Best upland bird vest?

[PoorMansWrangler]

Really happy with my orvis pro so far, but for all day hunts where I am not coming back to the truck, would prefer something with more storage.

 

[Boch5473]

I received confirmation of shipping from Final Rise the 3rd week and the vest showed up about 4 days later.

This was the Legacy model

Seen you got the FR Legacy model, after having it a few weeks how's it working out for you? Any regrets on not getting the Summit model or another brand? Thanks

 

[Kindo]

I’m typically a big fan of minimalist vests but my Filson game bag was a bit light for some areas we hunt. I bought a Final Rise this fall and got to take it out to IA last weekend where my dog was the only one retrieving.

Handled up to 7 roosters really well on one walk!

 

[oake]

"Seen you got the FR Legacy model, after having it a few weeks how's it working out for you? Any regrets on not getting the Summit model or another brand? Thanks"

I have no regrets - my prior vest was the filson strap vest and the Legacy model is more robust than it; I put about 10 days afield annually so it checks all the boxes for me. With one exception and that is the velcro on the pouches - not ideal. If I had one critique that would be it.

 

[Tbuckus]

Heres my review of the Final Rise after using it so far this season. I am very happy with it and dont regret buying it, but I over analyze things so you will hear my personal gripes. For chuckar hunting, strap type vests are an absolute upgrade over vest style. I used an old cabelas( made by Columbia) vest for over 15 years and wished I switched earlier. For pheasant hunting, a vest is perfect. For running up and down hills, a strap vest with a weight bearing belt is way more comfortable. Pics aren’t great, but breaks up my rambling.


The vest is very comfortable and you can adjust it to fit your specific body style.
Shell pockets are deep that when you fall on the hill, your shells don‘t dump out. There are lots of zippered and open pockets to stash stuff like dog bowl, t/p, first aid, headlamp, etc. So many that I didnt fill some. One drawback is that there is not an easy access zippered pocket for my phone (its a large one, XR?)
while walking you do hear the shell pockets swipe along your thighs. Not annoying but I did notice it.
The bottle holders are awesome!!!
I used to fight to get out bottles from my other vest, or just throw them in with my birds. These stay open due to a plastic sleeve sewn in and are easy to put the bottle away. They come with two 32oz squeeze bottles that look cheap, but work very well. No leaks and soft enough to easily use. They also will fit Gatorade type bottles As seen in photo.
Weight distribution is well balanced. With a regular vest, you have weight in the front and back of you. This one keeps most of the weight at your sides and waist. You do feel wider, but I didn‘t feel that it impeded with carrying your gun at your side.
Putting birds in the bag is easy due to a plastic strip sewn inside the back of vest that bows the back and keeps the bag open, if that makes sense. One drawback is if you use the bungees to strap clothes on it, it pushes the bag closed, making it harder to reach back and find the opening.

One problem I ran into was strapping my jacket to my vest.
As you can see, my jacket wasn’t wrapped around the bungee strap system well enough and was dangling. A smooth jacket on smooth bungee straps don‘t work well. Final Rise does make a large accessory pouch, but I’ll just make a silnylon pouch to carry my jacket and keep it dry.



So the next day, when I had to go back up to find my kuiu jacket (which I did thankfully due to onx and tracking mode), I came down the hill with a limit of birds. Here you can see a sweatshirt attached to the bungees.
The game pouch is big enough for a limit and then some. With the birds in there it didnt feel like they were going to fall out. The pic doesn’t show it, but I put my kuiu coat on top of the birds and still felt secure.
once weighed down, it was nice to be able to adjust straps/belt to distribute weight.

I’m pretty sure most of the upper end vests will compete with Final Rise, but this is definitely a keeper that I will hand down to one of my kids when I get too old to hunt.

 

[WRO]

Hope someone will clarify, use and purpose.

Im looking for a vest for my golden, she seems to pick up every devils tick or cocklebur in the county when we head out. The it takes me a half hour to get the shit out when I get home.

Got to be a better way.
Just started researching.

View attachment 235291

Spray her her down with show sheen prior to the hunt, it will help alot.

 

[jblam]

I’m just gonna say it, I prefer a backpack. Straps jam some people up I guess, but they feel just like wader straps to me, so pretty used to that position.

 

[arock]

Love all the bearded dogs in this thread.

Anyway. Standard Gander Mt vest that has been fine for a half day hunt or whatever at the club. Got a browning upland jacket for like $42 on Amazon so can't really complain about that but neither are great for carrying more than two or three birds.

May have to pick up a Final Rise next year when I start putting the pup on wild birds.

 

[samc]

just picked up a final rise this year and it is awesome. One thing that irritates me with it is the zippers on the shell pockets are not one hand operational. I might end up buying a shell pocket from hunt redi for this reason.

