[minutemen1776]

Here's a possibly dumb question, but I'll go ahead and ask it so that maybe I'll learn the answer and not feel so dumb in the future. :o

I'll looking at getting an "instructor belt" to use with a handgun holster, which I'm also shopping right now. Anyway, the holster I'm most interested in has belt slots that are 1 3/4 inches. Do I need to get a belt that is also 1 3/4 inches, or something slightly less wide (maybe 1 1/2 inches) to easily pass through the slots? Or does it really matter? Thanks!

[David E]

Get the 1.5"

[9mmepiphany]

I'd get the 1.5" also.

Don't get the belt with the nylon rings, they slip, get the metal buckle.

Don't scrimp on the cost of a holster, it is silly to spend several hundred dollars on a handgun and try to got cheap on a holster

[spoogie]

I got the 1.5" and it snugly fits through belt loops on normal jeans. So, the other thing to measure is, your pants' belt loops.

I had the same question and I'm glad I went with a 1.5" awhile back.

-S

[JEB]

i got the 1.5" after having a 1.75" 5.11 belt for a few years. i like the 1.5" much better.

[Sam1911]

Personally I really like my 1.75" Instructor belt, and it fits through all my pants belt loops just fine. It is a bit snug fitting through the loops of some plastic/kydex holsters and mag pouches, but they're rock-solid when in place.

[Striker]

Like Sam1911, I like a 1.75" belt even for concealment. All my holsters are made/purchased for that width and all my pants have belt loops to accomadate.

I find that this width carries easier and is more comfortable for me.

As always, YMMV.

[minutemen1776]

Thanks for everyone's input. It appears that the 1.5" has a good following here, though 1.75" seems to be making a late surge. I checked my belt loops last night, and most are closer to 1.5", so that's a big consideration for me at this point. As for the holster, I'm looking at some things from El Paso Saddlery, particular their Street Combat holster. However, I'm also liking the thumbsnap feature on their Tortilla model. Either way, the standard slots for these are 1.75".

[JTQ]

Remember, El Paso Saddlery says this for just about all of their holsters...
1 3/4" belt slots (smaller on request)
http://www.epsaddlery.com/c-11-concealment.aspx

If you are buying direct from El Paso Saddlery, they are going to make it the way you want it. You can order 1 1/2" loops.

I have an EPS "High Slide", I bought from Cheaper Than Dirt. It has 1 3/4" loops and I wear it with a Wilderness 1 1/2" Instructor belt. It works fine. There is a little more movement during the draw than holsters I have with 1 1/2" loops, but not much.

[minutemen1776]

Over lunch, I went to the local police supply shop and picked up a 1.5" 5.11 Instructor Belt. I was looking for a black one, but none were on the racks. After rummaging through a closeout bin, I found a green one at half price!

[The Lone Haranguer]

I would get the 1.5-inch. Not all pant belt loops even allow a 1.75" to even go through them. And if your holster loops are 1.75", the small gap won't hurt anything.

[1894]

I don't mean to hijack, but since we're on instructor belts, Which brands should we be talking about?

[Sam1911]

My choice has always been the Wilderness Tactical (http://www.thewilderness.com/storepinnacle/index.php?p=catalog&parent=142&pg=1).

There are others...but, you know, WHY?

[Bovice]

I have a 5.11 and have worn the one I have now for 2 years.

[9mmepiphany]

Whenever I hear, Instructor's belt, I usually think Wilderness Tactical also. I own their 5 stitch 1.5" as well as Frequent Flyers in 1.5" and 1"

[academy]

I second the 5.11. Mine's been a champ.

[JTQ]

Sam1911 wrote,
My choice has always been the Wilderness Tactical.

There are others...but, you know, WHY?
I agree.

[kayak-man]

My choice has always been the Wilderness Tactical.

There are others...but, you know, WHY?

Because the Ares Gear Ranger belts make you feel like batman :D

[45crittergitter]

+1 on measuring your pants. Everything should match. You can't use a 1.75 belt with anything with 1.5 loops, and you shouldn't use a 1.5 belt with 1.75 loops.

