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Dont have a problem with Merino but for exercise they are far inferior to a number of alternatives. Seemed to be a real "bandwagon"
As a runner I have always worn HH Lifa. Older ones got stinky but new ones dont have that problem. They wick like nothing else I have seen. Merino is warm and comfortable but gets wet and is slower to dry than Lifa.
Love my 'Ground Effect' Submerino base layers in the Winter months
Further update
Acquired a HH baselayer for £15 from Screwfix.
tried it on my commute to work this morning- slightly cold and damp feeling unlike the wet and warm merino top it replaces.
Probably no bad thing as it was warmer today however Previously i wouldn’t have bothered with a mid layer.
any recommendations for an upgrade on the middle layer between base and soft shell?
thanks
Just get a merino 🙂
any recommendations for an upgrade on the middle layer between base and soft shell?
Plain old fleece is the best, and it's cheap. Get a stretchy form hugging one for cycling. I have a great Mountain Warehouse one, mesh panel right down the back, zip neck, incredibly comfortable. More of a Roubaix fabric than a fleece though, it's flat faced on the outside.
Were we all sucked in by the marketing hype with merino?
I wouldn't wear it for anything sweaty now. Just doesn't wick anywhere near as well as synthetics. Fine for low intensity cold weather activities.
Hiking over 2 days this weekend, very similar weather both days (about 5 degrees C most of time). I was wearing a HH synthetic one day, and a (admittedly, very slightly heavier weight) Rab MeCo (merino cocona blend) the next. I got uncomfortable in the merino top where it held moisture underneath my backpack. It literally looked like someone had thrown a bucket of water over by back. Ended by taking my outer layer off and wearing the pack on my front (or shouldering) the pack for half hour intervals to try and dry out a bit. Rest of me got a bit cold, but it was that bad I had to do something. Day before in otherwise identical gear*, wearing the HH synthetic, worst I got was a slightly clammy back . Performance was night and day really.
* Worth noting I was using a very basic Alpkit Gourdon 20L pack (as I was expecting rain all day) which sits directly on your back. More elaborate packs with better back systems wouldn't have caused such as issue.
Annoying thing #256 about this place: how thin skinned people are when someone says the base layer/tyres/bike (etc, etc) they happen to own is poor (in their opinion). MTFU FFS! If it works for you, keep using it. Be your own man. Is the reassurance of others so important? Do you really need the validation of others? I don't get being a dick about defending the items you happen to have purchased.
I don't like merino as a base layer. It doesn't wick well enough for me in a wide enough range of conditions. I won't buy any more merino tops, but I will be using the ones I already own up when the conditions are suitable. I don't care if others buy them or use them. I certainly wouldn't get defensive about preferring/using synthetic layers if someone had the opposing opinion.
I fell for the marketing hype and was jolly glad I did. Especially as that means not listening to twerps on the 'net 😀
I probably don’t get hot enough these days for any of my merino to get really wet, and even when I did, I never felt uncomfortable, I was always warm, plus there’s no odour, unlike the Smelly Helly I own, which is, for me, the biggest advantage of merino. I’ve got two tank tops from a Howies sale, and I wear them right through the winter as a base layer, sadly one of them is really starting to show it’s age, they’re at least fifteen years old! I really need to find something similar, they’re just so nice to wear.
For snowboarding/splitboard touring and winter expeditions etc merino is still may favourite by a long way.
I've worn the same merino layers for 2 weeks on expedition and been pleasantly surprised by the lack of odour.
A number of my merinos are Howies long sleeve tops that are >10 years old and still going strong. Unfortunately some more recent one (yes Ice Breaker ... I'm looking at you) have tended to fall apart, so in my experience, not all merino is equal so it's worth looking out for the quality stuff.
For running and cycling however, (apart from in truly sub-zero conditions) I find merino too hot once I'm moving so I end up over-heating and soggy.
I did not dare revisit this thread after angledust's rant which I think was aimed at (possibly) me.
I wanted to say thanks for the screwfix HH baselayer suggestion and sowing the seed that there are alternatives to Merino. Yes the HH is cooler but so am I for it i.e. not over heating (rather than being a dude).
Oh and don't worry angledust, I will be buying another Merino Howies top for winter commuting when their sale is on, as like bikes, you can never have too many cycling clothes.
you can never have too many cycling clothes
You can. They fill up the drawers and then you can't close them. Trust me, I know.