Putting Together a General Purpose Range/Class Belt

[einherjarvalk]

Last time I managed to get out to an outdoor range with bays, I realized I had left my Tactical Tuxedo (plate carrier) behind and that I generally tend to leave it behind most trips anyway. However, I still wanted to practice reloads from the belt, which I am currently not set up to do for long guns. Given that I've got a class with Ernest planned for this year, I'm thinking now may be a good time to set up a good general purpose range belt. Are there any shortlists for belt options out there? I like the idea of being able to wear it over my clothes but at bare minimum want to go with a two-piece design so I don't have to change my EDC belt for a range belt when I get to my bay.

Currently looking at the Raptor Tactical/Odin Tactical belts as well as the HSGI Laser Sure-Grip belt, with the intention of mounting a pair of esstac pistol KYWIs and a single rifle KYWI, my BFG MTKN!, a BFG dump pouch, an Emdom USA Multitasker Twist pouch, and my Safariland mid ride UBL. Multicam Black is preferred but not mandatory.

[Flamingo]

Wilder Tactical may be a good choice for you. I met Josh at SHOT and he is a nice guy. The belt and gear seems to be nice quality.

I liked him and his product enough that I ordered his LE system and belt.

You may want to look at https://wildertactical.com/collectio...kage-1-75-clip.

[breakingtime91]

I got a Trex arms orion earlier this year on the recommendation of a few people. I really like this belt and the thought behind it. It runs molle and has slits built in where you can attach to the regular belt (a cobra belt in my experience). I run a mid point ALS, two pistol mags, a rifle mag, my shot timer, and a med kit on it. This has worked really well in cold weather or when shooting my carbine. If I want to go from shooting my pistol (99% of the time concealed) to running my carbine, all i need to do is take my holster off and clip on my belt. Way easier than redoing everything.

[BK14]

I’ve tried a metric ton of belts lately.... Before we can fully steer you in the right place:

Do you work in a profession that requires an overt belt setup?

What class are you taking with Ernest? Rifle or pistol?

[vcdgrips]

Executive Summary- IMNSHO, I think people often overthink the range/GP/"war" belt for classes. What you already have will likely work just fine , particularly if you train wearing a set of cargo pants/shorts with pockets.


My thoughts:

1. If you are MIL, you should be running your duty gear
2. If your are uniformed LE, you should be running your duty gear
3. If you are just a guy like me, you should be running as you run out in the world consistent with the class focus i.e. pistol v. rifle

I "struggled" with the "problem" in 2008 when I took a carbine class with Pat R. (RIP). In the end I used an already owned Liger or Wilderness Frequent Flyer Belt as the "underbelt."
I used an already owned Wilderness 5 stitch polymer re-enforced as the "overbelt" upon which I threaded on a couple of AR mag pouches, a couple of pistol mag pouches, a small dump pouch, a multi-tool and my pistol holster.
I used 4-6 nylon keepers and "attached" the "overbelt" to the "underbelt" and drove on.

I had great success in the class during which I "won" an event or two. I was much faster on my reloads than my contemporaries who were using chest rigs because I was going to my belt line for the rifle mag pouches on the reload just like I had gone to my belt line to reload my pistol thousands of times before.

When class was over for the day, the "outerbelt" went in the bag and it took me about 30 seconds to slip on a mag pouch and holster for my carry gun.

YMMV greatly.

[einherjarvalk]

I’ve tried a metric ton of belts lately.... Before we can fully steer you in the right place:

Do you work in a profession that requires an overt belt setup?

What class are you taking with Ernest? Rifle or pistol?

I’m about as far from a professional gunman as one can be. I’ll be taking Ernest’s pistol class, but I would like to mount a rifle pouch semi permanently on this setup.

[BK14]

Well, then two options:

1) You’re taking this class with Langdon for poops and chuckles, you don’t carry a gun concealed, and guns are just a hobby. So wearing a war belt is essentially like the adult version of playing war. If that’s the case, I have no issue with your choice since it’s your choice, and I’d say go with the coolest/most comfortable belt you can find, own that this is a hobby and rock on. I’ll echo that the Trex Orion is a great belt to easily leave setup, and throw on over whatever pants belt you may be wearing. It’s extremely comfortable for short to medium jaunts, secure enough for Range work, and pretty durable.

Other options like this would be the HSGI slim belts, like the laser cut, also a great belt, or the Crye mrb, which I have no personal experience with but have heard good things. Also worth checking out is the Arbor Arms battle belt. This is the padded belt I’ll be running for awhile, because it’s got a Velcro liner to attach to an inner belt.

