EDC using a duty belt in addition to pants belt?

[moonshine44]

Good morning! I'm finding that I need to add a few things to my EDC, but I'm running out of room on my normal pants belt to put on more stuff (35" waist). So I'm thinking that a narrow duty belt (1 1/2") over my pants belt might be a thing. Does anyone out there do that, or am I barking up the wrong tree (so to speak)? Good idea? Bad idea?

If I'm carrying concealed, I wear a wicking undershirt tucked into whatever pants, shorts, etc. I'm wearing and a baggy t-shirt or one size large dress shirt over top of my toys. So far, nobody seems to have noticed. Will the duty belt change that?

Thanks!

 

[stansdds]

How much stuff are you carrying? A duty belt will require the use of keepers to keep the duty belt from moving and slipping, the keepers are going to be at least the same width, if not wider than, your belt loops. Seems to me that the extra heft and thickness of a duty belt is going to negate concealment. If you are open carrying, such a set up might be misconstrued as trying to look like a law enforcement officer and that is not the attention you would want.

 

[Muss Muggins]

Our agency required us to carry concealed, but also issued duty belts, because we also carried a badge on the belt, flashlight, pepper spray, handcuffs, double mag pouch, etc.

The only way to conceal all that “stuff” and still be able to get to it was to wear what I used to call the “armed plainclothes federal officer vest . . .” I think they were sold with a pair of RayBan Aviators . . .

I never wore one, and still managed to carry what I needed to carry and still avoided looking like a Weeble . . .

 

[smoothshooter]

Sounds like you are carrying way too much stuff.

 

[Yaworski]

How much stuff are you carrying?

Some people carry an amazing amount of stuff. Gun, two or three mags, flashlight, knife, first aid kit, tourniquet, phone, charging cable, snacks, water bottle, and so on.

 

[985Plowboy]

I am Batman.

 

[Old cop]

What you carry & how much is a personal choice but I have to agree that you may be overdoing it a bit. I pocket carry a J Frame & one speed strip along w/a cell phone, wallet, a small folding knife, & keys, but that’s just me.

 

[jimmyj]

consider a shoulder holster in addition to your pants belt

 

[Shrek Of The Arctic]

Dang. One of my favorite small pleasures in my life is when I come home after my work week is done, hang up my duty belt, and change into my faded blue jeans, T shirt, and a flanel.

There ain't no way I'd recommend a duty belt, unless being paid handsomely to wear it.

Re-consider what you really need, find alternate places to carry, such as ankle pouches, figure what can be staged in your car, stage or give first aid kits and emergency supplies to friends and family you frequently visit...there are limitless options out there, and every one of them is better than a duty belt.

Retired cops are often quite easy to spot around town. They tend to be the grumpy old men permanently slumped forward from a career spent wearing a duty belt.

 

[murphydog]

I would suggest cargo pants with lots of pockets to distribute items off the belt instead of a second one. And wouldn’t items carried on the waist belt cover or interfere with those on a duty belt?

 

[AlHunt]

Good morning! I'm finding that I need to add a few things to my EDC, but I'm running out of room on my normal pants belt to put on more stuff (35" waist). So I'm thinking that a narrow duty belt (1 1/2") over my pants belt might be a thing. Does anyone out there do that, or am I barking up the wrong tree (so to speak)? Good idea? Bad idea?

If I'm carrying concealed, I wear a wicking undershirt tucked into whatever pants, shorts, etc. I'm wearing and a baggy t-shirt or one size large dress shirt over top of my toys. So far, nobody seems to have noticed. Will the duty belt change that?

Thanks!

Unless you're Batman, you're carrying way too much stuff.

 

[Marshal Tom]

Have you considered hiring a bearer or sherpa to carry all that stuff for you. I worked at a high end resort here in Colorado as an armed security officer for a few years. A young member of our team decided to do just that. There was no way that his stuff was concealed as it was supposed to be per our job requirements. I thought it looked stupid and he stuck out like a soar thumb.

 

[Muley Gil]

Dang. One of my favorite small pleasures in my life is when I come home after my work week is done, hang up my duty belt, and change into my faded blue jeans, T shirt, and a flanel.

There ain't no way I'd recommend a duty belt, unless being paid handsomely to wear it.

Re-consider what you really need, find alternate places to carry, such as ankle pouches, figure what can be staged in your car, stage or give first aid kits and emergency supplies to friends and family you frequently visit...there are limitless options out there, and every one of them is better than a duty belt.

