It’s no secret by now that I love shotguns. It doesn’t matter if it’s big or small, I love it. One of the issues with shotguns is trying to carry spare ammunition. There are a number of great option, like the AmmoPal.
Other than that there are some pouches, bandoleers, and those little mini bandoleers that hook to MOLLE. There are options, but few offer a quick means to reload, that also carry a substantial amount of ammo. Until recently I never knew there was even a low profile option.
There is an option out there that offers quick reloads, a substantial capacity, and is a low profile option. From our friends at Gadsen Dynamics, we have the Underground Partisan chest rig. This shotgun chest rig is keeping this shotgunner smiling.
The Design
Shotgun chest rigs have been done before, but they’ve never been streamlined or as compact as the Underground Partisan. This is a very simple shotgun chest rig that works. It’s two rows of nylon that accommodates 24 shotgun shells. The rows run horizontally and the nylon material is nice and gripy.
You have a set of shoulder straps and of course a belt around the chest. The straps are nice and wide and support the weight of 24 shells of 00 well. It’s easy to adjust for the body and necessary to keep anything from sliding around when you are moving.
Shotguns aren’t high volume weapons. You aren’t really going to be suppressing targets with a shotgun. 24 rounds is a lot of shotgun ammo, especially when you consider the ammo in your gun and on your gun. With my Mossberg 930 SPX I have 8 rounds in the gun, 6 rounds in a side saddle and then 24 rounds on this shotgun chest rig. That’s a lot of buckshot.
Shotguns also have limited capacity. To stay in the fight you need to be able to keep your shotgun loaded as much as possible at all times. This necessitates the ability to reload the gun quickly, and preferably without much complication. The Underground Partisan places the ammo inside your workspace. It’s easy to reach up and down this shotgun chest rig for extra rounds.
The Underground Partisan is much more intuitive than reaching for a bandoleer of ammo. Plus, unlike a bandoleer, it doesn’t slide around awkwardly. I can reach each and every round without having to compromise my firing grip or having to lower my shotgun in any way.
Range Time with the Underground Partisan
I’ve been chewing through round after round with this chest rig, with both semi-auto and pump action shotguns. I’ve also taken it to task with a PGO shotgun like the TAC 14. I did a variety of simple reload drills rocking the Underground Partisan.
The standard shoot two, load two, as well as topping off the gun as fast as possible. I also did the typical ‘Oh crap” drill where I ran the gun empty and speed fed shotguns directly into the port.
There is a slight learning curve to retrieving the rounds. For one, you have to start with the top row and work your way to the bottom row. If you try to feed from the bottom row before you feed from the top you’ll have an issue with the top row getting in the way.
Don’t get the idea that you can load a top row of buck and a bottom row of slugs and alternate as you need to. To me, this isn’t an issue. If I really need slugs I’ll bring a rifle, not a shotgun.
I went through multiple positions with the rig. There were no issues with using the chest rig in the kneeling, or from behind cover. It’s such a small and accessible panel that its impossible for it not to be accessible. I was really impressed also how well the Underground Partisan held rounds. They never slid, even after reload after reload.
I’ve been through a fortune worth of shotgun rounds testing this shotgun chest rig and enjoyed it every second.
Concealed?
Yes, you can easily conceal this rig under a light windbreaker, or even a slightly baggy button-down shirt. The small nature adds hardly any bulk to your body and I could conceal it under the right shirt with ease. Plaid or plain black seemed to work the best.
The Underground Partisan shotgun chest rig is perfect for low profile use. Back in the day, this would have been a deadly combination for a U.S. Marshal with a Witness protection shotgun. The Underground Partisan pairs well with the Mossberg Shockwave and Remington TAC 14. Small 12 gauge firearms paired with a decent amount of ammo can make you a real powerhouse.
You can get it, as well as many others, chest rig at Gadsen Dynamics.
