TexasCHLforum.com

I'm looking for a gun belt thinner than the one I have, but everything I find seems to be around 1/4" thick (.22"+/-). While the belt i have is great for the purpose of hold my pants and IWB holster right where they belong, it gets a little tricky (and sometimes impossible) to get it back through the first belt loop with a lot of pants.
Does anyone know of a leather (or at least leather looking) gun belt that is thinner without sacrificing too much stability? Considering I'm only looking to carry my S&W Shield I don't need 24oz leather with a tensile capacity of 17 tons, but a standard leather belt tends to sag.

I am sure that there are different options out there. One that I took advantage of several years ago is a belt from Comp-Tac that tapers from 1.5" down to 1.25" in the buckle area. This alleviated the problem of being unable to get the tail of the belt back through a loop.

I really like the one that I am using. I got it at Walmart and it is made by Dickies. It is 1.5", reversible and about $12.

I was trying to find the name of the belt I bought at Walmart for $12.99. It is a Faded Glory belt, but it has a Cordura edge with a leather outer centerpiece, with a polymer stiffener inside; it is thin, attractive, and sturdy. I wear it with both IWB or OWB holsters for my SIGs, even though I have a very thick Hank's Belts leather that is very thick, almost too thick. You may have to check more than one Walmart to find it, though.

apvonkanel wrote: it gets a little tricky (and sometimes impossible) to get it back through the first belt loop with a lot of pants.

Are you wearing khakis? or just have small jeans loops? When my office dress code used to require slacks, I went to 1 1/4" belt, in horsehide (which is also a little thinner than cow/bull). Going too thin is more compromising than going narrower in a belt. If you can wear 1.25" vs 1.5" you can still have a substantial belt. Depending on what you carry, you can go 1.25 with or w/o a stiffener insert.

All my belts now come from AG Gunleather... http://agcustomgunleather.com/ priced similar to the other well known belt makers but sturdier, IMO. Give Al a call to discuss your needs... he's a super nice guy and makes excellent belts.

Middle Age Russ wrote:I am sure that there are different options out there. One that I took advantage of several years ago is a belt from Comp-Tac that tapers from 1.5" down to 1.25" in the buckle area. This alleviated the problem of being unable to get the tail of the belt back through a loop.

I've used CompTac since 2008 and been happy.
Last week I decided to TRY two thicknesses of Bigfoot Gunbelts with the STEEL reinforcement.

The leather is thicker, but the 9 year old Comptac belt seems more supportive and stiffer than the brand new thicker leather with steel in it Bigfoot belts... I had to double check that there's any reinforcement in the $60 Bigfoot ones.

That's 3 or 4 brands I bought so far, Comptac still my favorite daily wear, I wish they used roller buckles (easy to change with the screws) and wish they were cheaper, but still the best I tried

I have a buddy who uses a galco belt that I think is a little slimmer than my belt man and his has a tapered end whereas mine does not. I don't have any problems tho with any pants I wear. I wear wranglers so they have decent belt loops. But when I was having to wear slacks Or dickies kackie pants I had the hardest time trying to get my belt through the loops but keep in mine it was an inner Velcro belt for my duty belt. I'd pull and it was the worst thing ever to try to do in a hurry.

All great suggestions, but the OP is asking about belt thickness, not width.

I've had good luck with this 511 belt. It's about half as thick as my Crossbreed belt and it's very stiff.

https://www.gtdist.com/5-11-casual-leather-belts.html

Thanks for the input everyone. I'll look at the Comp-Tac because that might solve the problem. I prefer a 1.5" belt, and am looking for alternatives to a 1.25" (that's my last resort). I generally wear slacks at work, occasionally jeans, but I've never been a fan of a 1.25", it just feels too narrow. I also found a "SuperBio Indestructible CCW Belt" that says it's 5/32" (0.16") so I'll see how that holds up. I prefer leather, but we'll see. Worst case scenario it will be good for a dirty-work belt.

I have a single layer gun belt from Daltech with 3/4in holes. Been wearing it for a year with a Kahr CW9 IWB. It did stretch some maybe 1/4 to 1/2 inch but I think it good for a single layer belt. I think they usually run about 45 bucks.

I used this belt with OWB Springfield XD9 also with no issues. It is nowhere as stiff as the dual layer belt I have from tuckers gun leather recently.

I think you want something with an insert to add support without adding thickness. I have a couple Bladetech belts that work well, but I think they are discontinued.

Right now I'm wearing a DM Bullard belt with no insert, just good solid leather construction. It works fine on all of my dress slacks, and also all of my jeans and shorts. You might want to also just try some other belt brands.

I got one from GT Distributors 2 years ago. It's 1 1/4" , leather and has decent stiffness.

apvonkanel,

The last gun belt I had "The Beltman" make for me is the thinnest gun belt I've owned. Made of elephant and bullhide.

From their website: "During construction the elephant hide is laminated to a 9 oz. strap of bull hide with the internal stiffener included (no charge). The belt is then edged to our very high standards. The end result is a belt that looks great, is virtually abrasion-proof, and stiff enough to be a world class gunbelt. With the woven polyester stiffener already included, this may be the finest gun belt on the planet!"

I've had it for two years now and it still looks brand new.

It's a bit pricey, but you'll never wear out this belt and along with durability it's beautiful.

Visit their site and look them over. For reasons I can't explain, they don't look as thin in their photos, but they really are quite thin.

Abraham wrote:apvonkanel,

The last gun belt I had "The Beltman" make for me is the thinnest gun belt I've owned. Made of elephant and bullhide.

From their website: "During construction the elephant hide is laminated to a 9 oz. strap of bull hide with the internal stiffener included (no charge). The belt is then edged to our very high standards. The end result is a belt that looks great, is virtually abrasion-proof, and stiff enough to be a world class gunbelt. With the woven polyester stiffener already included, this may be the finest gun belt on the planet!"

I've had it for two years now and it still looks brand new.

It's a bit pricey, but you'll never wear out this belt and along with durability it's beautiful.

Visit their site and look them over. For reasons I can't explain, they don't look as thin in their photos, but they really are quite thin.

Does the belt have the stiffener between layers or is there just one layer of elephant hide?
I have three bullhide belts from Beltman and like them very much.
They have two layers of leather with a stiffener in between. I believe it is Kydex.
I am sure if the OP sends an email they will be able to provide more information.
They have always been very helpful to me.