Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Hunter Orange vests

I have 2-3 of them I bought in a Walmart January sale for $5 a piece. I also have the Cabelas,but it is too heavy

Some states figure that it hides too much of the orange. OTOH, here in Idaho we don't have to wear orange at all if we don't want to. They recommend it but don't require it. That's the way it should be.

I have a couple different Cabela's camo-orange fleece vests, the BASE CAMP and the ULTIMATE PACK styles. I like the BASE CAMP when I'm not going far from my vehicle or wherever I can safely/securely leave my day-pack. I like the ULTIMATE PACK when I'm going to be farther from my vehicle or secure base and need to bring more "stuff", but don't want to carry everything in my day-pack. I usually attach my vest to my windproof fleece jacket with safety pins or horse blanket pins so that I can take them off and put them on together as one unit.

Filson makes an orange "Cruiser" vest - or used to. They're very nice, but a bit pricey.

Academy Sports usually has some good ones as season approaches under the brand Game Winner in your price range. They have a couple of pockets, but not too busy with useless frills. I don't see any of them showing online now though, just some cheapy ones. I have a plain fleece one that I like, however, in Texas it may start out cold in the morning and be warm by 10 or 11am. So it only gets used if I know for certain the weather will stay cold enough.

Here's a picture I found of one on pinterest since Academy isn't showing one right now:

I can't answer for all states, but GA requires 500 SQ IN of SOLID orange. Even without the SOLID requirement the orange camo wouldn't come to 500 SQ IN of orange in a vest. Maybe a complete outfit.

Not saying I agree with the orange requirement. I've seen studies showing that states that do not require orange don't have any more accidental shootings than those who do. The problem with requiring orange is that it creates a mindset that if I don't see orange then it is OK to shoot. Not everyone in the woods is a hunter and even those wearing orange may be positioned so that the orange isn't visible to the shooter. I think that in states where orange is not required hunters do a better job of clearly identifying the target.

But it is what it is. I don't see wearing solid orange as a disadvantage, and the orange camo wouldn't improve my odds of success over solid orange. But it might reduce the effectiveness enough that I could get shot by a careless hunter. Living in a state where it is required, I certainly wouldn't go hunting without it.

For and all around orange vest, I chose the Carhartt. Water resistant cotton. Quiet and comfortable but now for warm weather.

Another option is to look at forestry supply places. I have a timber cruise vest from when I worked for a timber company many years ago. Has some handy pockets and works great.

http://www.forestry-suppliers.com/search.asp?stext=vest

Lots of options here. Be careful as some of them will not be lightweight but rather bulky with too many pockets. The better ones will run you north of $50 as well.

http://www.westcoasthunting.ca/product/browning-vest-country/

I bought one like this several years ago and have been pleased with it. They are very hard to find and I ordered from some obscure website and paid about $45 if I recall. Only way I knew it existed was on Browning's catalog and then I googled until I found it.

I actually see pink better.

cheap, bright orange, cotton, no pockets. That is what works for me.

A little more than you wanted to spend but......http://www.cabelas.com/product/clothing/mens-hunting-clothing/mens-blaze-orange-clothing/mens-blaze-orange-vests|/pc/104797080/c/104748480/sc/104222880/i/104141880/cabelas-blaze-pro-guide-ii-vest/1811487.uts

I am fortunate to live in a State that requires orange but it can be just a hat if you want. No Square inch minimum requirement. When I lived in Colorado my memory is that camo orange was not a legal garment.

I missed the word "camo" Ain't legal here in Missouri either.

I wore out a number of cruiser vests in my career in the Forest Service and still have two orange ones, one each from Forestry Supplies and Ben Meadows. They are sturdy and have lots of pockets but not necessarily the size and shape you may want. (I used to have my working ones custom made because of the equipment I carried.

I also have a light simple one provided by Washington State when I taught hunter safety.

This year I'm going to try a Cabela's ProGuide II vest. It does not meet many of your preferences for simple and light. Last fall I decided to try a different vest than what I had on hand. I have not used it yet.

Colorado does not accept camo orange, Utah discourages the use of it but does not ban it outright like Colorado.

I guess because blaze orange is meant to be seen and once you introduce the camo design it reduces its visibility.

Jim

When it's warm I wear flouresant orange t-shirts when cooler flouresant orange hoodie with sleeves cut off.