What gears a new hunter must have

C

ConnieMason

New member
Hi guys, can you recommend some top gears that a newbie must have? Or some good qualified ones that ain’t popular is fine. Thanks in advance.
 
The basics for me. Comfortable boots (waterproof--a thread here with favorites), I never hunt with out my chaps (love Filson for colder weather) and a vest or coat with a front loading game pouch with blaze orange & large cargo pockets for shells. I have a huge duffle bag in the truck with extra everything plus dog items. Many who venture a good distance from their vehicle carry a ton of stuff, I did put a length of rope (to release conibear design traps and whatever else) in my game pouch after a thread posted here last season regarding what folk carry, it made sense. I just have no need to pack a lot of stuff in the field, in Iowa the land tracks are small, I am almost never a mile from my truck. Where and when you hunt will dictate what you need or might pack with you. Be safe, have fun and I hope you get some roosters too! A bit of advice; when hunting, be ready...all the time, pheasants are so much easier to kill when they are closer when you shoot.
 
Good boots, camo, no blaze orange, good optics, good gloves, rope, Leatherman, lighter, flashlight with green lense,compas,good quality socks, and long underwear, camo front loader,wool hat.
 
Year One / You're ready to hit the field and will come across birds whether you have the cheapest gear or most expensive: Comfortable boots, preferably waterproof. Jeans. $5 vest. Orange Hat. Gun that reliably fires most of the time.

Year Two: Chaps or Upland hunting/briar pants

Year Three: Upgraded vest and boots.

Year Four: You get the point... you can continually upgrade but all you really need or the cheap basics. Most of my upgrades now are not even hunting related, more organizational related. Upgraded dog kennel. Built a truck drawer system. Topper on the pickup. Lights under the topper. Etc.
 
The most comfortable boots that you can find should be your number one purchase. I can hunt anything in regular old farm store clothes. Not as comfortable as some higher tech materials if wet, but boots make or break a hunt for me.
 
ConnieMason said:
Hi guys, can you recommend some top gears that a newbie must have? Or some good qualified ones that ain’t popular is fine. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
BOOTS! More than anything else. I went through several $150-$200 pairs before I bought my first pair of Crispi Nevada. $400. I figured out I currently have about 300 miles on this pair (and plenty of life left) and I’d give up my shotgun and hunt with a pawn shop special before giving up my boots. Sore or wet feet will ruin a day of hunting no matter how many birds you’re into. Just my two cents.
 
Yup, I'd agree on boots. You can barrow a gun to hunt, but not boots. With footware, a long day can be 8 hours or, your feet will make you stop after 2 hours. Don't be afraid to spend the money to buy the footware you need.
 
Always spend money on boots. As much money as you can spare. Steve Rinella said once on his podcast that he would rather hunt in a pair of $500 boots and use a $100 rifle instead of a pair of $100 boots and a $500 rifle. Ever since I heard that, I've upped my footware budget considerably
 
Connie, Just reading the responses from everyone and they all make great sense but no one took the time to ask you what kind of hunting that you wanted to get started in. I can only assume since you are on a Upland Hunting forum that you may be looking to get started pheasant or quail hunting. What part of the country do you live in? When you are just getting started you don't have to spend a lot a money to get out there and hunt. If you need help and advice don't be afraid to ask because there are plenty of folks out there that would be glad to help someone new to the sport get started. Plenty of clubs like Pheasants Forever have mentor programs and a local chapter in your area would be able to help you out. Good Luck and get out there hunting!

Open Ranger
 
I would contend that outside of a reliable shotgun, the only real quality item you need are good boots and, if hunting in sub zero temps, good gloves. From there, it's how geeked out you want to get.
 
+1 good pair of comfortable hunting boots.
-A good hunting shotgun.
-Upland vest (I prefer a vest over a hunting coat because I can wear the vest over my coat if the temps drops or just the vest if it's warm. )
-Orange hat.
-Upland pants. Not a must have, I've seen people hunt in jeans and carhartts.
 
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