Belts are a common discussion on this, and other subreddits. I recently purchased 4 different gun belts on Amazon to find the best one for me. These are all specifically, gun belts, belts that are designed especially to support holsters, guns, ammo, and other equipment for long periods of time. Here’s a short breakdown of what I observed.All these belts were sturdy and easily passed The Holster Test (hanging your holster on the belt and having it maintain a loop when held up (not on your body)).I just returned them, so I don’t have any pictures (sorry). Amazon has plenty of photos, though.All the belts on this list were extremely well made, handsome, heavy duty, Kydex reinforced, and otherwise seemed like excellent purchases. I would happily recommend any of these. Caveat is that I didn’t wear them longer than five minutes, so I can’t say how they fare in the real world9.11 Tactical Trainer (Brown) – $45 USD | 1.5-inch-wideThis belt came with a “distressed” style golden/brass buckle and a beautiful dark brown leather. This was a very nice-looking belt that I would say was probably the best looking of the casual belts on this list. I would love to wear this with a nice pair of jeans, a button-down shirt, and some oxfords. You can easily wear this on a date, although it is very much a casual type belt. This was the cheapest and simplest belt on my list.It was simply that: a gun belt. It was sturdy without being too thick, have nice leather, nice coloration, and looked nice. It had a tiny little pouch in the back it called a “key pouch” which was a nice touch. I’m sure I could think of a good use for that and store either a key or a folder $100 bill (it was pretty small, you couldn’t fit more than one bill in there, if at all).Magpul Tejas El Empresario (Black) - $85 USD | 1.25-inch-wideThe only dress belt of the bunch. This belt is spectacularly nice-looking. If you need a belt that you can wear with business casual or a suit, this is absolutely the one for you (also hear amazing things about the Beltman dress belt, but I didn’t try it out this round since no easy way to try/return). The black leather pattern was a bit wavy near the end tip (not smooth, sorry, having trouble explaining how it looked), which didn’t look bad, although I personally like entirely smooth leather for my belts, although it wasn’t so noticeable. YMMVMapgul Tejas El Original (Brown) - $75 | 1.5-inch-wideBy far the thickest of the bunch and it also has the lightest coloring of all the belts. This belt felt massive, far bigger than the others on this list. The buckle was thick and heavy, and it was quite difficult to thread the end tip through the buckle, buckle, and unbuckle it. I’m sure it would have worn in with use, though (I sure hope so). The kydex side felt moderately “grippy”.Note: The company that sold this on Amazon does not fulfill through Amazon (FBA). Therefore, return shipping cost me $3.33 plus a 15% restocking fee. Somewhat annoying, as someone who is used to free Amazon returns, but I guess that’s the price of doing business.Hank Kydex Reinforced, 1.5 In (Brown, Black) - $90 USD | 1.5-inch-wideI ended up sticking with these immensely popular belts. I ordered two colors but only chose the brown leather which was a medium-dark brown. There are some really neat features on this belt which make it unique. Firstly, it has a rolling cylinder on the buckle which helps the end tip easily slide in and out without stressing the leather. This is a really really good idea, especially for very stiff belts which I could easily having extra stress when you puuuuull that belt right. I’ll probably be looking for this feature on every belt that I buy, except for dress belts.Secondly, the Kydex reinforcement doesn’t run all the way through to the end tip but ends about six inches before. This is another really clever idea. The other belts I tried, especially the Magpul El Original, were so thick on the end point that I sometimes struggled to get it in the buckle and seated properly. Also, it made the front of my pants super thick with all that material. This version, as Hanks makes it, has just the thick leather without the Kydex, on top of the buckle, which does significantly reduce bulk. These belts, even the black leather, are not dress belts.Traditionally, dress belts are 1.25-inches and these are 1.5. You could get away with it, I guess, since the leather is pretty nice. However, the kicker is the buckle. The square buckle it comes with, and the roller on it are simply too casual for me to use with a suit. This is a really nice belt that I am using for all my casual needs, but it just is not the right one for dress use.Hank’s gun belts are famous here on Reddit and have their 100-year guarantee. They also sent me an automated Amazon message offering a free return and prepaid envelope they will send to you for free. I’m about to use this service to try a larger size. I’ve written more about Hank’s belts than the others, by far, as I’m a little biased, and also because there is more to write about.Currently, I kept the Brown Hanks Reinforced. In the future I hope to buy a black dress belt as well (but too much money spent on belts at the moment). I’m thinking of getting that future dress belt with a steel core, since it’s much thinner than the 1.25 inch casual belts and I’m not sure it’ll be able to maintain the same rigidity though its life. If anyone has any information on steel core dress belts, please comment. via /r/CCW http://bit.ly/2vGaAm3
No comments:
Post a Comment