fatten up at lunch or have a good talk with a guy about a horse, you can adjust the tiny bit needed either way.

Leather belts aren’t capable of that to that degree.

When I ordered my Tennessee gun belt almost a decade ago I specified the holes be 3/4” center to center. That has helped a lot compared to 1” spacing.

Next one I order will be 1/2” spaced.

I see Beltman offers 3/4” spacing standard.

I wouldn’t wear a leather gun belt with 1” spacing. The lack of adjustability would drive me nuts.

I will agree about the Wilderness noise. It is very distinct but a small issue compared to how good the belt is.

 

[syntaxerrorsix]

I've worn out good quality leather gun belts. The last one I wore out El Paso Saddlery Ranger Belt. The hole I had been using stretched out and finally tore. Took 18 years but there ya go.

I've got a few examples from Hank's and a couple other notable makers such as Milt Sparks.

The bottom line is they will all wear out eventually and none of them save for the steel lined models will support your EDC like a synthetic reinforced belt.

I'm on year two or three of a Vedder quick release but the brand isn't all that important. The belt is made out of the same style webbing I use for my diving back plate. A double layer of harness material with or without an internal stiffener and a Cobra buckle. There is no sag, you cannot make it roll or fold width wise.

There is nothing on this belt you can wear out. You can set the length fractionally, no holes to contend with and once you've set it, it stays that way until you need to adjust it. Downside is that you aren't going to be adjusting it on the fly. It's a bit of a process.

All that said, leather belts are more comfortable. They are more comfortable because they DO sag, bend and adjust to your body. The synthetic brands do not. They are rock solid and will stay exactly the same shape as they are NOT the shape YOU are. They stay supportive and keep things in place.

In my opinion a heavy EDC loadout benefits from a synthetic belt. It simply performs better, the downside being it's not as comfortable as leather. If your load out is light and you don't mind the belt conforming to your gear and body go leather. Another plus to leather is that it looks WAY better. Synthetic belts, Kydex holsters and striker fired plastic guns have no soul.

I like to have options but I get far more utility out of the synthetic gear. My leather gear just makes me feel right with the world. Get some of each.

 

[jmorris]

I used the Wilderness Tactical 5 stitch belts for years good stuff.

Being cheap, around a decade ago I tried the uncle mikes belt and it’s even stiffer, they are my everyday belt.

https://www.amazon.com/Uncle-Mikes-...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=Q23JN80FK3KHVDMZGHA3

 

[1MoreFord]

Man that must be thick leather.

Ooops, thanks looks like an errant finger typo.

 

[jimboecv]

I have a question for you guys; Anyone ever pass through TSA with a metal-lined belt? I fly a lot and bought kydex-lined specifically due to metal vs. TSA. I would hate to spend $100 on a nice leather belt and have some blue shirt dweeb take my kit away.

 

[syntaxerrorsix]

I have a question for you guys; Anyone ever pass through TSA with a metal-lined belt? I fly a lot and bought kydex-lined specifically due to metal vs. TSA. I would hate to spend $100 on a nice leather belt and have some blue shirt dweeb take my kit away.

You have to take your belt off so it will go through screening. Nobody is going to take your belt.

 

[RETG]

Other than for the spur of the moment streaker, can't see why that would be a problem.

I don't like Velcro on belts. I dealt with Velcro enough being in the final days of the ACUs in the Army. Velcro everywhere, pockets and tapes and patches. No thanks to Velcro for at least several years. And holes on belts? They wear out and if you have a waist like mine you are either too tight or too loose. Not the comfortable in the middle.

Buy yourself a Kore belt. Save yourself the hassle. I have used it as a duty belt as a CO: Taser, 6oz can of pepper spray, 2 pair of handcuffs, radio, pouch for latex gloves, flashlight, key ring (with some BIG keys). Belt never sagged. Still doesn't sag. Doesn't matter if I carry my pocket sized gun AIWB or a 1911 with 2 spares. I have one in nylon and one in leather. The leather is a good belt for when looking dressed up is the thought in mind. And you can use the inside of the belt as a beer bottle opener, what a win (if you drink beer, I don't). Plus, they get funny looks from TSA when they go through the Xray machine. It is a win all around.

Kore may not sag, but they wear too fast. This belt was about a month old and only used with a Desantis holster and a H&K P30SK so not a heavy gun and not a cheap holster. I sent photos to Kore, they did replace the belt. however, the new one wore identically. I has never worn more other than some of the finish has come off. But really not impressed and for almost my entire life I carried some heavy handguns with double mag holders, cuffs on just thick leather belts with less wear.



