[Closed] Merino baselayers

SportPursuit are currently doing a storming deal on some Icebreaker stuff. I've sent you a link

Join ground effect mailing list get 30 dollars coucher then buy submerino

Think Mountain Warehouse had some the other day...or it might have been Go Outdoors

I wont go back to using regular baselayers after getting some, the cheep ones from on one are fine for the money. My dhb (wiggle?) long sleved one is better quality and ideal under a rain jacket.

The Mountain Warehouse ones are, I'm sorry to say, cheap wool and are actually quite scratchy 🙁

I've got a Helly Merino. It's awesome, I'd google deals on that.

there's been a few threads on here recently pointing out that they are actually not the bees knees - so worth checking back.

They get wet, which doesn't generally matter as you keep it warm with body heat, but in certain circumstance, like if you are off the bike injured, or standing around in the cold, then they can make you feel cold.

I bought some for my wife skiing (2 icebreakers) and she hated them and they went in the bin, or maybe recycling.

It has been suggested that the hybrid mixes or some merino and some synthetic work really well, like the Helly Hansen Warm range.

I find it needs to be seriously cold before I wear merino - ooh at least minus 5 degrees.

Newer Ice Breaker ones are inferior to the older (5 years maybe) version.

After having quite a few different brands of merino (endura,ice breaker, howies,kona etc) over the last few years I reckon Finisterre stuff is the best quality, not cheap but lasts and works far better than the others, Howies especially seem to have gone down in quality over the last few years.

I have Icebreaker which is excellent, I cannot say whether they are worth the premium but as I am very happy with the ones I've got I'm happy to buy again (one 5yrs old, 1 new). FYI I also have Musto, Helly H and Canterbury base layers - all good for different purposes.

I get size-smaller thin merino jumpers from TKMaxx for £10-15. It's the chap's choice.

Newer Ice Breaker ones are inferior to the older (5 years maybe) version.

this was more than 5 years ago...

I looove my Howies ones. Also had/have an Endura Baa Baa which is pretty good too, but if you want cheap, Decathlon have got some great bargains at the moment.

I bought some for my wife skiing (2 icebreakers) and she hated them and they went in the bin, or maybe recycling.

It has been suggested that the hybrid mixes or some merino and some synthetic work really well, like the Helly Hansen Warm range.

They get wet, which doesn't generally matter as you keep it warm with body heat, but in certain circumstance, like if you are off the bike injured, or standing around in the cold, then they can make you feel cold.

But then I can also wear it for a week and not pong - win!

http://www.adventure-kit.co.uk/2011/01/baselayers-review/

Decathlon have some superb base layers just now. I bout two last week for £4.99 each, and they really are superb.
They also have merino ones, a bit dearer at £15 or something, but going by the quality of most of their other gear I'd definately give them a whirl. 😀

Helly Hansen are the best base layers i've used, they really do work better than any polyester type top out there, they really do stay drier longer and dry out quicker.
Also have some merino which doesnt wick as well as the HH but does keep you warmer and also can keep you cool so are quite flexible, great for mtb, cant wait to see how they work skiing.

forget your polyester base layers. a £4.99 one will work as well as an under armour or nike pro one for £50 imo, your just paying for the cut and fit and label.

HH base layers are polypropylene and i recon combined with merino would be the best of both worlds, quick drying with warm/cool propeties.

Theres also a vast difference in merino wool quality, as others have said, some are scratchy some are fluffly, my merino from NZ is coarse but works well and the icebreaker refined, both work well.

icebreaker prices are crazy, i just ordered another but HH is better imo

I'm a big fan of merino and Icebreaker in particular. I also have some Ground Effects stuff and a HH warm base layer, all of which I'd happily recommend. A couple of tips: never use bio detergent and always ensure zippers are fastened when machine washing… will prolong the life.

embers merino is best i have had.
Bought 4 years ago, still going strong.

Another HH Warm user checking in - I bought 3 from Sports Direct for under £20 each last year (marked at £50 & £60 R.R.P!) and have another on order from Sport Pursuit, although not as cheap. Don't seem to whiff as much as the regular polypropylene HH base layers, so can manage 2-3 days' use rather than just the one day.

I use the follwing;
Icebreaker - Not cheap, but damned good!
Patagonia (aka Patagucci) - As above. I bought a bucket load in TKMaxx. It's very, very good.
Helly Warm - Wow. All the benefit of a Helly base layer in terms of wicking, but then the brilliance of merino as well. Awesome.
Endura - OK, good value stuff.

Scott Base from NZ.
Warmer still is possum and merino mix.

Warmer still is possum and merino mix.

Is that vegan friendly? I hate to think about possums being live plucked... 😉

[quote=BadlyWiredDog ]Warmer still is possum and merino mix.
Is that vegan friendly? I hate to think about possums being live plucked...

Since 1996, possum fur has been used in clothing. A blend of New Zealand brushtailed possum fur with merino wool was developed by Snowy Peak ltd, the parent company of Untouched World, a New Zealand fashion label. Their possum and merino blend products are called Ecopossum and Merinomink. Other merino possum products are possumdown, eco fur or possum wool. Possum fur is also used for fur trim, jackets, bed throws, and possum leather gloves. [b]All the fur is obtained from about 2 million per year wild-caught possums, which are considered pests[/b]

feel free to email me for a sportpursuit referal code 😉 to get your HH or icebreaker base layers 🙂

had possum/merino in both socks and a top and don't rate it really. Probably warmer than merino, but as a base layer it doesn't seem to move moisture/keep me as dry feeling as merino or a decent synthetic on either the feet or upper body.
Both shrunk heavily as well, the socks became unwearable, and the tee became far too short.
Sheds lots of fibres as well.

