Gun Belt review

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Lar1911

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If you do not own a gun belt, you need one. I wore a thick work belt for a long time and just kept tightening it as it stretched or to make up for the weight of the gun, both IWB and On the Waist Band.

Once you get one you will realize the importance of it.

And when you get a good one, it is something you can pass on to your kids, these things are built to last.

- A good gunbelt is important to the performance of a holster, without it the holster will not give you the presentation you really want.

- Thicker than a normal belt. This extra thickness equates to additional strength and support.

- It is significantly more durable that a standard belt. Most standard belts are made of a thinner leather. Over time and use, the thinner leather tends to break down. This break down causes the belt to stretch and sag. Have you ever put a regular belt on only to find that you now have to move the buckle in to the next closest hole? If you haven't lost weight.....

I am doing a quick review on two belts.

The first is the Don Hume 1 1/2 Leather belt (Model B109) They recommended you order 2 inches bigger for IWB, when it got here it was too big and I had to get it in the right size. Delivery was 2 days later, great customer service.

You can feel this is a double thickness belt, mine is brown and it looks like a dress belt. You can wear this anywhere and look fine. When I put a gun and holster on the belt it made a huge difference. The gun (Full size 1911) did not pull down at an odd angle, it didn't pull my pants down to where I had to tighten the snot out of my pants.

When drawing the weapon, the belt supports the holster so that the draw is smooth right out of both leather holsters and kydex. This is where a gunbelt shines, great performance.

Now I can see how an OWB holster can be concealed in an untucked shirt.

IWB was better. The gun was well supported and my belt wasn't tightened super tight to keep it in place.

I paid $51.00 for the belt and highly recommend it, Lots of support, looks great. I have seen others that are more expensive and thicker, I can see the benefit of them.

the second belt is the Wilderness Instructors Belt

http://www.thewilderness.com/storepinnacle/index.php?p=product&id=2309&parent=142

I love this belt, it goes with my jeans perfectly and does not look out of place.

The belt was originally designed to clip into a secure system while "instructing" others in high places. Produced from specially treated nylon, it's a tremendously strong belt with a specially designed V-ring buckle that has been treated with a non-glare black coating.

When the Wilderness Belt was first introduced, customers started experimenting, and discovered that, in addition to it's Fire and Rescue uses, it also worked great as an everyday pants belt for casual or outdoor use. Those same folks also discovered that the Wilderness Belt made a fantastic gun belt for range use and concealed-carry.

This belt is very strong and give the stiffness and support of thicker leather gunbelts. Like the Hume belt above it supports the gun holsters both in and on the waistband and allows great presentation and Carry options.

What I like the most about this belt is it looks great with jeans, you don't look like a geek with an odd belt, (The Hume leather belt looks great, just like a nice new leather belt) it feels great wearing it, my Gerber multitool fits on it and the buckle allows a perfect fit. then the tail of the belt Velcro's down and looks clean. If you carry tools on your belt this is going to be a huge asset and is not uncomfortable

If you can afford just one, get the wilderness 5 stitch Instructors belt. The instructors at Gunsite use it. Look at their videos on line and you can see it, mine is in coyote, its tan.

I hope this helps, again if you do not own a gunbelt you really need to get one, you will be happy with the investment.
 
I also looked that this cowhide belt from Rafter Gunleather
http://www.raftersgunleather.com/Belts.htm

brown-belt.JPG
 
+1 to Don Hume

The wilderness instructor belts I put in the same category as fanny packs and photographer's vests...items that mostly gun carriers use. They look out of place (not so much for the fanny pack but you can usually spot a fanny pack designed for and sagging under the weight of a gun versus a small fanny pack holding wallet and keys carried by a tourist) and advertise that the person wearing them is carrying. I suppose the non-gun carrying population don't have a clue but for the rest...
 
Thanks for the great info and reviews. Do you have any experience with contoured gun belts?
 
I recently ordered the Wilderness 5 stitch Instructors belt in coyote color. Hopefully it's in the mail.

(I've never had a quality gun belt)
 
I recently ordered the Wilderness 5 stitch Instructors belt in coyote color. Hopefully it's in the mail.

(I've never had a quality gun belt)

Post a review on it when you get it. especially wht you think of finaly having a gun belt.

Once I got mine thats what struck me, how valuable a belt is.
 
The wilderness instructor belts I put in the same category as fanny packs and photographer's vests...items that mostly gun carriers use
Sure, but if carrying with anything but a tucked IWB holster your belt is invisible to the rest of the world.
I've pondered the instructor belts for a while, but I ended up with a second BeltMan belt instead. Probably I'll try a nylon setup next time I drop enough pounds to qualify for a new belt purchase.
 
horse4.jpg


This is the horsehide belt from the beltman.

You can see it looks great, mine is a Hume and looks like this.
 
Any belt that can retain my tremendous girth is a miracle of engineering in its own right. The Wilderness Instructor's belt (5 stitch) does it with ease--and supports a holster to boot. Five stars, baby!
 
No history on the models mentioned, but I could not be happier with my horsehide model fro The Beltman. Pricey, but for sure it will outlast me.

And I could not agree more that the belt is what makes the holster perform. You'll stop the constant buying of holsters if you invest in a quality belt.
 
Another Beltman Fan

I have three from the Beltman.
The first was a 1.25" bullhide with the internal stiffner. The second is a 1.25" horsehide. These two were actually purchased as dress belts and are worn with suits at least a couple of times a week. No one has ever suspected they are actually gun belts.

The third is a 1.5" bullhide without the stiffner. This is a more casual belt for everyday wear.

The 1.5" holds my holster and gun tighter against the body than the other two and offers better support due to the extra width. The horsehide is the better of the two narrower belts and is the most comfortable. If I had only one, it would be the horsehide - very fine quality. Pricey, but worth it.
 
I rock a Gould and Goodrich black gun belt. It's got some sort of rubber/polymer (?) band on the inside that does the reinforcing. It works great and cost around $50.
 
I've used a Wilderness 5 stitch for 4 years now. It still has not stretched at all and looks new.

I bought a spare a few years back, and it sits new in the drawer in case something happens to my user belt...
 
Crossbreed belt - A
Great support for my kimber 45 which can get a little heavy for all day but cossbreed makes it comfy.
 
I am a believer in the Wilderness instructor's belt. Mine has been going strong for 3 years now and I love it.
 
Sure, but if carrying with anything but a tucked IWB holster your belt is invisible to the rest of the world.
Not if you are wearing an open untucked shirt over a T-shirt, or an unzipped jacket....or a photographer's vest.

I doubt most people would look at someone's belt and notice it was different and realize they were carrying a gun on their person. I just think they look out of place if you are wearing normal attire and going about normal daily activities. But that's just me...
 
Not if you are wearing an open untucked shirt over a T-shirt, or an unzipped jacket....or a photographer's vest.
You know what? ... You're right.
I've been using an untucked short-sleeve buttoned shirt as my "not working" outfit for so long that I forgot that not everyone is closed up in front.

Depending on the pants worn, the instructor belt might fit in or might stick out ... the fashion trend towards cargo pants and industrial workwear works in your favor here.
 
I really like the looks of that stitched cowhide belt from Rafter's that's posted above but I see that's it's two pieces of leather sewn together. Are they all like that or are the one piece belts better ?
 
I have an Alessi gun belt...and it is becoming quickly clear that I'm going to "outgrow" it before it comes near to needing to be replaced.
 
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