How to make a paracord belt

This tutorial is dedicated to showing you how to make a paracord belt. It is often referred to as the Slatt’s rescue belt. 

The Slatt part is there because of the belts creator, Phillip Slattery.

I have been putting off making belts for a while. The reason is that most designs need a specific jig to be done properly. When I found this method of making paracord belts tough, I had no excuse not to make one. It has some major benefits:

• it is a quick deploy paracord belt, which means it can be unraveled in seconds
• it does not require a jig to make
• sports a unique look which I find quite appealing
• it is done without the time consuming pulling through loops that some types of belts require, such as those made with the conquistador braid
• can be used with adjustable belt buckles. Adjustable length is a great advantage in my opinion.

Those benefits alone make the belt worth making. You should note that a paracord belt stores quite a bit of cord and if make in a quick deploy way, this cord can be put to great use when needed. To be honest, a single cord of paracord is enough to hold your pants up, the rest is available for use in various situations.

Paracord belts in general are one of those items that paracord is perfect for. Custom and beautiful designs, extremely low cost and great quality. I find that making a belt out of paracord is often overlooked and with belts being quite pricey, you can save quite a bit as well as get a belt that you can not buy.

Items needed

This belt is very light on required items. You will need the following:

This project takes a while to complete, usually a few hours, depending on the length and even more on the experience of the user. Your first try will take a bit longer, after that, this will be a breeze. You will be able to make the belt in your sleep!

How to make a paracord belt

The belt is made is a few steps I feature below. Because text only helps little, I recommend you use the images in the tutorial below to see what each of these steps actually means.

1. first we attach a buckle (I use the same way of attaching a buckle that is used with the conquistador paracord bracelet). The amount of wraps used depends on the size of the buckle and the desired belt width.
2. we then loosen up all the wraps that attached the buckle
3. I form a bight with the one and only working end and pull it through all the wraps
4. I tighten the wraps
5. with the help of a tool such as a marlin spike I pull out loops which will be used to pull the next bight through
6. I form and pull the next bight through the loops. All the loops are used, even the final one which was left over from the previous tightening. When pulling the bight through these loops you need to align the loops so that the part closes to the working end is facing towards you. I do this by twisting the loops into place.
7. after you have pulled the bight through, tighten all the loops, one at a time
8. go back to step 5 and repeat until you reach a desired length
9. after that, attach the other end of a buckle the same way you attached the first part. Remember to pull the cord through the one cord that always remains. This will prevent your belt from unraveling when put under pressure
10. when done I make a stopper knot (usually a simple overhand) at the very end of the cord. I cut the extra cord. This knot will prevent your belt from unraveling and your pants from falling off

Many steps right? Do not worry though, the picture tutorial available below will help you get the grasp all these steps in a matter of minutes.

I also made a video tutorial:

 

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. A final note:

To unravel the belt, simply untie the final knot and pull the cord out of the loop. Then just pull the cord until the belt is undone. I hope these paracord belt instructions were clear enough. Feel free to ask if you need any further help, advice.