Looking for a good gun belt.

[Wondering Beard]

I thought I was doing a good job of dressing around a gun, and yes, like the video posted from the guy in the big shed building said, I realize that comfort isn’t totally the name of the game but dammit, when a belt starts cutting into you, somethin’s gotta give. Sure, if I didn’t have the belly, things would probably be worlds better but until I can deflate this damn thing, it this what it is.

But like I keep telling everyone else, I really don’t think there is a belt that’s gonna solve my problem in my specific situation because for whatever it’s worth, I’ve tried 4 belts.

But you know, at one point I figured maybe part of my comfortability problem might be because of the non form-fitting Kydex holster that I had made for my Springfield so last weekend when I went to town, I decided to wear my Kore belt with my full size PX4 and that leather pancake holster that I bought from Beretta and even though it seemed like there might of been a little bit more comfort there, I still had to have my belt just a little too tight to hold everything up, even with better fitting jeans.


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The problem in finding the right belts is that if it's too stiff, it will cut into you, if it's too soft, it won't hold the holster and gun tightly enough by your side and will print. Finding a happy medium is a very individual thing and that's a huge part of the journey.

I, like most here, have at least ten belts that I tried for about three that work for me and that has changed as my physique has changed, and I won't even try to count the amount of holsters that I have for pretty much the same gun that don't work for me, or did work but don't anymore, or are working right now but may not in the future.

Has anyone talked about shoulder holsters? I don't really favor them but if it comes to having a gun on you versus not, I'd wonder about that, and quite a few here (in other threads) have stated that shoulder holsters can be pretty good for driving.

[corneileous]

That makes sense. I'd keep looking for better holsters... It's a journey.

But, is that actually better, though? Although I haven’t carried my full-size PX4 out here on the job with my new stiffer Kore belt yet, that day last weekend was really the only day so far that I’ve carried it with a good stiff belt ever since I’ve started this journey but see, here’s the problem; although I could strap on for a day my compact, I’m really not convinced that a softer leather holster is going to necessarily be the answer. Because of my physical shape, I still have to make the belt tight to hold everything up, unless I resort to suspenders. Then I won’t have to rely on friction to hold stuff up.

When I get in his truck to sit for upwards of three hours at a time, fatigue starts in and at the end of the week, I’ll have this sore spot below my belly button from going all week with the belt too tight. I will say that with the buckle over to one side either direction, that does help a little but still, the overall tightness of the belt is what’s causing my issues.


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[Clusterfrack]

For me, a soft leather holster is definitely not the answer.

The best I've found is the JM Custom AIWB 2.5, with a soft wedge ( E.g. post below). Another option is a close-fitting OWB holster. I forget if you've tried that?

Here’s my new JMCK AIWB Wing Claw 2.5 for the Glock 20 I’ll be packing in Alaska. I’m blown away by how this holster lets me conceal a forking huge gun under a smedium t-shirt.

[corneileous]

The problem in finding the right belts is that if it's too stiff, it will cut into you, if it's too soft, it won't hold the holster and gun tightly enough by your side and will print. Finding a happy medium is a very individual thing and that's a huge part of the journey.

I, like most here, have at least ten belts that I tried for about three that work for me and that has changed as my physique has changed, and I won't even try to count the amount of holsters that I have for pretty much the same gun that don't work for me, or did work but don't anymore, or are working right now but may not in the future.

OK so, not trying to be a smart ass at all but out of the four gun belts of mine that I have now, two of them passed the droop test and two of them failed that test so, without going crazy and just buying all sorts of different brand belts, is there really a belt out there for my physique and for my situation that is going to have just the right amount of stiffness, not too much or not too little?

I know, that’s a very hard and probably next to impossible question to answer but I feel that’s what I’m faced with. That’s why I’ve in a sense just pretty much given up on it and have resorted to pocket carry which, even though may not work for ease of access while being seated for long hours at a time, but at least it does work for when I’m outside this truck which is probably gonna be the most likely time that I would ever have to use my gun.

Has anyone talked about shoulder holsters? I don’t really favor them but if it comes to having a gun on you versus not, I’d wonder about that, and quite a few here (in other threads) have stated that shoulder holsters can be pretty good for driving.

They have, but as I’ve stated quite a few times already, a shoulder holster is just not gonna work for me because even in the winter time down here in Oklahoma, it would have to be a really cold day for me to stand wearing two shirts because an over shirt is part of that- and once summertime comes around, I certainly will not be wearing two shirts with as hot and humid as it is down here so shoulder holster carry’s kinda out.




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[pangloss]

I think you're over stating the difficulty in adjusting belts. I have regular leather belts, a Wilderness belt, and a Graith belt. I can pretty easily and discreetly adjust all of them while sitting in my compact car. Having a belt that is optimized for ease of adjustment will be important for perhaps several minutes spaced throughout the day. Having a belt that is optimized to support a holster will be important every minute you are out of the truck and moving around.

As an alternative to pocket carry, you might take a look at the Kelty sling pack or some of Vertx's smaller bags. I really like my little Vertx bag, but I don't use it very much. (Never pay full price for Vertx. They usually have 25% sales around holidays.) Also, I hesitate to suggest it, but the SafePacker holster from the Wilderness might work as well.

Regarding fitness, we have a weight loss thread, and in the Coterie Club we have a Garmin fitness tracker thread. The participants in these threads are pretty supportive of each other, and I've benefitted greatly from both of them.

