I took the advice of some forum member and went to Wal-Mart to look for a Dickies work belt. I found one that is 1 1/2" wide and made from some kind of fabric with a 1"strip of leather running lenghtwise around the belt. It is very stiff and holds my 37 flat against my side. 12 bucks. I really wanted one of those Amish belts but thought I'd try the cheaper kind. If it don't last I will have to break down and go for the amish I guess.
Peace,
gordon

__________________
better have that checked

I bit the bullet and ordered an Amish belt. At $29 its still a good price. It left Syracuse NY today due to be delivered here in Texas on Friday.

The Amish belt works very nicely. I have one on now with some cargo shorts and it supports my IWB rig very nicely. While they are not specifically designed for ccw, per se, they still make a nice stiff belt. I have a 1.5" dress gun belt I purchased from Gunners Alley a few years back, and the Amish belt is every bit as good as the GA belt, for about half the price. Just my $.02. ymmv.

I prefer the Wilderness Tactical 5-stitch instructor belt for gun-carry duty, but I recently bought a 5.11 Tactical 5-stitch instructor belt that, while not quite as heavy-built as the Wilderness, is about $20.00 less and still perfectly adequate.

__________________
NRA Pistol,PPITH,PPOTH&TASER

I paid out the butt for a Comp-Tac belt, with the kydex insert, and it works well except for one thing. I lost some weight since I bought it, and now it's too big. At $85 a pop it's a bunch to pay for a new belt.

I also own a Tactical Tailor rigger's belt, and it works well, but I've gained a bit of weight since I bought it 10 years ago...


What am I to do?

Simply Rugged makes some nice ones too.

I bought the Amish belt and now I can hit the broad side of a barn.

__________________
Thirty characters. Exactly...

I have the Dickies work belt.....It supports a 5 inch barreled Model 27 all say without a sag.

I drilled new holes in all my leather belts. Then heat up a 10 penny nail and singe the hole to add strength. (Maybe with kydex inserts you don't need to singe the hole?) Not perfect but for me that will extend the usage for a few more years.

I've not heard of an Amish belt. Link?

And where are the photos of these belts doing duty?

__________________
Marty 4513TSW 13-1 642 60-10

I have a bull hide belt from Bullhidebelts.com.

It is double layers stitched from bull hide (tougher than cow hide). It measures a full 1/4" thick (with a vernier caliper). It comes with a nice stainless steel buckle.

Unlike the synthetics it will conform to the waist. A broken in belt will not lie straight when placed on a flat surface. It will be curved at the positions of the sides of the body.

A good belt will last 5 to 10 years. So $80.00 is $8.00 to $16.00 per year--about 75¢ to $1.50 per month.

Here are some belt vendors to check out. Link to Amish belts at bottom. A lot of holster makes, also makes belts, but have found that either their costs are far higher ($120) or are made with 1 thick layer (10-14 oz) of leather.

AG Custom Gun Leather

Rick Garcia @ RG Leather

Bullhidebelts.com

A Better Belt USA

Hank's Clothing Amish Belts

I'm still in the hunt for a dressy gun-belt, hoping for bonus at work soon.

Sharkskin belt, pricey but nice.

Brigade Holsters- M-19 Shark Belt

Also, most belts allow you to swap out buckles. So you can put a fancier belt buckle on your belt to upgrade your appearance.

If you want an exotic belt, I would highly recommend Andrew's Leather, he makes them in elephant, cape buffalo, gator, croc, hippo, stingray, tegu lizard, and tiger shark. You will just have to take out a loan to afford it, but man they are some excellent looking, quality crafted belts.

I went the amish belt route myself - purchased a brown and a black. Good improvement over my regular belts for keeping my IWB comfortable - too bad my gut still wants to push everything down.

I picked up a Kydex lined belt , made by BladeTech, at a local gun show for ~$50. Love It !!

The Beltman makes excellent belts as well. Gun Belts by The Belt Man

I also have an excellent shark belt from Rafter S, but I'm not sure they're still putting out product.

You get what you pay for. After 20 years of hard use my double thickness Kramer horse hide belt is still going strong. Bill

RafterS sharkskin. I have two belts I wear for everyday casual and dress. This is one of them. The other is just like it but is black. I've had them for years and they are great.

here's one of them with my Blood Work 627-PC

__________________
C & L

Agreed. I've had one for about 10 years, and it's held up very well.

