War Belt /Tactical Belt

[ripnbst]

Post up your "War Belt" setups or "rigs". I am looking into getting something but the market has so many options it's crazy.

I currently have a Wilderness Tactical belt with the 5 stitching so its a little more stiff but not polymer lined. I was wondering if this belt would be useable for attachment of a "War Belt" type rig or if I'd need something stiffer.

When I say War Belt, I am talking about something like this.

[Corrections Cop]

That looks like a pretty sweet setup but I think with all that weight I would go with a MOLLE Vest. Even a regular duty belt gets heavy after a while, I think it would be a lot better to carry all that weight on a vest.

[Rikakiah]

I was looking to get something like the first, but with a lot less on it. Initially, just a double pistol magazine and double AR magazine pouch on it. I've got a leg-drop holster for my pistol, so it wouldn't need to go on it (for hunting, so it's not encumbered by my jacket). But it's a Blackhawk Omega, so I could put it on there, too, should the leg-drop be not needed (ie no jacket) or get too cumbersome.

I like the MOLLE webbing option so i can use existing pouches I already have on my rifle bag. Really just need something I can strap on really quick for some extra ammo, not a fully-decked, keep me supplied for a week in-country type thing.

[George Hill]

I didn't really like the War Belt - Battle Belt concept until I found one that I really liked.
The Sure Grip belt from HIGH SPEED GEAR.
HSGI's belt is awesome.

[budroe]

The tac-vests work very well. For any type of tactical environment I'd prioritize the ability to carry more rifle mags over mags for my handgun.

[ClydeFrog]

What brand are those 4 pistol magazine holders? Is it Tuff Products? Maxpedition? 5.11 Tactical?
Im looking to get some new duty gear & may buy a "slimline" pistol magazine holder. Im also interested in a 3 magazine holder that fits MOLLE rigs or tactical vests.

CF

[gschoelles]

Have gone to a smaller drop pouch, and raised the drop on the holster a bit, this is my rig.

I am working with different materials to stiffen the belt and am looking into different ways of making the inside of the belt sticky or less likely to slip around.

[amd6547]

USGI pistol belt works great, and cost me $2.50 at the gun show...and it is a real "war belt".

[wogpotter]

Can someone please explain the logic behind a "war belt" as opposed to a harness (belt & suspenders like the ALICE) or vest style rig?
I'd have thought that spreading the load of a heavy belt with the shoulders would be a good thing so I can't work out the benifit of a belt alone?

[ClydeFrog]

I use the phrase; duty or "gun belt".
I normally carry; 1 holster, 1 magazine holder, 1 first aid or field kit, 1 white-light with holder, 1 mk-III OC spray with holder, 1 or 2 handcuff case(s).
I may buy a new Mako Defense Group polymer impact weapon or lever-loc ASP baton too. The 21" version.

ClydeFrog

[ripnbst]

Clyde,

The 4 pistol mags are Diamondback Tactical 4 pistol mag pouch

https://www.diamondbacktactical.com/...ce-ammunition/

[tgreening]

As a rule, carrying the weight on your hips is much less physically tiring than carrying it on your shoulders. Any good properly set up back pack carries most of the weight on the waist belt, with the shoulder straps just there to keep it from falling over backwards.

[ClydeFrog]

I'd also suggest doing some research into the Robert Hindi method.
Hindi, a sworn LE officer in the Las Vegas NV metro police dept, started a training program called SAFETY to teach officers to carry their duty gear towards the front of the belt where it could be accessed quickly by either hand in a emergency.
See: www.lawofficer.com .
This format isnt always practical but it makes a lot of sense if you carry a duty belt on a regular basis. Having your gear & weapons handy is a big help.

Clyde
PS; thanks for the gear post, I never heard of that brand.

[PawPaw]

If I were setting up a war belt, I'd probably default to what I used as a war belt. I called it the "light-to-fight" gear and used it a lot while I was humping the boonies. A simple USGI pistol belt with suspenders. It gave the best of both worlds, bearing weight on the hips or suspenders. I normally carried two mag pouches with three mags each, an extra mag pouch with essentials, two canteens on the belt. Oh the suspenders was a flashlight, a compass, and an extra first-aid kit. We normally carried a ruck, as well, that could be discarded quickly in a pile if we needed to move fast and come back to the rucksacks later.



I snagged this photo from this outfit, who sells the whole rig for $15.00. All you need is some ammo pouches and other peripherals.

Even the helmet carried items. My favorite was a green cigarette case stuck in the heavy elastic band that kept the camo cover in place.

Heh! That was a long time ago. Thanks for the memories.

[ClydeFrog]

The gear that "PawPaw" is displaying is called LCE(load carrying equipment) or LBE(load bearing equipment) in the US Army.
When I was on active duty, we'd have a GI first aid pouch with a field dressing on the upper right part & a GI flashlight with red lense on the left side.
The M16 magazine holders were a clever design. You could carry 2 30rd 5.56mm magazines & 2 M26 frag grenades on the side pouches.
We would normally wear the LBEs in the field for ranges or FTXs(training exercises) at Fort AP Hill & Fort Pickett in VA.
The pouches mostly carried candy, beef jerky, gum, tobacco products, or cookies.

Newer web gear & spec ops stuff is angled to speed access to magazines or weapons. The IDF(Israelis) really improved a lot of the uniform designs.

CF

[Corrections Cop]

I still do not get the "war belt" concept. I think it looks like a glorified duty belt. I'll tell ya walking around with a duty belt for 8 hours in the hot sun is not fun, it's a lot of weight on your hips, and for my work I don't carry a firearm, but I carry a taser, keys, cuffs, gloves, radio, cpr pouch, flashlight and glove pouch. If I could I would love to carry all that on a vest.

[ripnbst]

Corrections it would be for range use, and war.

[George Hill]

The HSGI belt has attachment points for the use of a shoulder harness or suspenders... Taking the USGI Gun Belt and LBE concept into modern times. They are very comfortable and much better than the old ALICE system.

[jimbob86]

The M16 magazine holders were a clever design. You could carry 2 30rd 5.56mm magazines & 2 M26 frag grenades on the side pouches.

They were designed to hold 3 magazines, IIRC ..... guys often put only two in and put their cigarette case, MRE crackers, etc. in the middle slot.

Interestigly enough, when the Gulf War (GW I) kicked off, we stowed the LBE's on the vehichles and kept one ammo pouch, and a flashlight, on the kevlar vest, and the bayonet and field dressing on the gas mask strap ...... we were an 8" SP Artillery Bn ...... it was thought that if we needed more small arms fire than what we had on us, and the M-2's on the Ammo Carriers and the '60's on the guns, 577's and Humvees could provide ..... we were pretty screwed with the m-16's out in the middle of the Iraqi desert ..... of what use is a rifle with an effective range of 460meters when you can see 10 times that far in every direction?

The vests did a better job of distuibuting weight than the LBE, anyhow ..... though they were hot as all get out when we got there in September.

Were I going to carry more than a pistol, field dressing, compass, rangefinder, and a knife very far, I'd with more than a GI pistol belt ...... if you are going to carry all that ammo for very long (Going to War?) you will want to distribute the weight better- try wearing that rig all day, running and whatnot - it'll drag your pants down .....but then again, it seems the younger generation is accustomed to pulling their pants back up every minute or so :P ......