Cops and their gear belts & patrol car

[JOERM]

Could someone in the LEO world tell me how in the hell can the cops ride in their patrol car, comfortably, all day, all week, all year and not have severe back pain or what ever because their gear belt or what ever they are called have their gun, stun gun, cuffs, flash light, pepper spray, ammo pouch, and what ever else latch on to their waist? How much does one of these fully loaded belts weigh? Plus the life vest, how much does it weigh? On top of it all, how can cops take the heat with all this gear on when the temp is 90 - 100 degrees out??

They can have their job. Heck, when I just have my small side arm on, when driving it can be a real pain in the arsh.

Joe

 

[jimmyj]

Hi:
You left out Asp Baton, PR-24, Portable Radio, Taser,and BUG.
Back pain, Arthritis, Bursitis, and various Cardiac/Lung problems go with the turf.
Jimmy

 

[badguybuster]

As a former LEO, I can tell you this. You can't. Even the best gear, while worn properly, will take its toll on you. That is why so many cops have back and leg issues. I have huge calluses on my hips from where my duty belt used to ride. You learn to manipulate your gear while you are wearing it, so it is a little more comfortable. As for a vest, most modern body armor is lightweight and breathable. It isn't bad to wear if you are used to it. Now, military issue vests (for rifle rounds) is horrible.

 

[therevjay]

You would think that a LBE type suspender system would make sense. I really don't see how they can walk with all that slung around the waist.

 

[Alk8944]

Originally posted by JOERM:
Could someone in the LEO world tell me how in the hell can the cops ride in their patrol car, comfortably, all day, all week, all year and not have severe back pain or what ever because their gear belt or what ever they are called have their gun, stun gun, cuffs, flash light, pepper spray, ammo pouch, and what ever else latch on to their waist? How much does one of these fully loaded belts weigh? Plus the life vest, how much does it weigh? On top of it all, how can cops take the heat with all this gear on when the temp is 90 - 100 degrees out??

They can have their job. Heck, when I just have my small side arm on, when driving it can be a real pain in the arsh.

Joe

What makes you think it is comfortable?

Haven't worn one since 1990 when I retired, but a few years before that I did weigh mine, and it weighed 22 pounds.

 

[Muley Gil]

Depending on the vest, it usually weighs around 3-5 lbs. The gunbelt weighs around 15 lbs.

I used to have trouble taking off the belt, 'cause I would float around the room about 4 inches off the floor for about 30 minutes.

 

[badguybuster]

You think walking is bad. You should try a foot pursuit while wearing all that crap.

 

[Lt JL]

The vest isnt so bad any more. They are much lighter and more flexible than they used to be, and the new miracle fabric T shirts help considerably with the moisture transfer away from the skin.
My belt carries , clockwise from the buckle: Taser, a double mag pouch with two .40 cal Sig 226 mags, a cellphone pouch and Smartphone, my Motorola XTS 5000, Stinger in case, baton ring (OK I am old fashioned), nitrile glove pouch then a space from kidney to kidney, because I cannot stand stuff poking my back in the car. From the buckle around the other way, can of OC in case, cuffs on a keeper, P226 in a
level 3 Holster, ASP in a case,and a cuff case,
Clipped to my vest is a Sig 239 .40, spare mag in a hip pocket. A Benchmade Styker is clipped in my offside front pants pocket.
Very few departments other than a few on the Left Coast, use LBE because of the danger in a scuffle. A big guy can grab your suspenders and spin you like a top.
I am too damned old for foot pursuits, let Kevin CW do that. As a supervisor it is important that I carry what my men and women carry. ALL told, with pocket contents, about 19 or 20 lbs.
With all that gear, and the vest, I can't feel the seatbelt, so more than once I have about strangled myself piling out of the car without unclipping the seatbelt. All old cops have sore backs, knees, and feet. THrow in more than a few rotator cuffs, too. I have had three knee surgeries and one shoulder surgery. It's still the most fun job in the world. Been doing it for almost 36 years now. John

 

[JOERM]

