I'm cheap, so hard to beat free. Just the basic belt, no padding/molle yet.

I have almost no knowledge of a good way to set up a war belt, so any suggestions would be welcome. My initial thinking is that I'd like something lower profile than a padded setup, like what BH! has.

Some expanding information. It's a 2.5" web belt.

(flamesuit on) look at what James Yeager says.

And what does James Yeager say ?

lol

OP, it's not 1999 anymore. Blackhawk is dated junk IMO. Sure, you could make it work, but you'd be better off going with modern gear. Like a HSGI Suregrip. You can pick one up used for like $30-40. If that's too thick for you, there are plenty of low profile war belts that don't suck.

If you're really worried about cost, buy ACU pouches to go with it. No one wants that pattern so they are cheap. You can always dye or spray paint them a better color.

I'm guessing you have one like THIS?
If so it's an A.L.I.C.E type belt. Not the best but still useable.
Use it as the inner belt for a molle sleeve or directly attach pouches & use it as an outer belt.
THIS thread is nothing but that & a pretty good resource.
Otherwise you can still find actual Alice gear pretty cheap, ditch the metal clips, & directly tie the pouches to the belt with para cord.
Personally I would probably just put the minimal amount on there and slowly build a nicer belt.
Then you could use the BH! As a backup or handout.
Or maybe set it up for a rifle/pistol combo you don't use quite as much.