Gifts for the hunter who has everything

The principle: buy the second one, or the one he refuses to buy

"He has everything" is almost never true. What is true is that he has one of each category and a short list of things he has decided he cannot justify. Those two facts tell you exactly what to buy.

The "second one" pattern: he has a thermal scope on the rifle and no handheld, so he searches with the rifle. He has a rifle and no rest, so he shoots off a knee. He has one battery. He has a knife that lives in the truck and nothing on his belt. Every one of those is a gap he has stopped noticing.

The "refuses to buy" pattern is even easier. Snake gaiters. A proper headlamp instead of the phone torch. A clamping tripod. These are all boring, all genuinely improve a night, and all lose to "I'll get it next season" every single year. That is what a gift is for.

What to buy, and for whom

1. A pocket thermal scanner — RIX Pocket K3

Our pick, and the one we would buy for almost anybody in this situation. If he owns a thermal scope, he has been finding hogs by panning a rifle, which is slow, awkward and unsafe. A small 384 monocular in his off hand means he finds the animal first and only mounts the rifle on something he has already identified. RIX publishes the Storm and Pocket line specifications, and it is the lightest 384 in our registry. The full case for owning both is on thermal monocular vs thermal scope.

2. A three-colour scanning headlamp — Wicked Lights ScanPro iC GEN4

For the hunter who does it the old way, and does it well. Wicked Lights publishes green, red and white LEDs with centre-axis colour change, full brightness control and a spot-to-flood bezel. The centre-axis part matters: the beam does not shift when he changes colour, so what he found in green stays where it was in white. Hands free, which a handheld never is while you are also carrying a rifle. Our colour argument is on red vs green light for hog hunting.

3. A clamping tripod — BOG DeathGrip

The least exciting thing on this page and probably the one that improves his hit rate most. It physically clamps the rifle, so a long sit on a feeder does not end in an unsupported shot at a moving animal. We rank the whole category on best shooting sticks and run the head-to-head on Primos Trigger Stick vs BOG DeathGrip.

4. A real belt knife — TOPS Knives Wild Pig Hunter

TOPS publishes this as a heavy fixed-blade built for hog work, and it is the gift on this list that actually looks like one. He has a knife. He does not have this knife, and a fixed blade with a published steel and a sheath is a thing people keep for thirty years. If he prefers a replaceable-blade system for field dressing, that is on best hog hunting knives.

5. Snake gaiters — TurtleSkin SnakeArmor

The thing he will never buy and will wear every warm night once he has them. TurtleSkin is one of the few makers publishing its own puncture testing, and these are the lightweight option rather than a full boot, so they go over whatever he already wears. Our ranking, including the honest note about availability, is on best snake boots and gaiters.

6. A long-range thermal monocular — Pulsar Telos LRF XP50

If the budget is genuinely open, this is the gift. Pulsar publishes a long-range thermal handheld with a built-in laser rangefinder, which is the one upgrade a hunter with a good scope cannot replicate with anything else he owns. We rank this category on best long-range thermal monoculars and best thermal monoculars with a rangefinder.

7. For the gadget hunter — Armasight Sidekick 640 Mini

A 640 sensor in something small enough to wear, with a dovetail mini-rail built into the body rather than bought separately — Armasight publishes recognition and identification ranges alongside its detection claim, which almost nobody does. Be honest with yourself about the battery: this is a CR123A unit and it is thirsty. If he likes hardware for its own sake, he will love it. Context on best helmet-mounted thermal monoculars.

Sorting it by budget

If none of these fits, our other two gift pages are sorted differently: gifts for hog hunters by category, and gifts for hunters under $50 by price.

What not to buy him

• Another camo jacket. He has it, it fits, and yours will not. Clothing for hunters you do not hunt with is a returns problem; our what to wear hog hunting page exists so he can choose his own.
• Anything that has to match his rifle. Mounts, rings, rails, magazines. Thread pitch, rail type and ring height are all things you cannot guess.
• A cheap "thermal" from a marketplace listing. If a listing will not publish a sensor resolution and pixel pitch, it is not a thermal optic worth owning — see best thermal scope under $500 for how that trap works.
• Firearms, ammunition or anything regulated. Not a gift you order online for someone else.
• A novelty. The hunter who has everything is exactly the person who does not want a mug.

A note on buying optics as a gift

Two practical warnings. First, check the return window against the date you are giving it — optics bought in November and opened at Christmas are sometimes outside it. Second, a thermal or night-vision unit needs charging and setting up before it is any fun, so if you can, put a battery in it and charge it before you wrap it. Nothing kills a present faster than a dead optic and a manual.

And if you are buying your first optic for someone and have no idea where to start, read how much a thermal scope costs first. It will tell you in two minutes whether the budget you had in mind buys a real unit or a disappointment.

How to choose, in order

1. Find out whether he hunts with thermal or with light. Everything follows from that.
2. Look for the missing second item — a scanner, a rest, a spare battery, a belt knife.
3. Prefer the thing he has refused to buy over the thing he has asked for; he will buy the latter anyway.
4. Avoid anything that must fit a specific rifle.
5. Check the return window against the giving date.
6. Charge it and set it up before you wrap it.