• Mossberg Owners is in the process of upgrading the software. Please bear with us while we transition to the new look and new upgraded software.

Chest rigs

I went ahead and swapped the locations of my compass pouch and tourniquet to better interface with both my pack and camelbak. Since the tourniquet is on rubber bands it can move around a bit and not block my field pack straps, and it's easier for me to thread my drinking tube under it to secure it on that side. I secured my compass/grenade pouch sideways with zip ties to have better access in that location.

Updated pic in my last post.
 
I went ahead and swapped the locations of my compass pouch and tourniquet to better interface with both my pack and camelbak. Since the tourniquet is on rubber bands it can move around a bit and not block my field pack straps, and it's easier for me to thread my drinking tube under it to secure it on that side. I secured my compass/grenade pouch sideways with zip ties to have better access in that location.

Updated pic in my last post.
LOL, I also use a grenade pouch for my compass also. ;)
 
This is a great thread. I have a chest rig for my AR pattern rifle or more to the point the rifle I used to have. We can’t have them in the socialist republic of New York. I’ve thought about reconfiguring it but it’s not really suited for it. I like what Rude and Crawford have done. Simple and somewhat minimalistic. Being in the Northeast it has to be a 4 seasons rig as well.
Hopefully some more people will chime in so I can gather ideas.
 
This is a great thread. I have a chest rig for my AR pattern rifle or more to the point the rifle I used to have. We can’t have them in the socialist republic of New York. I’ve thought about reconfiguring it but it’s not really suited for it. I like what Rude and Crawford have done. Simple and somewhat minimalistic. Being in the Northeast it has to be a 4 seasons rig as well.
Hopefully some more people will chime in so I can gather ideas.
What kind of ideas are you looking for?
 
Sorry for the double post, these two are unrelated.

Something I think that's worth mentioning is the concept of "lines of equipment." This refers to a sort of layering system of what equipment is most important to have on you vs. your gear, etc. I don't remember how the military structures their lines but my "civil use" notes have it like this:

1st Line Equipment- EDC (your pockets)
Anything you carry on your person on a daily basis.

2nd Line Equipment- Subsistence Load (your pack)
Items carried in a pack or other bag for the purpose of sustainment
or increased capability.

3rd Line Equipment- Fighting Load (Your Vest)
Equipment for the express purpose of fighting in an escalated combat scenario.

The idea is that as the line of equipment increases, so does your capability. It's really more of an organizational tool for us to help keep similar pieces of gear together. For example, it's not a good idea to keep all of your primary weapon ammunition in your field pack. It's also good to keep in mind that any items kept in the first line will stay with you regardless of what else you're carrying- so if I wanted to use a certain knife around camp, I'd keep it on my belt instead of my chest rig or pack.

For what it's worth.
 
Crawford,
I’m not 100% sure at this point what I am looking for. That’s why I’d like to see many different rigs and shamelessly steal all the good ideas that fit my design goals.
Here is a high level short list of my design goals in a very loose order of priority:
1. Relatively light weight. This would be mostly driven by number of shells I would think. Is 50 rounds a good number?
2. It must be adjustable enough for winter and summer clothing and everything in between. East on and off.
3. Other stuff. Trauma kit, a few pouches for some important items (cleaning items, fire starting items, flashlight, extra batteries, extra small knife or multi tool, gloves, phone or radio, eye and ear protection, tie wraps, etc.). I think a dump pouch is a good thing but this may be better on a heavy belt. I prefer the pistol and fighting knife on my belt so they stay with me.
4. Lots of molle attachment points for other stuff that may be mission specific.
5. Hopefully it doesn’t break the bank. You can buy a Mav 88 for about $200. A chest rig should be 1/4 to 1/2 of this maybe?
6. Color is interesting as well as important since I live in 4 season territory.

All. Please feel free to add, subtract and comment. Maybe by the end of this thread we’ll have a solid set of recommendations!
 
Crawford,
I’m not 100% sure at this point what I am looking for. That’s why I’d like to see many different rigs and shamelessly steal all the good ideas that fit my design goals.
Here is a high level short list of my design goals in a very loose order of priority:
1. Relatively light weight. This would be mostly driven by number of shells I would think. Is 50 rounds a good number?
2. It must be adjustable enough for winter and summer clothing and everything in between. East on and off.
3. Other stuff. Trauma kit, a few pouches for some important items (cleaning items, fire starting items, flashlight, extra batteries, extra small knife or multi tool, gloves, phone or radio, eye and ear protection, tie wraps, etc.). I think a dump pouch is a good thing but this may be better on a heavy belt. I prefer the pistol and fighting knife on my belt so they stay with me.
4. Lots of molle attachment points for other stuff that may be mission specific.
5. Hopefully it doesn’t break the bank. You can buy a Mav 88 for about $200. A chest rig should be 1/4 to 1/2 of this maybe?
6. Color is interesting as well as important since I live in 4 season territory.

All. Please feel free to add, subtract and comment. Maybe by the end of this thread we’ll have a solid set of recommendations!

50 rounds is all I have on mine, but for extended action I would supplement it with additional ammo in my pack just to make sure. I've always had good luck with surplus gear, it's cheap and usually built to last. Some of the Ranger rigs like the RACK can be had pretty cheap usually. My chest rig is a Condor (which now is technically mil-spec) with Eagle Industries pouches.