 

[Runningwater]

Heres my review of the Final Rise after using it so far this season. I am very happy with it and dont regret buying it, but I over analyze things so you will hear my personal gripes. For chuckar hunting, strap type vests are an absolute upgrade over vest style. I used an old cabelas( made by Columbia) vest for over 15 years and wished I switched earlier. For pheasant hunting, a vest is perfect. For running up and down hills, a strap vest with a weight bearing belt is way more comfortable. Pics aren’t great, but breaks up my rambling.
View attachment 356396

The vest is very comfortable and you can adjust it to fit your specific body style.
Shell pockets are deep that when you fall on the hill, your shells don‘t dump out. There are lots of zippered and open pockets to stash stuff like dog bowl, t/p, first aid, headlamp, etc. So many that I didnt fill some. One drawback is that there is not an easy access zippered pocket for my phone (its a large one, XR?)
while walking you do hear the shell pockets swipe along your thighs. Not annoying but I did notice it.
The bottle holders are awesome!!!
I used to fight to get out bottles from my other vest, or just throw them in with my birds. These stay open due to a plastic sleeve sewn in and are easy to put the bottle away. They come with two 32oz squeeze bottles that look cheap, but work very well. No leaks and soft enough to easily use. They also will fit Gatorade type bottles As seen in photo.
Weight distribution is well balanced. With a regular vest, you have weight in the front and back of you. This one keeps most of the weight at your sides and waist. You do feel wider, but I didn‘t feel that it impeded with carrying your gun at your side.
Putting birds in the bag is easy due to a plastic strip sewn inside the back of vest that bows the back and keeps the bag open, if that makes sense. One drawback is if you use the bungees to strap clothes on it, it pushes the bag closed, making it harder to reach back and find the opening.
View attachment 356400
One problem I ran into was strapping my jacket to my vest.
As you can see, my jacket wasn’t wrapped around the bungee strap system well enough and was dangling. A smooth jacket on smooth bungee straps don‘t work well. Final Rise does make a large accessory pouch, but I’ll just make a silnylon pouch to carry my jacket and keep it dry.

View attachment 356408
View attachment 356409
So the next day, when I had to go back up to find my kuiu jacket (which I did thankfully due to onx and tracking mode), I came down the hill with a limit of birds. Here you can see a sweatshirt attached to the bungees.
The game pouch is big enough for a limit and then some. With the birds in there it didnt feel like they were going to fall out. The pic doesn’t show it, but I put my kuiu coat on top of the birds and still felt secure.
once weighed down, it was nice to be able to adjust straps/belt to distribute weight.

I’m pretty sure most of the upper end vests will compete with Final Rise, but this is definitely a keeper that I will hand down to one of my kids when I get too old to hunt.

I've got the two nylon straps on the back of the bird bag that you can cinch down. It work great to reliably secure a coat, rain pants, sheds, another bag, etc. vs the bungie. Really enjoy the vest.

 

[Vandy321]

Who came first the final rise or the wingworks? I have a wingworks which is great and it seems to have some improvements over the final rise (large zippered pocket on back on vest, velcro flaps on shell pockets for one handed access vs zippers, etc. But overall the vests seem very similar, nearly identical. Just curious who may have borrowed from who?

 

[Runningwater]

Wingworks have been around quite a while. FR just a few years. The FR is quite a bit lighter in weight FWIW. Wingworks you really can't get right now (or for the past couple years). A waiting list with a few trickling out is my understanding anyway. I think both, and the other higher end options, are all great vests.

 

[Vandy321]

...anybody here not like their Chief upland and want to swap for a wingworks that is currently made of unobtainium?

 

[Tbuckus]

Who came first the final rise or the wingworks? I have a wingworks which is great and it seems to have some improvements over the final rise (large zippered pocket on back on vest, velcro flaps on shell pockets for one handed access vs zippers, etc. But overall the vests seem very similar, nearly identical. Just curious who may have borrowed from who?

FR has Velcro on their shell pockets, although a small amount, along with zippers.
I leave The zippers open unless I am transporting the vest in the truck. The shell pouches are so deep that I’ve yet to have anything fall out of them while going over/under fences and up/down rocks.

I did see some with straps for the back of vest for gear. Much better option than the bungee for jackets.

 

[Vandy321]

I will take you up on this trade if someone else hasn't already.

Kept it. Finally found a chief and a final rise to compare it with. Wingworks for me.

 

[Hicksy]

Filson, but believe it or not CamelBack made an upland vest some years ago and I snagged one and loved it. It is my back up/ let a person I’m guiding vest.

 

[Mosby]

I am hunting with a Pella strap vest that I bought several years ago and forgot I had. Found it last year and really like it. Perfect? No, but I felt like I got a vest for free when I found it.

 

[Deepwoods]

Not sure if it was mentioned but a Browning Bird n' lite is a great vest with a built-in waist belt to take load off your shoulders when carrying several birds. They can also be had for around 50 bucks on sale. It includes water bottle pockets, chest pockets and your standard shell holder front pockets. There is also a strap for a jacket/gear. When it's cold I simply wear a browning pheasants forever jacket that has zip off sleeves. I have used these setups on 6+ hour hunts and never had complaints. I get more tired of carrying my gun after 6 hours and I suppose I never notice any discomfort in my vest selection.

Edit I see there is now a version 2.0 strap style vest, I use the older vest that is traditional ie non strap.

 

[samc]

Another vote here for Final Rise. Got mine last year and have been really impressed

 

[dannysanch94]

+1 on chief upland