How tight is your pistol belt?

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Ill add i have 2 ways i carry.
I only IWB carry when necessary as its the least comfortable, But i wear a wife beater t-shirt and usually a black cover t-shirt thats 1 size too large.
Black is the best color to cover up bulges, Ask any fat chick they will tell you that also.
Just be ready to run realllly fast! Im kinda fat but im lazy too so i can say that, I think anyhow.

OWB i enjoy carrying as i have no pressure inside my beltline. I just wear a pancake OWB holster and a lite jacket or heavy depending on the weather.
CCW has made me like winter and cooler temps.

But you must always be prepared to have clothing clean and ready for IWB carry as you may need to go some place you cant keep your outer cover on.
My Doctor's office removed his "No Carry" sign, But i show enough respect to him i will wear IWB so i can take my jacket off but still have my t-shirt covering my weapon and he still cant see any bulge.

One other thing to consider in how tight your belt is what size and weight your gun is.
I like an all steel 5" 1911 cause im sadistic and like pain carrying that thing IWB. And that does take some pretty strong belt tension.
But my XD SC .40 is hardly noticeable under my belt.
One tip i found to make carrying IWB easier is a holster with 2 belt points. A single clip holster sucks imo and will move around and the gun will stick out at the oddest places.
Two places you fasten the holster to the belt helps control it alot.
 
I have what I call the drawer of misfit belts. It took me years to acumulate the right combination, and I'm not even going to get into the shoulder holsters, belly bands etc. In my experience, the widest practical belt works best for load distribution. Speaking of loads, and not tring to insult anybody or start a fight. That ten year accumulation of lard around my midsection I lost last year impoved my carry comfort immensely.:evil:
 
I realised that the thickness and weight of the belt isnt the problem when you are trying to OWB carry a Beretta 92. I switched to a smaller piece, and to IWB carry (in the summer anyway :))
 
I found my spare tire will absorb a 1911 into it like cake and ice cream when i tighten my belt nice and tight.
I think body shape and size affects where your gun is more comfortable at, But the type and size of gun matter alot also.
Not everyone can conceal a full sized 1911 IWB easily.
If you cant get a large gun to fit then you need to try smaller guns.

This is why i carry an XD SC .40 in the summer as the 1911 is just to much to conceal comfortably in hot weather.
 
Wow thanks for all the responses! Right now I'm just using a regular belt that I found in the house, its fairly stiff, but i suppose a kydex reinforced one would easily be stiffer. The holster I'm using is a minotaur Mtac that I've fitted to my jericho. I will say that when I "overtighten" my belt, the feeling does go away and things tend to fit into their place. I would carry a smaller gun right now, but the Jericho is what I've got. I am however looking into more compact designs. I can't really conceal a full grip too well, At 5'5'' and about 125 pounds its just not gonna happen so i'm looking for a compact.
 
I tighten mine to one notch past comfort, and everything settles in comfortably after some moving around.
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Same here. I currently have a Tex-Tan 1 1/2" belt and a tuckable of my own design. I carry an M1911 all day, very comfortably.
 
I tighten mine to one notch past comfort, and everything settles in comfortably after some moving around.
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This. Once things stretch out a bit after some walking around, it'll get much more comfortable. The first five minutes after I put on my belt, it's not exactly comfy, but I don't even notice it after that.
 
I use the "Operator belt" from 5.11 Tactical. It comes in 1-3/4" width and is nice and stiff. Really helps keep a full size 1911 in place and makes it pretty comfortable. Same thing as the Wilderness instructor belt, just another option.
 
Right now I'm just using a regular belt that I found in the house, its fairly stiff, but i suppose a kydex reinforced one would easily be stiffer.
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I'd say that's likely your problem. You don't need a kydex reinforced belt but a quality gun belt makes a huge difference even though they look the same as other belts.
I'm not affiliated with this site but it looks to provide some good info: http://www.gun-belt.com/do-i-really-need-a-gunbelt.php
The MTAC is a nice holster and should not be doing what you described. Before I had a gun belt I'd have to overtighten it to hold the gun secure and yes, it does get comfortable after a little while because the belt is stretching. Eventually mine broke! That's when I decided I better step up and drop $50 or so on a belt made for carrying. Mines a few years old now and still going strong.
 