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[corneileous]

For me, a soft leather holster is definitely not the answer.

The best I've found is the JM Custom AIWB 2.5, with a soft wedge ( E.g. post below). Another option is a close-fitting OWB holster. I forget if you've tried that?

I think I’d prefer a leather holster just for the little bit more form-fitting comfort over a plastic one, and I do like how a leather holster doesn’t seem to marr up the surface of a gun like all the kydex holsters I’ve had but I do like the retention of a kydex holster, tho. But, my Beretta leather holster has a thumb snap, tho.

But here’s my custom Bare Arms pancake Kydex for the Springfield and the leather pancake I got from Beretta that I can carry both my compact and my full-size 40 in.




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[Wondering Beard]

OK so, not trying to be a smart ass at all but out of the four gun belts of mine that I have now, two of them passed the droop test and two of them failed that test so, without going crazy and just buying all sorts of different brand belts, is there really a belt out there for my physique and for my situation that is going to have just the right amount of stiffness, not too much or not too little?

I don't have your physique nor your job, so I couldn't exactly tell you. However, you could, with each belt you own, identify its failures for you. For example, on a belt that cuts into you, does it do that everywhere or only in some particular spot? I think you wrote at one point that one belt dug in your front/belly; if I read that correctly, maybe AIWB can be an answer. To be more specific, when I was heavier and wore my stiffer belts but no gun, there was a definite tendency for the belt to cut into my gut, but when I wore my gun (I carry AIWB 95% of the time), the holster and gun created a space between my belt and my gut that immediately made things more comfortable.

I wish I had a definitive answer for you and all I can do is point you in certain directions that you can explore yourself.

[corneileous]

I think you're over stating for ease of adjustment will be important for perhaps several minutes spaced throughout the day. Having a belt that is optimized to support a holster will be important every minute you are out of the truck and moving around.

What do you mean by overstating? My kore belt allows for quick and easy adjustment, it’s just that I feel it’s too much a pain to have to do, I dunno.

As an alternative to pocket carry, you might take a look at the Kelty sling pack or some of Vertx's smaller bags. I really like my little Vertx bag, but I don't use it very much. (Never pay full price for Vertx. They usually have 25% sales around holidays.) Also, I hesitate to suggest it, but the SafePacker holster from the Wilderness might work as well.

I’ll give those a look.

Regarding fitness, we have a weight loss thread, and in the Coterie Club we have a Garmin fitness tracker thread. The participants in these threads are pretty supportive of each other, and I've benefitted greatly from both of them.

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[corneileous]

I don't have your physique nor your job, so I couldn't exactly tell you. However, you could, with each belt you own, identify its failures for you. For example, on a belt that cuts into you, does it do that everywhere or only in some particular spot? I think you wrote at one point that one belt dug in your front/belly;

Primarily, my stiffer belts, dig in right where the button fly is on my jeans. But, that could be because of the combined button snap, buckle and thicker material there, too, and maybe that’s why I get some relief from moving the buckle to either side of it... but either way regardless, it still pretty much renders my gut sore at the end of the day no matter what I do, and leaves quite the mark at the end of the week. Also on top of my front hip pockets I get sore, too.

With the much more flexible Alien Gear and Executive Cross Breed belts, I didn’t have the soreness from the stiffness above each front hip pocket, but the fatigue was quite a bit more around the buckle area, and on the side where the holster was because of how much tighter I’d have to cinch the belt down just to hold everything up.

But one thing that stayed the same- well, not quite as much as with the stiffer Volund belt and Kore belt- was that I really don’t think I could go around throughout my day with not having to at least once pull my pants up. It’s like I never could get them tight enough, and I tried different positions of the belt, which wasn’t much. lol.

if I read that correctly, maybe AIWB can be an answer. To be more specific, when I was heavier and wore my stiffer belts but no gun, there was a definite tendency for the belt to cut into my gut, but when I wore my gun (I carry AIWB 95% of the time), the holster and gun created a space between my belt and my gut that immediately made things more comfortable.

Aside from having a barrel pointed at my junk, appendix carry isn’t really exciting me.... but I’m curious about your results- how did that work out carrying a gun in that spot when you sat down? Even though it created a space there like you was sayin, didn’t the barrel dig into your upper groin area?

If I was standing more, and not so much sitting, I’d probably be a little more interested in trying appendix carry but I just don’t see how that would be an ideal mode of carry for someone who sits the better part of their day, unless it was some sort of cross draw holster like this....

....or probably something a little more preferable like this....

I wish I had a definitive answer for you and all I can do is point you in certain directions that you can explore yourself.

Trust me, your help is appreciated. But at least for now, at least I can get by with pocket carry. I know it’s not the most preferred, but at least it works for when I’m outside the truck when that’s probably when I’ll ever need the pistol the most.


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[TicTacticalTimmy]

One option you may consider if you are tied to pocket carry is CCW Breakaways. I have a pair of their khakis and they are pretty excellent as far as concealment. Your full size PX4 will conceal about as well as a G43 will in normal pants, and the draw will be faster. They would be my choice if I wanted to pack serious firepower and had to sit down all day, and a 3 o clock holster was not comfortable for whatever reason. They are pricy but no more so than a pair of quality pants plus a quality holster. I recoomend you order a size bigger than your normal pant size, I am a 33 and the size 32 is WAY too small.