(Disclaimer: Sorry folks, but I dont have a digital camera, nor do I have access to one. If I did, I would put in some really cool pics of the belt and of my manrikigarrote but Noooooo!! I have to pay my damn bills and buy diapers and a water pump for my wifes car, so the digital camera is on my wish list for now. BUT
I did my darndest to describe to you all the little details of the belt. If anyone out there in Bladeforums land has a camera and a V-Gar 3 belt, please feel free to post some pics so everyone out there can get an idea of what the heck Im rambling about. Oh, and if you can also post some pics of Britney Spears nekked, Id appreciate that as well. Thanks!)
Ive been a fan of James Piorek for a number of years now, and I have quite a bit of his products. All of them are masterpieces unto themselves, perfect for the job that they are intended to do. His knives are already infamous in the blade world, as are his rigging systems. But for me, what really makes Bladerigger stand out from all the rest, is the incredible V-Gar system. A stainless steel cable, with a titanium teardrop at one end, and a buckle at the other comprises the manrikigarrote, a flexible weapon that is amazingly effective against edged weapons, multiple attackers, and bad guys in general. The other half of the V-Gar system are the carrying systems; a belt, and two pouches that conceal the manrikigarrote when you dont feel like wearing the supplied belt. The two pouches attach to either a belt loop or strap and the manrikigarrote can effectively be drawn swiftly and be put into action in less than a second.
What this whimsical and intensely deep review will cover will be the belt, exclusively. Ive had all three belts people, from the first buckle-less belt to the third leather belt, which I feel is the best, as you will soon see. And Ive had the same manrikigarrote for ALL three belts, so if you own a MG, then by all means you should have all three belts, or at least TWO of them. Seriously, who wears a nylon belt all the time? Unless youre some sort of mountain climber who wears overpriced North Face jackets and feels great when they climb one of those climbing walls at the local sports bar. The leather belt adds an element of style to the mix, especially if youre into that whole GQ Giorgio Armani/Gianni Versace type thang.
Ive been wearing this belt EVERYDAY for the last three months. To work, and to play. On jeans, slacks, even a pair of shorts. Ive worn it under my sweatpants while running, and Ive even wore it naked while making mad passionate love to my wife. Okay, just kidding about the passionate part!
In other words, Ive worn this sucker a lot, so listen to me now and believe me later. The belt itself is more solidly built than the first two. Thicker stitching, bigger zipper, and an all around feeling of being more durable. Even the plastic insert that the MG glides along during the draw seems thicker. The little pocket that houses the zipper while the MG is loaded is also more durable, as Ive put a hole in my V-Gar 2 belt pocket rather fast. Ive also noticed that the nylon belts tended to fray a lot from use; Ive had extremely minimal fraying with the leather belt. Since the belt is made from leather, which, by the way, is a good leather, not the cheap ass kind thats stiffer than thick cardboard, the titanium teardrop of the MG doesnt print as much as it does with the nylon belts. This belt gets much more soft and supple the more you wear it, and it also forms to your waist, just like any good leather belt does.
The secret interior pocket that is at the tongue of the belt seems less obtrusive that with the other belts. I really dont put anything in there anyway, except maybe some emergency moola, or maybe some hemp rolling papers just in case.
The steel D-ring buckle I have is all black; you can get all silver if you so desire. You insert the tongue/secret pocket through this buckle, and then cinch the belt, fastening the tongue to the velcro, which covers one of your pants belt loops. JSP gives you a three inch leeway in either direction size wise; I heartily recommend that you order a size an inch larger than normal because Ive noticed that the belts tend to run a bit small. Its probably my own personal idiosyncrasy, but I like my belt to fold over the D-ring at the three-inch strip thats between the tongue/pocket and the main compartment that houses the MG. My V-Gar 2 belt folded over the tongue/pocket part, and it really annoyed me for some strange reason. The solution was to order a new belt one size larger. Trust me on this, even though youre probably thinking Dude, you just drink WAY too much beer, and youre too vain to admit that your stomach got bigger. And to this I say, No habla English.
(So okay, maybe I like to partake in the consuming of beer, especially Bass Ale, but Ive been under a lot of stress lately, and the beers help me relax. But my belly getting bigger? Nah, no frigging way.)
