Are you ready to buy a belt? More importantly, are you wanting to make sure that what you buy is going to last a long time? Past experience has probably taught you that cheap leather belts will fall apart in a matter of months. Do you know what to look for and what to avoid? Are there any tips on avoiding a bad belt? Or, is it simply a trial and error? Thankfully, there are some clear warning signs you should be looking out for when the time comes to purchase a belt. Let’s take a look.
Below, we will review 3 telltale warning signs that, more often than not, indicate a low-quality product that you should avoid. Remember, the reality is that most 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 be able to sell you another one for a 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 whether or not 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”. What we will look at below are 3 such “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. However, if you look closer at what makes most reversable belts “reversable”, you will quickly realize why we say you should avoid this kind of belt. 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 more durable, it would be a much better choice to get a belt that has a stationary (i.e. non-reversible) belt buckle…. Personally, I recommend iwantabelt.com. Our buckles are securely fastened to the leather with durable metal rivets to give you the confidence of knowing that your belt will last. Of course, there are other things to watch out for when choosing a quality belt. This 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 know what makes 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 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 like meatloaf. (huh?… Stay with me now). Just like the meatloaf is ground beef held together with some other “stuff”, so bonded leather is ground leather held together with some “stuff”. As you know, there is a substantial difference between a premium steak and meatloaf. One only requires a spoon to eat. A good leather belt will hold up even in rough conditions, bonded leather will start to deteriorate even when under the ideal working conditions.
- Genuine leather
This is the second “bad leather” I want to touch on. I’ve got to admit that 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, the reality is 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 that processes the leather has to split the animal hide in order to sell as much 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. Unfortunately, the majority of the time the phrase “genuine leather” is used, it will simply be a codeword for junk leather. It is basically like saying that I have a “genuine diamond”. “Genuine diamond” tells you very little about the true quality of the diamond.
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). Similarly, to help you decide what is actually quality leather, 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 sewing may add a nice visual touch to a belt, stitching is also often a warning sign of a low-quality belt. Keep in mind, the normal purpose of sewing is to hold two pieces of material together. Most belts with stitching are composed of two or more layers: a layer on the bottom and top (usually something that is or looks like leather) and a layer in the middle to give the belt extra thickness.
There are two main problems with stitching. For one thing, many belts with sewing will have a thin piece of leather on the top and bottom, so that it looks like nice leather belt to the potential buyer. However, the problem lies between the layers you can see. Generally, that middle layer is composed of a weak material that can be anything including junk leather, foam, or something like pulverized fabric. In other words, 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 a belt has two layers of quality leather. 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. 1) A reversable buckle 2) Bad leather 3) Weak stitching. As you can tell, we have put a lot of thought into how we designed our belts. We want to give you something that will not only be fashionable, but also be a belt that will last for years to come. Join the movement: