7 Guns and Hunting Items I Regret Buying

GEAR I LIKE

[-G-Mac-]

I would love to see your 7 favorite pieces of hunting equipment (knife, flashlight, first aid kit, boots, etc.) and why you like them so much.

[beautanner]

I love this channel so much - it has saved me so much money. I appreciate the fact that while Jim appears to be quite successful, his feet are firmly on the ground, adamantly stating things like "You don't have to spend $250 on pants"... which runs counter to a lot of the messaging out there.

[Bdalb]

Spot on with the Camo. Heck I’ll even say this as a majority bow hunter: this September I elk hunted in AZ right during the rut and had several close calls. One day I got right in them and had several cows and small bulls right around me. I was wearing some tan hiking pants I got from Costco, a gray polyester shirt I got from Old Navy, a Mossy Oak hat, and a Tenzing Camo day pack I bought at Costco. I realized that as long as I stayed downwind and in the shadows, the elk would still get well within shooting range if they were at ease. So much of the hunting clothing industry is extremely overrated. I’d splurge on nicer clothes for like an expedition backcountry hunt or an Alaska hunt but otherwise you don’t need to drop much on clothing at all. Just make sure it’s comfortable.

[JEJAK_]

Military Surplus is where it’s at if you need camo, and if pattern and color aren’t important to you, a lot of Military Surplus gear is still good to go, base layers, mid-layers, beanies, gloves, mittens, soft and hard shells, boots, sleeping bags, canteens and canteen cups, and more.

[terrylandis]

Amen to the Mossburg Patriot!! I bought a 30-06 and had the same results. Thanks to you, I bought a Bergara. In 300 Win Mag no less. Thank you for that. What an awesome rifle!!!! Sometimes you get what you pay for and I went cheap with the Patriot.

[joecitizen]

Great Video and very informative. As far as clothing for hunting, I used to wear my leftover camo from the military. Once I outgrew them, it was just jeans and flannel shirts. I layered with t-shirt, flannel shirt, and some form of field jacket. The product that I was willing to spend good money on was my foot wear. Good socks and boots are the most important product for me. Herman Survivor boots were my favorite. Gun that I regret buying...I love Henry lever action rifles. They are smooth, accurate, and reliable. I bought a Henry single shot in 357 Magnum for short range hunting on our property. That was the biggest disappointment in a firearm I have ever experienced. The trigger pull was in the 9.5 pound range. I took it to a gunsmith and the best he could get it down to was about six and a half pounds and it cost me about $75.00. I sold that one pretty quick. By the time I got the base, rings, and scope, I was into this rifle about $700+. It was a big disappointment. I did end up buying the Henry lever in 357 with the new sideload gate. Loving that one!!

[danielcurtis]

I’ve never had any issues with the jet boil. I was using a Napatha stove while my mom had a jet boil. By the end of the backpacking trip I wasn’t using my stove because it only took 40 seconds to boil my water with hers!!!
The speed of the heating still is quite efficient.
So I think it’s a good product. Not best for all applications. However for 1-3 people it’s perfect!!!

[CB-zxjn]

Thanks for your passion, and keep up the good work!. Just a word regarding camo. I saw a bowhunting video from Chuck Adams (inarguably the most prolific and successful bowhunter of all time) and in the video he mentioned that you should make sure to break up your pattern to help avoid detection by game. His suggestion was to make sure you wore something like a PLAID SHIRT with your jeans!😂. Just sayin'... In my own experience, the best camo I've ever used was a pattern called ASAT. I have had a deer walk directly up to me, without having clue I was there, until I whistled at him (he looked to be about a 2 1/2 yr old buck, and of course the wind was in my favor). I absolutely LOVE that pattern of camo, but it seems to be hit-or-miss as far as availability and types of clothing utilizing the pattern.

[MarkHaase-vgis]

Best camo is to look like a logger, use lotsa diesel as scent cover, orange stihl suspenders, should work as hunter hi vis also.

[jake]

The worst gun-related purchase I made was a pair of those bright orange, single piece, around-the-back-of-the-head ear protectors you always see Hickok45 wearing.

