Overview: While I spend a lot of time out-of-doors in inclement weather and sub-freezing temps, my tolerance for the cold just isn't what it used to be.
Highly aerobic activities like winter hiking, upland hunting, or stalking big game aren't an issue, but less active pursuits like sitting in a duck blind, chasing whitetail from a tree stand during the late archery hunt, or winter fly fishing on the river can be a different story. And despite investing in some of the top gear available, I still find myself getting cold on occasion – particularly my hands and feet.
Scrolling through a hunting forum this past year I came across a thread talking about this very issue –cold feet. While a lot of comments on the thread gave input on their choices for socks, boots, and even boot covers like those from Arctic Shield, several folks commented about the benefits of a heated vest. Keep your core warm and your extremities will follow (the body prioritizes the core), or so the theory goes. So, having already invested in high-end gloves and boots and not really excited about the boot covers (and realizing these wouldn't even be an option for winter fishing) I decided to give the heated vest a try.
The challenge was finding the brand/model that was going to work best for my needs. With a lot of different companies offering products in the category, including a number I wasn't familiar with, like TideWe, Gobi Heat, VolteX, Action Heat, Temu, Venustas, and Ororo and some of the bigger names in battery operated tools, like Milwaukee and Dewalt, I defaulted to the experiences of others, and trusted the reviews.
After a lot of research, I elected to go with Venustas (which had a 4.4 Amazon rating with over 2,500 reviews for their normal heated winter vest), and opted for their new Silent Hunting Vest model, which retails for $200.
I was able to run the vest through the elements this season – winter hunting, fishing, and camping in temps that ranged from single digits to mid twenties – to see if it met the hype.
Here are my thoughts.
What I Like:
Fit: One thing I noticed right away about the Venustas vest was the fit. While the garment feels substantial, it's not overly bulky or boxy and offers a "slim-ish/tailored fit" while still providing room to layer underneath. It's also long enough that it doesn't ride up in the back (a big deal for someone like me with a long torso).
Warmth: Okay, I'll admit it, there was a part of me that thought the heated vest idea was for, well, softies... until I started using it, and realized what I had been missing.
The Venustas' lightweight FELLEX® insulation offers exceptional warmth by itself, and the five heating zones (collar, left and right chest, mid-back, and low-back) provide even, comfortable heat to your entire core. There are three heat settings which are operated from a button inside the left chest pocket, and the battery provides six continuous hours of heat on high, ten on medium, and twenty on low.
My normal routine, starting cold (IE in the boat or at the campsite), was to begin on high to build that initial warmth and then dial back to medium and then low. When hunting I was usually pretty warm from walking to the stand, so I would typically wait an hour or so while my body began to cool and then kick the vest in.
I can report that in all conditions (winter camping, fishing, and hunting) my core and body stayed comfortably warm and my feet also remained noticeably warmer (it should be noted that I was wearing my Schnees Pac Boots on each occasion, which are pretty darn warm anyway).
Materials/Quiet: Another item of note is the soft, ultra-silent fabric the vest is made from (also the faux suede heated collar). This material makes the vest ideal for hunting situations (especially bow hunting), and the PFC-Free DWR shell easily sheds water in inclement weather.
Battery Performance: I was also impressed with the battery performance, finding that the stated battery life hours per setting proved accurate. The battery also "fast charges" (3 hrs) with a 20V/1.75A charger, and offers three outputs for charging different devices: 7.4V heated apparel, 12V heated apparel, and other electric devices.
What I Don't Like:
Battery Size: The battery pack that comes with the vest isn't exactly small or light, honestly it's a little on the clunky side, but it does fit nicely in an inside pocket and the size/bulk is a direct trade off for how long it lasts.
Camo Pattern: Okay, this is by no means a deal breaker, and I actually like the camo pattern, but it does kind of fight with the Kuiu Verde digital camo that I most often wear. That being said, I wore the vest as an out layer over a wool top while bow hunting and often wore it as a mid layer while fishing and camping so it wasn't really an issue. Venustas also offers other vests in solid colors, if that's more your style.
Owner's Manual: The vest itself is pretty self explanatory but being a somewhat "non-technical" user I would have preferred a little more detail in the owner's manual regarding operation, different settings, etc. Again, a minor consideration.
Perfect For: The Venustas Men's Heated Hunting Vest is the perfect addition to any cold-weather system and perfect for hunting, fishing, and camping (or even football games or other stationary activities) in cold weather.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Learn more about the Venustas Heated Hunting Vest here.
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