In my experience, a "gunbelt" need NOT look like a "gunbelt."

I have carried for many years and am more than satisfied with a Coach or Trafalgar belt. They can be either dressy or casual looking and are wholly sufficient to tote a 14 shot 9mm or a j-frame .38.

Yes, they work for me with both IWB and OWB carry.

As many of you have noted, QUALITY is the key component. That said, a quality belt is not cheap...but will last a long time.

Be safe.

PS:

I need several as I always match my OWB holster to the belt. Just like a gentleman would never appear in public whilst wearing brown shoes and a black belt, I feel the same about my holsters.

I'm waiting on one from Crossbreed. About 20 bucks less than the Beltman, and I hear it's just as good. Have a Blackhawk (both of these are 'dress belts') and it's crackin', splittin', where the poker goes in the hole. It's still stiff as a board but it wasn't an expensive belt anyway- maybe $30.

That Exactly!

__________________
C & L

I've been using a Looper 1 1/2" stitched belt as my daily wear jeans belt, available from Looper Leather Products in Oklahoma City. They cater to LE orders but are available in several of our LGS. With a bell bottom shape l struggle to keep everything north of embarrassing! When l carry with either a OWB Lobo or Don Hume, depending on choice of CCW, the belt works very well. I still can't hit the broad side of a barn...

Blessings,
Hog

__________________
Isaiah 55:8-9
Phil. 4:13

The problem I have with punching extra holes(which I've already done)is that the belt tapers from 1.5" to 1.25" for the holes and buckle part. This means that the rest of the belt won't fit through the buckle anymore past the old holes. I emailed Comp-Tac and they said that I can purchase a bigger buckle from them, but the extra long floppy end may give me problems.

Basically I can buy a new belt or gain some weight.

I received my Amish belt from Hank's today, great quality, thick leather with a really nice buckle. It should last a long time. $29 shipped.

+1 for the Belt Man Belts previously posted.

Is Rafter S still making product? I've called and emailed multiple times and no response.

Wilson Combat makes some of the dressier belts. All are 1.5" wide though.

See:Belts-Wilson Combat


There is conflicting information on the elephant hide belts. They say all are made from cow hide or shark skin. But the elephant hide belts are way more expensive and I suspect that they are real elephant--a protected species. I would not buy one.

I find thick leather gun belts uncomfortable...I use wilderness belts...plenty stiff but not so thick as to feel I have a steel band around my waist. The frequent flyer 1 1/4 works great for IWB and the 1 1/2 instructor is great for larger guns OWB...

__________________
Thirty characters. Exactly...

My Beltman belt is only 4 months old, but it's by far the stiffest belt I have ever owned. When you take off your pants they stay in a circle and when you hang them on a hook they stay in a circle. I can put my M&P9 on the middle of the belt and pick it up by holding the ends of the belt and I swear it doesn't sag more than a fraction of an inch.

As for comfort, I found the stiff belt is more comfortable. With a soft belt my pants ride down when sitting then I have to hitch them up when I stand. The Beltman keeps my pants in place without having to overly tighten it.

I'm pretty frugal and spending $80 for a belt was a stretch for me, but I am happier than I thought I would be.

I may get one of those Amish belts also so I can compare, and if it doesn't work for carrying I can use it for a regular belt when I am in Illinois.

After trying different belts, I do know that soft conforming belts are definitely not my cup of tea.

What size is the belt, maybe you can sell it here and order you a new one?

I've been using a "Gets better with age" leather belt from Deluth Trading Company. Like the tan one I got so much I ordered another one in darker brown. Very high quality belt that I pretty much wear whether I'm carrying or not.

Work Belts - Men's Gets Better with Age Work Belt - Duluth Trading Company

Here's mine with my PPK/S in a holster by Barsony.

__________________
- Change it back -

I bought a belt from a street vendor in Nuevo Progreso, Mexico, a border town near Brownsville Texas for $10. It measures 1 3/8" wide, thick leather and plenty stiff.... It'll work. Its black, my Amish belt is brown.... now I can coordinate my ensemble.