I ordered this belt at the same time as I ordered a Xhtang. I gave the Xhtang only three stars, but the Marino merits five. Importantly, there are only about two inches at the end of the belt that don't have the notches for the rachet to catch. (This is visible in the product photo.) That's an ideal (short) length. The Xhtang has 5 or 6 unnotched inches, so there is always way too much belt visible outside the buckle. Yuck! The other main difference is that the Marino buckle is easier to take off and get on, plus the buckle is lighter and very fashionable. The Xtang buckle is very heavy and very thick, so unless you have a gut hanging over it, you'll see this mass of metal when you look down. Another nice feature it that the Marono has markings every inch on the inside of thebelt, making it easy to size to your waist. All in all, the Marino is a far superior belt, and I look forward to another purchase in the future.

This very nice belt arrived in a gift box that was so over the top in quality that I immediately thought the wrong item had been shipped and that I had received a much more expensive belt. I was wrong and had received the correct beautiful belt which I promptly cut too short. Ok so I was going to order a replacement belt and was reading Q &A where I saw that the company policy allowed replacements belts even those cut too short would be shipped free of charge to dummies like me. So I wrote the company over the long weekend and received a reply this morning (Monday) and another email this afternoon (still Monday) telling me the replacement had been shipped! Please do what you can to support this company, Marino Avenue.

Nice product. It was easy to cut the belt to the corrects length. I used an old belt to approximate the length but made sure to cut it a little longer cuz you can't undo a cut. Measure twice and cut once. It was easy to attach the belt, just be careful because those spikes that lock the belt in place are strong. Also be careful when trying to undo the latch that holds the belt in place, use something soft to pry the latch open if you can't do it with your hands, but don't use anything metallic or it may scratch or chip away the finish (even though if you do it's on the underside and you can't see it). The belt is secure and as easy to put on and off as my HSGI Cobra's riggers belt, but definitely less high speed low drag. So far so good, hope the belt lasts for awhile.

How I ever went this long in life without one of these belts, I’ll never know. It is a fantastic accessory and it looks great. After years of wearing belts which broke apart at the buckle, or came apart after a year or two, this belt changes everything. You pick the size you need and cut it to your specifications. After that, you slip it through your loops and tighten as needed. Be sure to make it a bit bigger than you need just in case. It shows no sign of wear or tear and it’s stylish- with so many variations to choose from. Will definitely buy again

This was my third Marino ratchet belt purchased and after 3 years of using them I will never go back to a traditional belt again. The ratchet system allows me to adjust, with a simple click on the buckle, to loosen about a quarter inch per click and tighten again by just pulling the belt tighter. It's a genius system and works easily every time. Add to this the good quality leather they use, these are the best belts I've ever owned, I highly recommend them. Tom G. ps. and because you measure and cut the butt end of the belt to your exact waist size (easily done) it fits you perfectly.

What I like most about these belts (this is my second one) is they can be adjusted more accurately to your current waistline. Instead of belt holes being an inch apart, these can be adjusted in roughly 1/4" increments. This belt has a slightly different design in how the buckle works and I like it much better than the previous buckle mechanics. The belt comes in a length that you cut to your personal maximum and then you use the buckle to make minor adjustments. Love this belt!

The two Marino belts I ordered arrived yesterday. I was impressed by the box, box liner, and packaging that they arrived in. My first impression was quality. I proceeded to take the belt out of the box and I was blown away. The leather belt admitted a beautiful auroma of pure grade leather. The buckle appears to be precision crafted. This is an extremely well made belt and buckle. The directions to trim the belt were straight forward and simple. The fit is excellent. The latching system is simple and secure. The release of belt tension is excellent and takes a simple finger action when you need to breath after a big lunch. I am extremely impressed and thoroughly happy with this purchase. Marino is now my belt brand of chocie and I highly recommend it to you!

Being a bigger guy with no hips, traditional loop belts that grip on the face of the belt wear and can look bad after 6 months. I wanted to find a leather belt that could grip the back, leaving the front un-marred. This has that. In addition, the belt release is a simple pull action that lets the belt slide out. Initial setup is simple: Cut the buckle end of the belt, seat it, and try it on for size and repeat if necessary. When doing this process, be careful closing it. The belt fits snugly into the buckle teeth that clamp on it which requires a bit of effort to close and open for initial fitting. Be careful as the teeth are sharp and do bite. The tight fit does mean it won’t go anywhere. I’ve had this a little more than a week, but I’m impressed already.

**Update: 2 yrs later, wearing this belt 5 days a week and the leather STILL looks practically brand new and ratchets perfectly. Only sign of its age is on the very corners of the buckle where it has hit the ground a bit on hard floors when I habe done my business.** I had been eyeing ratchet style belts for sometime as I have grown tired of belts visibly looking worn, with cracks and creases as I move between holes as my waist changes day to day. I usually end up tossing my belts because they fail aesthetically. When I saw this belt on sale at a very reasonable price I took the plunge and glad I did. Not sure I will go back to a standard belt. I was able to cut it to perfect size and it the minute adjustments are great for daily fluctuations in waist size. Even better, after a few months of almost daily use it still looks brand new.

I already had another brand of ratchet belt priced considerable higher, but this one caught my eye not only because it cost less but I liked the buckle design better. My higher-priced belt acquired several unsightly buckle scratches that will be difficult if not impossible to remove. I felt that the textured and attractively colored finish of the Marino Avenue belt was less likely to encounter the same problem. So far, I'm extremely pleased with this purchase. I think the latching spikes that hold the cut end of the belt in place are also more effective than those on the higher-priced belt, and I'm hoping they'll continue to work well I'm very impressed with the Marino Avenue ratchet belt, and may very well be purchasing more in the future.