Originally posted by Lt JL:
The vest isnt so bad any more. They are much lighter and more flexible than they used to be, and the new miracle fabric T shirts help considerably with the moisture transfer away from the skin.
My belt carries , clockwise from the buckle: Taser, a double mag pouch with two .40 cal Sig 226 mags, a cellphone pouch and Smartphone, my Motorola XTS 5000, Stinger in case, baton ring (OK I am old fashioned), nitrile glove pouch then a space from kidney to kidney, because I cannot stand stuff poking my back in the car. From the buckle around the other way, can of OC in case, cuffs on a keeper, P226 in a
level 3 Holster, ASP in a case,and a cuff case,
Clipped to my vest is a Sig 239 .40, spare mag in a hip pocket. A Benchmade Styker is clipped in my offside front pants pocket.
Very few departments other than a few on the Left Coast, use LBE because of the danger in a scuffle. A big guy can grab your suspenders and spin you like a top.
I am too damned old for foot pursuits, let Kevin CW do that. As a supervisor it is important that I carry what my men and women carry. ALL told, with pocket contents, about 19 or 20 lbs.
With all that gear, and the vest, I can't feel the seatbelt, so more than once I have about strangled myself piling out of the car without unclipping the seatbelt. All old cops have sore backs, knees, and feet. THrow in more than a few rotator cuffs, too. I have had three knee surgeries and one shoulder surgery. It's still the most fun job in the world. Been doing it for almost 36 years now. John

Damn Lt JL. I could not last one shift! Do you really need to pack all that at once?

Seems like someone in LEO field would come up with a new system to carry all that stuff on other locations of the body.

Seems that woman LEO's would have the same problems or more to me for some reason. Is it required to carry all that or is it an option depending on the location you are in or the patrol you will be on, on a certain day?

Thanks for the replies, as I said, you can have your job. Maybe you need to invent some sort of "Jump Suit" that you can get in quick depending on the call??? I understand that a routine patrol, done for 10 years without a problem, can turn bad in a split second and you may need all that stuff but is it really required? Seems your gun and cuffs would be enough in 95% of the stops.

Joe

Joe

 

[Lt JL]

Smaller-statured cops get creative. Taser goes on a drop'leg weak side holster. one cuff case over each kidney.
The only optional stuff I listed was my phone and my BUG. i forgot to add my frisk and fight leather gloves with the cut-resistant lining. Some officers only carry one pair of cuffs, and mooch additional pairs from other officersduring multiple arrests.
The continuum of force has lots of stops on it between a dopeslap and shooting someone. OC, ASP, Taser are required, not optional.
Even BatMan had a utility belt.

 

[GatorFarmer]

I'm not a LEO, but since no one mentioned it, LBE type suspenders meant to be worn with police duty belts are in fact sold by several companies. There is also a device, which amounts to a hose, that attaches to the car's AC that can placed down your shirt to cool you when wearing armor.

 

[MKT]

Lets put it this way, I lose 25+ pounds each and every working day...lose it when the whistle blows. Boots, belt (and all attendent gear) plus the vest. This stuff gets heavy, eats up a lot of valuable space in the patrol car and bangs into dang near everything. Watch a unifrom pick a place to sit, usually they'll shy away from armed chairs (it is a royal pain in the ribs to sit in an armed chair if you catch your holster on the arm).

Someone mentioned foot chases. Yeppers, lets me know I'm still in OK shape when I can still chase after and sometimes catch the fleet footed tennie runner wearing punk

. Now pushing 50 I don't catch as many as I used to in the foot race, but I still do. Maybe my still being able to catch a few is the result of too much Nintendo on their part

.

Try strapping on 25 to 30 pound rucksacks and doing a few wind sprints, then go for a nice long run, make sure to include hopping a few fences on the route just to get a little taste.

Yea, my back hurts a little now and then.

Like LT, I am a supervisor as well. I go out in the field and work alongside my troops, doing the same routine they do. Yes as supervision I don't have to do that, but I do because my troops need to know I'm not just talking out my ***. Plus, it keep me current with what they're seeing. Maybe I should be delegating the foot chases....hmmm

 

[Hamden]

Not a LEO here. But I can tell a tale of woe from a deputy sheriff. My agency (local govt, not LEO) uses the same radio shop as SO. One time there I met a deputy I know who was supervising a radio install in his patrol Camaro rocket. His dept thought they would be good to catch taillights. He invited me to enter the Camaro. It was a squeeze in and climb out. And I was wearing no gear. Then my deputy friend said imagine climbing in and out many times a day with gear. No thanks I said.

