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How to choose the right Battle Belt for you?

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Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

What is a battle belt?

A battle belt serves a lot more purposes than keeping your trousers up. A battle belt or war belt is used by law enforcement officials, the military, tactical units, and sometimes civilians to carry critical gear that they may need to access in a rush. Tactical belts are usually made from durable nylon webbing, they have a stiff inner belt to help with their load bearing capability, and a padded outer battle belt for maximum comforts. the outer belt also comes with MOLLE panels to carry any kind of gear without damaging it. The inner belt can be made from stiff plastics and sometimes steel as well, and it prevents sagging when the battle belt is loaded with gear.

Most battle belts are easy to take off and put on, they don’t have to be passed through the belt loops on your trousers, and can be clipped on instantly with the help of a cobra buckle, which makes tactical belts super-adjustable, and very easy to use. Moreover, you want all your gear to be evenly distributed on your body so that the weight doesn’t put too much stress on any one body part. Having all your gear mounted on your plate carrier can make it difficult to access, and too bulky. Therefore, a battle belt also helps you distribute your tactical gear more efficiently across your body, making it easier to access as well.

Concealable gun belts are another type of battle belts that are made for daily use. They are made from stiff materials, or in some cases have a stiff steel core as well to help with weight management. These belts help people carry their firearms and extra mags without standing out like a tactical belt covered in MOLLE webbing would.

TACTICAL BELTS

Who uses a battle belt?

Well, a battle belt can be used by anyone, however, they are most commonly used by police officers, military personnel, and special tactical units like SWAT. 

Some police officers may also refer to it as a duty belt, and use it to carry their sidearm, extra pistol mags, handcuffs, flashlights, and other MOLLE compatible pouches. Battle belts are very useful for police officers, especially street cops, traffic police, and highway patrol officers. Their combat belt allows them to carry all the gear they need and makes it easily and quickly accessible. 

Military personnel can carry a wide variety of items on their tactical belt ranging from med kits and mag pouches to communication devices. People in federal agencies like the FBI may wear a concealable duty belt to carry their guns. Concealable belts can be made from nylon or thick leather as well and very often feature AustriAlpin Cobra buckle. Some paramedics may also use tactical duty belts to carry gear. 

A battle belt can be very useful for civilians as well, especially in a self-defense situation. They allow you to keep all of your self-defense tools in one spot, and you can have them ready to use in seconds by simply putting your battle belt on. Sport shooters may also use battle belts to carry ammo and timers, to help them reload quickly and save time while competing. 

How should a battle belt fit:

As far as the fit of a battle belt is concerned, the general rule of thumb is the same as body armor. It should be snug, but not too tight. Moreover, it shouldn’t restrict your movement. For instance, if you mount something too long on your belt, it might make it difficult for you to sit down. 

The inner belt should not be too tight, and it shouldn’t be too high that the outer belt and the gear mounted on it gets in the way of your armor, and neither should its position be too low that it, makes it difficult for you to run.

How to set up a duty belt:

The way you set up your battle belt depends a lot upon its application. A police officer may need different gear than a competition shooter. However, there are some basic ideas that apply to everyone.

If its heavy enough to need suspenders, rethink your approach.

For self-defense, mount gear to both make holes and plug them.

Practice with your combat belt.

If its heavy enough to need suspenders, rethink your approach.

The weight of your battle belt is very important, you need to make sure that you have mounter all the gear you need onto the belt without it getting too heavy. If the belt starts to sag, and feel uncomfortable, you need to rethink your approach, and use gear that is absolutely essential. Your battle belt should only have the gear that you need to access quickly, other things can be placed in a backpack, on plate carriers, or somewhere else. if you need some extra gear on your duty belt, you can also consider one with better belt features. For instance, you can get a belt with a stiffer inner belt, with can help you carry more weight.

For self-defense, mount gear to both make holes and plug them.

If you are using a battle belt to keep all of your elf defense gear on it, you need to make sure that you have the tools to both make holes and plug them. This means that you should mount yourself a defense pistol, a couple of extra magazines, a flashlight, a dump pouch for used mags, a medkit, and a tourniquet on your battle belt. If your primary self-defense weapon is a shotgun, you can also mount some shotgun shells on your belt, as many people do in three gun competitions. you can keep the shells in MOLLE pouches.

Practice with your combat belt.

Lastly, if you want to make sure that your battle belt setup is practical, you need to practice with it. Try doing some self-defense drills with it, and see what you feel comfortable with. It is guaranteed that after you do some practice, you will make some changes and improvements to your setup. Practice also makes you more effective in a self-defense situation.

What to consider when buying a battle belt?

Battle belts can have many benefits, however, buying one can be difficult sometimes, especially when you don’t know what to look for. 

Well, the main purpose of your battle belt is to carry gear, therefore, you need to make sure that it has a stiff inner belt, which won’t sag when carrying all the weight. Secondly, comfort is also important, so make sure that it has a padded outer belt as well. 

The durability of the belt is also important, therefore, make sure that it is made from strong, high-quality materials like Nylon webbing. Belts with steel core inner belts are also very durable. A war belt needs to be quickly equipable, this is why belts with a cobra buckle are great since you can clip them on instantly, and take them off when you need.

Lastly, the price of the belt is also a very important thing to consider. Let’s face it, these belts aren’t going to be cheap. A battle belt can cost somewhere around a couple of hundred dollars on average. However, the price can also be quite higher for a top-tier battle belt. Lastly, also make sure to check out some customer reviews before making the final decision on your belt.

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