Are all baselayers created equal?

Just bought a s/s Gabba and want a s/s baselayer to wear underneath.
I have s/s summer jerseys but they don’t really wick that well as far as I can tell.

So your brief is to recommend an effective yet inexpensive wicking layer (please)….go!

The DHB ss one is good and works well with my Gabba

Yes, I think they are. I use cheap Decathlon jobs, their football ones I think, £8 each and work perfectly.

Under a gabba this time of year, a castelli mesh vest base.

Castelli ‘wifebeater’ for me.

Not as inexpensive, but merino wool ones are less likely to retain a smelly Helly like pong.

Funkier mesh vest, was only £15 from my lbs.

If you don’t have sensitive skin you can get away with the cheapest polyester ones.

They can be made from:

1) Polyester
2) Nylon
3) Polypropylene (HH Lifa)

Natural

1) Various wool blends (Merino etc)
2) Bamboo viscose blends

In order to wick most efficiently they have to be skin tight, baggy is no good. A jersey is more of an outer/mid layer and it’s more about how fast it dries out the moisture transferred from the base layer!

No, no they are not.
My cheap Berghaus and cheaper Decathlons are no way as comfy, wicking or warm as Patagonia Capilene 2 (super wicking, unbeatable on a hot ride) or my hybrid merino HellyHansen winter layer (uber warm, fab fit). The cheap Berghaus ones feel clammy all the time. The Helly, Patagonia and my Burton fit so well too.

Before an internet point scorer jumps in. There are base layers which are panelled and/or layered with both synthetic and natural materials. These unsurprisingly tend to be the most expensive.

No they are not currently….

Aldi 6.99 seamless baselayers are out performing all other brand base layer I own including Patagonia, helly Hanson, craft all bought this summer.

Previously rated Patagonia highly in man-made materials, Canterbury, and cannondale as well and the older decathlon worked well as did aldi but they did hum of petroleum after a while.

I sweat. Like zindane zindane and will not use merino as a baselayer as it is unable to dry for me ….I have tried icebreaker smartwool Patagonia swobo Nike no have worked.

Baselayer I personally stick to synthetic, closest that worked in mixed was ground effect merino man made mix others do similar

*jumps on base layer thread*

I’m after a merino base layer

Icebreaker?

Enduro Ba ba?

synthetic definitely. Merino can’t compete when the heat/sweat rises. Craft or Gore for me.

I like merino but I run quite hot so tend to find synthetics feel too warm, I also don’t sweat as much as some so don’t get the wet wool effect much. I work outdoors so I’ll soon be wearing my merino base layers almost 7 days a week, it’s handy not having to wash it everyday. The downside of merino is they are a bit more fragile. I’ve tried Howies but they went back as they went holey quiet quickly, on-one tops have also gone holey or started to unravel but they’ve had a fair bit of wear and were cheap. This winter I’ve got some SS Decathlon t-shirts and long sleeve Aldi specials.

My favourites for running are those mesh ones that look like a string vest, I’ve got them from Rapha, DHB and Craft. If it’s really cold I’ll wear a Helly Hansen Lifa instead.

Best base layer for temperature management/wicking – Odlo
Best for winter – Helly Warm

Bamboo viscose blends

‘Bamboo’ is viscose – theres no blend. Viscose / rayon can be made out of any plant fibre but theres not special quality of bamboo that translated through the manufacturing process that makes that kind of rayon ‘special’ compared to any other source of cellulose – wood – straw – grass – cabbage.

Bamboo’s also shite as a base layer – worse than cotton for getting soggy and staying soggy.

Manufacturers and marketers over in the US are getting their arses kicked for the claims they’ve been making when labelling viscose as ‘bamboo’. Mainly because the qualities they reference in their claims are only true before the stuff has been disolved in carbon disulphide and turned into bog-standard rayon / viscose. No doubt the arse kicking will follow this side of the pond soon.

i got a Tenn 100% merino last week. it is very nice for the cash.

as a fat bloke i despise manmade stuff, makes me hot, uncomfy and smelly.
i love merino, got really thin north face t shirts, got heavier polo from edz, got winter weight ice breaker.
all good at different times of the year.

Thanks for the replies – I don’t like merino but did spot these:

https://www.evanscycles.com/craft-be-active-short-sleeve-baselayer-EV271922

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/are-all-baselayers-created-equal

There’s the l/s one that Aldi were doing recently too – seems highly regarded and poss worth a punt for £7!

Anyone have any of these?

Not sure what I did there with the link to this thread 😳 – should have been this:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/dhb-short-sleeve-seamless-base-layer/

Yes, I think they are. I use cheap Decathlon jobs, their football ones I think, £8 each and work perfectly.

Can you report back in 15 years time please? That’s how long you’ll need to have them to match my Patagonia ones.

Uniqlo heat tech.