My current choice of overt belt is the Ronin Shuto. I no longer trust padded belts that aren’t secured with keepers or Velcro for social work that could turn violent. So for me, the Ronin is more secure, lower profile, and more comfortable than belts like the Trex. The down side is you need to swap out your inner belt.



2) you take personal protection seriously, so you rock a decent sized gun like a 19, or Px4 CC. Appendix, 4 o clock, whatever. If you’re wearing a decent belt, it’s super easy to add a pistol and rifle mag with a BFG, Kytex, OTG Eggroll, Trex or Veil on a Tek Lok, etc. You can add a multi tool pouch like the BFG, and if you want a dump pouch, Trex new one just Velcro’s right on.

I think you’re wasting valuable reps and training by training with a belt setup that is not what you use, when it’s so easy to just up your gear and stay functional.

Don’t get crazy with the train how you fight mentality, and show up in boxers with a mag shoved in your prison purse, but adding a couple mags to your EDC belt not only will be faster than most war belts, it also keeps your training more consistent and transferable.



That’s my take. I’ve been on both sides of the aisle. Taken a class while a civi all geared up, and taken a class while working for the man in a concealed role. So I’m not saying I’ve got it all figured out. But I think knowing which path you’re on, then owning it is the best bet.

[einherjarvalk]

As with many things, the truth is somewhere in between. I carry a firearm AIWB daily, usually in an RCS Morrigan hanging off a Graith Specialist, with a spare mag in a DSG Koala when clothing permits. I'm not concerned with replicating it for a range rig because that's what I wear to the range most of the time anyway. Right now my "competition" rig basically consists of a pair of belt-mounted pistol KYWIs and an RHT holster TekLok'd to my strong side, all of which I just swap my CCW gear for on-site.

What I'm looking for is something to augment that or replace it when I'm not concerned about carrying IWB and want to carry a bit more without suiting up in a tactical tuxedo. Yes, I can just train exclusively off my Specialist setup to get practical AIWB reps in, but if I'm doing multiple things on a range day - or doing a class where more than a single reload is required - I like the idea of having an overt belt that I can just grab and immediately know I have space for 2-3 pistol reloads, a rifle reload, a dump pouch for whatever stupid things I carry away from the table in a bay, an IFAK + TQ, and a UBL to attach whatever Safariland holster I want on it, plus a few other bits and bobs. If I can convert this "overt" belt to an EDC belt on range days by way of just yanking it off a velcro liner and reattaching my AIWB items the way I do every day when I leave my apartment, that's even better.

Hopefully that clarifies my mindset and goals going into this project. The T.Rex Orion looks like a great alternative to the HSGI Slim-Grip, though I'm hesitant to buy anything from the Botkins anymore. I know Raptor Tactical's ODIN belt series is similar to the Shuto; are there any critical differences between the two? They appear pretty similar from the outside looking in.

[BK14]

As with many things, the truth is somewhere in between.




...... I'm hesitant to buy anything from the Botkins anymore. I know Raptor Tactical's ODIN belt series is similar to the Shuto; are there any critical differences between the two? They appear pretty similar from the outside looking in.

I hear you. It’s definitely more comfy. Find a good outer belt and press on.

Don’t want to support the cult????

The Trex is thinner than the HSGI, so less bulky.

No experience with the Odin. The reason I chose the shuto was the 2” inner belt (more weight dispersion = more comfy) and the belts are super rigid. I carry a lot of crap, so rigid makes it more comfy.



Here’s my Trex, similar setup on my Ronin now, plus an extra mag, but the Ronin is more comfy for all day.

[Rick62]

I’ve worn a Volund Gearworks micro battle belt, Velocity Systems OUB and Crye MRB 2.0 as duty belts for work. I think any of those would work well for what you’re looking to accomplish, based on my experience. With Volund, you can have it build to interface with an inner belt via hook and loop, or with low pro keepers or both. The VelSys OUB requires a loop pants belt, with your choice of inner belt.

The MRB 2.0 is the tits. You can swap out the inner belt for something different if you’d like, but I’d found the Crye setup to be extremely comfortable as is from the factory. The only downside I’ve encountered is that it offers a little less space for mounting stuff than the others. The trade off though, is that it’s carries significantly better than any other duty belt I’ve tried. I don’t believe the space available would be an issue for a class, as I still manage to run a holster, pistol and rifle mags, med kit, cuffs x2, OC and a light.

Although my experience is with the 2.0. I believe Crye has the original MRB on the clearance section of their sales page. There’s very small differences between the two, and I wouldn’t hesitate to grab the original.

Also, if you want to try to Volund OUB, I can send you mine for a while.


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