Stretch Armstrong for your Waist: An Arcade Belts review

If you are going skiing and not wearing bibs you are tempting the fate of a snowy butt. It’s inevitable that you’re going to fill your pants with powder at some point. Enter Arcade Belts. Stretchy, stylish and totally functional when wet, they are the best way to keep from filling your britches with the white fluffy stuff. New for 2024 are the A2 Arcade belts with beefier buckles that are easier to adjust to the previous generation of aArcade belts. The Arcade X Jimmy Chin Topo Belt kicks it up a notch by adding a touch of mountain flare, a topographical buckle and a 10% donation to Protect our Winters.

Overview

Material: 85% post-consumer recycled REPREVE®️ polyester, 15% Rubber
Width : 4.25mm or 3.75mm
Size Tested: One Size, up to 40” waist
Country of Origin: Vietnam

An Arcade without Games

Arcade Belts was founded in Tahoe in 2010 by three friends, Tristan Queen, Cody Townsend and David Bronkie. They wanted a belt that would hold fast while skiing but have a buckle that is unobtrusive and doesn’t poke into your stomach when bent over.

What is the Arcade A2 Atlas Belt?

Arcade belts are stretchy sports belts akin to those you wore when playing softball in junior high but with much better looking styles to choose from. Arcade Belt come in all kinds of patterns and colors to match your fit but they all share the commonality of a fantastically stretchy webbing made from 85% recycled Repreve polyester made from recycled plastic bottles and 15% rubber.

Adjustability of the A2 belts is much easier than previous generations thanks to the much beefier buckles. I am able to adjust mine to where the buckle is on the wrong side of the closest belt loop. Then I stretch it too close. It’s incredibly tight, but I do not notice any pressure, just that mine pants stay right where I want them. I have a 36” waist and I still have plenty of belt left to use, not that I plan to. Arcade belts fit a max waist size of 40” so I really hope I don’t test their limits.

3 Piece Buckle

The Old buckle (bottom) and the New A2 Buckle(top)

The buckles on all Arcade A2 belts are made with some version of a clip buckle. This version has been beefed up and simplified The buckle is very thin yet holds fast. Contoured to the waist. I have never managed to pop it open and goes unnoticed while wearing it. Travel friendly but your still going to have to remove it…

Jimmy Chin’s Favorite Girdle

The buckle on the Jimmy Chin Topo Belt has a more bold and fashion forward facing plate on top of the clip buckle. There are topo lines on the plate (hence the name), presumably from one of Jimmy’s favorite mountains. If I had to guess, it would be the Grand Tetons.

Diving further into what differentiates the Jimmy Chin Topo Belt from other Arcade belts is Jimmy Chin’s family seal on red leather. Found on the right side of the belt it adds a little bit of flair to this otherwise understated black belt.

Furthermore, 10% of sales for each Jimmy Chin belt will be donated to Protect Our Winters, helping communities and places impacted by climate change.

Overview of the Arcade A2 + Topo Belts

About five years ago a friend showed up to go ski touring and told me about ArcadeBelts. I snickered as I used my old thick belt, built like a seat belt. It held fast and was strong but never moved with me. It was either a little too tight or loose. My pants stayed up for the most part but by the end of the day I noticed either by getting dehydrated or due to stretching, my belt would allow my pants to slide a bit.

The Arcade Belt has gotten rid of this. I keep it tight in the morning and it’s tight in the afternoon. My pants stay where I want them, around my waist. The dreaded plumbers crack is gone and I can keep my britches warm and dry. I’ve even begun wearing an Arcade belt with my regular pants. The firm and comfortable webbing is not just my shred belt, it’s now my everyday belt.

The only thing to keep in mind is the belt width. Some pants, like those on many Fjällräven pants, only have belt loops big enough for the 3.75mm belt.

Don’t wear that old leather belt your dad gave you, that’s for Aprés. Grab an Arcade belt for the slopes.