As for color I usually just stick with coyote tan or ranger green, there's lots of patterns out there but I have too many obscure camouflage uniforms and I like to have gear that matches. Also don't think you have to stick with the color your gear came in:
http://www.mossbergowners.com/forum/index.php?threads/project-lbv-camelbak-delta-5-gear-pics.4333/

Zip-ties and paracord are your best friend, just because something doesn't fit where you want it to doesn't mean it doesn't fit. My admin pouch is paracorded on and my compass pouch is secured sideways with zip ties. I used zip ties to stabilize my canteen pouch on my field pack as well so it doesn't sag.


Matt over at The Everyday Marksman has a few great articles on equipment setup: https://www.everydaymarksman.co/equipment/

While not strictly gear related Integrated Skills Group teaches some good mindsets to design realistically practical gear around: https://integratedskillsgroup.com/page/2/?s=chest rig

Garand Thumb on Youtube has some good videos on this as well:




For reference and inspiration I've spent countless hours poring over deployment pics of US personnel, mostly the SEALS as they rocked the RRV a lot. I have a good library of pictures saved up if you want me to post some of them.
 
Just a couple of comments for your consideration from an old guy whose been there and done that.

No single configuration will suffice for all operations. Being able to tailor your carry gear, ammunition and your weapons to the mission is important. Patrolling and dismounted ops with a vehicle where you can carry stores is totally different than being in the field on foot for three days and carrying everything on you body.

The selection of color for your weapons and carry gear should be tailored to your operational enviroment. Certainly not going to use the same paint schemes or colors for weapons and gear in the jungle as you would in the desert or even in an urban environment. Weapons and gear get painted many times to blend in as mission environments change.

Don't forget about water, lots of water.

Good Luck and Regards
 
I’m thinking that for me this rig is a day pack/mission pack. I wouldn’t venture far from home without a rifle.
One day without water can be tolerated. If I want to bring a bottle of water I could throw it in my dump pouch.
Ammo, first aid and needful things is what I’m thinking about.
 
Did a bit of work on mine the other day. First I swapped the location of my IFAK and VTAC ammo pouch. This wasn't a problem with how the rig was set up, rather I changed the way I was running my gun. Having the ammo on the right works better with violin loading, which I only started doing recently. I then began what turned into a three-week ordeal of painting the thing.
I tried at first with some colors I already had on hand, but it was getting dark and I couldn't see what I was doing. When I brought it into the light I realized I had put a lot more on than I wanted and it was very dark. In retrospect the green-brown mix I ended up with was pretty good and I should have stopped there, but I wasn't satisfied. The only tan Lowe's had was very light and ended up blending into an ugly gray mess. I went back a few more times trying to find a shade that worked to no avail. I ended up doing the whole thing in OD, and the shade I ended up with is pretty close to Ranger Green.
Ultimately I wish I'd just left it tan but there's no fixing that now. If I wanted an OD chest rig I would've bought a green one from the start. But it looks good with my AORs and the green-tan contrast with deserts reminds me of the Gulf War. Not bad, but I need to get it dirty for it to really look right.

I also bought a USMC camelbak tube with the camouflaged cover. I wasn't comfortable with the exposed mouthpiece on my old one dragging in the dirt and wanted something with a cap.

IMG_20220129_162122.jpg
 
Last edited:
Looks nice, I don't think you over did the paint at all. And is that the 5.11 pouch under your rt arm?
Yes it is. It has an elastic opening on top to pull rounds out through and is designed to fit a box of shells. I usually just dump the shells in and ditch the box to keep noise down, and I can fit 5 extra shells that way.
 
Last edited:
Yes it is. It has an elastic opening on top to pull rounds out through and is designed to fit a box of shells. I usually just dump the shells in and ditch the box to keep noise down, and I can fit 5 extra shells that way.

As for the paint, the camera picked up the colors a bit differently and the picture shows pretty much exactly what I wanted it to look like. In person there's a lot more green and not as much contrast. Part of the issue is that the "tan" I was using was actually mint, but it kinda looked tan until it mixed with the darker colors. I think I'm going to pick up some more tan to break things up a bit and make it look more like the pic.


This one shows more how it actually looks:

View attachment 26568
I have one also, pinch small for me to get my hand into but it's a good piece of gear and makes a nice backup ammo stash. I've tried the one Condor makes, same issue and (elastic feels cheap) and a lot more bulky. And it's about the same price. The 5.11 pouch stacks rounds better.
 
I have one also, pinch small for me to get my hand into but it's a good piece of gear and makes a nice backup ammo stash. I've tried the one Condor makes, same issue and (elastic feels cheap) and a lot more bulky. And it's about the same price. The 5.11 pouch stacks rounds better.
I didn't know Condor made one, normally I like Condor a lot but if it's about the same price there's not much point. I like having it as something to reload my shot cards out of if I have a bit of downtime, or as an emergency pouch if my shot card runs dry and I really need a round or too yesterday. Even though I think it's a bit overpriced for what it is I don't regret getting it one bit.
 
Back
Top