The extra- broad belt is actually the lower part of the harness and an element of the mobility- concept of the armor; namely separation of upper and lower body armour to increase flexibility.

This page belongs to the subject area “chaos armour”. The beginning woud be here: Chaos Armour

One cannot wear belts that are over 4 fingers broad without paying the price: they will either corset- like impair the upper body´s mobility or (when worn low) limit the flexibility of the legs.
Nevertheless, we need one.

Construction principle:
The “real” belt itself is a 3-finger-broad webbing- strap with clip-clasp that sits anatomically correct tight on the lower hip (on the front a little lower than on back).
On this belt sit spacers for volume generation. On this spacers the extra-broad outer surface is glued.
The puppeteer so-to-say moves “inside” the superbroad belt and thus is not impaired in his freedom of movements. The separators also serve to increase the volume of the creature´s midsection.
The round foam “belt clasp” with the 8 spikes has no holding function and is closed with velcro.

Ok, let´s see what I mean in the pictures below:

Above: Onto the belt made of broad webbing a piece of non-elastic cloth is sewn.

Below: Foam is glued onto the cloth. The foam- strap is not broader than four fingers. This will not impair the hip´s freedom of movement.

Above left: Volume generation. Close clasp, then glue separators onto the edges. If you glue the seperators and outer surface onto the open belt it cannot be worn.

Above right: The outer surface (glued onto the closed underconstruction) can now be as broad as you like. It only must not touch the harness.

Above left: The closed belt seen from the inside. The front plate has no holding function and is closed with velcro. The velcro has first been sewn on cloth, then glued. The plate doesn´t lie flat on the clasp but generates further volume to complement the shape of the harness. This empty space between real and false clasp also has another function (see below).

Above right: The belt opened. Even open it will stay in shape because the volume- generating structure does not allow it to lie flat any more.

At this point an uncomfortable truth: read this or bear the unspeakable consequences...

If you assign a custom- tailor with making trousers he will very politely ask how you would like to wear them:
a) belly above trousers (belt tight on the hips)
or b) belly inside trousers (belt around your circumference about the height of the bellybutton).

b) might be more comfortable for the owner of - let me spell it out: a paunch, but you will need suspenders.
He who carries his paunch inside his trousers instead of above and secures them with only a belt worn round the equator treads on dangerous ground indeed- because if you for any reason suck in too much of yourself, you will first loose your trousers and immediately afterwards the respect of everybody in the nearer environment.
In german television there are special broadcasts called “oops” or likes where accidents like the above described when happened not only were filmed (when they for example occur while dancing on a wedding) but then to multiply the disgrace are presented to the world on tv. Repeatedly and in slow- motion, of course.
Perhaps in your country there are also tv-broadcasts like this. Watch them (I also recommend trampoline-, pinata- and bicyle- accidents): if you until now doubted the theory of the natural selection you will be taught better by the pitiful wretches shown there. Darwin has been completely rehabilitated by modern entertainment shows. And the invention of pinatas.

Ok, where were we....
For our chaos- armour of course only a) is an option. The receipt for concealing eventually overhanging parts of our anatomy is:
The fatter the knight, the more the concealing front-plate of the belt has to reach out. But the belt that secures all has to sit tight on the hips below the overhang.
Don´t be annoyed: I´m writing this not to provoke people but to spare anybody the ultimate disgrace: when the great mighty chaos- leader in front of his army prior to giving the attack- order holds his sword high up in the air, thereby sucking in too much of himself and coram publico looses his... but no, we won´t imagine such things.

In “Once upon a time in the west” Henry Fonda shoots a guy who wears a belt and suspenders and gives as an explanation that he (Fonda) cannot possibly trust somebody who doesn´t even trust his own trousers.
I have nothing to add to this statement.

And since we´re already kneedeep in embarrassing themes, another one that is at least as vital:
The protection of the area below the belt- clasp...

Above left: The armoured front loincloth of the “red” version from the front and the back. The loincloth is fastened with velcro-straps on the backside of the belt´s false front-plate. On the back of the cloth is sewn a pocket that is closed with a flap (again by velcro-strips).

Above right: Inside the pocket is a piece of 1-mm-thick pvc- plastic glued onto a piece of soft foam (the foam is worn on the inside). The pvc was heated using a hot-air- blowdryer and formed to fit.
This arrangement is completely  invisible from the outside and has already more than once proved its worth. Unlucky arrow-hits that cause everybody who witnesses them make involuntary “ouch”-movements don´t even slow me down.
I very much recommend this or similar solutions not only for members of the “prime-target- club” but for everybody who gets shot at with larp- arrows now and then.
last edit oct 2016