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Rogue Pioneer belt vs Echo belt

Posted by Pascal Landshoeft

Jun 19, 2020 9:00:00 AM

Rogue Pioneer belt vs Echo belt

This is a comparison of the Rogue Pioneer belt and the Echo belt including pros, cons, and alternatives. Follow the links for more details

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Rogue Echo 10mm Lifting belt

The Rogue Echo 10mm belt can be had for $52.50. It is one of the cheapest leather belts you can get from Rogue. If you want to know more about the entire Rogue belt portfolio you can read my article "Which belt to buy from Rogue" in which this overview was originally published.

What else to consider from Rogue

Overview of the Echo belt 

 
The Rogue Echo belt is 4'' in width and 10mm thick. Production for this belt takes place outside of the United States. It comes with a single prong and in black color. The Rogue logo is stitched on in white.  It provides 10 precision-spaced holes. The Rogue Echo belt might not a lot of breaking in based on the quality of the leather and the production process.
 

Pros of the Echo belt 

 
A big pro is the price tag. You get a 10mm leather belt for 52.50$. This is nothing to be scoffed at when you are only a weekend warrior or want to get belts for the entire family for Christmas for the home gym. Same goes for equipping a commercial gym. If I was to open a gym  I would get one per rack and invest the money saved compared to the Ohio belt in putting my own gym branding on them. 
 

Cons of the Echo belt 

 
For a leather belt, the finish is poor.  This belt is mass produced in a machine in China with lower quality leather. This saves money and comes at the cost of longevity. This belt is more likely to fall apart and let moisture seep in where the finish is imperfect. If you are only using it occasionally or keep it for group use that is fine. If you want to go pro in lifting maybe wait and invest $100 to $150 bucks into something you can be proud of.
 

Alternatives to the Echo belt 

 
This is the belt at the chasm between hobby and passion. If you only want to protect your back a little for occasional workouts you can also look into Nylon belts which save you even more money. These also can be worn with greater ease.
 

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Rogue Faded 4 Pioneer Lifting belt

The Rogue faded 4'' Pioneer lifting belt delivers a unique cut which enables lifters to adjust in smaller increments. You can get this belt from Rogue at 135$. This review was originally published in my article "Which belt to buy from Rogue" which runs through all options.

Overview of the faded belt 

 
This Rogue branded belt from Pioneer is made in the US and comes in brown. At the edges, the brown fades to a black. The leather belt is 8.5mm thick and made of vegetable tanned leather. It closes with a buckle.  The loop is Rogue branded. What is special about this belt is the Pioneer Cut. The holes on this belt run in two parallel lines which enables the lifter to adjust the belt in 0.5'' increments instead of 1.0''. This makes getting it on and off a lot easier. The buckle itself is a single prong. 
 
 

Pros of the faded belt 

 
This belt is a great option for smaller lifters who have struggled with adjusting belts to their ideal size. It can also be a great option for bigger lifters who change their weight a lot and go on cuts. Bodybuilders might also like the challenge of trying to get to the next whole down in their squat sessions when preparing for a meet. With 8.5mm thickness this belt is less aggressive than the 13mm alternatives and can there also be used for Olympic weightlifting.
 

Cons of the faded belt 

 
The price is still on the higher end for a belt. Special ideas like the double holes usually come at a special price. This belt is also somewhere in the middle between an Olympic weightlifting belt and a powerlifting belt. You will pay a high price and be left with an all-purpose belt which you could also have gotten for $20 less. If you see no value in the double holes for you, you might want to pick up something else. The inside of this belt is also a bit more slippy than other options.
 

Alternatives to the faded belt 

 
A very good alternative to the faded belt is the Rogue Ohio lifting belt. This is the middle of the range and middle priced option that fits all purposes. If you are a Crossfitter you might also want to consider the Ohio Oly belt.  This belt has a bit of leather cut out in the front to make the snatch and clean and jerk easier to perform.
 

Topics: Rogue