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Sell me on merino wool base layer

HuumanCreed

HuumanCreed

Well-Known Member
SH Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2020
Messages
2,700
Location
Westminster Maryland
I have tried merino wool sock and honestly am not a fan. They feel a lot more....in your face then cotton socks....if that make any sense? Like I like the feeling of nothingness when I wear socks. if I don't even realized I'm wearing the socks, that is a good sock. but with Merino wool its very noticeable, like they activate my sense receptors a lot more. I'm not sure I'm making sense, but yeah. I'm not sure I want to wear merino wool as a base layer. But to be fair it was generic Amazon merino wool socks, might not even be real for all I know.

Is there a real difference between high quality merino clothes compared to just clothes MADE of merino wool?

This is for saddle hunting for early archery season. wore by itself then maybe as base layer once it get cooler.
 
HuumanCreed said:
I have tried merino wool sock and honestly am not a fan. They feel a lot more....in your face then cotton socks....if that make any sense? Like I like the feeling of nothingness when I wear socks. if I don't even realized I'm wearing the socks, that is a good sock. but with Merino wool its very noticeable, like they activate my sense receptors a lot more. I'm not sure I'm making sense, but yeah. I'm not sure I want to wear merino wool as a base layer. But to be fair it was generic Amazon merino wool socks, might not even be real for all I know.

Is there a real difference between high quality merino clothes compared to just clothes MADE of merino wool?

This is for saddle hunting for early archery season. wore by itself then maybe as base layer once it get cooler.
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Merino does feel different underfoot. It is something that your feet get use to once you wear them a bit. You’ve probably been wearing cotton socks for most of your life, if you had been wearing merino all your life it would probably feel really strange when you made that switch too.

I do think there is big difference in cheap and higher quality merino wool products from fit, feel, wear life, warmth, the list goes on and on. For socks, some of the lighter weight merino wool socks will actually have merino on the foot box and poly or some other synthetic on top to help your foot cool. I have had great luck with darn tough socks. I have two pairs of light weight for hiking and early season and two mid and heavy weight ones for later season. I also have a separate pair for skiing.

Make sure you are washing merino as required or you’ll wear them out and make them uncomfortable quick

For base layers, I do not think that merino is warmer than synthetics, but it has some trade offs that works for me. I like the feel of merino better than synthetics and I also appreciate the low odor or more odor control I get out of them. Synthetics I can wear more than once without stankin. With merino I can hunt a couple days consecutively before it picks up.
 
Merino thermoregulates better than anything else I have tried. Seems to transport moisture away from skin pretty well, dries reasonably fast and doesnt stink, esp after multiple days in the field with at best wiping yourself down with baby wipes. 1000% better than cotton in pretty much every facet.
 
Socks are a different feel than other merino clothing don’t ask me to describe. I was coming from under armour type compression base layers, what an enormous difference to wear wool! It wicks great, is breathable & DOES NOT smell….. I can wear wool base layers for most of the early season & then give a quick wash for late. Try doing that with other compression type gear. It’s worth the $, I went with first lite & Pnuma & really have been happy.
 
I have used the Cabelas power dry military stuff for years. I tried the Merriwool 400 gram stuff last fall. No comparison for warmth, I'll take the wool anyday, won't leave home without it.Screenshot_20230627_123406_Gallery.jpg
 
Merino is best in the cold in my opinion, because it'll dry it out quickly and won't make you colder like cotton. In warm temperatures when I wear lightweight merino as my only layer I end up with skeeter bites all over my shoulders. It's fine when moving but they can bite right through it.

As far as socks go, I swithed to Darn Tough socks a year or two ago and won't look back. My feet don't stink anymore. I actually wear my socks two days in a row now, which might be gross to some but I don't care.

The merino itself isn't that warm because it breathes so well, which took me a little while to understand. It is warm, but when you add a breeze it cuts right through. The goal is to work up good body heat going in, let some of the moisture evaporate then cover it up with your outter layers. The merino controls the micro climate, the outter layers hold it in.

It's worth it in every aspect. Get out of the cotton and get warm.
 
