tacommuter

As I am striving to be more efficient at security checkpoints, I now have a watch which passes through the screening points without causing the metal detector to beep. However, my belts will still set it off and so must be removed.

I went looking for a source for a belt (buckle) which was otherwise quite conservative and traditional in appearance, but made of ceramics, plastic or some other non-metallic material, but I came up pretty much empty-handed. Do any of you know of a source for such a thing?

chollie

No, but be aware that you may still have to remove your belt. There are other threads covering this. Some airports/screeners will insist on belt removal even when pax have a non-metallic buckle.

fanger

My belt buckles never set off the metal detector. I favor a basic metal rectangle with the little finger, about 1.5 x 2.5 inches in dimension and the metal about 3 mm in thickness. The only place I've had to remove it was in Copenhagen.

I've not had problems (domestically) with the Cole Haan Erskine:
http://www.colehaan.com/colehaan/cat...ductGroup=9010

Nor the Webster, which is even more basic.

cordelli

Magellans and I'm sure others sell airport friendly belts, and if you search for Mechanics belt and buckles you may also find what you are looking for. They make belts (not sure about the buckles) wtihout metal so they don't scratch the cars they are working on. Some are simply metal covered in leather which won't really help.

tfar

Good tips above. I'd also say to do a search on belts on FT. Tons of results. The problem is to find a NICE buckle that won't set off the detector. Finding a device that keeps your pants up and won't alarm is easy but finding a nice buckle that won't alarm isn't. Also the threshold for alarms is different from airport to airport and sometimes from detector to detector. And then there are those agents that will require you to remove the buckle no matter what.

There are two options that I think are acceptable to nice. One is a 100% carbon fiber buckle from Bison Design:
http://www.carbonfibergear.com/direc...r-webbing-belt

The strap isn't great but you could use that same buckle on a strap or leather belt of your choice.

The other is a guy from Austin who makes glass (they don't easily break) buckles that are little works of art:
http://www.markjoiner.com/collection...blk-brn?page=1

They range from very simple and understated to outright wild and you can choose a design from the existing models or have him make one custom for you. I like them a lot. The only metal pieces are the thorn and the brace to which the belt is attached. I suppose they are either fused or glued to the glass.

Till

tacommuter

Thanks for the tips - that gives me some useful leads.

Just to clarify a couple of points: I too used to be OK most of the time with a simple square open rectangle metal buckle, but as I have accumulated other metal (a tennis injury left me with steel pins in my shoulder) I seem to now be over the threshold for many if not most machines if I have a traditional belt on.

And yes, I am aware that some agents may insist on me taking the belt off regardless - though I have had only one insist on the removal of the watch, which is also often in plain view.

I do find some of the glass buckle designs intriguing, but wonder if something so interesting might tend to draw unwanted attention from screeners. Or are all of these solutions so common at this point, that screeners will be quite used to seeing them on other travelers? Honestly, I haven't spent much time analyzing fellow travelers' belts as I pass through airports - seems like that might be misinterpreted by some (for better or for worse).

tfar

The glass buckles are really unusual. I doubt screeners know them. Unless it's a flashy red and yellow one, I think they won't notice.

As for the metal detectors there is a thread on that in the Security forum. We are discussing how they work and where the detection thresholds are and possibly what the tricks are.

I can tell you two things for sure. They are built in three sections. Each section detects a certain amount of metal within its detection area but they don't add up. The lower section presumably goes to mid thigh on a man, the center section goes to mid chest and the upper section covers the upper chest and head area. Basically like cutting a person in three. This means your shoulder metal should not add up to the belt metal. Knee metal shouldn't add up, either. What will add up is a watch because that's in the same section. So big plate belt buckle plus divers watch and you light up the detector big time. Add an artificial hip and there is probably no way you won't trip the alarm

The other thing that I can tell you for sure is that there is a watch trick. I since keep my watch on. I was told this trick by an agent in Germany (TXL). They can actually be nice (sometimes). You hold up the arm with the watch at chest level. Stick it out straight in front of you while brandishing your boarding pass. They want you to hold the BP in your hand anyway. You walk the watch through the detector first, so to say on its own. Then the rest of the body follows through. My Explorer I weighs 108 grams and it goes through without an alarm, every time and anywhere (Europe and US). I have heavier watches but haven't tried those yet. This May I will try a 120 gram watch. We'll see.

I actually often wear two watches during travel because it's the safest way to transport two watches, even if it looks dorky. I mean once arrived at destination I only wear one but going there I wear both. It feels not so good putting them on the x-ray belt. I'm always afraid someone might take a quick pick.

Till

Shak51

Three of my favorite travel companies offer belts with both a plastic buckle and a hidden zipper for storing money. I have a couple of Eagle Creek belts in different colors and I do keep emergency money in the zipper compartment.

Shak

http://www.pacsafe.com/www/index.php...n=detail&id=95

http://www.eaglecreek.com/accessorie...ey-Belt-40441/

http://www.exofficio.com/product_det...e-dc79cde32128