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Icebreaker wool base layer
Details
Material- 100% pure merino wool. Style- body fit, 260(thickness) top,
200 bottoms. “Tech Top” i.e. has a turtle neck zipper.
Price:
L/S “Tech Top”- $99. Bottoms with fly- $65
Home
page
: www.icebreaker.com
I recently
looked into some new base layers and after browsing a lot of different
kinds (polyester, wool, or a blend of the two) settled on trying out the
icebreaker wool version; both a long sleeve shirt and some underpants.
Bought these after talking to a security contractor who recently
returned from Afghanistan (where I’m going for my next tour)
Pros
Feels great; I never particularly
liked the feel of the polyester silks against my skin. Don’t get me wrong they feel good, but not
as good as soft wool.
Warmth/Coolness; with polyester made base layers it always seems that
when I get moving I heat up quick, and get hot very rapidly. And then
when I stopped moving cooled down quickly as well. Wool seems to have
this innate sense of how warm I want to be, it never seems to get to hot
(unless its just plain warm out) when I start working, and takes longer
to cool down giving that nice sustained warmth. I worked out side moving
bricks, metal, chopping wood, etc and never got to warm/cold with temps
around 20-50 degrees F wearing this, a shirt and a light jacket. Below
20 and it becomes noticeably cool but not to the point I was shivering
and looking for the nearest heater.
Breath
ability/smell; polyester just has that smothering feeling for me, it
nice and warm but kinda sticky too. Wool just breaths better to me, plus
have the advantage that after it airs out over night it is nearly fresh
again where as polyester still smells like its fresh out of your gym
bag.
Cons
Durability; It has been said in other articles I’ve read that wool just
doesn’t seem to hold up as long as other base layers. The washing
instructions to call for hand/cold wash and air drying, so it probably
is less durable but I have not had my wool base layers long enough yet
to say one way or another.
Cost;
admittedly wool is more expensive, but from what I have seen so far well
worth the cost. Further I lucked out and ran into a great guy at the
local Backwoods (www.backwoods.com)
store here in Tulsa who hooked me up with the “boy scout” discount
because I was military. I guess I’m just a big grown up one that gets to
shoot shit and save peoples lives that all
J
Icebreaker
it’s self
So far I
love my Icebreaker's. They come in a lot of various thickness rated in a
easy number system lower being lighter and higher being heavier. The 260
weight has been perfect so far for 20-50 with a variance of course on
what else your wearing and how mobile your going to be. Further I was
told that they are a little more durable as some of their competitors
and also cheaper, which is always nice.
The top I
bought came with a zipper and is known as a “Tech Top,” unlike most
turtle necks I’ve gotten with a zipper this one is nice, small, durable,
and feels nice (instead of pinching at your throat). The seams feel
great; actually don’t really feel them at all. Keep in mind Icebreaker
has many different styles and weights to offer.
Related articles
www.gearjunkie.com/wool-base-layer-test
www.fitnesstravelgear.com/archive/smartwoolbaselayer
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