[SleazyRider]

I have two Wilderness belts in the 1-3/4 inch width. Never had a problem fitting through the loops of any pants I've worn. One belt has the metal rappelling buckle, and one is the Frequent Flyer belt with the plastic loops. Love 'em both, but the plastic loops are much more stylish and look really sharp with jeans and a jacket. They slipped a little bit at first, but worked fine after a few wearings.

My wife says I'm a "real fashion statement," whatever that means. I spoze it's good. :confused:

[mdauben]

I like the 1 3/4" Wilderness Instructors Belt with polymer liner. :cool:

I suppose there are some pants somewhere that they might not fit, but all the jeans, cargo pants and dockers in my closet accommodate the 1 3/4" belt just fine, and I feel the wider belt gives a more stable platform for the holster.

[Guillermo]

I wear a 5:11 1.75 reinforced belt most every day. Fits through jeans beltloops fine.

[FMF Doc]

It depends, for me at least, on how big of a gun you are carrying it. If it is something smaller and more importantly lighter like an M&P Shield with extended base plate of a glock 26, then I would go with the 1.5. If you are looking at a larger of heavier gun, like a steel 1911 or Sig226, then the 1.75 will do you better. You can still probably get it done with the 1.5, the the wider belt will carry better and more comfortably.

[BillH]

Check out the NRA web site. They have some excellent choices with heavier leather. I use their Latigo style.
http://www.nrastore.com/nrastore/ProductDetail.aspx?c=1&p=CM+336&ct=e

[Girodin]

My choice has always been the Wilderness Tactical.

There are others...but, you know, WHY?

Some one beat me to this answer but I'll post it anyways. Although not an "instructors belt" per se, if we are talking gun belts generally, because the Ares Ranger exists. Unless you actually need to rappel from your belt the Ares is IMHO a better gun belt.

I am one of a number of people that have gone away from the wilderness belts in favor of the Ares Gear belt and never looked back.

[Sam1911]

Wow...that Ares is one HECK of a belt! Probably even a deal, for what you're getting. But, wow.

[Girodin]

I take it you are wowing at the price? It is about $30 more than the wilderness belt. To be fair in terms of percentage it is a notable difference. However, for a belt that is going to last, well to be honest, I don't even know how many years (there are folks that have 4 years+ of everyday day use, and a few trainers I'm familiar with that put it through everyday use plus doing shooting classes every month, plus their own personal training and competition shooting). I would anticipate if you wore the belt daily and were a regular shooter the thing is going to last, making a very conservative estimate, at least 5 years (and probably much longer) with out any issue.

Thus over the next five years the $30 difference in price is deminimis. IMHO the difference in having what I deem a better more functional belt is an important difference and one well worth $30 extra. Ares Gear has a 4 week back order (although you can find them in stock at 3rd party vendors) so apparently I'm not the only one that thinks the extra $30 up front will prove a prudent investment over the next several years of use.

Lastly, while I don't like to needlessly waste money, by the time one invests $500-1,500 (I know its actually more for some folks) in a gun, $80 or so in a holster, $40 or so in a mag pouch, skimping $30 on a belt just seems silly. I am sure others are happy with the wilderness and don't see it as skimping. However, I don't know anyone who has used both belts that has gone back to the wilderness. Rather the migration seems to go only one way. For me it would be skimping, and the $30 is such a small amount of money as to be negligible.

That is just how I look at it. Others might reach different conclusions based on their situation or preferences.

[R.W.Dale]

I recently purchased a 1.5" uncle mikes instructor belt (I know) mostly because it's what I could get from my most recent midway order I needed a belt NOW not in 8weeks.

Anyways its lighyears ahead of my dollar store belts or even the crappy tagua gun belt I had tried previously.

My point is irregardless of price a real pistol belt beats the pee out of fashion grade belts.

[Sam1911]

No, actually, I was "wowing" in that it seems like an awesome belt! Probably more belt than most folks would ever need -- and that's coming from someone who already wears an Instructor belt frequently! :) -- but nothing wrong with that. Just a pretty amazing piece of gear.

[Girodin]

My apologies for misunderstanding. I was thrown by the line about "probably even a deal . . . But wow."

The Ares Gear belts are very good belts.

[lloveless]

I have always worn full thickness leather belts. I get 10-15 years of wear from them and they don't cost an arm and a leg. Find a leather worker and they'll fix you right up.
ll