****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
I haven't worn a fishing vest in years. I used to buy the Walmart specials annually at the beginning of trout season every year and trash it by the following season because they just didn't hold up. I'm guessing I'm not alone. I've tried several different carry options over the last few years including: fanny packs, backpacks, messenger bags, chest rigs, and so on and so forth. I ordered this Big Horn Fishing Vest in Olive color about 3 weeks ago. I couldn't be happier with this thing. The pictures don't do justice to just how many pockets there are hidden in this thing. It's also made out of a heavy duty, but very light Nylon type of material. Not sure if it's Cordura or not. The layout of this vest is very intuitive. It's also very easy to access all areas of the front of the vest while wading. I haven't had anything bind or pinch or shuffle around regardless of how I've moved while wearing it. One of the biggest bonuses of the Big Horn is the ample padding around your neck and shoulders. It's very comfortable no matter how much kit I decide to haul to the stream with me. It's also extremely adjustable at both the shoulders and waist area. I've worn a hoodie and light jacket under this vest and have had no issues with comfort or range of motion. This vest is also very breathable. I have yet to sweat due to wearing it. As for cargo capacity, I carry 6 jars of Power bait, 2 jars of salmon eggs, a plastic worm box, 1 medium size plastic box for terminal tackle, 1 small plastic box for spinners/lures, 6 pouches of Power bait worms, 2 sets of hemostats, 1 set of collapsible scissors, 1 roll of TP, 1 stringer on my back as well as my trout net on my back. And there's still several pouches I have yet to use. Another large bonus to this vest is the zippers. Every external pocket has 2 zippers and clam shells to about half of its capacity so that you can grab your kit then easily close the pocket after use. They are metal, which is nice, and they have fair sized pull tabs. The real test with this will be fall fishing with gloves on. Whoever designed this must actually fish, or actually paid attention to the needs of fisherman. It's rare to find a functional outdoor product right out of the box that doesn't need some sort of modification to it. The interior pockets are nice as well. The interior belly pockets zip. The interior chest pockets do not. But they really don't need to in my opinion. They're made out of a reasonably robust mesh. The back of the vest has a mesh area that you can store a hydration bladder in. I believe it has a hook for one, I haven't used it yet. But in another month it'll be great useful. I'm impressed that someone actually put a bladder area in a vest that didn't cost a ridiculous amount of money. I wouldn't use one over 50 oz due to weight. But that's me. There are also loops at the shoulder straps to hold your hydration hose easily. There's a small zippered pocket below the mesh in the back that I keep a bottle of water and my TP in a zip lock bag. Overall, I'm extremely impressed with both the build quality and options available for a vest that cost me less than $50 here on Amazon. I really can't ask for more. My only SMALL nitpick would be keepers for the excess webbing on the shoulder straps.But I can easily buy/make them myself.
