Hi am looking at buying some new riding kit ,can anyone suggest a good base layer .
And are merino wool ones as good as people say .
The Endura Merino are pretty good. Mine has worn and washed well amd is quite warm.
Endura Baa Baa is good, as is the Howies mid weight. Merino is every bit as good as people say.
I've recently bought a couple of base layers and can highly recommend smartwool microweight zip tee from cotswold outdoor.
yes merino is good
icebreaker mid-weight (250?)
can sometimes be found cheap in blacks or field and trek
Thanks for info my local bike shop has the endura ba bas on offer so will try one of them
Dissenting voice as far as merino is concerned; its warm, but it's not as good as man-made stuff at wicking and keeping you dry. I'm not a stinky sweater, so the other advantage means little to me either. As for longevity, one of my 9 or so base layers is a helly hansen lifa from 1990, admittedly with the sleeves chopped off.
I'm with Crikey on this. Merino is cosy, but it loads up with moisture and take a while to dry. I've just been trying a Di Marchi Contour this week and it's been great. Very snug fit, wicks well, dries quick and has a mesh ventilation panel under each armpit/sleeve. Seems not to hold body odours either.
What crikey says.
Merino it's a bit warmer looks a bike nicer but doesn't wick as good as man-made stuff.
Ground Effects is awsome. My blue and white top has taken all kinds of abuse.
FWIW, I use both merino and helly stuff, depending on the weather and what I'm doing.
If you want warm, and it's cold weather, go for merino (need only be rather lightweight, as it's very warm even when wet.)
If you want a garment that will keep you dry, and you don't sweat like the proverbial, then synthetics are really good. They still shift sweat better than a merino if you DO sweat like the proverbial, but they're not going to actually keep you dry. They're not usually as warm when wet though, so think about how much you sweat and whether you'll be wearing really breathable layers on top/a waterproof/or getting soaked through in the rain.
If you just want the one, look at Sportwool garments, which are a mix of poly and merino, and are a very good balance between warm and quick drying.
Craft are very good.
Howies Merino - ace warm n wicking, lasted OK.
Patagonia Merino - best one so far for long, wet days paddling, riding or walking.
(niether merino smell either - wore one for 3 days/11 Munro's last week without niffyness)
Patagonia Capeline - best for hot weather, wicks better than anything else, comfy, looks like a T-shirt, not as stinky as some man made fibres.
From here on its Patagonia Capeline and Wool all the way for me.
Endura baselayer (not sure what model) - warm, but a 'holds' sweat a bit and pongs baaaad
Berghaus - cheap, wet, cold, smelly pile of poop.
Old Hellys - smelly, wick well, but not warm.
Just bought a Vangard base layer,short sleeved ,wore it last night. Ace. Will report when it's done more work.
like my Embers one picked up at Mountain Maddnes
2nd the DeMarchi - i sweat like you would not believe and its working out well.
2nd the Embers merino too. Great wee company. Nice people to buy from and a great product.
I got a bamboo long sleeve base layer the other week and impressed so far. Feels like very fine merino but is a lot cheaper and seems to dry reasonably quickly, also pretty warm. Only worn it once on the bike so far but think I'll be using it a lot as the temp drops.
a second for the patagona capilene, they are great and come in different thickness grades so can layer up as required.
the long johns are pretty sweet too!
Second shout for Vangard here - undiscovered gems!
NATO approved and from a 50 year old ski basewear company
wicks quicker than anything else i've found and can wash it at 90deg with no problems so not niffy either
Just to add to the thread went for a bike ride and decide to take the merino t shirt (I usually use it for commute) and it was
pants
crap
rubbish
I change it for a second skin from sportfull as soon as i could as it was soaking wet and freezing my a$$ out.
So know it's back to patagonia capilene or nike compression top.
[url= http://www.lidl.co.uk/uk/home.nsf/pages/c.o.20091105.p.Thermal_Long-sleeved_Sports_Top.ar10 ]These [/url]are very good & cheap
If they're the same ones as they did last year - I can't fault them