What are the Top Turkey Vests for Hunting?
Over the years, Turkey hunting has gained a lot of fame and has grown into one of the most famous sport hunting activities. The sport peaks during spring and fall, with many hunting enthusiasts worldwide treating themselves to a lovely turkey hunting weekend and vocations.
One thing that I have learned in my five-year turkey hunting experience is that having a reliable set of gear is what sets armatures apart from pros. A hunting vest happens to be one of those crucial gears that will either make or break your hunting experience.
So what is it that makes turkey hunting vests special? Well, these products are usually designed and fitted with the necessary tools that not only adds convenience to your hunting endeavor, but they also offer you protection from cold and other hazards when you are out in the wild.
Excellently designed turkey hunting vests should feature adequate pockets to pack your essential tools, saving you the trouble of carrying a second bag along with you. Hunting trips tend to take a lot of time; therefore, it is crucial to saving as much energy as you can.
In terms of safety, turkey hunting vests are made of sturdy material that won’t tear when pricked by thorns or thickets. This ensures that your skin stays safe throughout the hunt. Most of these products have reflectors in place that make you visible to other hunters who might accidentally harm you.
In addition to that, turkey hunting vests utilize camouflage technology to mask you and give you a great shot at your prey, even in broad daylight! I have compiled a list of five excellent turkey hunting vests that have what it takes to give you a memorable turkey hunting experience.
1. OutdoorZ NWTF Grand Slam Turkey Vest
It is manufactured by the ALPS Outdooz, one of the leading manufacturers of Turkey hunting vests. The shoulder straps are adjustable to allow you to customize it as you see fit. Also, they can be detached to offer you maximum shooting experience.
The mossy oak obsession color makes this hunting vest to perfectly blend into the surrounding environment. One unique feature of the vest is the many pockets, both small and large, strategically placed for easy access.
Also, the vest is lightweight; it weighs around 1kg, making it easier for you to move around with it even when fully packed. The inner side of the vest that is in contact with your back is padded for extra comfort; in addition, it is made up of meshed material to reduce sweating on your back.
For security purposes, the vest is equipped with a red safety flag and adjustable legs and swivel feet, which will prevent you from sinking into the ground by offering both support and needed stability.
If you are going for hunting in rugged terrain, don’t worry for ALPZ outdoorz has got your back. This bag is equipped with a kickstand frame paired with a comfy padded seat to allow you to rest when in need.
If you are that kind of a guy who can’t just let go of his or her smartphone, you will be lucky to buy the NWTF Slam turkey vest because it is fitted with a smartphone sleeve you to use your phone while in the pocket.
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2. Hunters Specialties H.S Strut Turkey Vest
If you are looking for a quality Turkey hunting, I suggest you give this H.S Strut Turkey vest a try. It is manufactured with top-notch materials to make sure it lasts long. The vest features sturdy 3D fabric that also makes it looks attractive.
There are more than enough pockets where you can fit all your gear. One interesting feature of this vest is the large pocket in the rare where you can store your haunted turkey after a successful hunting spree.
The shoulder straps are adjustable and padded to ensure they give you a fit you want and comfort. The product also has a sternum and waist strap, both adjustable to ensure that it fits you tightly enough. Each pocket is equipped with top grades zippers to keep your essential security at all times.
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3.Knight & Hale Run N’ Gun 200-Turkey Vest
This is one of the lightest turkey hunting vests out there, making it suitable to be used by any gender and age. Also, it has more than eight adjustment points. As a result, it can fit anyone without being buggy.
The product is available in two common options you can either choose mossy oak obsession or the Realtree Edge. Is it a hot day in the Woods while hunting for a turkey and needing some water? Well, I’m sure you’ll be happy to know that this vest comes with 198 cubic inches of bladder backpack for storing water.
Unlike other Turkey hunting vests that are more enclosed, the KHT 0065 pack is more open and ‘frame’ like, this helps to reduce the overall weight and keep you cool. The vest is also fitted with many pockets.
The pocket system is well designed; there is a large rare pocket, two midsection pockets on either side and two pocket chambers in the chest region on either side with small other compartments.
The region around the neck and the shoulder is heavily padded to make it easier for you to carry the fully packed vest. The seat cushion is 6 inches thick for comfort resting on any terrain.
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4.Mossy Oak Longbeard Elite Turkey Hunting Vest
Everything about this turkey hunting vest looks awesome; the design and color graphics. The vest is available in mossy oak spring and common vintage camo patterns like Greenleaf and original treestand.