Can ya put stuff on the belt? Well, it is a tad thick, so be advised. Yeah, you can carry stuff; Ive worn a Leatherman Tool, and clipped some knives there. Its sturdier than the nylon belts, thats for sure. Ive had no problems with the belts loop size wise. Hmmm loop size wise. Loop size wise. Loop size wise! Gimme one order loop size wise, and one order shrimp fly rice! Ahem, sorry folks. All but just one pair of pants accepted the belt, and this was a fancy shmancy pair with little one-inch belt loops that I hardly wear anyway. The titanium tube/buckle blends very nicely against the belt, and is extremely low profile. Ive had my mother in law, my elderly neighbor, my co-workers, my brother in law, etc
..ALL of them, handle the belt, examine it, and NONE of them even knew that there was something inside. One commented that it was a money belt, but that was as far as it went. Overall, this is one handsome belt.
Now, what would I change to make this belt even better, at least for me? Not much, but maybe making the D-ring a tad bigger would help. When you insert the beginning of the belt through the D-ring, the zipper that closes the secret pocket barely passes through, and makes the flap that holds the MG into the belt pop out so that you have to re-insert it in again. A smaller zipper for the secret pocket would help as well. Ive noticed that the leather tends to bleed; several pairs of jeans have some black/dark discoloring on the belt loops from repeated wearing of the belt. I dont have the brown belt, so I cant comment on that. What Id really love to see would be a Velcro-less belt. That loud RIIIPPP sound is what I think is the V-Gars main weakness, especially with the first belt. I like wearing Levi 501 button fly jeans, and when I would go and take a whiz, Id have to undo the belt and Id feel like I was peeling off a blood pressure cuff. Also what if I got lucky and scored with some hottie, like, oh, say Britney Spears? Of course Britney goes crazy over my Atlas like physique and proceeds to rip my clothes off. When she gets to the belt, shes like, Uh, what the?!? And she gets turned off, puts her clothes back on, and storms out of the local sleazy hotel room I just spent $35 bucks on. So now Im out $35, a twelve pack of Bass Ale, some Hempire rolling papers and me and Mr. Happy dont get to have a happy ending. Hey, it could happen.
Bottom line: If you own a nylon version of the V-Gar system, then you owe it to yourself to get the leather belt. As a matter of fact, I think that the leather belt should be the standard part of the system, with the nylon belts being the OPTIONAL part. Price? Why, not cheap of course. Were talking Bladerigger here folks. But if you wear the belt everyday, and if you break down the price, youll see that its not that expensive at all. It works out to practically pennies a day. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of pennies, but pennies nonetheless. If youre a fan of the whole V-Gar/manrikigarrote/bandana/flexible weapon deal, then get the belt. Do it. Do it now!
For more info:
www.bladerigger.com JSPs site
www.bassale.com You know the saying: Bass kicks ass!
www.hempire.com Winners of the 2000 Cannabis Cup
www.combattech.com Fighting Bandana video set a must have for all V-Gar owners; heck, get the Legacy of Steel tapes as well.
Thanks for reading folks!
Ive been a fan of James Piorek for a number of years now, and I have quite a bit of his products. All of them are masterpieces unto themselves, perfect for the job that they are intended to do. His knives are already infamous in the blade world, as are his rigging systems. But for me, what really makes Bladerigger stand out from all the rest, is the incredible V-Gar system. A stainless steel cable, with a titanium teardrop at one end, and a buckle at the other comprises the manrikigarrote, a flexible weapon that is amazingly effective against edged weapons, multiple attackers, and bad guys in general. The other half of the V-Gar system are the carrying systems; a belt, and two pouches that conceal the manrikigarrote when you dont feel like wearing the supplied belt. The two pouches attach to either a belt loop or strap and the manrikigarrote can effectively be drawn swiftly and be put into action in less than a second.
What this whimsical and intensely deep review will cover will be the belt, exclusively. Ive had all three belts people, from the first buckle-less belt to the third leather belt, which I feel is the best, as you will soon see. And Ive had the same manrikigarrote for ALL three belts, so if you own a MG, then by all means you should have all three belts, or at least TWO of them. Seriously, who wears a nylon belt all the time? Unless youre some sort of mountain climber who wears overpriced North Face jackets and feels great when they climb one of those climbing walls at the local sports bar. The leather belt adds an element of style to the mix, especially if youre into that whole GQ Giorgio Armani/Gianni Versace type thang.
Ive been wearing this belt EVERYDAY for the last three months. To work, and to play. On jeans, slacks, even a pair of shorts. Ive worn it under my sweatpants while running, and Ive even wore it naked while making mad passionate love to my wife. Okay, just kidding about the passionate part!