Seemed to me that it was a resource that nobody knew what to do with, then someone had the bright idea of mixing it with merino and adding in a dose of marketing bullshit.

Amazon have the HH warm tops for £25.50 in black. Looks like old stock, doesn't have the piping detail of this years version, but a good deal. I just ordered two, hoping they don't stink like the normal ones do!

Possum are pests as they are introduced species who bugger indeginous species.
In my experience, letting wife wash or mother wash anything woollen is a disaster, it's become a running joke. Dunno what happens but they get turned to felt. Cold wash or 20 degrees and woolite and by a man and its fine

True about base layer, but the jerseys are amazing, like central heating.

@cfh - Patagonia at TK Maxx ?

Amazon have the HH warm tops for £25.50 in black.

Excellent spot - thanks!

Would second that re Embers, easily compare to the Icebreaker tees I have. Will have to check out TK Maxx for thin merino jumpers too. Need another 1.

I love merino at work.. or just messing about. On the bike it's rapidly dropped to my least fav bit of kit ever. Icebreakers in different types,lidl's crevit ss, M&s ls.. I get wet in them with ease no matter which combo of other layers I use. Like someone mentioned above,they get wet and if you have to stop it gets bloody cold. Just fished out an old Endura mid layer I bought about 10 years ago and after mondays ride with it under a gore windstopper and nothing else (10c dropped to 6.5c by the final descent back home) I was still warm. I reckon I'd have been half way to hypo if I had my merino on for the last 15 mins of foggy descending.The Endura is something like 80% nylon,20% lycra. One piece of kit I'm glad I never binned.

Wait for an On One offer and get a range of styles and weights.

I find it needs to be seriously cold before I wear merino - ooh at least minus 5 degrees.

They do different weights. I have the lightest weight (150grm?) and wore it this weekend under a mid-weight jersey riding in ~12-14C. Munqe Chick took hers to India which was hardly cold (they have the travel-friendly factor of not smelling when worn repeatedly unwashed, unlike smelly hansens and other synthetics). The heaviest weight (250grm?) is used for winter riding, snowboarding, or as a base layer under leather motorcycling at this time of year.

Having initially bought one each from On One we are both converts and now own several between us. They havent fallen apart or lost shape yet and wash well.

@cfh - Patagonia at TK Maxx ?

Yep. Was a few years ago, but the Salisbury branch suddenly had a shedload of the stuff. So I bought it. All.

Being a sweaty be-stard as I am it sounds like merino is not for me.
So it looks like the trusty old Canterbury Cold will be purchased.

Merino is brilliant , provided you dont snag it on anything ,
as it tears like tissue compared to other base layers I have.
Most of my merino base layers look like something madonna would have worn in't 80's! 😯

I too am a merino traitor. I bought a few bits but have gradually reverted to man made, mainly capilene but because it is so expensive I only have two, both sale items. The merino is fine for walking or just staying warm when it's really cold but I find it too damp on a long ride.I have some mixture base layers and they aren't as damp as pure merino but equally aren't as good as synth. Any suggestions for man made as good as Patagonia but much cheaper?

Decathlon do some under the Quechua brand - they call it 'techwool'. These are very good - as good as Icebreaker (which I also have, and rate) but much much cheaper.

Howies NBL for me, I wear one pretty much every day and my first one (10 years old, maybe more) is still going strong. Haven't noticed a change in quality at all. Normal wash over and over again, always feel great.

25% off just now, so under 40 quid for a long sleeve one.

25% off just now, so under 40 quid for a long sleeve one.

I've been wearing some Smartwool ultralight merino baselayers year round and really rate them (although as already mentioned they do tear like tissue paper, and a long-sleeved one got turned into a short sleeved one after a brush with a tree at Afan).

They've washed well, are a good fit, never get sweaty and are soft and non-itchy against the skin. I've bought a few more from Cotswold Outdoor who are having a bit of a sale on [url= http://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/index.cfm/brand/smartwool/fuseaction/products.brand/code/smartwool.html ]Smartwool[/url] at the moment.

Really rate the Rab Meco stuff - mixture of merino and bamboo. Seems to wick and dry as well as a synthetic but without the smell. Also dry noticeably quicker than a pure Merino. Much nicer feel to them too (IMO). Got a combo of a short sleeved one, long sleeved and long-lseeved with a zip and then mix and match to suit.

I use both, polyprop in summer, wool when it's cooler/wetter.
I've got short and longsleeved Howies NBL and they have been superb. Used every day for commuting, working outside etc and they have been brilliant. Bought about 5-6 years ago, so not sure on current quality or the alternatives that folk mention.
I used a long sleeve NBL under my waterproof jacket (which leaks) at this years 3 peaks cyclo cross race. I was soaked to the skin for hours, but it still kept me warm as long as I kept moving, and I reckon I would have really suffered in a polyprop in those conditions.
FTM

Got an endura baa baa merino longsleeve to go under my waterproof jacket. It is brilliant at regulating heat (hot or cold) and even when wet under the jacket (sweat) the warmth is brilliant. I've worn it without the jacket too and fell off - it did'nt tear so can't be that fragile? all in all I'm a fan. 🙂

where from ? I have an old NBL and on lookout for a new one

Howies site, using code CLOCKS til midnight Sunday.