HEATED HUNTER GOHUNTSHELL JACKET & BATTERY IN REVIEW

If you are a northern hunter like I am you know what it’s like to be cold.

Sitting on the hunting stand the Ohio winters can feel like the Arctic tundra.

I take a look at the Heated Hunter Gohuntshell Jacket that has been quite trending online and here is how it did.

First off I requested the size extra large since I usually wear large. For my hunting outerwear, I like extra room for adding layers as needed. As you can see in the pictures the sizes run small. I would recommend going up two sizes if you want a roomier fit. If you are wearing the jacket as an inner base layer, then go up one size for the fit shown in my review jacket.

The inside of the jacket has a soft black fuzzy material like the old school “moleskin”. The jacket has many zippered pockets for your gear. I find that to be very important so you don’t lose any gear. Also a hood with a drawstring is present which also is a very positive addition to any winter coat. The drawstring is sort of odd though as part of it is not housed in the hood itself and grips on your face. On the first image in this review you can notice the air spaces that this allows for wind to enter and heat escape. That feature puzzles me.

So the power unit of the jacket itself is a plug in 10,000mAh Battery. This is actually purchased separately from the jacket and I received it a few days after I received the jacket.

The big plus of this battery is it allows the charging of cell phones and other electrical devices also afield. There is an LED light on the battery that can be turned on when needed. Now that is a handy item to have out in the wilds or on the go.

With a 3 second press of the button the button will light up red. There are actually 3 modes of heat. The first one is the green light mode. Green is the lowest setting. It is listed at 77 degrees Fahrenheit lasting 6-8 hours.

The blue mode is a medium setting that lists at 95 degrees Fahrenheit lasting 5-6 hours.

Now the red setting is the high mode. That temperature lists at 113 degrees Fahrenheit lasting 4 hours.

I have mixed feelings on this jacket. While I do really like the option of having heat on demand watching the battery power on full power run down on a long hunt is a bit disappointing. The charging cord did not come with an outlet plug so I had to use my own. That plug gets quite hot when charging. As previously stated I prefer more room in my hunting gear and the sizes run small. Even when powered on the highest setting, you need to wear this jacket with a heavier outer coat to preserve your electric produced heat along with your own heat. Don’t wear this jacket alone on the hunt but use it as an under layer. Another thing I noticed is the zipper is actually on the left side of the closure as such is found on female clothing here in the U.S. as it is imported from China. Male clothing zippers have historically been on the right side and it takes a bit of getting used to when you are familiar with the standard set up on other clothing. My wife also mentioned to me that the jacket looks geared more to the huntress than male hunters with the fit and zipper side. That was her observation as a hunter also, and I see her point as it is certainly a fitted design.

In summary I might be jaded a bit with the allure of electrically heated clothing due to the need of a power source to charge it. In the back country there are not many power plugs to charge your gear. The old standard for hunters for centuries such as the classic wool hunting suits or the newer high tech insulating hunting outfits such as Sitka Gear do not require batteries to fail. Remember those old electric socks you tried hunting in decades ago? Well in my opinion this is the modern version of those.

While I am quite a bit critical of this product others might not be. Really, each hunter needs to try this type of set up to see if it will work well for them. I am quite thankful for the chance to try out it out. Check out the Heated Hunter Gohuntshell Jacket and battery or their other products to try them out for yourself by heading on over to the Heated Hunter website.

Do you like articles about the outdoors? You can follow him @ericthewoodsman on Twitter, The Classic Woodsman on Facebook, and @theclassicwoodsman on Instagram, The Classic Woodsman, and The Classic Woodsman YouTube Channel. 

NEXT: 5.11 REVIEW: ACADIA DOWN JACKET PUT TO THE TEST