Chest Rigs for Beginners
Hey gents, once again I’m attempting to add some real content and cover some information that seems to be lost in the boards. This time with the low down on chest rigs. Being that the chest rig is hands down the most flexible load hauler for the tactical community, I’m frankly surprised we are not seeing more threads on the chest rig. So here is the low down and dirty on a hunk of kit that almost every airsofter/ tactical gun guy should have in their inventory.
What’s a Chest Rig?
A chest rig is an armorless harness system designed to carry your basic 2nd line combat load. Light weight due to the fact that the only material used is for supporting pouches, Chest rigs cut almost a pound or more of material off of the typical load barring device. The minimal fabric also means that chest rigs breathe a lot better than typical vests and plate carriers, keeping you cooler in hot weather. Varying in size and design, chest rigs come pre setup with permanently attached pouches, with MOLLE/PALs webbing or a combo of both. More often than not the cost of your required pouches for your magazines and other gear will be as much, if not more than a chest rig with prebuilt pouches and room to grow.
Why Should I Have One?
Plate carriers and armor vests are designed to work with soft armor and plates. Without these plates and soft armor, your typical carrier or vest will not sit right and properly support the attached gear. Not to mention wearing a plate carrier/ vest without armor makes you look like a dumbass no matter how high speed, low drag you think you are or may be. Despite being able to get replica plates for about $12.00 a pop, most don’t use them. With a chest rig, the system was never intended to have plates or soft armor installed in the rig it’s self. Therefore the rig properly distributes and supports the weight of the gear on your body. At the same time if the event you are playing in a game that has functioning body armor rule sets, slapping on a PACA style armor carrier and tossing the chest rig over the top will give the player the armor protection he requires and at the same time all of the pouches and equipment are in the same spot on the same rig. Knowing exactly what is where because you use the same base gear every game is important.
Selecting the Rig for You!
When selecting a rig I lay out all the stuff I feel I need to carry in my 2nd line gear. I then organize that gear in to two piles, the gear I needed now and the gear that I can take a minute to access. The Now pile is the stuff I’m concerned about for the rig. This pile determines how many pouches I have to have and the overall size of the rig. For the typical operator this is about 6 magazines, 2 pistol mags, multi tool, flashlight, IFAC , map, radio and a couple of chem lights. From there I hit the internet and start looking. I look for quality construction, simple layout, long adjustment ranges, and something that is as low profile as possible not only in the chest area but the shoulders as well. The thinner the shoulder straps, the easier and more comfortable it will be for me to wear a small backpack equipped with a hydration bladder. This is where all that stuff in the second pile will go if there is not enough room on the rig. No matter what rig you use, it has to work for you.
Recommended Rigs
I have gone through several rigs and there are several others that are just damn well made. These are just a few that I felt are notable. Eagle Industries makes some awesome and well thought out products. My personal favorite that I have owned is their LE Active shooter Chest Rig. This rig can carry up to 8 m-4 mags, 4 pistol mags, and has enough MOLLE webbing to mount an IFAC, Radio or any other type of pouches. The rig also has a massive map pouch on the inside of the rig. The price is just right at around $100.00 too.
Another excellent rig is made by Tactical Assault Gear. More expensive than the Eagle rig coming in prices ranging from $100 to $150, the Phalanx series has all the pockets and pouches that one could want. Holding 8 magazines, two massive cargo pouches on the left and right side, chem Light holders and more molle webbing than you could shake a stick at, there is more than enough room to pack your crap. TAG also has larger rigs going all the way up to $200. If you feel that you need to carry more than these rigs haul then you need to look hard at what you are carrying.
Hands down the most revolutionary rigs are made by Mayflower Research and Consulting LLC. Their chest rigs are not only stand alone but designed to plug strait into their plate carriers. Meaning one can go from comfortably snooping and pooping to full direct assault mode in just 4 snaps. As some of our troops have found, there are situations that require you to have your mags and gear but not always your whole vest. The ability to quickly scale up and down is truly not appreciated until you have that ability. With rigs starting at $145 and climbing they are respectably affordable. Compare this cost to buying 4 mag pouches, 2 pistol pouches, admin pouch and others; the $150 to $200 price point comes out about even.
If this is the route you choose, make sure whatever you select works for you. I highly recommend looking around and comparing prices. Doing so can save you lots of money in the long run. I also recommend sticking with quality equipment. These have been heavily tested and normally under warranty. Not to mention better quality control. Unlike the china knockoffs you won’t have to worry about getting uneven MOLLE webbing or in some cases unusable rows because they were sewn too close together. Don’t forget to apply the Kiss method to your gear as well and by kiss, I don’t mean a make out session with your gear. There are some in this community that I’m a little concerned about. I mean Keep It Stupid Simple. Carry only what you need and everything else should find a home somewhere else.
Have fun and happy hunting.