NEW! EDCLB HBC Horizontal Belt Carrier

Introducing the EDCLB HBC horizontal belt carrier!

After seemingly endless experimentation, trial and error and way too many hours of thought into the design, I present the results of it all. The photos below depict the first production sample to come off the fixture and tooling, which in itself took a lot of time to figure out how to make a quality product in a consistent fashion.

The HBC will be offered for both 1-inch bezel lights (Bodyguard, Dagger and Shogun) and 1-¼” bezel lights (Fat Boy). The photos below show the 1-¼” model with an 18350 Fat Boy CF light.

Design Objectives

Borrowing design elements from existing belt-mount light carriers, using suggestions from others and incorporating some ideas of my own, these are the objectives I set out to attain;

• A quality product in design, fit and finish that owners of EDCLB lights would be willing to purchase
• Compact, low-bulk dimensions to make carrying the light on a belt comfortable and concealable
• The quick mount/dismount ability of a belt clip with the security of a fixed belt loop
• Adjustable tension for user to set retention to their liking
• Easy extraction of light from carrier and easy insertion
• A high level of security from accidental dislodging and loss of light from the carrier
• Ambidextrous, carrier opening facing forward or backward

Photos & Details

https://i.ibb.co/ryc027k/HBC-1.jpg
Photo 1 - the HBC mounted on a Wilderness Instructor belt;

• A Velcro One-Wrap strap is used to secure the carrier to the belt (my thanks to @Flamingo for suggesting this method)
• The elastic belt keeper placed over the tailcap ensures complete retention of the light and pulls the back of the light tight to the belt for better concealment

https://i.ibb.co/hLGNX6T/HBC-2.jpg
Photo 2

• The tension on the light is adjustable so the carrier will retain the light without use of the elastic belt keeper

https://i.ibb.co/XsSb29m/HBC-3.jpg
Photo 3

• The HBC and elastic belt keeper installed on the belt ready to carry a light.

https://i.ibb.co/6BNQ8cc/HBC-4.jpg
Photo 4

• The front of the Kydex carrier is crimped to prevent the light from sliding/falling out the front
• The Velcro One-Wrap strap is fully captured in the carrier

https://i.ibb.co/r3gQt7B/HBC-5.jpg
Photo 5

• The One-Wrap strap is long enough to fully wrap the carrier and end under the back of the belt to ensure it doesn't unwrap

https://i.ibb.co/zQM7kF6/HBC-6.jpg
Photo 6

• Insertion end of carrier showing clamp and tension adjustment hardware

https://i.ibb.co/mhN80RD/HBC-7.jpg
Photo 7

• A pad of Velcro loop is installed on the carrier to securely hold it in place and prevent it from shifting when extracting or inserting the light
• The end of the One-Wrap strap is folded over and bonded together to provide a finished end and prevent fraying

The HBC will come with the elastic belt keeper and a patch of adhesive Velcro loop to place on the back of leather belts to keep the carrier from sliding.

Sell price will be $39.50

My goal is to have production supplies on-hand and both models (1 and 1-1/4 inch) listed on the EDCLB website in about a week. Lead time will be two weeks, but my plan is to build some inventory once I get my production time down while maintaining (or improving) quality. If you're interested contact me via PM and I will prioritize the first batch.

Thanks for taking a look, I will be posting photos of the 1-inch model in this thread soon!

Possible Youtube demoing it in near future?

I've been looking for horizontal belt carrier for my surefires for some time, though considering that Ive bent more than one metal key carried on belt IDK if it would be a wise carry method for me.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Dov

Possible Youtube demoing it in near future?

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That would be a worthy undertaking!

I actually have a few videos I'd like to make but I need to get myself educated on GoPro type cameras and make the investment. This will be especially true if another project I'm working on comes to fruition.

Thanks for commenting and offering the suggestion!

Update

The quest for consistent quality is ongoing. It's going to happen, but there is a surprising amount of effort required to achieve it.

At every step of the process, something can go wrong. I'm already through a few sheets of Kydex with only one HBC to show for it that came out as expected. The answer is to figure out ways to avoid the problem (Kydex not forming properly, drilled holes not ending up where they should be, inconsistent crimp, etc.) and then build fixtures and tooling to address the problem. So this project has been primarily about this kind of problem solving and building fixtures and tools to ensure consistent results. If all goes well I should have the first complete 1-inch version made this weekend (there's already quite a few rejects in the garbage can).

In the meantime, I've been wearing the HBC pictured in this thread and the design has more than met my expectations. It's comfortable (I don't even know it's there), stable on the belt, conceals well and provides excellent retention of the light while keeping it easily accessible. It's definitely worth the effort to make more of them.

Success!

To get consistent quality and reasonable fabrication time it takes three built-from-scratch fixtures and an array of standard and custom-made tools. I have certainly gained a great deal of appreciation for those who make a living working with Kydex!

This is the 1-inch model that fits the Malkoff E2HT (Dagger), E2 Super (Shogun) and BGV2 (Bodyguard) models, as well as other lights with 1-inch diameter bezels such as the Surefire Tactician.

Here are the photos;


https://i.ibb.co/8mHhYG7/HBC-8.jpg
Detail view of the carrier.



https://i.ibb.co/Dwrwf78/HBC-9.jpg
The HBC includes the carrier and elastic belt keeper.



https://i.ibb.co/ZNX0JBR/HBC-11.jpg
If you're using the HBC the pocket clip is not needed, but will fit in the carrier without issue.



https://i.ibb.co/QDQZB45/HBC-12.jpg
Close up, over-the-top view: it all sits comfortably close, secure and easy to reach.



https://i.ibb.co/G9yJTv9/HBC-13.jpg
Nice way to carry a clipless EDCLB upgraded Tactician!


Now that I have the process down and have confirmed the needed hardware, supplies are on order and the HBC is now listed in the EDCLB Store for $39.50 as a stand alone item and for $29.50 as an accessory with the purchase of a light for either the 1.0" or 1.23" model.

As an introductory offer to PF members only, I am offering these for $25 plus shipping until July 31, 2023. Figure about a 2-week lead time - PM me for the discount code!