For the past few months, I’ve been testing out the FieldKing Avatar Upland Hunting Vest from Dogs Unlimited. This vest is especially useful to wear while training your dog, although it could be used for hunting or competing as well. It features two unique pockets that allow you to carry extra live birds with you in the field – essentially, a built in bird bag.
I put together a video review which you can watch below. After that, I’ve also provided a written recap of the things I like about this vest and the things that could be improved upon after that.
FieldKing Avatar Upland Hunting Vest
Pros
- Easy to slip on and cinch closed with a quick snap buckle
- Good fit across the shoulders and you don’t have to worry about getting a waist belt to sit properly
- Very large front pockets that snap shut and can hold water bottles, your phone, a blank pistol, etc. It doesn’t feel like anything is going to fall out of these pockets.
- Three interior pockets (one zips shut and the other two have Velcro) to store important items that you don’t want to lose like your keys, wallet, phone, etc.
- Unique vented, zip-shut pockets on each side which are little built-in bird bags. This allows you to carry a few extra pigeons with you in the field. Great to reload launchers or carry for backing scenarios when you might need to throw a bird. And then you don’t have a bird bag swinging around your body!
- Very well-made with durable Cordura fabric – feels like it would hold up well to briars, although I need to test that out.
- Bright blaze orange color
- Expandable back pocket that also fully zips shut, unlike most hunting vests that have an open back pocket
Things that Could be Improved
- I would prefer to have the D rings higher up on the straps so that my tracking collar remote is not swinging around my waist when I clip it there.
- The large pockets, which are great to hold a lot of stuff and good for training, feel bulky when you are trying to move your arms and walk quickly. As a result, I probably wouldn’t wear this vest for competing in walking field trials.
- I wish this came in an extra small. I have a size small (which is the smallest size) and it’s still a little loose. It does feel better when I have a few layers on, however.
Dogs Unlimited did send me this product in exchange for me doing a review. However, I tried to be as authentic as possible in my evaluation. I’ve tested this vest over the past few months and am looking forward to wearing it hunting as well to see how it fares there.
If you’re in the market for a new training vest, definitely check out the FieldKing Avatar Upland Hunting Vest on Dogs Unlimited’s website.
You can see I have the back pocket expanded, but you can snap it shut to make the vest a little less bulky as you move through cover.
Here you can see the placement of the D-rings. I’m glad they are there, but I would prefer to have them higher up on the straps.
Photo by Jessica Predom
I like the way it fits over my shoulders and is easy to slip on with minimal adjustments.
The straps are very adjustable and since they lay flat on your chest, they won’t interfere when you mount your gun.
Do you own this vest? If so, what were your thoughts? Leave me a comment below.
