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View Full Version : Inexpensive or reasonably-priced, but good quality heated vests?


Darrell KSR
11-07-2017, 10:11 PM
I don't need some several hundred dollar hunting gadget where you're out in the woods for 40 hours at a time in 30 below temperature. But in creating my own Christmas list, I was thinking it would be nice to have some super-warm vest while I am outside in the cold in late January, February and even early March for 2½-3 hours at a time watching soccer.

Anybody have a suggestion? Do the rechargeable battery-operated vests really work?
CitizenBBN
11-07-2017, 10:31 PM
https://www.thewarmingstore.com/

Got a Gerbing heated vest for a friend once. Seems to work well. She doesn't use it much but that's b/c she's not really in the same work situation as she was, but it definitely provided heat. Worked on Lithium ion batteries, you can buy multiples and charge them and swap them. May be better options out there but in my research this one was good and it did warm up.

Only issue is it's more localized than you may want. They may have better out there now. This one was OK on that front but not superb. That's a big issue in them b/c it's just heated wire in the end, if you don't diffuse that heat you get zones of heat and zones of not warm.

The Gerbing is good for 4-6 hours iirc. May check it out. I never wore one so I can't really give it much of a rating myself. Friend liked it but her thermostat is nuts so not sure what that says either, lol.
KentuckyWildcat
11-07-2017, 10:38 PM
Have any dewalt batteries? They were making some at one point.
Darrell KSR
11-07-2017, 10:46 PM
Thanks for the heads up and link. I literally have never looked at one. Just thought it would be a neat idea. 4-6 hours would be plenty for my needs.

KentuckyWildcat, I did have, but I think my son took all my tools with them. What he did with them, I don't know.
Darrell KSR
11-08-2017, 12:17 PM
That link you provided looks great. I have skimmed through some of the heating vests, and they have some good reviews (actually, all of them I've seen have had good reviews with the "dings" being unrelated to performance for the most part), and the prices are reasonable (at least, at the bottom end--which, again, have good reviews). $119-$149 seems to be a sweet spot for a quality product.

I'll take a look later when I have more time, but that's a good start.
KentuckyWildcat
11-08-2017, 02:02 PM
No clue how they compare in quality or price. Just saw them one day and I have several dewalt batteries so...

http://www.dewalt.com/products/gear-and-equipment/safety-and-protective-workwear/heated-gear

If my dad goes back to work, I may get him something like this.
CitizenBBN
11-08-2017, 05:22 PM
No clue how they compare in quality or price. Just saw them one day and I have several dewalt batteries so...

http://www.dewalt.com/products/gear-and-equipment/safety-and-protective-workwear/heated-gear

If my dad goes back to work, I may get him something like this.

Cool idea with the dewalt. I'd think that setup would be heavier than the custom made stuff like the Gerbing, but it uses the LIon batteries which are pretty light. If you have the batteries it's a no brainer.