[boredelmo]

So a good should be in order for retaining your holster/firearm.

What brand/model belt do you wear? Hows it holding up? Whats the material? Do you recommend it? Links?

[B. Adams]

I have a couple of 1.5" dual-layer cowhide belts from The Belt Man (http://www.thebeltman.net/), and they're great. Granted, I haven't had them that long, but they work at least as well as I expected. I have the velcro lining for my IWB holsters, and it works great as well. When I get around to it, I'll be ordering a couple of slightly shorter, non-velcro-lined ones for open carry and general use. Worth every penny. :)

[CajunBass]

I just got one from The Beltman too. I got the Dual Layer Bullhide model. It's everything they said it would be.

I'm going to order at least one more if that tells you anything. I need a black one for "Sunday go to meeting."

[10 Ring Tao]

I never understood all the brewhaha surrounding belts. So long as whatever is around your waist gives you adequate support, who cares?

I often carry my kahr IWB in drawstring scrub pants. Otherwise, in normal pants, a cheap run of the mill 1.5" leather garrison belt has served me well for almost 6 years.

[M1 Shooter]

I've been using this belt for about the last 5 years. It has held up quite well.
http://www.donhume.com/products/ProductsPage.cfm?ProductID=84

[boredelmo]

well with a 30 in waist and slimbuild, you really gotta latch things on.

[GunTech]

Gunner's Alley Gunbelt. Double leather belt, extremely well made. Highly recommended.

http://www.gunnersalley.com/product/GABELTHALF

[Kevin108]

An Aker 1½" polymer-lined belt from Galls.com

[biggiesmalls]

i'm poor and i only own 3 belts. one has cheap leather with a confederate flag belt buckle on it and i wear it out when i go fly kites or go feed the ducks. then there's my sponge bob belt that i got from walmart and i almost never wear this unless i'm trying to impress someone. then there's the bianchi G# B27 in a 1 inch. the leather is ok but the belt buckle is solid brass so its kinda ugly. my main problem is that the clip on many IWB and OWB holsters have loops bigger than 1inch so i don't always get the snuggest fit (they might angle around weird). i suppose bianchi had to make one in a 1inch because certain people may need it, but mine was definitely a mistake. i'd much rather have a 1.5inch. all 3 of my belts suck but at least i have nice guns.

moral of the story: get something that's not too narrow it actually does make a difference.

[stevelyn]

The Wilderness 3-stitch Instructor's belt.

[Nomad, 2nd]

Wilderness Combat shooters Model.

I have a Milt Sparks Gunbelt for when I need to dress up.

[Edmond]

Rafter S. Great belt, good price but bad customer service.

[gunmn74]

I have been wearing a belt from texasgunslinger.com.
It is a nice thick belt and I think I paid 35 bucks for
it at a gun show. http://www.texasgunslinger.com/Belts.htm

The link only shows a few but he has many diffrent styles and
was very nice and helpfull.

[fletcher]

I wear my BSA belt from Seabase. It's not incredibly stiff after wearing it for 10 years, but I already had it and it does the job.

It slightly resembles this:
http://www.scoutstuff.org/BSASupply/images/05NDC/images/685.jpg

[Ala Dan]

I prefer belts of any kind from Kirkpatrick Leather of Laredo, Texas~!;):D

[1911 guy]

I now use a Wilderness 5-stitch, 1 1/2" Instructor belt. I like it well enough that I wear it often, even when I'm not carying a pistol.

[VHinch]

I've been wearing an Operator belt from 5.11 Tactical and I now prefer it over the Wilderness Intstructor.

[AK103K]

I never understood all the brewhaha surrounding belts. So long as whatever is around your waist gives you adequate support, who cares?
I think a lot of this depends on how long you wear the gun and how active you are.

If you only wear it for an hour or two, riding to or from work or walking around the mall, it will probably be fine. If your active and wear it from the time you get up, until you go to bed, day in, day out, a cheap, soft belt wont be as comfortable or stable, regardless of how you carry your gun. A good belt makes a MAJOR difference here.

My favorite is the Wilderness type belts. They allow for infinite adjustments across the range, making them very comfortable over a wide range of clothing and body adjustments (ie..after Thanksgiving Dinner, etc). You dont have to "hit a hole", and be either to tight or to loose. The only downside to them is, they are more of a casual belt, and tend to scream gun to those who know what they are.

[Cannonball888]

Equate or Faded Glory.

[VARifleman]

1.25" Black Horsehide from the Beltman. Great belt for carrying a gun, although with some pants it's hard to get a proper gigline :(

[waterhouse]

I've been wearing a Milt Sparks for several years, it is well made.

[GRB]

When I carried in uniform in the 1980s, I made darned sure that my River and Sam Brown belts were of top quality, and I used to buy Bianchi. Top grade stuff back then, though I cannot speak for them now, as I just don't know about their newer stuff. My through the pant loops belt was always a top grade belt too.

Now, I wear a leather belt throuhg the pant loops belt. Any brand, made to be strong and durable is okay so long as it appears to me to be made fairly well and strong. I don't want it falling apart and dropping my drawers and my pistol around my ankles. Belts can and do often fail where the buckle is attached to the belt. I don't want it pulled off of me either.

I can tell you though, whatever belt you buy, it should be a strong one in material and construction. I have seen take away demonstrations where a person with holstered firearm had the gun and holster taken away by someone grabbing it and giving a few strong tugs and twists. The reason was either that the holster gave way where attached to the belt, or the belt gave way and came off with the holstered gun. Not something you think about everyday, but allow me to absolutely assure you it can be done by a man of average strength with some of the junk for sale out there today.

