Police duty belt Totally Explained

Everything about Police Duty Belt totally explained

A police duty belt (sometimes called a gun belt) is a nylon or leather belt designed for police or security officers to carry equipment in a readily-accessible manner.

History

Many forces in the United Kingdom began with a uniform consisting of a swallow-tail coat and top hat. A pillbox or kepi hat along with a frock coat were introduced in the 1860s, along with helmets for protection against attack and the weather. Truncheons themselves had been introduced as early as 1764, however it wasn't until 1994 that UK police forces started to introduce the duty belt to contain such equipment, as an alternative to having their staff carry equipment in their handbags or pockets, or in the case of the earliest officers, carrying a cutlass or firearm clipped to the belt of the frock coat. In fact pockets themselves were not introduced until the early 1900s in some cases.
Before duty belts, British female officers had to carry their truncheons, which were shorter than the men's version, in their handbags along with their police notebook. Male officers carried handcuffs, whereas female officers were not permitted to without special permission. During the 1950s and 1960s the Sam Browne belt was in popular use by police officers in the USA.

Composition

Material

Most duty belts have a width of 2-1/4 inches and are either made of ballistic nylon or leather. Many Canadian police departments have had officers complain of having back pain due to their supposedly rigid nylon belts and in response, many Canadian departments are now switching to leather belts because they're considered by some to be more flexible. Older belts used to buckle under the weight of whatever was carried on the belt; recently manufacturers have introduced double ply belts which retain their shape and can withstand the weight of the equipment on the belt.
Nylon duty gear is generally less expensive, lighter, and easier to maintain than leather gear of comparable quality. However, leather gear is generally regarded as having a more traditional and professional appearance. To combine the best of both worlds, companies like Bianchi manufacture nylon duty gear that has the appearance of leather.

Color

The most common color for duty belts in service with law enforcement personnel and security officers is black, however there's some variation. In some instances, brown leather is used in place of black, which is generally only chosen for cosmetic purposes, ie. that it's more suited to the officers uniform.

Application

Duty belts wrap around the officer's waist and fasten with a buckle at the front.

Belt keepers

In the past many belts would sag and move about on the waist when an officer was running. Belt keepers wrap around the duty belt and trouser belt ensure that the belt stays in place, even when the officer is taking something from the belt or engaging in an altercation with a suspect.
Keepers keep the duty belt attached to the trouser belt.

Belt suspenders

Belt suspenders allow the wearer to move a portion of the weight of the belt onto the shoulders, decreasing stress on the lower back.

Handgun holster

Holster designs for firearms cover a wide range of shapes, materials, and retention/release mechanisms, from simple leather pouches hanging from a belt to highly protective holsters with flaps that cover the entire handgun, to highly adjustable competition holsters that hold the handgun at a precise position and release instantly with the right pressure. The wide range of types indicates the highly varied circumstances in which holsters are used, and the varying preferences of the users. Most commonly, the holster is set up so that the grip is level with, or slightly above, the top of the duty belt.
Another method of carriage that's used, and is more basic, is to simply contain the canister in a pouch, secured by either a Velcro or button fastener.
Chemical sprays, such as OC, are being phased out by many departments in favor of the Taser, which is more effective and safer for officers to deploy.

Portable Lighting

Primary flashlights

Law enforcement and security officers often have a large and powerful flashlight for duty use. These lights are usually used when the officer needs a powerful light. These lights are usually rechargeable and stay on the charger when not in use.
Long, cylindrical flashlights tend to be carried in a flashlight ring. Rings are simple and inexpensive, and are convenient for flashlights which are not regularly carried. However, the flashlight is permitted a great amount of vertical and horizontal freedom which can make the light insecure and uncomfortable to carry.
Examples of popular primary flashlights:

Mag Instrument MagCharger
Streamlight SL20XP-LED
Tigerlight
Surefire 10X Dominator

Secondary flashlights

Because of the size and weight of most primary lights, and sometimes agency policy, many officers choose to carry a smaller secondary flashlight for everyday tasks. These lights are usually rechargeable and are kept in a holder on the duty belt.
Examples of popular secondary lights:

Streamlight Stinger / Polystinger

Pelican 7060 LED

Surefire 8AX/8NX Commander

Blackhawk Nite-Ops Gladius

Auxiliary flashlights

Rechargeable flashlights tend to fail at inopportune times. Because of this, many officers carry additional non-rechargeable flashlights. These lights must be small, light, bright and absolutely dependable. These lights may be kept in a holder on the belt, or in a trouser pocket.
These flashlights often use CR123 3.0 volt lithium or alkaline 1.5 volt AA battery cells.
Examples of popular auxiliary lights:

Surefire G2 / G3

Weapon Lights

To allow for better weapon control, officers often attach a flashlight directly to the firearm. These lights tend to be especially small, light, robust, and use non-rechargeable batteries.
They sometimes have special features available, such as LASER emitters.
Examples of popular weapon lights:

Surefire G2 / G3

Surefire x300

Streamlight TLR series

Surefire 618/918 shotgun foreend family

Magazine pouch

If the officer is armed with a firearm, then spare magazines or speedloaders are generally required to be carried, in the event of a prolonged firefight. There are two basic variants to these holders, where the magazine is carried in a vertical position, or in a horizontal position. The advantage of carriage in a vertical, upright position is that the magazine occupies less space on the belt, and therefore more magazines can be carried. The advantage of horizontal carry is that greater comfort is provided for officers whom are not physically fit. There is also variation in the number of magazines a pouch holds. The norm is for two magazines to be carried, but there are also variants which allow for carriage of more, or less, dependent on the needs of the officer. Also, similar to holders of other items of equipment, these can be found with either an open top design, or a closed design fastened either with a press stud or Velcro.

Baton holder

There are several types of baton holders for officers who have fixed or collapsible batons. These holders also allow the baton to be stored while extended to allow the officer to arrest a suspect without the officer having to drop his baton or collapse it, which could take time and allow the suspect to escape.
Elsewhere, officers can choose to have a closed baton pouch or an open top baton pouch for their extendable batons. Open top baton pouches are considered by some officers to be a safety concern as there's no thumbsnab to undo, as an officer may be unaware of the baton being taken from him or falling out when moving.

Key holder

Noise reduction is a major issue for an officer, because if a suspect hears the officer approaching, the element of surprise has been lost, allowing the suspect to prepare himself/herself for possible resistance. Many officers are now choosing to wear "silent" key keepers, which simply includes a small pad of Velcro below the key clip into the design, which wraps around the keys preventing movement when the officer may be approaching, or moving at speed. Although other types of key holders include, models which work in the same way as a tape-measure. When the keys are pulled away from the base, held on the duty belt, and used to unlock something, and subsequently when the officer releases the keys, they simply retract automatically back to the base. Another design is a hidden key keeper, which are concealed in a belt keeper, but this is mostly only used for the storage of spare sets of handcuff keys.

Disposable gloves

Either nitrile or latex, disposable gloves are useful when physically handling subjects that may have infectious diseases. Numerous companies manufacture dedicated pouches designed specifically to hold disposable gloves, as well as multi-purpose pouches that can hold either pagers, disposable gloves, or any other such small objects that will with the pouch.

Knife pouch

It is often necessary for police officers to carry either a knife, or a multitool. The former is primarily used, not as a self defence object, but as a utility tool for the cutting of various objects, an example of which is a car seatbelt, which an officer may have to quickly cut in order to remove an injured person from a motor vehicle. The latter, a multitool, can be used in a number of different situations, depending on its specific design. It may be used as a knife, in the circumstances described above, and may also be used in the assembly or disassembly of various items in the field, to facilitate their repair. It also has a limited use as a method of entry tool. Officers may also choose to carry a window-punch which is a small metal point on the end of a hammer type handle, which the officer can use to break a window either to access a car or a residence.

First aid kit

Since police officers are amongst the first to arrive to any incident, where medical attention potentially may be required, officers may wear a first aid pouch containing some basic life saving equipment, which is useful while waiting for an ambulance to arrive. This equipment may include: medical gloves, CPR mask and antiseptic wipes. It should be noted that it isn't common practice for American peace officers to wear a first aid pouch on their duty belt.

Country-specific equipment

British police

Unlike most other police departments world-wide, British police officers, with rare exception, are not equipped with firearms. The standard equipment for officers of the British police forces includes handcuffs, TETRA or Airwaves radio (often carried on the shoulder lapel), pepper spray or CS spray, collapsible baton, and a personal protection pouch (gloves, CPR mask). British police officers, and those of the Hong Kong Police Force, can also carry their warrant cards on their belts.

Concerns and Remedies

American police officers often carry more than 20 lb (9 kg) of equipment. Many police officers develop health conditions, such as back problems, as a result of this.
Officers with back problems sometimes use suspenders, which transfer some of the belt's weight to the shoulders, reducing the amount of weight concentrated at the waist.
Some officers are also switching to harnesses. This harness goes over their stab-proof vest and reduces the need for officers to keep reaching round to get their equipment. Some officers have even stored their equipment in pockets of their coats or trousers, however this isn't recommended if you need to reach for the equipment quickly.

Makers

Manufacturers of police duty belts include:

Bianchi International

Gould & Goodrich

Uncle Mike's Law Enforcement, a division of Michaels of Oregon.Further Information

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