It is equipped with 14 pockets that are strategically placed for easy access. On the side, you will find dual striker pockets, thermo-cell pockets with a screen, and the pot pockets with shell loops.
Perhaps one unique and interesting feature about this hunting vest is the blood proof material used in making it. You won’t have to worry about bloodstains from the turkey you have killed.
The upper backpack section is fully padded for comfortability; also, it is meshed to reduce sweating. The two-inch thick seat is detachable and made of waterproof vinyl material. With two buckles at the mid-section, this bug is highly customizable and has all the turkey hunter needs.
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5.ALPS Outdoor NWTF Super Elite 4.0 Turkey Vest
This hunting vest is more than enough for any turkey hunter. It has tons of pockets for storage in addition to that; the pockets are easily accessible. The detachable seat is very comfy. The upper back section is cushioned to make testing against the tree more bearable.
The bag also looks stylish and comes in Mossy Oak bottomland color. It comes with a blood proof game bag where you can store your turkey. The Super Elite 4.0 turkey vest weighs about 3lbs making it lightweight.
This enables you to travel easily with it when in your hunting spree. You should be proud to know that the vest is fitted with a badge of the National Turkey Federation on the chest’s right side.
The stitches are of high quality, and this guarantees you long service. The vest is breathable; this will minimize your sweating. While hunting turkey, you need to maintain silence lest you scare them away.
The ALPS outdoorz kept these into consideration and made the inner liner of these hunting vests with soft cotton to make it soundless when rubbing against your body.
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Factors to Consider While Purchasing Turkey Hunting Vest
Having looked at some of the best turkey hunting vests, it’s now time to narrow down to the fine details to guide you to make your best pick. Whether it’s your first time or have done it before, this guide has valuable information to make your shopping easier.
Knowing your options is one thing making the right pick is another. However, you should not worry, for I have pointed out some of the considerations that will guarantee you end up with a product that will address all your turkey hunting needs giving you a memorable hunting experience.
One should always base their search on several aspects when looking for a turkey hunting vest, the most important once being performance, safety, and convenience.
Any excellent turkey hunting vest should be a great performer across all-weather patterns and terrains. Some of these features include the waterproof capability to shield you from extreme rainy weather, camouflage to mask your identity to get a clear shot at your prey.
Another important thing to look at is safety features. Going out in the wild puts you to all sorts of risk, from being bruised by thorns to accidentally getting shot at by other hunters.
Your ideal vest pick should offer you ample storage space to keep all your hunting tools as this will do away with the need to carry along with another bag as this can be quite tiresome, especially when hunting on hilly terrain. So what aspects should you look at in a turkey hunting vest?
Durability
Turkeys are birds that hide very deep in the Bushes. Therefore to get one, you will need to go very deep into the Woods and cut through some seek Bush to get them. The terrain will be very rough and will take a toll on whatever piece of clothing is used.
Even when you get into the Woods, you will probably have to sit on rough Rock or tree, Which will cause a lot of wear and tear on the cloth you put on.
Having all these considerations in mind, the hunting vest you select has to be made of high-quality materials. This will mean that even if you use it in the terrains’ roughest, It will still be usable for many more hunting seasons.
Hunting vests are not cheap, and therefore you should get a hunting vest worth the money spent. If you get a low-quality vest, you will have to replace it after a few seasons, and it will be costly.
The pockets and the first met with top-shelf raw material and design, and the straps should be well made so that they don’t snap and inconvenience you when you are out hunting. High-quality hunting vests will make your experience a lot more enjoyable and straightforward.
Safety
The hunting season is the same for every person in your state. So when you leave your home fully equipped the shotgun ready to go out hunting for Turkey, there are probably dozens of other people with the same plan.
So when you end up in the Woods, you will all be armed with deadly weapons Like shotguns, killing a human very quickly.
If you combine the stress of being out in the Woods the excitement of hunting, there is a chance that there might occur an accident. A Hunter might shoot another one accidentally because of the movement.
Getting accidentally shot in the Woods may quickly turn out to be fatal because of a hospital’s distance away. Therefore you must take the necessary security precautions to prevent yourself from getting injured.
To ensure your safety, make sure that your hunting vest has a removable orange safety flag. This flag will quickly identify you to other humans, and therefore it will make you a lot safer when you are out hunting.