All the best,
Glenn B

[MinnMooney]

I agree w/ Glenn Bartley -

The expensive Sam Brown belts are great for service wear with many items hanging off of them but their too much bulk/stiffness for everyday pistol carrying. Now I just wear my piece and a decent (read mid-priced - not expensive) 1 3/8" - 1 3/4" leather belt/solid buckle works great.

[The Lone Haranguer]

I'm very pleased with the quality, performance, price and service from Jim Speidel the Beltman. It is a plain black, 1 1/2" bullhide and matches my brown shoes perfectly. ;) If you need a belt for more formal attire (e.g., a suit) but is still a fully functional gun belt, he can make those too.

Originally posted by 10 Ring Tao:
I never understood all the brewhaha surrounding belts. So long as whatever is around your waist gives you adequate support, who cares?

That's what the brouhaha is about. ;) Cheap belts, or even more expensive dress belts not designed with carrying guns in mind, generally (there may be individual exceptions) don't give you adequate support, especially with heavy guns.

[22-rimfire]

I wear a number of belts depending on the situation. I don't carry all the time. My favorite leather belt is made by Rafter S. The only thing I don't like about it is I can't hook my cell phone on my belt as easiy as it is always falling off if it bumps into something when I wear the belt. Excellent belt. I have no problem with their service. I ordered the belt and they made and shipped it quicker than promised. Craftsmanship is excellent. I intend to buy more from them.

[Alphazulu6]

Most of the heavy Morano belts work just as well as any tactical belt for carrying because a well made belt is a well made belt.

[DoubleTapDrew]

I never understood all the brewhaha surrounding belts. So long as whatever is around your waist gives you adequate support, who cares?

I felt the same way at first. After wearing a cheap walmart belt and having it stretch, sag, and pull the holes out about a half inch after a couple weeks I got one from gunners alley This one (http://www.gunnersalley.com/product/GABELTQUARTER). It's held up very well, holds the holster tight to the body, and looks sharp. I'll probably try a wilderness belt next for more casual wear.

[RobZ71LM7]

Uncle Mikes 1.5" wilderness belt knock-off.

[mustanger98]

I make my own belts 1.25" wide from 10oz. veg. tanned cowhide... usually cut from a double shoulder. I have three- one in slick dark brown, one in dark brown with a border stamping, and one in black basketstamp. Which one I wear depends more on my mood than on whether or not I'm packin'. My main buckle is by Montana Silversmiths. Whether I'm packin' or not, I've had no trouble with belts I made. Holsters vary with the sidearm I choose which depends on what I'm doing that day... I might also choose a cartridge belt. If no cartridge belt, I have a belt slide that holds a full 6rd reload for .357mag.

[C96]

I've been wearing Ted Blocker belts for the past fifteen years. A couple in 1.25 and a couple in 1.5 inch width. Ted puts in seven holes on 0.75 inch centers rather than the usual five on 1.0 inch centers. It does make adjustments a bit finer.

If you are carrying something relatively heavy like a 1911, it is nice to have the proper amount of tension on the belt.

allan

[Bartholomew Roberts]

Milt Sparks. Two 1.5" and one 1.25"

[Black Majik]

Milt Sparks 1.5"

[strat81]

Rafter S. Great belt, good price but bad customer service

I too have a Rafter S belt. Feels like it's made from half the skin on the cow, very sturdy, good finish and quality, and great price. I disagree about the customer service: I received very good customer service as I had some special needs at the time and they met them very well. You can tell it's a small mom & pop operation, not a big company with a call center.

I highly recommend them.

[The Deer Hunter]

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/pod/horizontal-pod.jsp?id=0003223&navCount=1&parentId=cat20817&masterpathid=&navAction=push&cmCat=search_redir&parentType=index&indexId=cat20817&rid=


:D:D:D

[mikeyinokc]

I wear one made by Looper Leather in Oklahoma City. It is a 1.5 inch, double thickness with a liner of kydex in between the two thicknesses of leather. Very sturdy belt, does not go into the "banana" shape most belts do after some time of wear. The best part is they are only $29.00.

http://www.looperleather.com/

[PH/CIB]

Will not bend or crumple under load, tough and dependable and only$10 plus $10 shipping and handling for a total of $20.

http://www.handgunholsters.net

[Erik]

Rafter S or Wilderness depending on if I want to run leather or nylon.

[gyp_c2]

...Wilderness mostly, 1.5...I'm gonna' go to the thinner one though...The 1.5 digs into my side on a hell-drive...guess I'm gettin' old...http://emoticons4u.com/smoking/rauch06.gif

[John C]

Rafter S gunleather belt here. I just got it an hour ago, and I have to say that it exceeded my expectations. I also have Beltman horsehide, and it's a fantastic belt, too.

You can't go wrong with either of these.

-John

[asknight]

I'll give another shameless plug for Bowen Knife Company (http://www.bowenknife.com/). They're local to me and I know the folks that run the place, they're fine people.

I've been wearing my wide (1-9/16" $23.00) garrison style belt with a wide single edge stainless buckle knife (2-7/8" $36.00) daily for over 6 years now. Actually I think it's been longer than that since I quit counting. I've come to trust this belt like no other with absolutely no complaints. The belt has exhibited minimal stretching, and they made it to fit me. Just give them your waist size and they'll size you one to allow for normal weight fluctuations unlike some other brands where if you order a 36" belt, you'll be using the first or last hole on it, with no room for a pound or two gain or loss.

Another thing that annoys me with other belts as they don't leave enough tongue to tuck into the first or second belt loop securing the buckle overall. Bowen does.

The gravy with a Bowen is that you'll have an additional means of self defense, a super sturdy gun belt is just a peripheral to the product. Who doesn't need that?!

[BsChoy]

I'll second the uncle mikes take off on the 1.5 wilderness belt. Funtional, very adjustable and cheaper!!