AWS Inc LAB Belt and Tactical Gear Review [2018]
If you haven't heard of them before, AWS Inc. makes or sells all kinds of equipment, from soft goods such as plate carriers and magazine pouches to Toyota Tacoma-based, deployment-ready technical assault truck platforms. Much of their inventory (including those trucks) is made by AWS themselves right in North Carolina to an eye-popping level of quality.
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AWS Inc. is currently an advertising partner with GunTweaks.com. This means that we like them and their gear - nothing more. GunTweaks is self-funded with most of our ad partners providing us equipment to review, but when we do receive cash ad revenue, 100% of it goes right back into the site to offset our web hosting fees, shipping/transfer fees, etc. This ensures we stay independent so that you, the reader, can trust our reviews.
You know AWS is the real deal because they not only sell assault ladders,
they sell so many that they group them into fantastic categories like "BUS/TRAIN".
they sell so many that they group them into fantastic categories like "BUS/TRAIN".
Other brands may have instant name recognition in the tactical soft goods market, but alone, at night, when you can be really honest with yourself, you kind of know that "$100" tactical pants you got on sale for $30 was made somewhere in China or Vietnam, and isn't really intended for mud and blood.
If you really want combat-ready gear, that's where a company like AWS comes in. The word that kept coming to mind as we worked with their gear was "quality". Quality, quality, quality. Everything with an AWS label practically oozes it. Fabric is thick, stitching is ample, and design is so sensible that you wonder why everything isn’t built this way.
Unlike many gun belt and soft goods manufacturers, much of AWS's gear is oriented toward emergency preparedness, military patrols, and other 'static threat' scenarios. You may have heard the adage "no straps, no flaps, no snaps", which is undeniably catchy, but it isn't always good advice. Friction-retention Kydex© mag holders work like gangbusters for short courses of fire at a tactical pistol course, but they're likely to give up the goods if you come face to face with that most dangerous adversary - a fence. Whether you flop onto your stomach to crawl under said fence, or heave and haul yourself up over it, your typical competition belt may start shedding precious equipment, especially if you’re moving in a hurry. When gearing up for a day (or more) in the uncertain wild, ‘straps, flaps, and snaps’ are exactly what you need, even if they do add a second or two to your reload times. AWS specializes in fabricating this type of equipment, and they offer a range of retention options from 'this-pouch-can-safely-hold-either-the-nuclear-launch-codes-or-a-Glock-magazine’ all way down to 'slightly-more-secure-than-friction-retention' so you can still use their kit to build a pretty decent competition belt, too.
As far as the average shooter is concerned, the star of AWS Inc's lineup is the Assault Belt System, aka the Light Assaulter Belt (LAB) and also aka the LAB Shooter's Belt System. These varying names bring up AWS's most striking problem: consistent labeling and front-end buying experience. AWS is working to improve these issues, but we'll get to that later. For now, let's talk about the LAB, because it's awesome and unlike many of the hardcore tactical gubbins that AWS sells (do you need a Dynamic Entry Backpack Kit for $449.95?), the LAB is something that any shooter, casual or professional, can use and benefit from.
If you really want combat-ready gear, that's where a company like AWS comes in. The word that kept coming to mind as we worked with their gear was "quality". Quality, quality, quality. Everything with an AWS label practically oozes it. Fabric is thick, stitching is ample, and design is so sensible that you wonder why everything isn’t built this way.
Unlike many gun belt and soft goods manufacturers, much of AWS's gear is oriented toward emergency preparedness, military patrols, and other 'static threat' scenarios. You may have heard the adage "no straps, no flaps, no snaps", which is undeniably catchy, but it isn't always good advice. Friction-retention Kydex© mag holders work like gangbusters for short courses of fire at a tactical pistol course, but they're likely to give up the goods if you come face to face with that most dangerous adversary - a fence. Whether you flop onto your stomach to crawl under said fence, or heave and haul yourself up over it, your typical competition belt may start shedding precious equipment, especially if you’re moving in a hurry. When gearing up for a day (or more) in the uncertain wild, ‘straps, flaps, and snaps’ are exactly what you need, even if they do add a second or two to your reload times. AWS specializes in fabricating this type of equipment, and they offer a range of retention options from 'this-pouch-can-safely-hold-either-the-nuclear-launch-codes-or-a-Glock-magazine’ all way down to 'slightly-more-secure-than-friction-retention' so you can still use their kit to build a pretty decent competition belt, too.
