Gear Review: GPM Kit – Combat Application Belt, Outdoor Application Belt

We love gear. Gear that works, we adore. And both the Combat Application Belt, and Outdoor Application Belt – work.

They are tested on the front lines, not in some laboratory, and they are US made by a veteran of the USMC and Navy. Patrick Moltrup started his military career in the Marine Corps, got out, did the reserve thing and went to college, then in 2002, after 9/11, he re-enlisted into the Navy. Long story short he went back into the active duty pool as a Corpsman, where that was his primary MOS off the bat; he then went a screened for SWCC, got his orders cut, and went to Coronado, where he graduated with SWCC Class 44.

From his time on active duty and as a SWCC, with alot of time in the surf, he got sick of his riggers belt always rusting or breaking, and that’s where the idea for this revolutionary – and simple – belt system came from. “The buckles on those riggers belts would just rust out,” Moltrup commented. “I was going through one every 3 months.”

At some point soon thereafter, Moltrup was rucking up the AT (Appalachian Trail) and had on his riggers belt, despite his rancor for the thing. It kept getting in the way of his pack, poking him in the side – and then it hit him. “Why am I doing this? There has to be a better way…”

And he found it. He went home, got some webbing, sewed up some prototypes, and tested it out.  That test obviously went well, as he has was awarded a patent for the design – being among only one other belt that was patented – and that’s another novel police duty belt with it’s own applications.

He gave his prototypes to his old teammates and other buddies in the service, and they have seen multiple deployments. Moltrup tested it out himself in the surf zone, on long ocean swims, and threw everything he had at it. Moreover, both the Outdoor Application and Combat Application Belts are TSA friendly – meaning, no metal in them at all!

The Outdoor Applications Belt is designed for civi use, or just light duty. It’s 1.5 inches wide, but still has his novel way of donning the belt – where the loop point is off to your left hip, and the belt itself secures in front of you. He’s had motorcycle riders email him saying how much they love the belt and it’s lack of a buckle – even an airline mechanic wears it since he has to crawl in engine compartments sometimes. The applications of both, but specifically the Outdoor Application Belt are endless.

The Combat Applications Belt is more robust, and I like it more for a couple reasons. One is the stiffness. For EDC, this has enough to it to stand up to a EDC rig and some multitools and knives on your belt. It’s also 2 inches in width, and has MOLLE webbing all along the side. (Interesting anecdote: a Marine sniper suggested the MOLLE webbing on the side. Marine snipers sometimes use a monopod and some 550 cord to stabilize the weapon, but they used to loop it through their belt or LBE. Here, they can just loop it through the belt, and have a stable surface for the gun to glue itself to. Necessity truly is the mother of all invention.)

Pretty cool right? A belt with no buckle that is just as secure as a regular belt? Yea, and it works. I can tell you that I wore both for a couple weeks, and despite getting used to the new way to secure your belt, it’s flawless. The Combat Application Belt I loved because it lacked a buckle, was secure and tight while still being comfortable, and help all of my EDC rigs and holsters. It’s robust, it’s well made, and it works! As an added bonus, if you hit the deck, you don’t immediately realize you have a piece of metal on because it’s knocking on your intestines.

The civilian intended Outdoor Application Belt works just as well, too. It’s just a half inch thinner and lacks MOLLE webbing, but other than that – basically the same belt.

Want more? This belt is made at Special Operations Tec in Carson, CA, and ALL are handmade on machines by qualified personnel, QC’d and then checked again by the designer and inventor Patrick Moltrup himself. You can cop either of these on Amazon for less that 50 bucks, and if you don’t believe us at SGPT, just ask Moltrup’s teammates, or the distributor that just picked up the design.

Check out the Combat Application Belt at Amazon.com

What we like:

Veteran owned and operated, made in the USA, with outstanding QC, and it’s outside the box. What’s not to like?

What we don’t:

Not that it’s a big deal, but it takes a couple days to retrain yourself how to use it. After all, we’ve been using the same old belt for years.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alex Castiglione lives in Atlanta, and is an avid outdoorsman and competitive shooter.

Where-abouts include getting after it in his garage gym, practicing martial arts, hitting the trails, or running CrossFit and Strongman competitions for his non-profit, Barbells for Bullies, which holds fundraiser fitness competitions dedicated to aiding Bully breed rescues, dog rescues, or other non-profits with similar missions.

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