I also have a Kore tactical nylon that has worn a lot better, and has been used to carry a larger gun (Beretta PX4 .40-15 rounds) in a Desantis holster. (No photo)

 

[rodinal220]

I'm a big fan of steel lined heavy leather belts. I used Ernie Hill belts starting in the 80s that were heavy duty and steel lined. Ernie started in Fast-Draw and his belts and holsters were steel lined and built like tanks. I currently have a couple of custom made belts from Silver Star Leather in Shipshewana Indiana, 100% Amish American made. Extremely high quality and reasonably priced.

http://silverstarexoticleather.com/
https://silverstarleather.com/

 

[herrwalther]

Kore may not sag, but they wear too fast. This belt was about a month old and only used with a Desantis holster and a H&K P30SK so not a heavy gun and not a cheap holster. I sent photos to Kore, they did replace the belt. however, the new one wore identically. I has never worn more other than some of the finish has come off. But really not impressed and for almost my entire life I carried some heavy handguns with double mag holders, cuffs on just thick leather belts with less wear.

Don't have that problem with mine. I am going on a few years using my belts and I don't see the kind of wear you have. The holsters I use on my Kore have nylon belt clips instead of metal. That might have something to do with it. I have a Pitbull mag carrier with a strong plastic belt clip and it put a light scratch on my leather Kore belt. So I only use that mag carrier with my nylon Kore belt.

 

[BobWright]

I get my belts from my local western store. They are about 3/16" thick leather and work well for me.










Bob Wright

 

[bikerdoc]

I have two like Bob's one black, one brown. Best part they were cheap at a thrift store.

 

[jimboecv]

You have to take your belt off so it will go through screening. Nobody is going to take your belt.

Not if you're TSA pre, which I am. Nor do I want the additional hassle of taking off my belt.
My experience has been you don't get to keep what TSA says you can't fly with; Confiscated. But it would be my luck to be in a rush and forget what belt I was wearing.
I've flown with hand tools in my carry on, open booze and a discharged .38 Special round (I was on stage for a Penn and Teller bit and they let me keep the bullet and brass). Shoes on the belt, shoes in a container, etc. I've also had deodorant pulled from my bag because it was too big by .3 oz. You just never know and it's designed that way. Good times!

 

[D.B. Cooper]

I have only recently been wearing a gun belt. Before that I carried other than by belt and was only familiar with fashion belts. I am interested only in concealed carry, not competition or duty.

I got one of those really heavy (16 oz) leather belts (Relentless). I find myself needing to cinch it uncomfortably tight to keep the gun from sagging. My guns range from 39 to 44 oz. Next I am trying a rigid-core belt (Kore). I think it has a kydex core.

I thought I'd ask what other people have found works well for heavier guns. Thick leather? Kydex? Steel core? Some of the steel core belts look like the steel band is fairly narrow, like Hanks. How much is enough?

Been there, done that. You're barking up the wrong tree. You need suspenders.

Nothing holds up my Ruger Redhawk. Suspenders were the only thing that helped. I finally went to a chest holster. (But I'm not trying to conceal it.)

 

[Trunk Monkey]

Not if you're TSA pre, which I am. Nor do I want the additional hassle of taking off my belt.
My experience has been you don't get to keep what TSA says you can't fly with; Confiscated. But it would be my luck to be in a rush and forget what belt I was wearing.
I've flown with hand tools in my carry on, open booze and a discharged .38 Special round (I was on stage for a Penn and Teller bit and they let me keep the bullet and brass). Shoes on the belt, shoes in a container, etc. I've also had deodorant pulled from my bag because it was too big by .3 oz. You just never know and it's designed that way. Good times!

Did you get to keep the brass?

 

[labnoti]

Been there, done that. You're barking up the wrong tree. You need suspenders.

Don't worry. Years carrying steel revolvers without a belt, I wasn't just wearing sweatpants.

I'm thinking about a chest rig too, for outdoors use. I was scrambling on some boulders near a cliff face on the weekend, looking for bat caves and possibly bear dens. The gun at my waistline was interfering with the full range of motion of my legs and I was thinking it would be nice to have it in a chest rig.

 

[TopJeff]

Tuckergunleather.com

Check out their product. Not cheap, but worth it!

 

[jimboecv]

Did you get to keep the brass?

Yes. I explained to the agent it wasn't ammo. It was brass and a bullet, which was just metal, really (something to that effect).

 

[BigBL87]

I've owned Akers, Kore, and Daltech Force belts.