Saw him wearing it and wanted a pair of my own. Turns out those things are garbage as they lay on your neck and act like a antenna, picking up every vibration and turn of your head, then broadcasting those movements as sound into your eardrums. Very, very frustrating.

Second worst purchase: CMMG .22LR conversion kit for AR15. Lasted about 300 rounds of Remington Thunderbolt then the firing pin snapped in half. $200 down the drain 😡😡😡

[TerryGilsenan]

Nothing comes close to Decibullz Custom molders Percussive Filters. They are easy to mold, fit perfectly, and they work, they just work. No batteries so they have none of the drawbacks of electronic devices. They don't block natural hearing, just the percussion. Conversations are easy and normal. I find that I feel the recoil and don't hear the retort. I have two sets now. One in my range bag, and the other in the case with my .300 Win Mag.

I am not affiliated with them, but I cannot praise them enough. I spent a bunch of money of other stuff that never seemed to be quite right.

[gspwest]

When I first started shooting from a tripod I purchased a carbon fiber tripod, ball head and clamp. The ball head and clamp weighed almost as much as the tripod !! Now I have a carbon fiber tripod with a 75mm leveling head and arca- swiss clamp. No more ball head and clamp, getting rid of almost 4 lbs. Putting the rail on my rifles was a learning process but now that I've done 4 rifles its easy and I didn't pay someone else to do it. The accuracy I get from the tripod is great..

[M]

Regarding rifles and accuracy:

I recently bought an FR-8 with a refinished stock and a barrel that, upon my inspection, appeared never to have been fired. Cool, right?

Shot about a foot wide group at 25 yards.

Not so cool.

So it turned out that there were some significant imperfections in the fitment of the stock. So I relieved the receiver cutout to ensure there were no high spots causing flex on the receiver or trigger group, epoxied the rear action bushing in place for a precise repeatable fit, and stoned down the back side of the action screws until the lock screws fit them perfectly at my ideal torque. Then I did a really quick and dirty freefloat job on the barrel and the metal collar at the front of the stock and hit the front sight with some orange paint.

It was down to shooting about a 5" group at 200 yards on iron sights with almost any ammo I could feed it, save for Malaysian L2A2 ball which still shot about two feet low at that range.

Point is, wooden stocks are iffy under good circumstances and they are *not* to be trusted on a surplus or budget gun.
If you are buying a cheap gun, be prepared to do a little bit of hand fitting. It's not bad.

[JustaPerson]

I wasn't looking to this video for this, but I ordered a Garmin Xero and was sent a Lab Radar. Didn't even open the lab radar box and shipped it back. Thanks for the reassurance, not that I needed it, the Garmin is fantastic.

[vincegordon]

Great video Jim! Always enjoy your perspective. I agree with your motto - Buy once, Cry once-. It is easy to get caught up in the consumer cycle and thus it pays to really ask yourself, do I NEED this or do I WANT this.

[NatesGameCalls]

Get the Walmart brand “ozark trail” version of a jet boil. Always works, doesn’t use a lot of fuel.

[ryanhigdon]

Mine is buying a custom C&H precision rifle. It shoots great but not any better than my factory Bergara’s. One was $5000 and the other were about $1100.

[danielmaine]

Spot on about the jet boil....with a lightweight backpacking stove you can boil water and cook other types of food.

[DSMattitude]

I was torn between the magneto speed v3 and the lab radar. I got the magneto speed and instsntly regretted not buying the lab radar instead... until my friend bought a lab radar. Now we both love my Magnetoapeed.

[wildernessmaster]

1. Pack - I have developed an "almost one" pack (system). I own a Kuiu icon pro pack in 4000 ci and then bought their 2800 just pack. Its way easy to run either and when I am in for multiple days I drop the bigger pack in camp and quickly attach the 2800 for a day pack (actually a perfect day pack). The upside is I have a super (one of the lightest) pack system that is also a load hauler at all times.
2. Ditto on the Vortex binos - but mainly because mine didn't work below 17 degrees and vortex acknowledges this as a problem.

You and I need to start a "we didn't like" junk store... I have tons myself.