 

[mk70ss]

Sitting in the cruiser all day with my duty belt does not bother me or my back at all. STANDING for long periods of time with it does wear on the lower back pretty good though.

 

[WC145]

Thanks to where I work and the needs of the job, I can sometimes take the minimalist approach - gun, spare mags, cuffs, BUG (+ spare ammo for it) - although I usually have this stuff, too - OC spray, flashlight, phone, radio, and occasionally a baton. The biggest luxury my job affords me is the option of using a shoulder holster. It makes a HUGE difference when I use it since my pistol and two spare mags are supported by my shoulders, not my hips. Plus the tie downs act a bit like suspenders, helping to support my belt. It also makes getting in and out of cars MUCH easier, and it keeps my gun out of the mud.

 

[The Big D]

Duty belt and gear didn't bother me too much. Whilst working I had a 36" waist. That allowed for pistol, handcuff case immediately behind holster, radio, ASP or PR-24, and cell phone. Kept extra cuffs on spotlight handle with flexicuffs tucked into B-pillar trim. Carried only a small container of pepper spray and flashlight was in car on an "as needed" basis. (No flaming, please, it was readily accessible and in a charger/holder.)

The key, at least for me, was NOTHING in the lower back area. Quite uncomfortable when sitting; even more uncomfortable if down on your back. Inaccessible, too.

Be safe.

 

[Andy Taylor]

I am not LE, but do work security and carry the same equipment. It is a pain. Getting in/out of a vehicle is the worst, thankfully I no longer have to do that much. My gear is a little old school in that I carry a revolver, and no taser. Not allowed for liability reasons. I have been carring this stuff (with variations) for about the last 16 years. Clockwise from buckle:
Single speedloader
S&W M25-5 in an old Safety Speed breakfront holster (thanks to forum member rbbt)
first set of cuffs
glove pouch with medical quality nitrile gloves
second set cuffs
Streamlight strion flashlight
canister of pepperspray
Kenwood radio
ASP baton
two more speedloaders

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Originally posted by badguybuster:
You think walking is bad. You should try a foot pursuit while wearing all that crap.

I thougt that was the reason behind the gun

 

[Filbird]

I wonder if this is just a result of "the law of incremental change." That is, one hundred years ago the LE community started with a sturdy belt, a sidearm, and some bullet loops, and that was OK. Someone said, well, let's put those cuffs in a little leather case, and that was fine, it was just a little bit more weight on the belt, so that was added on. Then the baton. Then the flashlight. Then the cell phone. At each stage, the particular increment was not large, and so it was easy to say, well, it's just a few more ounces.

There is a certain momentum that keeps things going in a certain direction, so it makes sense that the LE community continues to wear its tools this way... even though, looking at the total system now, it seems out of whack. Can't imagine why someone hasn't stepped back and completely redesigned the LE uniform and tool system.

Reminds me of a video I saw online the other day about a start-up company that is trying to take a chunk of the patrol car market. They took a look at the Crown Vic and changed a few things right off the bat: they built the top lights INTO the actual top of the car, so there is no wind resistance and no screws and bolts to rust, etc. And they changed the rear door, used long pivoting hinges so that when the door is opened, it comes around almost against the rear panel, making it so much easier to get prisoners in and out.

Watching that video, I kept thinking, why the hell hasn't Ford thought of this a long damned time ago? We are the prisoners of thinking "the way we have always thought."

 

[safearm]

As I advanced in my LE career, I cut down on the amount of junk I carried on the "Bat" belt. By the time I retired, I carried (clockwise from buckle) 2 ounce can of OC spray, belt keeper key ring, level II holster/Glock 21, belt keeper, nothing at the small of my back, handcuff case (I learned as a rookie how to cuff with my "weak" left hand), belt keeper, radio, and single mag pouch. Everything I carried was nylon, and I used a velcro underbelt to hold everything in place. I carried a 642 on an ankle holster and a Surefire polycarbonite flashlight in my back pocket. It was still about 20 pounds of stuff, but it was a lot lighter than leather gear I carried earlier in my life. I also learned long ago to keep nothing at the rear of the belt; sitting on a handcuff case for 8 hours in a patrol car is a recipe for back ache.