Reader Greg P. Chabot writes,

I’ve always had difficulty finding a comfortable belt and buckle for hiking and other activities. Having a belt buckle digging into your waist while rucking can make for a miserable experience. GPM Kit, a small Veteran-owned company based in Carson California has come up with a solution to that problem, their Outdoor Applications Belt.

Patrick Moltrup, the owner of GPM Kit, is a former infantry Marine and retired Navy SWCC member. Patrick explained how he came up with his innovative design.

While hiking the Appalachian Trail post,deployment, I had on the right clothes, a good pack and it was a great day. But as the day wore on and my pack shifted, the rigger’s belt I was wearing got more annoying. No adjustment helped. I resigned myself to the fact it was just a poor product. As I hiked further, I thought about doing it simpler and better. After my trip I went home got some webbing and went to work. I refined the design through multiple combat deployments, receiving a patent for the design in 2015.

After corresponding with Patrick, I went ahead and purchased one. I’ve been wearing it every day for the past three months and I am very impressed with its simplicity and comfort.

The belt’s made from American materials made right there in Carson. The stitching is top-notch and even with everyday wear, I’ve seen no signs of fraying yet.

The hook and loop closures have extra stitching and securely keep the belt in place. The belt is buckle-free — It basically loops into itself — which adds to the comfort level.

The Outdoor Applications Belt comes with detailed instructions or one can watch a video to see how to properly put it on.

It’s simple enough and after a couple of times I had it down pat.

I’ve worn my belt with various makes and styles of trousers and shorts and have had no issues with keeping my pants up, even when toting a pistol. And it won’t loosen itself, even during a day of hiking or doing a day’s work.

The Outdoor Applications Belt is more than firm enough to use at the range and for concealed carry. At no time did my holsters or mag pouches cause the belt to loosen in the slightest. And the Outdoor Application Belt provides enough support that my weapon doesn’t lean away from my body, causing printing. I’ve had issues with that in the past with other belts doing that.

Best of all is the lack of a buckle digging into me while shooting prone or hiking with a full-sized pack. For those emergency trips into the brush, the belt also comes off just as fast as a regular belt, in case you were wondering.

Using my imagination, I tried a few alternative uses, too. The Outdoor Applications Belt makes a halfway decent sling for a rifle. It’s not perfect, but will definitely do in a pinch. In lieu of a bungie cord it can also be used to secure cargo in a vehicle.

To test its strength and security, I attached a carabiner to the belt, hooked myself to my deck and leaned back. The Outdoor Applications Belt held my 200-plus pounds securely. There are probably better ways to improvise a climbing harness, but it’s good to know the belt can handle it if you don’t have another option.

I found the GPM Kit Outdoor Application belt the most comfortable belt I’ve ever worn. It was very versatile and suitable for everyday wear. To be honest I couldn’t find anything about the belt I did not like. GPM Kit also offers their bigger, more robust Combat Applications Belt which has many features of a rigger’s belt but again, without the buckle.

Specifications: GPM Kit Outdoor Applications Belt
Sizes: S (30), M (34), L (38), XL (42) with adjustments
Colors: Black, Desert Tan, OK and Camo
Price: $45

Ratings (out of five stars):

Comfort: * * * * *
The buckle-free design easily makes this the most comfortable belt I have ever worn.

Quality: * * * * * 
The quality materials and stitching have held up well after three months of use and look like they’ll last for years. Being made in the USA is a bonus.

Strength: * * * * * 
The belt held my full body weight of 200-plus pounds. Enough said.

Overall: * * * * * 
The design allows other uses besides holding up one’s pants. I’m a fan of gear that can be used for improvised task.

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35 COMMENTS

    • lol … good eye … id say oh 240 to 260 range huh? leaning back may just be a good 200 lb test however. and he did say 200 + lbs … smiles.

      • I originally wrote my fat ass. But this is a family site. Thank you all for reading my review.

  2. Very informative review. The test were a nice touch. Will be checking these out

  3. Video was helpful. Good review. [scary test 🙂 ] (trigger discipline should be exhibited, at the very least, in editable (replaceable) pictures).

    Combat belt stops at size 38” ??? Welp, that’s a lesson in fitness right there.

    • While I encountered the occasional larger dude, in my experience actual fat kids cant hump and generally fall out, oddly skinny dudes have a lot of the same problems.

    • My right finger is bent from old Iraq injury. I have to physically bend it straight. In pics it looks like it is on trigger.
      Thanks for reading it.

      • Ok, brother, i getcha. Again, good review, definitely liked the video, or it’d be difficult to picture the ops.

        Thanks again.

  5. The hack for most belts is to turn the belt so that the buckle rides around 11 o’clock, (or 1 for those sinister motherfuckers out there).

    Gets the buckle out of the way but means you don’t need new belts. Works great on crotch-rockets too to avoid scuffing your tank but also not buying a tank-saver thing.

    • Yes, for us that carry right-hand AIWB, most of us have our belt buckle at the 10:00 position.

    • Wearing a riggers belt like that is exactly one of the reasons I designed thsee belts. This is the lighter version of the main two belts. Myself and my teammates found turning the belt to the right just bound the belt up with other gear, mag pouches, holsters or whatever. This does away with the whole issue. And the belt doesn’t shift left to right at all.

