It is no secret that I am huge fan of ESSTAC and Stu's work. Last week I had the opportunity to run both of these fine ESSTAC pieces of equipment while shooting at the U.S. Army Small Arms Championship at Fort Benning Ga.  This was my sixth time competing and I have always run ESSTAC rigs in the past. I have run the Bush Boar, the Iberian, and the last 2 years I have run an LBB. All worked wonderfully and I had zero complaints.

But this year I wanted to run 3 of Stu’s latest offerings.

The Daeodon Plate Carrier and the New Shooters Belt with Injected mold and Printed Belt loops for the Kywi Rifle and Pistol pouches.





The Daeodon straight up is one of the toughest, most comfortable PC’s I have ever run. No buckles, or excessive velcro riding on top of the shoulders and the padding is built right in. I choose to run the Mesh Cummerbund and 3 mag front panel for this match. The design of the shoulder straps is such that it distributes the weight very nicely but at the same time does not impede proper shouldering of the rifle stock for a great cheek weld. Different body type’s aside, this is an excellent design to keep the pocket of the shoulder open for your stock. The one I was running was the very last Prototype before the final design. Shooting a pistol two handed is also somewhat of an issue with PC’s because of the plate under your chin and the relationship to your arms when presenting the pistol. While there is some restriction during two handed shooting, it is not near as much as with some other PC’c. I found it to be a Non-issue, or at least no more an issue than any other PC.
I only ran plates and soft armor for a couple stages of the entire match. I mainly ran just soft armor panels from SKD and used the load bearing system of the PC the entire week. 6 days’ worth of shooting and moving through all kinds of weird positions and obstacles.



The Shooters belt 1.75” with inner belt was an excellent performer. The outer belt was stiff enough to support a Safariland extender and ALS for the M9. The inner belt with Velcro liner only served to further stiffen the belt and make it extremely comfortable to run. Most days were 8-10 hours wearing the belt all day. No chaffing, and rubbing, and it was very comfortable all day. One other note on the belt. It was stiff enough to run the Safariland extender without a leg strap. Zero issues with presentation from the holster and all stages of fire started with the Gun holstered. This is a great piece of kit!



Stu is now making belt loops for his belt so that there is a better alternative than Malice clips for mounting Molle Pouches to a belt. 1 pouch different mounting solution. He started forming them Kydex but is now working with a couple companies to have make them from injected molding and/or printing. I have examples of both during the match and none of them broke. According to Stu, the vertical test they were conducting was to grab the top of the pouch while mounted to a belt and pulling downward as hard as they could. While I didn’t do that, there were plenty of times these pouches were dragged across the ground, snagged on roof tops, or plywood barriers, and they never failed to perform. Also this is further testament to the Kywi pouches, as I did not lose a single pistol or rifle mag the entire week no matter what obstacle I was negotiating.
I know this will be asked, so I will just answer it now. When the belt is not worn do the pouches slide on the belt with the Belt loops. No, not on this belt. They are tight to the 1.75” and with the thickness created by the outer belt mine did not slide. However if they did, I woul be a simple fix of some double sided Velcro tape around the belt to keep them in place.


All in all as usual with ESSTAC gear all three offerings are solid, well thought out designs, and of bullet proof construction. I have completely given up the Padded War belt design in favor of this system.

Bravo Stu..... Bravo!

Chuck

Nice write up. I plan on getting the daeodon light carrier but they're never in stock 

Technically I don't think they  have been officially released yet? I was told early summer IIRC.
cp

Stuff looks great but....I'm not sure how to articulate this properly....I like molle. As a consumer options are nice but when there already is an excellent option and order companies try to make another system things get....annoying. Just my opinion. Because now other companies may only make their products with this attachment system and if I run molle I can't run said product.

Like stupid ass Apple with their proprietary charging/syncing cable vs just using standard USB. I hate that shit.

Again, I'm sure I'll get flamed. Looks nice but I like molle.

No flame here brother. If you are talking about the belt loops? They work with any Molle pouch. They just replace malice clips if you are using a belt like this.
Chuck

Great review, thanks. I also started with a huge padded war belt, but it quickly lost its appeal after I realized just how cumbersome the thing was- I felt like I was wearing a life preserver around my waist.  I also wanted a more low-profile setup that could be worn under a light soft shell if the need ever arose.  I had a little bit of movement utilizing the belt loops, but I threw some sticky-backed velcro on there and it tightened right up.  I can shake the living crap out of it and they don't budge.