I sold my Kore Essentials belt, the teeth that hold the buckle to the belt kept pulling through the leather and leaving the buckle at an angle. Might be my gut or the way it sat on me, but it just didn't work for me. The guy I sold it to hasn't had the same issue. If it hadn't been for that issue, I probably would still be using it because the adjustability was really nice.

I still own the Akers and Daltech Force belts. The Akers I wear when I am not carrying at all (basically at work) or pocket carrying. Main reason being I've put on weight so IWB carry isn't practical with it. The "hole" section, likely thanks to not having the kydex liner of the rest of the belt, has developed a pronounced curve that, while it doesn't affect the function of the belt it does annoy me. I work as a juvenile detention officer so equipment does get put on the belt and it supports it like a champ.

Daltech Force, I own a Superbio belt and a Steel Core Distressed American Bison belt. The Superbio is the EDC belt and by far my favorite that I have owned. It looks somewhat like leather but is actually a polymer molded around a mesh. It has held up the best by far and looks enough like a regular black leather belt that it doesn't look out of place. The Steel Core belt I've only worn a few times but I do like it. It is leather around a spring steel core. I really only wear it when I am wearing the one pair of cowboy boots I own (since my regular EDC belt doesn't match the brown boots) but from limited experience it is nice and stiff, can't speak for longevity though.

 

[herrwalther]

I sold my Kore Essentials belt, the teeth that hold the buckle to the belt kept pulling through the leather and leaving the buckle at an angle. Might be my gut or the way it sat on me, but it just didn't work for me. The guy I sold it to hasn't had the same issue. If it hadn't been for that issue, I probably would still be using it because the adjustability was really nice.

I have the same issue on my leather KORE belt. It has torn twice where I have had to recut the belt and attach the buckle again. I do not have the same problem on my nylon KORE belt. The issue was prevalent enough they have added 2 screws to the back of the buckle. So if they are worth another try for you, that change may solve your problem.

 

[BigBL87]

I have the same issue on my leather KORE belt. It has torn twice where I have had to recut the belt and attach the buckle again. I do not have the same problem on my nylon KORE belt. The issue was prevalent enough they have added 2 screws to the back of the buckle. So if they are worth another try for you, that change may solve your problem.

The next time I buy a belt, I may have to give it a shot. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[JR24]

I used thick leather belts for years by Simply Rugged and Crossbreed but a few years ago replaced it with a belt from RDR.

https://rdrgear.com/collections/belts-gear/products/traditional-edc-cobra-buckle-belt

I love the ability to change tightness with great precision and the stuff nylon and Kydex really make heavy guns feel lighter even compared to good leather.

It's been especially useful since my waist size has been going down lately and I don't have to worry about being in between two leather belt hole sizes.

I occasionally still use my Crossbreed belts for nicer occasions, church and such and they are far less comfortable in my opinion, even with lighter guns like a Glock or whatnot.

 

[Monster Zero]

Been there, done that. You're barking up the wrong tree. You need suspenders.

Nothing holds up my Ruger Redhawk. Suspenders were the only thing that helped. I finally went to a chest holster. (But I'm not trying to conceal it.)

I've kinda come to the same conclusion, but I have no idea where to get good quality, preferably leather suspenders. Any suggestions?

 

[D.B. Cooper]

I've kinda come to the same conclusion, but I have no idea where to get good quality, preferably leather suspenders. Any suggestions?

Duluth Trading

 

[labnoti]

Welch. They're made in Oregon.
Filson are similar to Welch but 3X as costly. The Welch are actually better and have more options.
Duluth look like the real deal too, but I have no personal experience.
Just don't get fashion suspenders or silk dress suspenders like Trafalgar. They can be very nice with a suit, but they won't hold up a Redhawk or another big Magnum.

Leather suspenders do not stretch much, so when they slacken with movement, they tend to fall off the shoulder. That's why traditional lederhosen, for example, have a breastplate or chest strap.

I also suggest considering overalls. Round House or Pointer Brand. I wear a shirt over them, the same way I wear a shirt over suspenders, and to cover the gun. So they do not look like overalls because nobody sees the bib under the shirt. The overalls can be more comfortable than suspenders and the attachment of the straps is more secure.

With suspenders, you can attach the straps with riveted buttons (just search for "jeans buttons"), or you can sew buttons on. To sew, I suggest waxed Barbour linen thread, and harness needles as used for hand-stitching leather. You can open a hole in the trousers with an awl or just pull the needle and thread through with some pliers.

 

[stonebuster]

I chose a Beltman dual bull hide double stitched with stiffener. In my case, the stiffener was probably not needed. It won't sag but if you're britches are being pulled down, add suspenders.