- Joined
- Dec 25, 2002
- Messages
- 223
Hotrod said:How long have you had them? Any wear? (I'm looking into making a purchase...)
I like carharrts stuff when it comes to jeans and sweat shirts, they last a long time... even with my "Abuse." All cotton is the problem with both of those! But I havent bought anything with wool except for socks! Maybe I'll skip the low end stuff and go for proven goods this time around... I'll have to beat my cheap side into submission though!
Well to be honest, out of all my wool stuff the Ranger shirt is one of the things I'm less happy with regarding wear. It's the weave and the stitching. The stitching around the bottom of the shirt isn't great and has started to fall off . I guess I snagged it on wolf fence when I was putting new stuff up or taking old stuff down, I've also tucked it in and pulled it out of my pants alot which may have contributed to losing the stitching there. There is also some wear at the point the sleeves join the cuffs (now that's just ordinary wear, not snag related). Now the shirt still works and when you consider that I've spent 8 months in a environment such as this one, and worn the shirt nearly every day and also every night during winter, and that I've had it for maybe 6 month back in the UK before I came here and wore it every single day, the wear doesn't seem so bad. If I had wanted to I could have repaired it but the shirt is still together and has no holes (unlike my Icebreaker long-johns which have a major crotch hole as the result of buying a size too small when I was in a bind to get a pair, they've seen alot of wear too though).
I'll wear this shirt til it falls apart and it's far from that right now, but as wool garments go it's not as durable as I'd have liked. The weave gives the impression that when a hole develops it'll only get bigger and bigger, but the shirt is soft and warm and not really made for such abuse as I've put it though.
The Swanndri hooded bush shirt is made of a very different weave (like alot of Filson stuff) and is really strong. If you want more of a convention style though and don't want to spend too much Filson make a Jacket/Liner of heavyweight wool (not very heavy really, but very strong by weave and design) for arouind $100. When I replace this shirt I will either buy one of those or one of the Filson sweaters which are built to be warmer but not as an outer layer.
The ranger shirt is nice and basically replaces a fleece with a wool garment. It'll block the wind slightly but not to any huge extent. If you want to wear it under a jacket it's ideal, and had I done that instead of wearing it as an outer layer on warm days (aswell as a mid layer on cold ones) it would be in much better condition. I feel I'll get my money's worth out of it before it falls to bits but if you want something more durable as an outer layer, check out the Jacket/Liner and possibly one of the heavier Swanndri shirts. The Filson Mackinaw Cruiser is great but at twice the price of the Ranger shirt, it's made for an outer layer in pretty cold conditions. Look around and check some of this stuff out. Filson, may have a shop somewhere near you.
Matt
) long before a polyester or nylon garment began "melting down around you." (This judgment does not aply to natives of Mercury who find 500 f. just the thing to loosen up the kinks. 
)