Wear a Strong Leather Gun Belt for improved comfort and security
Strong Leather Gun Belts Display at a Gun Show
Strong leather gun belts can really improve your ability to conceal carry. One thing that I see over and over at the shows, is people trying to find a holster (especially an OWB or “Outside the Waistband” holster) that they can just “clip on” and use, because they don’t like to wear a belt. I have to tell them that I don’t have a good concealment holster that does that, and the IWB’s (or “Inside the Waistband”) that are clipped work better with a belt on, preferably a strong one.
Guns have Mass
Why is this? Well, it’s not too hard to figure out. Guns have a good amount of mass and weight, even the smaller ones. The more mass and weight you hang on your pants, the more problematic they are going to be to control. A good belt such as a reinforced gun belt or a thick leather belt not only helps to distribute that mass and weight around a bit more, but it helps to prevent unwanted movement, both of the holster and weapon, and of of the pants.
Types of Gun Belts
Belts that are suitable for holster work tend to fit into one of three broad categories. Duty Belts such as what you see police working with. “Reinforced belts” that are multiple layers of thin leather with materials inserted into them such as kydex or steel. Thick leather belts that rely on their overall thickness of material to provide the necessary support.
Duty Belts
Duty Belts are usually not something that the average person will be getting. They tend to be wider than usual (up to 2″ or more, and a lot of them are expensive. And, of course, their appearance can be a bit obvious even to an untrained observer.
Reinforced Belts
Many people end up with various types of reinforced belts. For this example, a reinforced belt typically is two pieces of thin leather with a metal or kydex “stiffener” between them. There are many examples of various reinforced belts out there. Most tend to be on the pricier side of the market.
Strong Leather Gun Belts
I sell this type of gun belt at the gun shows. With a well constructed thick leather belt, you have one solid piece of leather. Any sewing on them is strictly for show.
Thick Leather Belts from Amazon
Dress Belts
A typical dress belt is not constructed with enough strength to be able to withstand the stress than a gun holster will put on it. As a result, I do not recommend that you use a typical dress belt for gun duty in any capacity.
Strong Leather Gun Belts I sell at the gun shows
The Strong leather belts that I sell at the gun shows are one piece of cowhide leather, 1 1/2 inches wide. They use stainless roller buckle hardware, with stainless chicago screws.
These strong leather gun belts are longer than a typical dress belt of the same marked size. A normal dress belt measures from the start of the leather, to the middle hole punched in it. The strong leather belts that I carry at the gun shows, measure from the start of the leather, to the first punched hole.
This makes them four inches longer than a typical dress belt of the same size. Normally when you are buying a gun belt, you add a few inches to accommodate your holster. This belt already has that accomodation built in.
Our Dress Belts
The people that make the strong leather gun belts that I sell at the gun shows, have added a new line, and I am just now starting to carry it. It’s a Dress Belt, but it’s made with the same attention to detail that the strong leather gun belts are made with.
The new Dress belts are made from Water Buffalo. They are 1 1/4 inch wide. Rather than the roller buckles used on the strong leather gun belts, these use more traditional hardware. Chicago Screws are used, same as the strong leather gun belts, but these are black.
And most importantly, they have the same “extra length” that the strong leather gun belts have. As a result, they are four inches longer than a typical dress belt of the same sizing.
The Pinch Test
Take a belt in your hand. Place your thumb and index finger on the top edge and bottom edge of the belt, and try to push them together. If you can do this easily, this probably won’t make a good holster belt for you. If you can’t push them together easily, you probably will do OK.
Be sure to apply the “squeeze test” liberally. My experience has been that most belts are more about fashion appeal than practical use. Many of them are just not strong enough to actually help out in this situation.
All three of the belt types discussed should pass the pinch test with flying colors. The thick leather belts that I sell at the gun shows pass this test with ease.
Final Thoughts
Bear in mind, that these tips at most helpful when you are carrying waistline or below. IWB (Inside the waist), OWB (outside the waist), pocket holster (Yeah, it helps a little), and even ankle holster (keeps your pants in the right place). If you are carrying above the waist, such as a belly band, Packin’ Tee t-shirt, or a shoulder holster, then a strong belt system isn’t important for your carry ability, although it’s still not a bad idea in general.
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