As far as the average shooter is concerned, the star of AWS Inc's lineup is the Assault Belt System, aka the Light Assaulter Belt (LAB) and also aka the LAB Shooter's Belt System. These varying names bring up AWS's most striking problem: consistent labeling and front-end buying experience. AWS is working to improve these issues, but we'll get to that later. For now, let's talk about the LAB, because it's awesome and unlike many of the hardcore tactical gubbins that AWS sells (do you need a Dynamic Entry Backpack Kit for $449.95?), the LAB is something that any shooter, casual or professional, can use and benefit from.
The Light Assaulter Belt (LAB) System
The LAB is a 1-3/4 inch (IDPA-legal), two-belt assembly – a black inner belt that gets looped through the belt loops on your pants (this acts as your regular belt, keeping your pants from falling down), and an outer belt (in various colors or multicam) that mounts onto the inner belt via hook-and-loop. This outer belt is where you mount your holster and equipment, and since it’s fastened to your actual pants belt, the days of your gun belt riding up your back as move through a shoot course are over. When you're ready to take a break, it's only a few seconds to tear off the outer belt + equipment and set it aside, with the inner belt still happily keeping your pants where they ought to be. Re-attaching the belt is just as fast, and with a COBRA® belt buckle and heavy-duty hook-and-loop sewn across the entirety of both belts, that outer belt isn't going anywhere once it's in place.
The LAB outer belt, bare of accessories
The LAB inner belt, already looped into a pair of pants
The next part of the system is where AWS's LAB gets even better - fast, modular equipment install. AWS supplied us with a range of equipment and accessories for this review, and it takes all of five minutes to convert a LAB from a clay-shooting belt to a 3-gun rig to a lightweight, long-haul hunting getup.
The core of the system is AWS's MOLLE panels, which slide quickly on and off the outer belt using the included slider tool, but also settle like boat anchors once they’re in place. The panels are semi-rigid squares with MOLLE straps on the front, so you can attach any MOLLE equipment to them (no need to buy all-new equipment from AWS if you already have MOLLE pouches that you like, a big advantage over competing shooting belts). Once the equipment is mounted onto the panel's MOLLE straps, sliding the assembly on and off the outer belt only takes a few seconds.
The core of the system is AWS's MOLLE panels, which slide quickly on and off the outer belt using the included slider tool, but also settle like boat anchors once they’re in place. The panels are semi-rigid squares with MOLLE straps on the front, so you can attach any MOLLE equipment to them (no need to buy all-new equipment from AWS if you already have MOLLE pouches that you like, a big advantage over competing shooting belts). Once the equipment is mounted onto the panel's MOLLE straps, sliding the assembly on and off the outer belt only takes a few seconds.
MOLLE Panel, rear MOLLE Panel, front
AWS's in-house line of LAB equipment, however, have some of the best MOLLE attachment of any we've seen. There is no snap-buckle like most MOLLE equipment, just very careful attention to strap length and rigidity. It's not a quick process to mount LAB equipment to the MOLLE panels (sometimes a pair of needle-nose pliers is almost a requirement to get the straps where you want) but once in place, they're rock-solid and extremely low profile.