  6. After watching the video I have to say that the GPM Kit Outdoor Applucations Belt has to be one of the most ridiculous “applications” ever devised for holding up a pair of britches.

    2 bucks worth of lightweight nylon strap and velcro for 40 bucks that you have to wrap one and a half times around your waist in order to avoid buckle discomfort?

    P T Barnum would be proud.

    • The Gent that designed the belt was granted a Patent. So there’s that.

      Otherwise, Yes I ordered one. Can’t wait!

    • Ted,

      Most people who have never used the belt tend to be a bit skeptical. It has been the first unique belt patent in over 50 years. Trust me, after 25 years in the military, most of that in the special operations community, this belt fits a need and it works. If it didn’t I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing. As far as how you feel its built and what it cost. The belt is Berry Compliant, which means ever thread, color and piece of the belt is made here in the US. I will stand by the cost 100%. Every facet of this product supports American workers and it costs what it costs. I could easily buy Chinese nylon, and have it built in the US saving me about 50%. If you have any questions about how the product works feel free to contact me or check out other reviews @https://www.facebook.com/GPMKIT/ or @[email protected]. Thanks

  7. “The Outdoor Applications Belt is more than firm enough to use at the range and for concealed carry…”

    doesn’t look it based on the photo where the gun is pulling it down several inches

      • It is, I like to “push” a product. Try a heavy handgun and such. I stand by my statement.
        Thank you for reading.

        • Yup. I was recently an R/O during a handgun safety class, first gen. I had two students with revolvers, so I decided to wear my model 28-2.
          Holy crap. What a heavyweight!
          It kept pulling down my pants. I’d rather wear a chest rig, but they are not allowed during class.

        • The point of pushing something is to see if it’s good enough

          When you push something and it doesn’t do well (i.e. a pistol pulls it down), that doesn’t mean it’s good enough just because you pushed it. I just don’t get why you’re flogging this belt as good for carry. It might not be a disaster, but it doesn’t look like it’s great for the application.

      • The belt used in the review “Outdoor Applications Belt” is specifically designed for lighter outdoor use. Hiking, climbing, etc. The Combat Applications Belt is wider and stiffer. More specifically designed for what this belt was used in the review.

        • Is the belt’s weakest-link the pant’s belt loops, (or does it have enough hold by the wrap / overlap) and do you think it requires switching loops over time?

          I like the no-buckle aspect of it, but I’m still trying to imagine a speedy-un-ass-ing of it if you got full train-set of an MRE combat crap coming.

  8. It looks like the holstered gun is pulling the belt down on the side, is it that stretchy? Won’t that be a problem when drawing and it pulls up?

  9. There is no way that is a rigid/stiff for holster carry. It looks like a cooked spaghetti noodle. Even in the photo the holstered gun is sagging. It might be a great belt for day hikes but the photo and the picture look to be telling a different story.

    • Depends on the weapon. The SP01 with 20 rounds in picture. Is going to be heavier than a G43. I was also wearing hiking trousers so there was a lack of belt loops and such which also factors in.
      Thank you for reading the review.

  10. A) The belt doesn’t fasten to itself, so the quality of the belt loop stitching is what you are depending on.
    B) Tucking the final velcro behind itself yields a final adjustment entirely dependent on how far you suck in the gut.
    C) A single row of PALS is floppy as all get out.

  11. Shameful hate filled comments that HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH THE BELT. F you, fudds.

    • I’ll bite. Couple of comments poking a little fun at his “200-plus” statement (one of which he responded to, in fact), and your response was wildly disproportionate. Definitely one of those situations where you should have walked away for five minutes before you typed to let your outrage level come down.

    • …where all those comments deleted? Usually there is an indication when they are

      Otherwise… maybe calm down a bit.

    • Yes sir, CZ 75 SP01. Hefty weapon for sure kinda like me.☺️
      Thanks for reading it.

  14. With respect to the maker and the reviewer and as noted in another comment, an EDC gun belt should not sag as is shown in the first photo. Rule number one: you should be able to grip a gun belt in a full loop in your hand without any sagging — the old basketball hoop rule. It should hold a holstered full size service pistol without sagging. This belt material has good potential for something like a shoulder holster rig where sagging is not an issue. Another observation.

  15. That first pic shows some serious sag, under the weight of the gun. Enough for me to say…pass!
    I’ve had “good” belts that sagged just like that. They were not good belts. Lesson(s) learned way back then.

    • Cea,

      I agree with your statement, I’m the owner of the company and can tell you the belt worn in the review was not designed for common use with firearms. It is more specifically made for use hiking and climbing or general outdoor use. Others have used the belt shown for use with lighter weapons and its ok, but again not the primary design.

      The Combat applications belt is stiffer and built to carry a firearm. My last deployment to Afghanistan almost every member of my team wore the belt I designed(Combat ApplicationsBelt) and it worked flawlessly. I invite anyone here to message me directly if they are interested in a Combat Applications Belt. I’ll supply you with a code for a discount.
      Ia appreciate everyones input!!

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