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The Man O' War — Restock Update

We're currently working on a large restock for the holiday season. The Man O' Wars will return on November 30th at 8pm EST. Please make sure you're signed up for our email list for the most up-to-date information. If you have any questions, feel free to email us here.

The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01
The Man O' War Belt_01

The Primordial Line

The Man O' War Belt_01

Sale price $100.00

Color: Black
Size (Your Pants Size)
Size chart

Originally, we scrapped this belt in favor of our Man O' War_00, but guess what? Ol' Mikey kept digging it out of the "scrapped" bin and throwing it on all the live-long day. It slipped through his belt loops like butter, oozed around his curvy waist, and cinched him up like a Christmas ham. The colors and hardware? Went with anything. The width? Suitable for 99% of styles. The burnish? Glowing.

Then, in what seemed like a gift from the skies above, we got a call from the good folks at Hermann Oak, one of the planet's most renowned tanneries for equestrian equipment and carving leather since 1881. "Would you have any interest in using our legendary leather?" "Yep."

The Man O' War! Strikingly minimal, with a tad of flair when not in use (the debossing is visible only when unfastened). Toss it on, forget about it, and let it soften, conform to your waist, and age beautifully.

Made from beefy, hand-selected 10–12 oz Hermann Oak leather, the Man O' War comes with a 600,000-year warranty. Its edges are beveled, burnished, and finished with beeswax for a smooth shine. Each belt is lovingly made by none other than Mr. Aaron Harker of Harker Leatherworks.

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What is our Primordial Line?

You’re currently viewing our Primordial line of accessories. This collection features more specialized materials, details, and finishing than our standard pieces. Here, it's best seen in the leather selection and Mr. Harker’s finishing work. Each belt receives a two-stage edge finish, first worked with water and canvas, then burnished with beeswax for a lovely glow.

Specs at a Glance

- 1.25" wide
- Hand-burnished
- Made from Hermann Oak Leather
- Made in USA
- 600,000 year warranty

The Fleet of Leathers

Hermann Freaking Oak, pleasure to make your acquaintance. Mr. Harker was over the moon during sampling. The quality, the yield, the smell! We can only picture him ballroom dancing with a hefty roll of this. In short, spectacular leather.

Hermann Oak is a 145-year-old, fourth-generation tannery specializing in vegetable tanning, using tannins extracted from tree bark (as opposed to the more common chrome tanning, using chromium salts). As Jacob put it, "Besides using forklifts instead of donkeys, not much has changed over here." Renowned for their equestrian leather, they called to ask if we'd be interested in working with them. Yes. Yes we are.

Our Havana and black Man O' Wars use Hermann Oak "English" bridle leather. Originally made for horse riding, it's hot-stuffed with waxes and gum-pasted on the flesh side. The waxes give it a dense, "saturated" feel, while the gum paste creates a smooth, waxy texture for the comfort of the horses that bore it. Your pants are the horse now. We think it feels like clay.

A Bit of Bling

“The buckle is the face of your belt.” — Me

For our first round of Man O’ Wars, we’ve chosen a smooth, shining buckle and screw combination. Why? Like many of you, we want a belt that works with anything—but still has a little zip to it. After testing dozens, this particularly fine specimen felt just right. It shines when needed, works with just about any pair of pants it touches, and shows just the right smattering of consideration in your belt choice.

The Man O' War

  1. The Portuguese man o’ war (Physalia physalis) is a highly venomous, carnivorous colonial marine organism found in warm, tropical waters—often mistaken for a jellyfish. It is, in fact, a siphonophore.
  2. A man-of-war was a powerful warship, frequently used in Europe from the 16th to the 19th century.

Our Man O’ War belt tells the tale of a creature resembling both. A being of massive scale, meandering passively through the seas by wind, mimicking a man-made vessel, its tentacles trailing through the water.

Note: The leather pictured is from an old sample and is not currently offered, but we felt it gave the clearest view of the debossing.

Oh, Mr. Harker!

Who else would we trust to build our belts but Mr. Harker of Harker Leatherworks (and those he brings on should we need to scale)?

“Passionate” is the wrong word to describe Mr. Harker. He floods our inboxes with ideas, creations, experiments, improvements (ask him about distilled water), and new gear acquisitions—all in the name of creating a belt we all find special.