(from left to right) Attach the equipment to the MOLLE panel using the straps, and your panel is ready to be mounted to the belt
To mount onto the outer belt, you slide the included plastic strip (which tucks neatly into the inner belt for storage) under the MOLLE panel's belt loop to keep it from contacting the outer belt and then just slide it down to the position you want. It seems like it won't work, but it really, really does. The MOLLE panels glide down the belt, then you pull out the plastic strip, the hook-and-loop engages, and panel + equipment becomes about as mobile as Mt. Denali. To remove, just work the same plastic strip under, splitting apart the hook-and-loop, and glide the equipment back off the belt.
Voila!
LAB equipment occupies "slots" on the MOLLE panels, with each MOLLE panel providing two slots. A pistol mag pouch is one slot, a rifle mag pouch is two slots, etc. So, you can mount two pistol mag pouches on a single panel, but in order to mount two rifle mag pouches, you'll need two panels. Bigger equipment bags can be three or four slots wide.
AWS Inc LAB Equipment
You can mount any MOLLE equipment to the LAB, but AWS makes and sells a variety of in-house LAB/MOLLE equipment and they sent us a few goodies to review. All of the below are available in a variety of colors besides what’s shown.
The basic LAB two-belt assembly is $59.95, and each MOLLE panel is $7.88 as-of Q4 2018.
The basic LAB two-belt assembly is $59.95, and each MOLLE panel is $7.88 as-of Q4 2018.
Uni-Mag Pistol Pouch - #1-50482 - $17.88
Occupies 1 slot on MOLLE panel (1/2 panel)
A very cool pouch that holds one double-stack pistol magazine. Almost as fast on the draw as a friction-retention pouch, but the strap on top adds a good bit of retention over an open-topped Kydex© rig. The pouch’s interior is lined with slightly grippy fabric, and you can independently adjust the tightness of the pouch body as well as the top strap. Shown holding a Glock 17 magazine.
For race use, you can also ditch the top strap entirely and just crank down on the shock cord in the body for maximum retention. The spare shock cord tucks nicely into the side, and then we like to wrap a rubber band or electrical tape around the whole thing for good measure.
One of our team flopped down in the dirt and did a 10 meter crawl with one of these on the belt, and it held a Glock 17 mag in place just fine. For serious acrobatics, you’re going to want a full coverage pouch, but this pouch will do fine for short bursts.
Occupies 1 slot on MOLLE panel (1/2 panel)
A very cool pouch that holds one double-stack pistol magazine. Almost as fast on the draw as a friction-retention pouch, but the strap on top adds a good bit of retention over an open-topped Kydex© rig. The pouch’s interior is lined with slightly grippy fabric, and you can independently adjust the tightness of the pouch body as well as the top strap. Shown holding a Glock 17 magazine.
For race use, you can also ditch the top strap entirely and just crank down on the shock cord in the body for maximum retention. The spare shock cord tucks nicely into the side, and then we like to wrap a rubber band or electrical tape around the whole thing for good measure.
One of our team flopped down in the dirt and did a 10 meter crawl with one of these on the belt, and it held a Glock 17 mag in place just fine. For serious acrobatics, you’re going to want a full coverage pouch, but this pouch will do fine for short bursts.
The Uni-Mag Pouch doesn’t give up its magazine the first time you hit the deck.
Uni-Mag Rifle Pouch - #1-50481 - $23.40
Occupies 2 slots on MOLLE panel (1 full panel)
Essentially the same as the Uni-Mag Pistol Pouch above, but sized for a 30-rd AR magazine. Shown holding a 30-rd PMAG.
Occupies 2 slots on MOLLE panel (1 full panel)
Essentially the same as the Uni-Mag Pistol Pouch above, but sized for a 30-rd AR magazine. Shown holding a 30-rd PMAG.
6-rd Shell Holder, MOLLE - #52942 - $14.65
Occupies 1 slot on MOLLE panel (1/2 panel)
Basic shotgun shell storage, but with AWS’s rock-solid build quality. The strip is good and stiff, and when mounted to the MOLLE panel, there’s more than enough rigidity there to easily strip a shell from it. AWS also makes this panel with hook-and-look backing (#50523) for those looking to run it as a shotgun card, and makes both styles (MOLLE and hook-and-loop) in various capacities.
