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Reader Survey >Walked-up grouse kit: seven essentials for the hill
- Last updated: 24/08/2026
Seven pieces of walked-up grouse kit picked for reliability and low weight, from a hand-made bridle hide cartridge belt at £295 to a pair of £29.95 polarised sunglasses.
There is nowhere to hide on a walked-up day. It is you, the gun, the dog and whatever you decided to put in your pockets before setting off, and because the vehicle is hours away, anything that fails has to be carried home broken. Reliability comes before everything else.
Weight is the other half of it. An ounce that means nothing at the truck means a great deal by mid-afternoon on rough, unforgiving ground, and a walked-up day is draining enough without it. The seven items here earn their place by working quietly and without fuss. None of them will make you a better shot, but they will mean you are ready when the birds get up.
None of this is a head-to-head test. The selection is editorial judgement and manufacturer specification, and the items are not directly comparable with one another in any case: a choke, a belt and a pair of earplugs solve different problems on the same day out. Prices are RRP at the time of publication and may since have changed.
Reliability, then weight, then everything else. You are a long way from the vehicle for hours at a time, so kit that jams, chafes, fogs or comes apart is dead weight for the rest of the day. Proven materials are what to look for – bridle hide, rubberised cotton canvas, stainless steel, wool tweed – along with buckles and fastenings you can work with cold, wet hands.
Then decide what you can leave behind. Cartridges, ear protection and eye protection are not on that list. Beyond them, a slip that dries out properly and a waistcoat that lets you swing freely are what separate a comfortable day from a long one.
These two spend the whole day on you or over your shoulder, and they are the two you will notice most if you get them wrong.
Bridle hide and a solid brass buckle, made in the UK and offered in five bore sizes.
Made in the UK from top-grade bridle hide and closed with a solid brass buckle, this belt carries 50 cartridges and looks the part doing it. The old-fashioned fastening is the clever bit: the spare length of leather tucks away inside rather than bunching against your jacket. Five bore sizes are offered, and it is built for comfort and durability over tough ground.
Rubberised cotton canvas, a full-length zip for drying and hand-sewn muzzle blocking.
The Rosedale is 100% cotton canvas laminated with natural rubber, so it is genuinely waterproof, and it pairs the traditional flap-and-buckle closure with a zip so the slip can be opened out and dried. The straps are vegetable-tanned bridle leather, the buckles solid brass and the muzzle blocking hand-sewn. Inside there is a padded fleece lining, and a leather shoulder sling is included. It takes 30in to 32in barrels.
Grouse come fast and often close, and constriction and load are the last two things you can still change on the morning of the shoot.
CNC-machined in England from aerospace-grade stainless, and changed by hand.
Machined in England from aerospace-grade stainless steel, this extended thin-wall choke is 8.02cm long and weighs 18g, with field-tested constriction dimensions matched to an 18.5mm bore. The 1.01cm tapered section is there to smooth the shot column’s transition and tighten pattern density, and the knurled body is changed by hand, so there is no choke key to lose.
A 2½in load in 28g and 30g, in No 5, No 6 and No 7 shot.
An Anglo-Italian collaboration: traditional British design with Italian performance behind it. The Professional Game is a 2½in (65mm) cartridge with a smooth recoil that gives confidence across a wide range of quarry, which is what the traditional shooter wants. It comes in 28g and 30g loads in No 5, No 6 and No 7 shot, and a non-lead Blueshot version is due this year in a 25g load.
Neither of these counts as a luxury. Hearing you lose does not come back, and a day of glare and wind on an open moor punishes your eyes long before anything is shot at.
Moulded to your own ear, and upgradeable to electronic later.
Passive plugs moulded to the shape of your own ear, which is what delivers both the seal and the comfort. The clever part is that they are built to be upgraded: the digital electronic module can be retrofitted whenever you choose, so the cost is spread rather than paid all at once. Colours and branding can be specified to taste.
The cheapest item here at £29.95, and a full wrap-around frame.
Matte black TR90 nylon frames with brown polarised lenses, offering Class 1 optical precision and UV400 protection at a price that makes a spare pair painless. The full wrap-around shape blocks glare and side wind, non-slip temples keep them where you put them, and the lenses are impact-resistant and shatterproof. A pouch, cleaning cloth, hard case and polarised test card are included.
Even in poor weather, walking-up is warm work. A waistcoat solves it: pockets and a windproof front, with nothing wrapped round your arms.
Water-repellent 100% wool tweed with suede shoulder patches and gusseted pockets.
A 100% wool tweed waistcoat built for the field rather than the car park, with a water-repellent outer and soft suede shoulder patches. The pockets are generously gusseted, there is an internal pocket for the things you would rather not lose, and the cut leaves your arms free. The contrast lining is a nice touch over a jumper.
A gun, cartridges and a way of carrying both, then ear and eye protection and clothing you can walk and swing in. Everything has to be reliable and as light as you can make it, because you are hours from the vehicle: that means a belt or bag, a slip, plugs, glasses and a waistcoat or jacket that does not fight you.
Fifty is the usual working load, which is exactly what a traditional double row belt like this one holds, and it keeps the weight sensible over rough ground. Fine Shooting Accessories offers the belt in five bore sizes.
The RC Professional Game covers the usual ground for grouse and other traditional quarry: 28g and 30g loads in No 5, No 6 and No 7. It is a 2½in (65mm) cartridge with smooth recoil, and a non-lead Blueshot version in 25g is promised for this year.
Yes. Plugs moulded to your own ear, such as the CENS ProFlex, seal properly and stay comfortable through a long day, which is more than can be said for anything generic. The ProFlex is passive, but the digital electronic module can be fitted later if you decide you want it.
Yes, and for glare and wind as much as for safety. The Carmel gives Class 1 optical precision, UV400 protection and impact-resistant, shatterproof lenses in a wrap-around frame that keeps the side wind out of your eyes on an exposed hill.
From £29.95 to £412 per 1,000. In order: the Evolution Carmel sunglasses at £29.95, the Teague choke at £63, the CENS earplugs from £99, the Alan Paine waistcoat at £219.95, the Croots slip at £264, the Fine Shooting Accessories belt from £295 and the RC Professional Game cartridges from £412 per 1,000. All figures are RRP at the time of publication.
Five high-end game guns compared: £5,915 to £19,500 – top-of-the-range over-and-unders, if the gun is the next thing on the list.
Best shooting jackets: tweed and technical coats for every discipline – what goes over the waistcoat when the weather turns.
Choosing shooting ear protection that you will actually wear – passive, electronic or custom-moulded, and why fit decides it.
Shooting glasses demystified – comfort, fogging, and why glasses affect your ear protection.
Metin cartridge belt – a cheaper belt on test, for comparison with the bridle hide.
Michael Yardley’s guide to choosing a game gun – fit, weight and bore for the walked-up and driven field.