Retired cops are often quite easy to spot around town. They tend to be the grumpy old men permanently slumped forward from a career spent wearing a duty belt.

Hey, I resemble that remark!

I wear cargo trousers and pocket carry a Ruger EC9s, an 8 shot (7+1) 9mm. I also carry an extra magazine, a Benchmade Auto 5000 and a small flashlight. In addition, I have a cell phone, wallet, keys, etc.

 

[old bear]

The only way I’ve found to carry everything you need/want to do is use belt keepers to keep gunbelt attached to pants belt, which is supported by Perry’s brand suspenders. Do you really need to go to that extreme? Best of luck whatever you decide to .

 

[sigp220.45]

Damn, I don’t even wear ONE belt!

Today it was a 6906 in my waistband. Car keys in my pants pocket, cell phone and reading glasses in my shirt pocket. The only reason I’m even carrying the 6906 is because I’m “upping my game” after a less than polite run in with someone who objected strongly to a recent high-profile search warrant and thought I needed to know about it.

I still see no reason for a reload, knife, flashlight, tourniquet, baton, bear spray, slide rule, or ice cream scoop.

 

[snowman1967]

When I carry, I carry a spare mag, a knife, my keys/key fob, cell phone and wallet. Less is better. If you ever get into a situation where you need 100 rounds, a machete, a sword, a maglite, your cell phone, a lockpick set, and your edc, you are already screwed.

 

[majick47]

There's the basics pretty much everyone needs when leaving the house, keys/phone/wallet. If carrying a pistol/revolver concealed prudent to have backup mag/spare ammo. High on the list of optional items would be a compact LED flashlight and small pocket knife. These items can be stored in shirt/pants/jacket pockets. Highly recommend two sets of car keys/fobs and belt clip for keys. The handgun is the only item that really needs to be on the belt if not carried in an ankle/shoulder/pocket holster. I wear a watch and when appropriate have a pen in my shirt pocket. Last is reading and sun glasses.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

Stop and think for just a minute about how you will deal with the need for a bowel movement during your day. That should tell you how practical it is to rely on a fully loaded duty belt every day.

All my years working in uniform with duty belt, under belt, keepers, holster, ammo pouch, handcuff case(s), portable radio, baton ring, flashlight, pager, key ring. Several times every week I had to do a real dance in a public restroom.

I'm retired. Solid belt, holster, mag pouch, cell phone carrier. Still a challenge in public restrooms at times.

Of course, if I were to adopt the current tacti-cool approach I could incorporate a ballistic vest, plate carrier, hydration pack, maybe a satellite phone, and a dozen spare magazines, just to make sure I have everything I might need before every restroom break. I might even shop for tactical clothing instead of jeans or khakis, wear my tactical assault boots instead of loafers. All those extra pockets might come in handy, until I have to take everything off to use a public restroom.

 

[Bald1]

The only logical solution here is the dreaded Fanny Pack. Or god forbid a Man Purse.

 

[rednichols]

A less obtrusive and healthier way to achieve your goal, is to follow the early 20th century Texas Rangers who wore two TROUSERS belt; one for their pants and one for their holstered revolvers, one belt below the other.

In modern times the Rangers do what you have proposed: the second belt is wide 'duty' belt usually with billets vs a sam browne. Be aware that wide, loaded gun belts worn high often cause what's called 'policemans hip' or meralgia paraesthetica which is a severe form of nerve pain down the leg; caused by pinching the nerve travelling down there.

It is this condition that caused America's LEO uniformed to switch away from high riding holsters to thigh holsters. Seriously.

Here's an early Ranger, in a well-known pic of Captain Hickman late 1920s. Rangers were REQUIRED to wear their pistols high on a trousers belt beginning 1905 and this method continued at least until 1935 when the Rangers became part of the Texas DPS. They used a separate trousers belt for the holstered revolver (no ammo) so that the entire set c/b removed w/out needing to unthread it all from the trousers loops (that were new in 1904).



This Ranger, and others of his era, wore no accessories on his second trousers belt. But his Ranger wore TWO Colt SAs on that belt; together they added up to considerable weight, evenly distributed. So perhaps a better solution than it first appears. The Rangers used trousers belts for this so they wouldn't appear to be armed! Perhaps that w/b a benefit to you, too (in my day it was just good manners).

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