Occupies 1 slot on MOLLE panel (1/2 panel)
Basic shotgun shell storage, but with AWS’s rock-solid build quality. The strip is good and stiff, and when mounted to the MOLLE panel, there’s more than enough rigidity there to easily strip a shell from it. AWS also makes this panel with hook-and-look backing (#50523) for those looking to run it as a shotgun card, and makes both styles (MOLLE and hook-and-loop) in various capacities.
Ammo Medium Pouch - #54969 - $26.60
Occupies 2+1 slots on MOLLE panel (2 panels)
We wonder if it’s possible to be romantically attracted to the usefulness of an equipment pouch. If it is, then that’s how we feel about this pouch. Two storage compartments, a spot for a hook-and-look patch, and build quality that rivals a Sig Sauer P210. We put this bag on the belt every single time, no matter what kind of shooting we’re about to do - it’s just too handy to leave behind. Shown holding eight (eight!) double-stack pistol magazines.
The only drawback is size – although this bag only uses two slots, it’s big enough that it takes up the space of three. Since moving it requires sliding two MOLLE panels simultaneously, order a second slider tool for this bag or be prepared to rig up a substitute at home.
Note: This item is new for AWS and is not currently available on the website. Call AWS to order.
Occupies 2+1 slots on MOLLE panel (2 panels)
We wonder if it’s possible to be romantically attracted to the usefulness of an equipment pouch. If it is, then that’s how we feel about this pouch. Two storage compartments, a spot for a hook-and-look patch, and build quality that rivals a Sig Sauer P210. We put this bag on the belt every single time, no matter what kind of shooting we’re about to do - it’s just too handy to leave behind. Shown holding eight (eight!) double-stack pistol magazines.
The only drawback is size – although this bag only uses two slots, it’s big enough that it takes up the space of three. Since moving it requires sliding two MOLLE panels simultaneously, order a second slider tool for this bag or be prepared to rig up a substitute at home.
Note: This item is new for AWS and is not currently available on the website. Call AWS to order.
This pouch takes up the space of three MOLLE panel slots, but only has straps for two. Leave a 1-slot gap right behind this pouch, and you’ll still have 1 slot free on either side. We added a Uni-Mag pistol pouch to one of these slots to make our “baseline” rig – whatever other equipment gets added to the belt to support that day’s shooting activities, these two almost always stay
First Aid/GP Pouch, MOLLE - #50870 - $21.50
Occupies 1 slot on MOLLE panel (1/2 panel) A small general purpose pouch, shown holding a 20-rd aluminum AR mag. Retention is good, lots of real estate for the hook-and-loop to grab on to. It’s only a single snap-closure MOLLE strap on the back, so technically this pouch occupies 1 slot, but its big enough that it really takes up 2. We also like the snap buckle strap a lot less than some of AWS’s other pouches, which ditch the snap buckle and just use carefully-measured straps instead. Frankly, we like the very similar pouch up next a lot more. |
Handcuff/Ammo GP Pouch - #52127 - $18.25
Occupies 2 slots on MOLLE panel (1 full panel) A great little pouch, slightly smaller than the First Aid/GP Pouch above, but it holds much more than you would think. Shown holding a 20-rd aluminum AR mag. Elastic “waistband” keeps it snug, and it has an internal separator giving it two compartments inside. Mounts with two straps of AWS’s fantastic no-snap MOLLE webbing. Note: This item is new for AWS and is not currently available on the website. Call AWS to order. |
GP Pouch - #50733 - $15.27
Occupies 1 slot on MOLLE panel (1/2 panel) A small pouch with a psychotic amount of retention. A hook-and-loop strap backs up a snap buckle. Sized for small flashlights, multi-tools, pistol magazines, etc. Shown holding a Glock 17 magazine. It’s a single snap-closure MOLLE strap on the back, which we like a lot less than some of AWS’s other pouches, which ditch the snap buckle and just use carefully-measured straps instead. Note: This item can only be ordered from the LAB page drop-down menus. It cannot be added to your cart independently. |
Dump Pouch - #50730 - $23.40
