Overview | Attachment Styles | Compatibility | Sizing

Published July 8, 2022

Since the release of the AC1, we've been getting questions about when we would sell the cummerbund separately. Now that production has caught up to demand, we can offer these as a standalone item so you can add them to your carrier. Below we'll discuss some of its features, different attachment styles, compatibility, and sizing.

AC1 Cummerbund Overview

The AC1 cummerbund is a simple 4-inch elastic cummerbund with three cells of varying sizes on each side. The front cell is 2.5 inches which works well for AR/M4 mags, radios, knives, flashlights, and other small equipment. The middle compartment bumps up to 3 inches allowing you to carry another AR/M4 mag or a bigger radio. The rearmost pouch is 4 inches to fit our ITRK EDC or ITRK Expanded medical kits. This rear pouch will also fit other similarly sized IFAKs, but larger kits like the ITRK Expanded may necessitate the use of some sort of retention. The AC1 cummerbund uses a velcro attachment system on the front and rear plate bag, allowing quick sizing adjustments.

Attachment Styles

There are two main cummerbund attachment styles: "Lash-On" and Velcro. Lash-On cummerbunds use a length of shock cord to weave through holes or webbing on the plate carrier and cummerbund to attach the two pieces. Velcro cummerbunds generally use a loop field on the rear of the carrier and a hook field on the cummerbund. This method has become more popular because it is easier to adjust and assemble, but both options work well. There is also a method called "pass-through," where the cummerbund lashes together and is fed through a sleeve built into the carrier. This isn't common on newer carriers, but there are quite a few examples of this on older gear.

Our cummerbund uses the Velcro method. Therefore, it will not be directly compatible with all plate carriers. The AC1 cummerbund will work with all carriers that use a loop field on the rear plate bag like our AC1 or the Ferro Concepts Slickster and FCPCv5. It will also work with most pass-through carriers by velcroing the two halves together, but you will lose some of the size adjustment. It is possible to attach a velcro cummerbund to a lash-on carrier, but an adapter is needed. We recommend The Grid from VXV Concepts. This adapter attaches to most lash-on style carriers and allows the use of velcro cummerbunds.

Compatibility

Sizing

Our AC1 cummerbund is only available in one size for simplicity's sake. Because of this, it may not fit everyone, so getting the sizing down before purchasing is essential. Each side of the AC1 cummerbund is 21.5 inches long, with 10 inches between both Velcro sections, with the rear Velcro being 6 inches long and the front Velcro being 4 inches long. Fitment will vary based on plate bag size, so it would be wise to measure with your plate carrier to confirm.

How To Measure

With plates installed in your carrier and the cummerbund removed, measure the distance between each velcro field with a soft tape measure. Measurements should vary between 8 and 17 inches for proper fitment. Since the elastic stretches slightly, the numbers can vary a bit. On each side of the cummerbund, you will want at least 3 inches of velcro contact on the rear plate bag to maintain secure fitment.

If you have any further questions, feel free to email us at [email protected].