In other words, Ive worn this sucker a lot, so listen to me now and believe me later. The belt itself is more solidly built than the first two. Thicker stitching, bigger zipper, and an all around feeling of being more durable. Even the plastic insert that the MG glides along during the draw seems thicker. The little pocket that houses the zipper while the MG is loaded is also more durable, as Ive put a hole in my V-Gar 2 belt pocket rather fast. Ive also noticed that the nylon belts tended to fray a lot from use; Ive had extremely minimal fraying with the leather belt. Since the belt is made from leather, which, by the way, is a good leather, not the cheap ass kind thats stiffer than thick cardboard, the titanium teardrop of the MG doesnt print as much as it does with the nylon belts. This belt gets much more soft and supple the more you wear it, and it also forms to your waist, just like any good leather belt does. The secret interior pocket that is at the tongue of the belt seems less obtrusive that with the other belts. I really dont put anything in there anyway, except maybe some emergency moola, or maybe some hemp rolling papers just in case.
The steel D-ring buckle I have is all black; you can get all silver if you so desire. You insert the tongue/secret pocket through this buckle, and then cinch the belt, fastening the tongue to the velcro, which covers one of your pants belt loops. JSP gives you a three inch leeway in either direction size wise; I heartily recommend that you order a size an inch larger than normal because Ive noticed that the belts tend to run a bit small. Its probably my own personal idiosyncrasy, but I like my belt to fold over the D-ring at the three-inch strip thats between the tongue/pocket and the main compartment that houses the MG. My V-Gar 2 belt folded over the tongue/pocket part, and it really annoyed me for some strange reason. The solution was to order a new belt one size larger. Trust me on this, even though youre probably thinking Dude, you just drink WAY too much beer, and youre too vain to admit that your stomach got bigger. And to this I say, No habla English.
(So okay, maybe I like to partake in the consuming of beer, especially Bass Ale, but Ive been under a lot of stress lately, and the beers help me relax.
But my belly getting bigger? Nah, no frigging way.)Can ya put stuff on the belt? Well, it is a tad thick, so be advised. Yeah, you can carry stuff; Ive worn a Leatherman Tool, and clipped some knives there. Its sturdier than the nylon belts, thats for sure. Ive had no problems with the belts loop size wise. Hmmm loop size wise. Loop size wise. Loop size wise! Gimme one order loop size wise, and one order shrimp fly rice! Ahem, sorry folks.
All but just one pair of pants accepted the belt, and this was a fancy shmancy pair with little one-inch belt loops that I hardly wear anyway. The titanium tube/buckle blends very nicely against the belt, and is extremely low profile. Ive had my mother in law, my elderly neighbor, my co-workers, my brother in law, etc
..ALL of them, handle the belt, examine it, and NONE of them even knew that there was something inside. One commented that it was a money belt, but that was as far as it went. Overall, this is one handsome belt.Now, what would I change to make this belt even better, at least for me? Not much, but maybe making the D-ring a tad bigger would help. When you insert the beginning of the belt through the D-ring, the zipper that closes the secret pocket barely passes through, and makes the flap that holds the MG into the belt pop out so that you have to re-insert it in again. A smaller zipper for the secret pocket would help as well. Ive noticed that the leather tends to bleed; several pairs of jeans have some black/dark discoloring on the belt loops from repeated wearing of the belt. I dont have the brown belt, so I cant comment on that. What Id really love to see would be a Velcro-less belt. That loud RIIIPPP sound is what I think is the V-Gars main weakness, especially with the first belt. I like wearing Levi 501 button fly jeans, and when I would go and take a whiz, Id have to undo the belt and Id feel like I was peeling off a blood pressure cuff. Also what if I got lucky and scored with some hottie, like, oh, say Britney Spears? Of course Britney goes crazy over my Atlas like physique and proceeds to rip my clothes off. When she gets to the belt, shes like, Uh, what the?!? And she gets turned off, puts her clothes back on, and storms out of the local sleazy hotel room I just spent $35 bucks on. So now Im out $35, a twelve pack of Bass Ale, some Hempire rolling papers and me and Mr. Happy dont get to have a happy ending. Hey, it could happen.
Bottom line: If you own a nylon version of the V-Gar system, then you owe it to yourself to get the leather belt. As a matter of fact, I think that the leather belt should be the standard part of the system, with the nylon belts being the OPTIONAL part. Price? Why, not cheap of course. Were talking Bladerigger here folks. But if you wear the belt everyday, and if you break down the price, youll see that its not that expensive at all. It works out to practically pennies a day. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of pennies, but pennies nonetheless. If youre a fan of the whole V-Gar/manrikigarrote/bandana/flexible weapon deal, then get the belt. Do it. Do it now!
For more info:
www.bladerigger.com JSPs site
www.bassale.com You know the saying: Bass kicks ass!
www.hempire.com Winners of the 2000 Cannabis Cup
www.combattech.com Fighting Bandana video set a must have for all V-Gar owners; heck, get the Legacy of Steel tapes as well.
Thanks for reading folks!