Belt stiffness test

Hold the edges of the belt between your thumb and second finger in a pinching motion, and try to depress the center with your index finger with as much pressure as you can muster. If it "gives," even slightly, it is not stiff enough. There are a few dress or casual belts not specifically designed to bear weight that can pass this test, but not many.
 
Now I know, carrying isn't SUPPOSED to be comfortable,

Whoever told you that is wrong.

I can't really conceal a full grip too well, At 5'5'' and about 125 pounds its just not gonna happen so i'm looking for a compact.


Try something like De Santis Speed Scabbard. I know a 4-10 85 lb woman that carried a Glock 17 very concealed. You just have to want to do it.
 
It's already been mentioned, but a "good" belt is as important to CCW as a "good" holster. Even the thick Levi's style elather belts are not strong enough to support a gun and holster daily. I have a Galco belt that works OK but I switched over recently to the 5:11 gun belt and if the Galco belt was twice as good as a normal pants belt, the 5:11 belt is twice as good as the Galco. I like them so much I wear them daily even without the gun & holster.
 
As others mentioned, a good belt and good holster are not optional.

Weight of the gun is also a KEY factor in all day carry. Polymer and synthetic materials are your friend, both in terms of weight and resistance to the elements.

I've used primarily two kinds of belts:

1) Beltman lether belts; I have a brown one and a black one. They are leaps and bounds better than a normal off the shelf belt. They look pretty much like any regular 1.5" belt too. I wear these any time I am either carrying with the belt buckle exposed, or even when I'm not carrying at all.

2) Wilderness instructor belt. I use this for competition, and carry when the belt is not exposed. This belt does not look like a normal belt and will scream "gun" louder than just about anything else to other gun people. Advantages over Beltmans include: a) Synthetic and thus more sweat resistant; b) Infinitely adjustable: Once you've used one of these, you will notice that leather/punch-hole belts will rarely get to a tightness that feels truly optimal; c) It is even stiffer than the Beltmans.

I crank my belt down pretty tight. With leather, I'd use the "too tight" hole before the "too lose" hole. Do some jogging or wear it enough on the tight setting to let it stretch out just a hair.

With a good gear setup it should be very difficult for someone to determine you are carrying. People carry so many phones, pda's, and other jazz on their belts these days that even if you spot someone who you think is carrying something on their belt due to a bulge, there is no guarantee it is a pistol anyway. In fact I would normally assume it is not unless proven otherwise, just based on the percentages. As someone who carries I've never spotted someone I know for sure is carrying a pistol outside a gun club. Granted I don't spend most of my time looking at guys' hips... :scrutiny: Not that I would care or say anything if I did spot someone carrying.

As far as I know I've never been "made".... not that I would care about that either. But chances are if you are being made, your gear setup is far from optimal.

As far as comfort it is all relative. A gun will never be truly comfortable, because a brick on your hip is not comfortable compared to no brick, no matter how nicely it is strapped down. Hell, I don't carry more than three keys at a time because I don't like the big stack of 10+ keys that a lot of people carry to be digging into my leg when I sit down, weighing down my pocket, etc. There is a reason that when I get home, all the crap comes out of my pockets. But good gear and a light gun help, and will be a lot MORE comfortable than a heavy gun that is flopping around.

Priorities in order for me would be:

1) Good belt
2) Good holster
3) Light gun

Chances are if you are committed to carrying a lot, you will eventually end up with all three.
 
Same thing would happen to me when I wore my walmart special china belt. It would stretch easily and the holster would flop very easily. So I did research on belts and found out that I actually had to invest in good leather belt. I prefer to buy american made so I paid $45 for a very nice DeSantis belt and immediately felt the ddifference. I am now hooked on good quality belts. My local gun shop has a very nice selection or a country apparel shop should have a v ery good selection of good quality leather belts.
 
The leather belts I wear have 7 hole placed 3/4 inches a part to combat th e"too tight, too loose" issue. Of course, these days I wear nylon more and more, so that I can dial the desired level of snugness in. I recommend Ares Gear belts, for what it is worth.
 
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