So, you are ready to buy a belt and want to make sure get a quality belt. Past experience has taught you that cheap leather makes the difference between a belt that lasts months and a belt that lasts years. Is there any tips on avoiding a bad belt? Or, is it simply trial and error? Thankfully, there are some clear warning signs we can be looking out for. Let’s take a look.
The 3 points below are telltale warning signs that apply to the vast majority of belts on the market. Remember, the reality is that the majority of belts are not designed to last. Why? Well, simply put, stores want you to come back and buy another belt. If your belt lasts for years, retailers think they won’t get your business for a very long time.
In understanding belt quality, let’s visit the old saying, “the chain is only as strong as the weakest link”. This concept is a useful tool for investigating if a belt will last. Throughout its use, your belt will endure a significant about of strain. It will be repeatedly pushed, pulled, and stretched as you use it in the activities of life.
When you examine a belt, you should be looking for what is the “weakest link”. The things we will look at below are 3 “weak links” that you need to be on guard against. Again, these are not universal rules… but they are pretty close to it.
So, without further delay, here are the 3 clues you do NOT want the belt
1) Reversible buckle
For many, it is very convenient to have a single belt that matches multiple outfits. If you look at a reversible belt, what is it that makes the belt “reversible”? The buckle of course. If you examine the buckle on most reversible belts, you will find that to change from one color/side to the other, you have to pull on the buckle and rotate it 180°.
While the buckle is being rotated, you will notice that the top part of the buckle is joined to the lower portion of the buckle merely by a tiny metal rod/pin. This is the “weak link”. As I’m sure you can attest if you’ve ever owned a reversible belt, the consistent rotating of the buckle quickly wears out that tiny rod mechanism.
A 2-in-1 belt has its place, but if you want a belt that is quality, long–lasting, and durable, it would be a much wiser choice to go for a belt that has a stationary (i.e. non-reversible) belt buckle (personally, I recommend iwantabelt.com). Of course, there are other things to watch out for when choosing a quality belt. Which brings us to the second thing to avoid when searching for a belt.
2) Bad leather
- Bonded leather
Now, it should go without saying that the strap is one of the most important parts of a belt. After all, without a strap, your pants are… um… well… not where they should be. Thus, it is crucial to watch out for a bad strap. First, you should stay far, far away from bonded leather. Bonded leather has the word leather in it, but don’t think for a second that this means it is a fashionable, quality belt.
Bonded leather may look like a single, solid piece of material, but don’t be fooled. It is actually composed of pulverized shavings of leather that are held together by either a cheap backing or “bonded” together with a glue-like substance.
Bonded leather is kind of like a crispy rice treat. You can think of the crispy rice as the leather in “bonded leather,” and think of the marshmallow crème as a bonding agent that holds the leather particles together. And (just guessing), you probably wouldn’t want to build the walls of your house out of crispy rice treats. Because, while they are tasty, they wouldn’t do a good job of holding your roof up for very long. Similarly, a bonded leather belt won’t do a very good job of holding your pants up long-term.
- Genuine leather
This is the second bad leather I want to touch on. Hey, whoever came up with the term genuine leather gets an A+ for misleading marketing. This term has led to so much confusion about what quality leather is. Now, for this article I will simply say that not all cow leather is the same. One reason for this is that the hide from an adult cow is very thick, too thick for most leather items. So, the tannery has to split the leather so that they can sell as much of the animal skin as possible. Different layers of this leather have different strengths and properties.
Keep in mind that “genuine leather belt” simply means that some part of an animal hide has been used to make the belt. It could be great leather or it could be junk leather. But, unfortunately, the majority the of the time, “genuine leather” will simply be a codeword for junk leather. It is basically like saying that I have a “genuine diamond”. That doesn’t tell you much of anything about the diamond’s quality.
A “genuine diamond” includes everything from the world’s nicest diamond worth millions of dollars to a diamond that is the size of a grain of sand that is not good for much of anything. This is why gemologists have created ways to measure diamond quality (like the 4 C’s: cut, clarity, carat, and color). To help you decide what belt quality is, we have created the 3 T’s of leather quality (thickness, tan, and type). If you want to know the details about the 3 T’s of leather quality, check out our article “What Makes Quality?”
3) Sewing on a belt
Ok, you may be wondering, “what’s wrong with stitching on a belt?” While stitching does add a nice touch to a belt, there are several things stitching often indicates. Keep in mind, stitching is for a purpose. Generally, that purpose is holding two pieces of material together. Most belts with stitching are composed of two or more layers: a layer on top and bottom for appearance (usually something that is or looks like leather) and a layer in the middle to give the belt extra strength or create a 3-D appearance.
There are two main problems with stitching. First, a cheap belt maker may put a thin piece of leather on the top and bottom, so it looks like nice leather belt to the potential buyer. But, the majority of the belt is, in fact, composed of a weak material in-between those two thin layers of leather (something the buyer can’t see). This layer can be anything including junk leather, foam, or something like pulverized clothes. What you can’t see is going to be the very thing that will cause the belt to wear out quickly.
Now, going back to our discussion of the “weakest link” principle, we find the second reason sewing can be a warning sign of a bad belt. Let’s assume that you have quality leather in each layer of the belt you are looking at. In this less common scenario, sewing can be the weak link. A better alternative (one that we use at iwantabelt.com) is to make a belt out of a single piece of leather: no sewing needed. The difference between these two kinds of belt designs is similar to having a single brick or having two smaller bricks glued together. Clearly, we would expect the single brick to be more durable.
There you have it, three things to avoid when looking for the perfect leather belt for yourself or a friend. As you can tell, we put a lot of thought into how we designed our belts. We want to give you something that will not only be fashionable, but a belt that will last for years to come. Join the movement: quality is back in style!
