wool cold weather hunting clothing

[bugsNbows]

I love wool. My favorite coat is made by BeagleWear in Vermont. Does anybody else on here use wool? If so, what brands and what are the plusses and minuses in your opinion?

[Smokey]

I have always liked the Woolrich products. I still have a couple of their old red and black hunting coats and pants. Their old and heavy but still keep me warm.

As everyone knows it can get wet and still keep you warm. It also gets a lot heavier.

[ncboman]

I doan spend big money for wool, so I've never used some of the popular stuff. I do have Pendelton shirts my wife picked up at the clothes closet and I like them. :D

... and some Swedish :confused: milsurp pants, both heavyweight and lightweight. I think I'm gonna get rid of the heavyweights though. The lightweights are plenty heavy enough for me.

I only wear them when it's real cold or I want something durable. I more or less ruined my hi-dollar Rivers West pants in multiflora when I should have been wearing cheap wool. :mad:

ncboman

[Rock Chuck]

I'm into low fashion. I wear $10 wool milsurp pants from Cabelas. A pair will last many years. They're supposed to be dry cleaned but I wash them in cold and hang dry. They're ugly as sin but no elk has ever laughed at me in them. They're indestructible, good from 70 down to 20 without long johns, and below that just put on whatever you want under them.

[Altjaeger]

Put me down as another wearer of cheap military wool field pants on the rare occasion I need them. I don't have any now but have used Pendleton shirts as well.

[DancesWithKnives]

I also have the Swedish milsurp, Pendletons, and some Woolrich. In addition, some thick Canadian wool pants (Codet or the like?). I bought a few tops and some underpants from Smartwool, after getting to like their socks a lot. Very nice clothing too. I picked up some Ibex merino wool items that may be even nicer than the Smartwool. Lastly, some Italian merino wool tops when they were on sale at Sierra Trading Post.

I think the foregoing are all very pleasant for hunting. They don't get stinky as fast as the polypro. They don't hold moisture against your skin as badly as cotton. And the merino wool is actually quite soft and comfy.

DWK

[MOGC]

I love Filson wool! I have other brands, but if forced to choose just one it would be Filson.

[DancesWithKnives]

Yes, they make a sturdy product!

During the summers I still use long-sleeve polypro/capilene type tops (often "Coolmax") for high-altitude backpacking. They are a bit cooler than most wool and a heck of a lot cheaper (sometimes $10 on sale at Campmor). Also a bit lighter. I usually bring three and when two get dirty, I wash them while wearing the clean one.

I like the long-sleeves for avoiding sun damage to my arms. I also feel better about spraying bug dope on them than on my skin.

DWK

[Hi Ball]

Wool is great in cold weather! One of the best insulators on our planet really. I still have some Pendelton "WOOL" Western style shirts that now don't fit. I remember 25 years ago they were to big, now to small but still look good. I guess they will be going to GOODWILL STORE soon.

I too have military wool blankets and a couple of jackets with wool liners in them. They are really warm in cold weather. The worst thing a person can do in cold weather is put COTTON up against your skin. This will trap all your sweat and then turn cold, lowering your body temp.

[DancesWithKnives]

I likewise try to avoid the cotton when I hunt cold climates like Montana. Of course, down here in warm, dry Southern Calif. my friends are constantly kidding me about the dangers of "killer cotton". Then again, they rarely go anywhere that drops below +50F!

I wouldn't give away those tight-fitting Pendletons (I'm not:D). My father and several of his friends were a bit bulky in their middle ages. As they got older, their appetites tailed off and they dropped quite a bit of weight so some of the oldies fit again.

DWK

[purple heart]

I admit it. I'm old fashioned. I still wear a red and black Johnson wool coat.
It's warm, quiet, and still warm when wet. It's heavy but considering I don't
do the walking like I use to it doesn't matter. I also wear Johnson wool pants
unless it's real cold, then I have to go to an insulated bib.
I've looked at the Beagle wear and really liked what I saw except the price.
With my luck if I payed over $ 300 for a coat the first thing I'd do is catch it on a branch or something and rip it or something to ruin it. I learned a long time ago that I wasn't meant to own expensive stuff and to be happy and make do with the average Joe stuff.:D

[Rock Chuck]

Check Sportsmansguide or Cheaperthandirt to find milsurp wool pants. You can buy 5 or 6 pairs for what some of the fancy high dollar ones cost. Here's a set of 3 pairs for $25. CHEAP WOOL PANTS (http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/3-used-italian-military-wool-pants-olive-drab.aspx?a=462864)

[Greywolf]

Wool is great in cold weather! One of the best insulators on our planet really. I still have some Pendelton "WOOL" Western style shirts that now don't fit. I remember 25 years ago they were to big, now to small but still look good. I guess they will be going to GOODWILL STORE soon.

I too have military wool blankets and a couple of jackets with wool liners in them. They are really warm in cold weather. The worst thing a person can do in cold weather is put COTTON up against your skin. This will trap all your sweat and then turn cold, lowering your body temp.

My oldest Pendleton is 42 years young, that's right it was my first pen classic bought by my first wife for our first Christmas we were maried
(dec 23 aniversary!).

I have a few more since, but now none fit me, so most have been given away, but that tattered thread bare old timer just has to stay. if I loose enough weight, they can dress me in that and my green woolies for my last ride:D

[LampLighter]

Me- I'm different. Hunting is what I do. It is ONLY what I do. I do not fish, build hot rods, woodwork, or nothing else. I deer hunt and turkey hunt- period. I decided long ago that to specialize in ONE activity rather than generalize in many, allows me to gear up well. So I do not skimp on stuff that I need out there when I am 2 miles by foot from the truck, the truck is 10 miles from any form of civilization, and I am back there watching wood ducks ice skate upon landing in the swamp.

I bought me a tailor made parka from Grey Wolf Wollens. I think I paid $240 dollars for it. I was measured, they asked me if I used climbing stands, if I bow hunted. All that so they could make adjustments in the tailoring. It is in Predator Fall Brown. I cannot stress how happy I am with this parka. If I did not have it, I would get me one of those Outfitter Parkas at Cabelas. But I do have it. They do make wool, but I opted for the wolfskin, a synthetic material. It has two different liners built in it; one for wind resistance, the other some super insulation.