You’ve spent countless hours researching which gun you should carry, which caliber you should buy, which holster might be best. You have taken some training and applied for a CCW permit. You have spent hundreds or even thousands of dollars and now you might let it all fall to pieces because of a cheap belt.
We are talking life or death here people. A good belt is that serious. True, the belt may not be the thing upon which the fight actually hinges but consider this: a good belt can mean the difference between comfortable concealed carry and uncomfortable concealed carry. So, you put on your crappy belt and your expensive holster hangs on your hip like a grenade pouch allowing your carefully chosen handgun to dig into your tender flesh. After a week of this you decide you don’t want to put up with the pain and discomfort so you decide to leave your gun at home—just this one time. On that very day, you stop to pump gas and a thug comes up to carjack you at the pump. And there you stand—disarmed—because your crappy belt didn’t hold up to the weight of a fully loaded handgun.
The lowly belt suddenly becomes a matter of life and death.
But what kind of belt are we talking about here? What kind of belt do you need?
In a word: robust. You want a solid, well-built belt that will distribute the weight of a pistol and ammunition around your mid-section. You don’t want a flimsy canvas belt or a strip of leather so thin you could use it as a bootlace if you needed to.
This does not mean that you must forego fashion. There are a great number of belts currently available that are both fashionable and robust. Several models include an internal layer of plastic sewn between two layers of leather to help keep the belt stiff. Others utilize extra-thick leather, sometimes with a backing material, to ensure the gun stays put. One element I can’t stress enough is width. Go with something at least 1.5 inches wide. I know you might be coming to the limits of your high-fashion belt loops with a wide, thick belt, but holding your gun securely is more important than fashion. Well, it is to me anyway.
Start your search for a good belt with your favorite holster maker. Chances are pretty good that the company making a good holster will also make a good belt to hold it. Yes, it will cost you a few dollars more than a cheap department store belt, but hey, it could save your life.
You need a good belt, buy one.
We are talking life or death here people. A good belt is that serious. True, the belt may not be the thing upon which the fight actually hinges but consider this: a good belt can mean the difference between comfortable concealed carry and uncomfortable concealed carry. So, you put on your crappy belt and your expensive holster hangs on your hip like a grenade pouch allowing your carefully chosen handgun to dig into your tender flesh. After a week of this you decide you don’t want to put up with the pain and discomfort so you decide to leave your gun at home—just this one time. On that very day, you stop to pump gas and a thug comes up to carjack you at the pump. And there you stand—disarmed—because your crappy belt didn’t hold up to the weight of a fully loaded handgun.
The lowly belt suddenly becomes a matter of life and death.
But what kind of belt are we talking about here? What kind of belt do you need?
In a word: robust. You want a solid, well-built belt that will distribute the weight of a pistol and ammunition around your mid-section. You don’t want a flimsy canvas belt or a strip of leather so thin you could use it as a bootlace if you needed to.
This does not mean that you must forego fashion. There are a great number of belts currently available that are both fashionable and robust. Several models include an internal layer of plastic sewn between two layers of leather to help keep the belt stiff. Others utilize extra-thick leather, sometimes with a backing material, to ensure the gun stays put. One element I can’t stress enough is width. Go with something at least 1.5 inches wide. I know you might be coming to the limits of your high-fashion belt loops with a wide, thick belt, but holding your gun securely is more important than fashion. Well, it is to me anyway.
Start your search for a good belt with your favorite holster maker. Chances are pretty good that the company making a good holster will also make a good belt to hold it. Yes, it will cost you a few dollars more than a cheap department store belt, but hey, it could save your life.
You need a good belt, buy one.