I'm liking this system more and more, and I actually have a Safariland UBL in the mail right now to drop my holster a bit.  I thought I was going to need to do a strap, but I'm happy you reported it works just fine.

Very nice!  Yeah, I not saying this is right for everyone, some people might want or need a leg strap depending on personal preference or body type, but I surely don't need one and am glad, I hate anything that tugs near my junk.
Well done Sir.
Cp

For those who have asked;

Yes the 3 mag Pistol pouches now have a roughly 1/4" space between each pouch which makes them a breeze to find and gives room for bigger mags like Glock and M&P's.
Specifically for Glock.
cp

I've been in the market for a shooter/battle belt.  This might fit the bill.

ESSTAC makes killer gear and I am very glad I found them through SKD.

I run a mixture of ESSTAC KYWI pouches and ITW Fastmags with all of my pc pouches as KYWI's. LOVE them and have never lost a mag either.

I am still running a barbarian stone age battle belt and am curious how long the velco on the inner/outer belt setup would last? My fear is that it'll wear out quick for someone who takes their gear on and off frequently.

I got the Daeodon from SKD's Black Friday sale and it is one of the best carriers I've tried so far. A huge improvement over the Ares Armor Aspis I used to have. I wish I had it when I was active duty though the Marine Corps issued IMTV plate carrier is excellent in my experience as well besides the bulky non-removable side SAPI pockets.

I wish SKD sold the belts and A-1 variants. I found out Esstac is local, so now will have to deal with taxes.

Law Enforcement and USPSA shooters have been using similar setups for years. Everything wears out over time. I have been using my Tan/Coyote belt for almost a year now and have had no issues and no signs of the velcro wearing out..
Thats about all I can tell you on that.
cp

Thanks for the thorough review.  I just picked up a shooters belt with KYWI pouches and am anxious to put it through its paces.

Tell SKD 1.5" is for Girls and to forward that to the boss man, he will know whats what

I also have a coyote belt Esstac shooters belt that I am setting up for my P320. Since the Arrmy is switching over, I figured I bet get cracking. It will be set up pretty much the same at this point but I am probably going to try a Comp-tac holster on it because I am currently running an extra model. I'll get some pics up soon of that rig.
Cp

That shooter's belt is exactly what I've been looking for....thanks for posting it up!

Will these eventually make their way to dealers like SKD, or is this just a direct-from-mfg product?

I believe STD will be carrying it at some point.
Cp

That belt is tits. I've been considering getting one since your post in the warbelt thread.

I've almost gone to shooting completely from concealment style set ups so I'm not sure it will get much use.

I have used mine twice in IDPA. It is slim enough to do so is you strip it down to mags and holster only. You don't have to use the inner belt either if you don't want to.
It all boils down to preference. The nice thing about the Belt loops if you are not using the inner belt, is that they stay in place if you want them, but if need to slide them on the belt some to adjust for say, you are getting into a car for instance, you can just slide them forward or aft so you aren't getting jabbed in the back.

quit waffling bro, just buy one and some belt loops, you wont regret it. Its only money bro!!!!
cp

So I got in some of the ESSTAC Injected mold Belt loops yesterday. They are very nice.
Side view show the top of the loop that is positioned at top of mag pouch. The little tab on the inside keeps the loop from sliding up and locks the whole loop in place.


The below pic shows one installed and one partially installed and lined up to push into place.


Last pic shows the installed and on the belt loops, Injection mold on right and "Printed" on the left.


Strength wise I dont see a difference.
These are nice. They will also work on Taco's!
chuck

Thanks Chuck; I just picked up some used "printed" versions and was wondering how they compared.  They were cheap, so at least I can play around with them to see how they work for me,

ROCK6

They happen to make those to fit 2" belts ?

They are coming.... don't have a date but maybe Stu will chime in.


Cp

Cp

Thanks for the writeup! I have been looking into ESSTAC mag pouches for a while and purchased some today. Just wish the beltloops weren't $10/pair and had an option for reduced pricing when you buy the mag pouches and belt loops as a package.

I just ordered the belt and ten clips.  It's a better deal if you order together. Stu/esstac is the man.


I have 4 kywi pouches to put on them, an ALS, and will get the esstac blowout ifak when back in stock.

Can't wait!