Storage
Storage is the primary purpose of a hunting vest. When you go out hunting, you need to be equipped with a lot of hunting gear. Therefore the hunting vest should have a lot of pockets both in and outside.
The hunting vest should have pockets to put batteries, first aid kits, compasses, maps, and all the other equipment you will need out in the woods.
In case you need to carry a communication device, you can put it in the inner pockets of your hunting vest to keep it dry. The pocket should be secure to ensure that all the gear does not fall out.
During hunting, there’s a lot of running and moving in rough terrain; therefore, the pocket should have fasteners Such as zippers or straps to hold the gear in place to don’t fall.
You should pick a hunting vest that has many small pockets rather than a few large ones. Many pockets enable you to get organized and arrange all your gear to easy for you to access it when you need it.
Budget
Performance always comes at a price, and that is also the case with turkey hunting vests. However, you do not have to part with big chunks of your hard-earned money when it comes to purchasing these hunting vests as some of them cost just a couple of hundred dollars.
You must compare several products across different stores to find the best deal. You can also try to compare the items in terms of design and additional features to determine whether a product is worth your money.
Products with additional safety and performance features like seats tend to cost more than those that don’t have. Other features include additional pockets, game bags, and reflectors. These features play a big role in ensuring that you have a memorable hunting experience.
The material of the product is also another price determinant. Products made of high-quality fabric are more durable, and there cost more. Such products are ideal for people who regularly hunt, therefore exposing their gear to extreme conditions. If you do it only once a year, any standard gear will work.
Camouflage
When you’re out there in the woods with your gun and hunting knife, you become a predator in that Turkey is your prey, just like Lions camouflage and hide in the grass to kill an antelope, and you also need to blend into the background to get a turkey.
The hunting vest that you select should match the terrain in which you will hunt for the turkey. After you set up your decoy and release the fake calls, you need to hide well and be invincible to the turkey so that it comes into firing distance.
If you get the right hunting vest, you will have a turkey come right up to you, and you will make an easy kill and go back home happy for Thanksgiving.
If you miss out on the camouflage, then the turkey will see you when it comes near the trap, and it will run off before you get a chance to make a Thanksgiving dinner out of it. Most of the hunting vests have accounted for the camouflage, and therefore you should not worry about it too much.
Going hunting without camouflage will take you a lot more time since you will keep spooking the prey. This might be frustrating, and you will eventually give up if you’re not extremely resilient.
Comfort
Hunting for turkeys is awaiting the game; you will make the fake calls in this place a decoy, then you will have to hide for a long time to wait for the turkey to come. To ensure that you don’t scare the turkey away, you need to sit perfectly still and avoid fidgeting since that might give away your position.
To ensure that you don’t fidget, the hunting vests need to be very comfortable. First of all, you will probably lean on tree bark or Rock. Therefore the vest needs to have a back pad To ensure that you do not hurt your back when you lean on the tree and make sure that you’re comfortable so that you don’t constantly shake or move.
The West could even have fold-down seats made out of foam, allowing you to sit down comfortably. Most of the hunting vests have a seating pad; when you’re out, the ground might be wet or rocky, and it is a bad idea to sit on the bare ground.
You can, therefore, sit on the pad that is cushioned. It will therefore keep you more comfortable, and it will allow you to sit for a longer time, which will increase your chances of making a kill.
Conclusion
It is almost impossible to have a great time, let alone catch any prey hunting turkey without a hunting vest as this essential gear allows you to have an easy time packing and retrieving your tools, keeps you safe from the elements, and gives you much-needed camouflage when hunting.
Even though there are several turkey hunting vests currently in the market, finding the ideal product that can address all your turkey hunting needs is difficult. It is for that reason that I recommend to you the NWTF Grand Slam Turkey Vest by ALPS Outdoorz.
This product features many pockets that give you ample storage space for your hunting equipment, saving you the hassle of having to take along an extra bag. The product also features a seat with a 3 inches thick foam that will take care of your sitting arrangement in the woods.
Unlike most other products, the NWTF Grand Slam Turkey Vest comes with a specially designed sleeve that safely stores your smartphone and allows you the convenience of using it while it’s in the bag. This offers your phone protection from falling or catching moisture.
To guarantee a perfect fit, the NWTF Grand Slam Turkey Vest features removable straps on the shoulder and compression on the side. These can be adjusted to get an ideal fit.
Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned hunter, this gear will surely improve your hunting performance and experience. Grab your set today and unlock your true turkey hunting potential.