Mounts directly to belt via overlapping straps, does not use MOLLE panel. This is one of our favorite pieces of equipment from AWS. It’s a mesh dump bag that rolls up out of the way when not in use, and comes with space for an Individual First Aid Kit (IFAK) as well as a spot for a hook-and-loop patch. The mouth of the bag has a second layer of fabric sewn to a springy loop in the middle. It’s hard to describe, but it keeps your stuff in the bag while still letting you stick your hand in easily. This is a fantastic bag for a day of shotgunning. You can simply upend an entire box of shells into it, or just roll it up when it’s not in use. Note: This item can only be ordered from the LAB page drop-down menus. It cannot be added to your cart independently. |
Wrap-up
By and large, AWS’s quality and design are exceptional. So, it might not be unexpected for us to say that the company’s biggest drawback has nothing to do with their quality and design - it's their interface to the customer. Their website is not especially user-friendly when it comes to finding a specific item to add to your cart, some items are not on the website at all (yet) so a buyer must call to order, and some items can only be ordered as part of a LAB purchase due simply to the website's organization. Even some the basic concepts behind the LAB we just covered are things we only found out via hands-on time with the gear AWS sent us.
The good news is that as of this writing (Q4 2018), AWS tells us they are on the cusp of launching a re-designed and modernized website. Per AWS, this new website will resolve all of the current hassles facing a prospective customer.
At the moment, all we can say for sure is that the back-end of AWS doubtlessly runs like clockwork - their products' design and execution is almost beyond reproach, and this has undoubtedly served them well through word-of-mouth recommendations from users. When other shooters see the Uni-Mag pouches in action, or watch you effortlessly remove and re-attach the outer belt with all accessories at once, they come running to ask where they can buy one. Until they launch their new website, though, it's easy to get turned off by how much work it takes to place an order (unless you go into the process knowing that AWS is the brand to buy).
To be fair, most shooters will just want the belt and a few Uni-Mag pouches, and that’s easy as pie to order on the LAB webpage with its various drop-down menus. It’s when you start wanting other accessories, like equipment packs and general-purpose pouches, that the drop-down menus (and website navigation in general) start to frustrate.
In short, we whole-heartedly recommend that you order up a LAB and some accessories for it as soon as possible, but we want to warn you to be patient - figuring out exactly what you want, and trying to order it, may be a bit of a process. But when that box from AWS finally comes... well, we think you'll be glad you put in the work.
Happy shooting.
The good news is that as of this writing (Q4 2018), AWS tells us they are on the cusp of launching a re-designed and modernized website. Per AWS, this new website will resolve all of the current hassles facing a prospective customer.
At the moment, all we can say for sure is that the back-end of AWS doubtlessly runs like clockwork - their products' design and execution is almost beyond reproach, and this has undoubtedly served them well through word-of-mouth recommendations from users. When other shooters see the Uni-Mag pouches in action, or watch you effortlessly remove and re-attach the outer belt with all accessories at once, they come running to ask where they can buy one. Until they launch their new website, though, it's easy to get turned off by how much work it takes to place an order (unless you go into the process knowing that AWS is the brand to buy).
To be fair, most shooters will just want the belt and a few Uni-Mag pouches, and that’s easy as pie to order on the LAB webpage with its various drop-down menus. It’s when you start wanting other accessories, like equipment packs and general-purpose pouches, that the drop-down menus (and website navigation in general) start to frustrate.
In short, we whole-heartedly recommend that you order up a LAB and some accessories for it as soon as possible, but we want to warn you to be patient - figuring out exactly what you want, and trying to order it, may be a bit of a process. But when that box from AWS finally comes... well, we think you'll be glad you put in the work.
Happy shooting.
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