Field Tested: KUIU PRO G3 Bino Harness

Just because most binoculars come with a strap doesn’t mean you should use it. After all, bowhunting isn’t a walk in the park or a bird-watching expedition; it’s a high-impact action sport that often involves not just strenuous hiking and tree climbing but rock scrambling, sprinting, fence jumping, belly crawling and shooting. If you’ve ever attempted such activities with binoculars dangling from a strap around your neck, you know it’s a serious safety hazard — for your binos and for you!

That’s why most modern bowhunters employ a bino harness of some sort, allowing you to keep your optic at the ready while also protecting it and holding it securely against your body. The number of high-quality bino harness options has exploded in recent years, but the latest offering from KUIU — the PRO G3 Bino Harness — is arguably the best one yet, thanks to a ton of innovative features and the ability to seamlessly incorporate a line of custom accessories.

Let’s start with the PRO G3 Harness itself. Available in two sizes, the harness is designed to accommodate a wide variety of binoculars from compact 8x32s all the way up to 15x56s. The Large harness weighs 13.6 ounces and measures 8.5 inches high, 6.5 inches wide and 3.25 inches deep, while the Extra Large weighs 14.4 ounces and measures 9.25 inches high, 7 inches wide and 3.75 inches deep. Each harness also comes with a trio of stackable foam shims to customize the height of your binos inside the pouch.

Speaking of the pouch, it features an adjustable, forward-folding cinch lid built from quiet, fleece-lined fabric with a waterproof membrane, keeping your binos protected from moisture, dust and debris while you’re on the move but allowing you to easily access your optic with one hand when needed. KUIU also built the pouch with a patented, shapeable pouch opening to accommodate all binocular shapes without obstruction. Adjustable binocular connection straps are independent of the harness and quickly detach for tripod use during extended glassing sessions.

Other highlights of the harness include a comfortable, padded mesh liner between the bino pouch and your chest, an open pocket on the rear of the pouch, a zippered license pocket on the front of the pouch, two side stuff pockets and a fully adjustable fabric and webbing harness with quick-release side buckles.

The PRO G3 is very comfortable and highly functional. But what really sets it apart from the crowd is KUIU’s new, patent-pending Rail-Lock track system used to connect compatible accessories. The Rail-Lock employs a tongue-and-groove connection built from a durable but flexible polymer. Grooved Rail-Lock sections are found on both sides of the binocular harness, as well as the bottom. Compatible accessories feature tongue sections of Rail-Lock that mate with the grooved sections on the harness, allowing you to place them exactly where you like. The Rail-Lock connection is quick, easy, silent and secure, eliminating the need to thread harness webbing through accessories or mess around with a bunch of straps and buckles.

The PRO G3 harness comes with a Rail-Lock ammo holder designed to hold six rifle cartridges. KUIU also sells four optional Rail-Lock accessories separately: a Rangefinder Holder, Phone Holder, Bear Spray Holder and Accessory Pocket. All accessories can be attached exactly where you like — on either side of the harness or the bottom. The back side of Rail-Lock accessories also features a pair of loops that allow you to wear the items on your belt or attach them to your pack or other gear via a Molle system.

KUIU claims its innovative Rail-Lock system is the best modular bino harness system ever, and after using it in the field, it’s hard to argue. This modular system makes it extremely easy to customize your harness system for your personal needs, even allowing the harness and accessories to pull double duty as a minimalist pack. For example, I believe the PRO G3 harness paired with accessories can easily serve as a small pack for half-day whitetail hunts, and even out West, it can hold all the essentials you’ll need for a stalk when it’s time to drop your pack and get after that buck or bull you’ve been watching for hours.

The PRO G3 Harness and compatible accessories are available in Evergreen and Ash solid colors and KUIU’s Valo, Verde and Vias camouflage patterns. And, like all KUIU products, they come with a limited lifetime warranty.

$129 (PRO G3 Bino Harness), $29-$39 (harness accessories) | kuiu.com

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