Spec.-Ops. Brand Better BDU Belt 1.75”

I’m not sure who “invented” the tactical trouser belt, but Spec.-Ops. Brand was definitely one of the pioneers of the genre. Years back, I wanted a fully non-metallic belt to make airport checkpoints go more quicky, but that was before September 11 and the TSA, as nowadays all belts have to come off. I ended up with a PRC-made 5.11 Tactical Gear TDU belt, which worked perfectly fine, but its country of origin left something to be desired. Spec.-Ops. Brand belts are made in the USA, so I picked up a couple, one in Coyote Brown to go with my MultiCam trousers, and a black one for everyday use.

Construction of the belts is simple and straightforward. There are essentially only two components – the webbing and the buckle – if you don’t count the thread and label. The webbing is available in various colors and is stitched onto the proprietary buckle. Regardless of the color of webbing you select, the buckle is black. The highly textured webbing threads through the buckle and locks firmly in place. The webbing on my 5.11 belt has a less-aggressive texture, but still locks down with no slippage. This belt is available in 1.5” and 1.75” widths and two lengths for “regular” and “large” waistlines. I went with the wider width to fill up the belt loops better and to hopefully get a little more vertical stiffness.

The belt works fine. It’s pretty hard to F-up a belt, but I’m sure it happens. This is one of the few USA-made tactical trouser belts (excluding rigger’s belts), and as a consequence, it is probably the most expensive at around $22 USD MSRP. This is not bad, considering the China-made 5.11 is $17 USD MSRP. Chris recently picked up some Propper belts, but I’m fairly certain their low price point reflects a PRC heritage. I’ll pay five bucks more for an American product.

That said, here come the gripes. The quality of the tails leaves something to be desired. The diagonally-cut end is melted to prevent fraying, and an attempt to sear the sides is made to stiffen up the end for easier threading through the buckle. My CB one has a nice, even melted surface on either face of the terminal end of the tail. My black one has some sad melt lines just short of a centimeter in from the end where the melted surface is supposed to end. The belt still works fine, but it would seem that a little more attention has to be made in the quality control department.

Personally, I think they have to update the color choices. The Coyote Brown is a nice recent addition, but the legacy OD green could be replaced with more contemporary Foliage Green and/or Ranger Green. It would be a definite plus to have color-matching buckles.

Three out of four trouser-retaining monkeys

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Around $22 USD