So when wearing merino, do you prefer to be more loose fitting or more tight fitting like a compression layer? Or just whatever feel good. I'm asking if I'm between a medium and a large, should l get large?
 
HuumanCreed said:
So when wearing merino, do you prefer to be more loose fitting or more tight fitting like a compression layer? Or just whatever feel good. I'm asking if I'm between a medium and a large, should l get large?
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I like it tight to the point it won't roll up when putting the next layer on. If it restricts movement I don't like it so it's usually safer to go bigger
 
Blah....I'll talk you out of it.

1. lower quality merino can be itchy, especially if wet/sweaty or you are an itchy kind of person
2. you have to baby it (versus synthetic you just wash like normal) and let it air dry (versus synthetic goes right in the dryer)
3. the anti-stink properties are good, but the anti-stink treated synthetic is excellent AND you can easily wash/dry it which stops stink also
4. it's too expensive, i can buy and have clean 3 sets of antistink synthetics for the same price (and have a clean pair every day)
5. it's not as durable as synthetics in general
6. i don't want my heat to be in my base layers, that's for comfort and moving moisture away from my body, I don't want to walk in and climb with super warm stuff on (I instead put goose down mid layers on once in the tree)
7. merino stores moisture better but synthetic wicks it better
 
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raisins said:
Blah....I'll talk you out of it.

1. lower quality merino can be itchy, especially if wet/sweaty or you are an itchy kind of person
2. you have to baby it (versus synthetic you just wash like normal) and let it air dry
3. the anti-stink properties are good, but the anti-stink treated synthetic is excellent AND you can easily wash/dry it which stops stink also
4. it's too expensive, i can buy and have clean 3 sets of antistink synthetics for the same price (and have a clean pair every day)
5. it's not as durable as synthetics in general
6. i don't want my heat to be in my base layers, that's for comfort and moving moisture away from my body, I don't want to walk in and climb with super warm stuff on (I instead put goose down mid layers on once in the tree)
7. merino stores moisture better but synthetic wicks it better
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#8 I suggest/ use _______
 
Horn said:
#8 I suggest/ use _______
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redhead or cabelas brand with 4most inhibit anti-stink guard

i have light and medium weights and also heavy (but that's mostly for when I'm not walking or use the zipped top as a mid layer)

i used them all last year, and no smell

i try not to wear base layers more than 1 or 2 times before washing, but i've worn 3 or so days and nose right in the arm pit gives no smell once they've been off the body for a bit (or minimal smell...i had sinus surgery and it hurt my olfactory nerve)

you can get these on sale ridiculously cheap
 
I have a ton of merino socks. I don’t like most of them. I really like Darn Tough and Farm to Feet. I’ve found within Darn Tough there’s a couple models that I really like. I believe one is the mid weight boot cushion or something like that. I have one pair from 2015-16 that I still wear. You can wear them several times in a row without washing. I’ve had a couple lightweight tops from first lite. They don’t last forever but I like them a lot. My wife dried one of them and shrank it too much for me to wear now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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raisins said:
Blah....I'll talk you out of it.

1. lower quality merino can be itchy, especially if wet/sweaty or you are an itchy kind of person
2. you have to baby it (versus synthetic you just wash like normal) and let it air dry
3. the anti-stink properties are good, but the anti-stink treated synthetic is excellent AND you can easily wash/dry it which stops stink also
4. it's too expensive, i can buy and have clean 3 sets of antistink synthetics for the same price (and have a clean pair every day)
5. it's not as durable as synthetics in general
6. i don't want my heat to be in my base layers, that's for comfort and moving moisture away from my body, I don't want to walk in and climb with super warm stuff on (I instead put goose down mid layers on once in the tree)
7. merino stores moisture better but synthetic wicks it better
Click to expand...

Lightweight Nuyarn merino is better in warm weather than synthetics.

For cold weather baselayers, like you, I prefer a good synthetic, for many of the reasons you mention.
 
Darn tough socks are what I wear too. Layer wise, first lite and ice breaker are what I am familiar with and both make good gear. Minus 33 and Merriwool are supposed to be on par with them too.
 
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