Got a
triple pistol kywi that I'm thinking of putting in:
1 mag, flashlight, Leatherman
Single kywi pistol for 1 glock mag
Single short rifle kywi
Double tall rifle kywi

Not sure if it will all fit, but will see

Of you guys running Safariland ALS with the 1.75" belt, which if any additional safariland mount hardware are you guys liking the best? Not looking for drop leg, just maybe some drop.  But drop offset? Mid drop?

I'll get some pics of my setup tmrw in the daylight.  I have a Safariland UBL mid-drop, along with the QLS mounting system for my holsters.  The QLS setup gives nice separation.

I played with the UBL mid and low ride and prefer the mid. And definitely get the QLS attachment system, it really does make the system work-- one holster easily swapped across different platforms.

Do you buy the belt directly from ESSTAC, or is there better pricing through a retail dealer?

How stiff is the belt compared to others you may have tried?

I don't really care for how far it pushes the gun out. Just enough to hit door jambs, car doors, etc. Ymmv

This is really the only concern w/ the QLS for me as well.  Very first day I was walking around the house with the QLS set-up, I took a minor chunk out of a door jamb  Wife was Not happy!

You get used to it though, and I really like the fact that I can switch around handgun platforms so easily.

Hopefully these pics will give some people an idea of the way the QLS system works.  I'm still playing with cant angles, ect, so nothing has been loctited down yet.  This belt isn't finished yet, still need to add a small dump pouch and esstac blowout kit.  In case anyone's curious, the two mag pouches near the holster hold a surefire eb1 and a leatherman.



The P320 currently has a sub-compact grip frame on it, although when I use it in this set-up I always use a carry grip frame.  However, the ALS system does work just fine with the sc grip frame.

I can get a UBL without the qls and see how I like it, and then put a qls between the holster and ubl if I don't think ill mind the width, right?

I'm 99% sure the answer is yes, just checking lol

Directly through esstac is as good a price as any I've seen.

The belt is stiff, it has a kydex insert.

The sizing is a little confusing, fwiw I'm a 34 pant size and I measured 38 with a tape measure over my pants in the waist area and I was told to get the large.

Nice post - thanks.

So, you're running a rifle in those pics?

Combination, some yes rifle and some are pistol. It was a combined arms event.

As to holster attachment for safariland, I just started running the belt clip instead of the ubl. It's a lower ride than I thought but not as much as the uncle or belt mount. Very, very comfy.
Cp

Are you able to get the cant of the Safariland holster pretty close to 0 degrees? One thing that bugs me about Safariland is the forward cant all their holsters have.

I run them all on the belt at 0 degrees.
So yes for sure.
cp

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Got it set up heavy to test out, it can handle all this weight well.  

Seems pretty ideal.

So talk to me like a kid.  How do these belts work?   So two piece?   Do you wear the inner belt in your belt loops with Velcro out?  Outer sticks to it?  Just trying to follow.

Exactly. The inner belt is worn just like a regular belt. It has the soft side of the Velcro facing out. Then, the outer belt(with hard Velcro facing in) with all your gear already threaded onto it is Velcro'd onto it.

All I see that this setup needs is some belt keepers in matching camo. Something like LEO's wear to keep the outer belt in place. Helps alot to keep the belts secure when drawing the pistol.

More of a redundancy to keep the velcro from separating.

They don't separate when drawing your pistol. At least mine doesn't.  They do have a couple belt keepers that you put on the outER belt near the cobra buckle, and you can buy more, but looping things around both inner and outer kinda ruins the point of having an outer that can easily go on and off.  

Unless I missed your point.

@Click2Boom  Hey sorry I saw this late, and the answer is yes.  A UBL will work just fine with the holster shell, just bolt them together and go.

Thanks, I got one... I was tempted to order a bunch of new stuff for the belt b4 I got it, but waited, and yeah the UBL works good

As click2boom stated the keepers are for the outer belt, they keep your adjustments of the outer in check.

You won't need any Inner to outer keepers, properly adjusted the outer will stay put.

My old original belt is setup for 2 rifle 3 pistol, holster, medkit and dump pouch.  My newer gamer belt totes 5 17rnd 45 mags, Glock 41/holster and vape holster   neither have had issues with countless draws and use.

Everybody running the ESSTAC Daeodon, got any suggestions for plates? I'm trying to keep cost down, and these seem to fit the bill:

SKD Armor 10 x 12 Level IV Stand Alone Plate

Trying to keep total investment under 1k, which, at $250 for the PC and $85ish for each panel, leaves me enough for a mid-grade front and back plate and possibly side plate carriers and plates.