@ maccruiskeen – Yeah I know. I just used language I see associated with base layers. The majority I’ve seen have made a point of listing Bamboo, no mention of viscose. Yes it’s marketing bullshit to engender green/sustainable credentials.

I don’t own any viscose base layers for a reason! Base layers made from the first 3 materials I listed suit me fine, I don’t give a shit what brand either 🙂

I use the Altura Thermocool long sleeve base layers in the winter, not cheap at £50 but they work for me.

The best base layer I’ve ever had, and still have, was a thin silk one I was bought as a present before going a skiing holiday 16 years ago.

Best for comfort, non-itchiness, wicking and odour avoidance. Adds a surprising amount of warmth for how thin it is.

Looks a bit diaphanous but it’s a base layer – nobody sees it.

They seem to be quite hard to get though – I never see them on sale anywhere.

Can you report back in 15 years time please? That’s how long you’ll need to have them to match my Patagonia ones.

Same here! My Patagonia’s and one Burton (feels like Capeline) are all 15-22 years old and still going. Amazing value.

Right now, I use a polyester ‘Rab C Nesbit’ mesh vest. Max wicking and minimum bulk. I forget the make, maybe oneten. When colder, then a thicker polyester one, and in properly cold weather, then a merino icebreaker. I can’t really use merino unless it is really cold as I sweat a lot.

StefMcDef – Member
The best base layer I’ve ever had, and still have, was a thin silk one I was bought as a present before going a skiing holiday 16 years ago

.
The pioneering British mountaineers from Victorian times through to Mallory & Irvine would wear many layers of highest quality silk underneath their tweed sports jackets. In a recent experiment a top mountaineer tried to recreate this on Everest and found the clothing of that period to be nearly as good as modern materials.

I recently needed to buy some new base layers and realised that a Patagonia Capilene was the oldest piece of clothing I had. So I bought some more. Fingers crossed they’re still alright. 🙂

In a recent experiment a top mountaineer tried to recreate this on Everest and found the clothing of that period to be nearly as good as modern materials.

Perhaps on Everest but they’d be pretty crap in UK conditions!

Patagonia now say their merino bases are no longer 100% merino as durability was an issue, so they now mix them with polyester

Spin – I think the point is that it’s not new tech, it’s been around for a very long time.

No, there are big differences between some of them.

I have found that Merino is good for low intensity activities, especially in winter. It absorbs and holds moisture but manages to feel comfy, up to a point.

The classic Helly Hansen Stripe I find really good for moving moisture during a high intensity activity and is my go to base layer for most conditions. The days of the smelly helly seem to be gone as well.

Capilene, especially the lighter weight ones can be pretty good as well and super comfy.

For me though, what I wear over the top is just as important. At every opportunity I try to shed any sort of waterproof layer, no matter how breathable, preferring to use windproof shells where I can, even it it means getting a little damp from time to time. I gave up trying to stay dry long ago, now I just focus on staying comfortable.

Simply put:

Lycra/spandex is cooling
Polypropylene is warm

Thats mostly down to the hydrophobic properties of the polypropylene. If you stand in a wet lycra top the moisture evaporates and cools you. If you tried to wet a polypropylene top the water runs straight out, less evaporation and less heat loss.

Obvioisly a lycra base layer will make you warmer not cooler whilst riding, but it wont5 retain the heat when you stop and sweat into it. Fine for a quick ride to boost the warmth of a jersey or for wearing under a waterproof in warm weather (or any situation where you need a layer but not warmth e.g. wetsuit rash vests), not so usefull for riding in winter as it doesn’t give the benefits of polypropylene.

Merino/Bamboo make all sorts of claims, but to be honest Ive never been entirely convinced. Merino isnt as warm as polypropylene when wet, youd be mad to go out riding in the winter rain in a merino jumper and not much else, but a fleece (which is just a thick polypropylene layer) is fine. On the other hand it is great for bivi’ing, better than cotton, but nicer than synthetics.

My dad was a gamekeeper for years and much preferred to wear wool and Tweed over modern waterproofs. I’ve never had the nerve to try his old plus fours on the bike though.

colder weather: Rapha merino. Very thin but the warmest base layer I have owned
warmer weather: craft mesh wifebeater

Howies.

I have some fancy merino ones, and some cheap running long sleeve base layers (Asics I think?) I bought from Start Fitness. I think they were a fiver.

I think I prefer the cheaper ones. Merino I find makes me itch.

Traditional Helly Hansens just work for me. I don’t get on with merino at all. All my baselayers seem to vary in how they behave.

Got one of these free for doing a certain number of Human Race events made by Craft and it has been best of all the ones i have (helly etc) when weather starts to get colder.

https://www.prendas.co.uk/products/craft-active-extreme-black-logo-crewneck-baselayer-long-sleeve?gclid=CLzpsP2A5M8CFZcW0wodb7gArA&variant=30460297543