Cross Belt: How, when and where to wear it?

[Snowbear]

Have to agree with the Marine Officer. I've also worn a sword, and it was just in the way all day.

For a tip on a scabbard, take a look at the pictures presented on:
http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...ictures-54877/

[KD Burke]

Have to agree with the Marine Officer. I've also worn a sword, and it was just in the way all day.

What he said! By the way, the Navy way of carrying a sword in full dress is more obnoxious than most. The belt fits around your ribcage, under your jacket and the straps lead out through a hole in the left coat seam!

[thescot]

I only dealt with NCO sabers occassionally--never got to do any more than look at a Mameluke like David's--but I was always fairly glad to be rid of it as well. Parade drill and the occassional Birthday Ball was enough.

But you gotta admit, a man with a sword looks cool!

[Bigkahuna]

Your crossbelt is for carrying a sword. You will need a different scabbard design for it to fit your sword. Civilians don't generally carry swords. I just wanted to cover the main points here.

[WolfmanJack]

My thanks to all of you for your kind comments and helpful suggestions.

Having been invited to represent my clan at a nearby ren fair (Olde World Renaissance Faire), I seized this as my first opportunity to wear my new cross belt. Knowing that many of the costumes are quite over-the-top at this event, I knew I would not be out of place.

Here is the outfit I put together, please excuse the goofy pose , and my feeble attempt to imitate a belted plaid



Surprisingly, attaching the scabbard to the cross belt was much easier than I had expected. I was able to force the scabbard (rings and all) into the frog without much trouble, only popped a couple of stitches. The result was nearly fully functional; but the rings looked rather odd being as they served no useful purpose. In addition, there was nothing to prevent the scabbard from twisting in the frog.

I decided to try putting a small matching leather strap through the rings and around the cross belt just above the frog. This worked well; no more twisting. Now the rings were serving a purpose.

Then I had an epiphany! If in addition to the above arrangement, I also ran the strap around my waist belt, this produced a much more 'solid' assembly, much like a Sam Browne belt. and here is what is most remarkable: By tightening the strap, I could shift some of the weight of the sword from the cross belt to the waist belt. I took advantage of this feature several times as the hours passed walking about at the ren fair, shifting the weight from shoulder to waist and back again as needed. Here is a pic of the assembly:

[Bart_In_A_Kilt]

I found this thread almost 2 years later... Do you have any more pics of you from the Ren fair?

[BobsYourUncle]

You all are confusing me a little bit. Wouldn't it be easier to use sword slings, that go on your waistbelt, and are specifically made to clip onto the two rings on your scabbard?

Here is a photo of the item in quesiton:



These slings are for sale in the Ebay store called "Bugpiper", run by a fellow named Steven McVeigh. I have done business with him for several years now, always with good results. The current "buy it now" listing is here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Scottish-Militar...item588632c2c9

[WolfmanJack]

Wouldn't it be easier to use sword slings, that go on your waistbelt, and are specifically made to clip onto the two rings on your scabbard?

Yep, that is an option. Good to know where to get sword slings.

[Mark E.]

I use mine to hold up my sword. If I'm not wearing a sword, I don't wear it. If I am running to a fight, and my pistols are all empty, my sword in my hand, it goes away. I go back later to get it, of course.

Mark