Wool - your opinion?

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DocArnie

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Jan 27, 2006
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I was wondering how many of you use wool in the woods.
Do you wear a wool pullover or jacket?
A wool blanket instead of a sleeping bag?

What are your reasons to use wool? What are the advantages and disadvantages?

Do you think it's obsolete or even purely nostalgic? Or does it still have it's place for outdoor use?
 
I'd like to know hwo wool blankets are warmer than a sleeping bag like I hear a lot. They seem just as bulky and heavy, so I could use some edumacation on the subject myself.
 
I personally love wool. It is heavier, but when it is damp, it doesn't get that clammy feeling like other materials. It is also great around the fire.

For moderately cold weather, I have the Swanndri Bush Shirt.

For colder weather, I use the Filson Double Mackinaw.

I also have several wool blankets, ranging from Hudson Bay blankets to German wool army blankets. When sleeping by the fire and such, even if I am using a sleeping bag, I will cover stuff with wool blankets. They are amazingly resistant to sparks and such.
 
It's definitely not obsolete, many synthetics try to replicate the performance but with lighter weight. I love wool for cold weather day hikes and hunting, but for any extended or long backpacking trips, it's just a little too heavy. I only wear wool socks. I have a couple of surplus wool shirts that are just excellent for work around the house and hunting. I keep a wool blanket in the truck during the colder season. I too have a Swanndri Bush Shirt, and it's an incredible piece of clothing. Unfortunately my wool wearing days are limited here in Texas. Best advantage that Brian mentioned was the resistance to sparks when you're around the fire.

ROCK6
 
Sweaters and socks - definitely.
German army surplus wool pants - great stuff

The blankets I'm familiar with (HBC and army ones) are way too bulky to pack but are great if you're vehicle-camping. Wool is great around the fire - sparks won't melt through it.

In barracks, we kept a spare on each bunk as a fire blanket. Much better than a poncho liner in that respect, lol.
 
I don't have a blanket I take out, but sweaters and socks definately.

Wool has an amazing ability to wick away moisture, and regulate tempature. It will keep you warm even if it gets wet. I plan on getting a wool blanket, but its 1 of those things I am not searching for, if I see it at a good price I'll pick one up.
 
I use an Italian military wool blanket quite a bit. It's heavy but I don't pack much so everything kind of evens out.

They are super durable and are cheap enough that I don't mind just tossing them on the wet or muddy ground and sleeping for a night.
 
The good:

I like wool socks. They'll absorb a lot of moisture from the feet before they get to feel nasty. I like that anyway, but I find it essential in a Lundhag type boot.

Wool undersmackers aren't a melt hazard.

Ok for playing in snow if you Nikwax it.

Better than cotton for retaining warmth when wet.

The bad:

Screw the melt hazard undersmackers. Silk is not a melt hazard either and I know which I prefer next to my skin.

Nikwax your hat and your Dachsteins all you like. If it isn't cold enough for snow to stay on the outside they'll get wet and you'll have a pig of a job drying them out. If it rains you're buggered.

The ugly:

Every carried wet wool? It wants to head south. Nothing could turn me off wool quicker than when I watched my mate, soaked, struggling to keep up his long-john bottoms whilst walking. He had to resort to making toggles with four pebbles and attaching a makeshift pair of paracord braces. Hilarious but nasty. He then had to dry the buggers out when we got there. Sux.

Conclusion:

Makes great socks in not breathable boots. Mostly I prefer Thor-lo anyway. Good for casual use in the cold if you can keep moisture, as in snow, on the outside. If your going to get wet it's crap; it's heavy, slow to dry, and less comfortable than alternatives. Good comedy value when watching the “Nuts in May” video. Reserved for casual use with and around females.
 
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I love wool.:thumbup: We each have a wool blanket and I clung to my Wooly Pully for years after leaving the Army. Wool socks are the berries and I have a wool vest which is amazingly comfortable in a wide range of temperatures for what little of me it covers. Wool gloves, hats and mittens have always seemed to outperform anything else I have tried. Wool is comfy and homey and a wool blanket lies on you, whether as a robe or a blaket, much better than even a poncho liner - and I love my poncho liner. It can be heavier but it's just so much more cozy - especially in damper weather.

I may be prejuduced toward wool - the synthetics may really be technically better but wool just fits into my life in the cold so well, from childhood winters in an unheated bedroom to a few hours by the fire on a chilly Sunday evening before starting another work-week. I love wool.
 
I just got my Merino Wool pullover hoodie from TadGear two days ago and Im loving it!
Its warm, comfortable and looks damn good.
Best thing I like is that it doesnt retain smells - during the colder months (now for us) I like to jog in the mornings before school. I bought this hoodie mainly for that and it works great. I was a little worried at first about the itch-factor but its hardly existant.
Although it isnt so comfortable I would want it as a next to skin item - much better for layering.
 
I'm sure it has it's place for some things just for me not out in the sticks. I've got a big pile of military wool blankets [annoyingly, the light cream ones not the dark gray], and they are very handy. I chill with a bunch of Gambian drummers quite a lot over the summer, and we have fires on the beach and blah blah. The blankets are great for that. We've got them for sitting on round the fire and wrapping up in. We attract a lot of people from E'd up skinny dippers that come rearing out the clubs and then get chilly through to students here from all over the world that just want to come and join in. Fire, a bunch of blankets, and drum is all we need. Crates of beer and firewood just turn up as people pay their dues.
 
I doubt that wool will ever become obsolete, but it is definitely nostalgic. I don't believe that there is any better clothing for woods wear. I wear nothing but merino wool socks, have smartwool long underwear, half a dozen wool pendleton shirts, a couple pair of mid weight wool pants, 2 wool coats, a norwegian wool longcoat w/hood, wool glove liners, wool watch caps and a wool crusher. If it's cold and wet, there is no clothing better than wool for keeping you warm. For campwear, your fire will not melt wool, like it will the synthetics.
 
nick-nack said:
I just got my Merino Wool pullover hoodie from TadGear two days ago and Im loving it!
Its warm, comfortable and looks damn good.
Best thing I like is that it doesnt retain smells - during the colder months (now for us) I like to jog in the mornings before school. I bought this hoodie mainly for that and it works great. I was a little worried at first about the itch-factor but its hardly existant.
Although it isnt so comfortable I would want it as a next to skin item - much better for layering.
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If wool does have a scent like a military blanket that I picked up for a buck at a yard sale. Just brush it and lay it out in the fresh air and sun and scent problem is gone.
 
When its cold out I often pack a thin wool sweater as a layer. Wool retains warmth even when wet and offers superior wicking ability.
 
about 10 years ago a friend of mine took a woolrich coat elk hunting, we were at about 10000 feet, in the snow, in a spike camp, in tents. after a couple of days his coat had retained so much moisture that it felt like lead. i like fleece and a shell and strip as i need to and dress as i need to. all the new wonder wool fabrics that i have seen are ok if you go to a nice heated house every night, but not for a multiday trip in the mountains. they all talka bout how they stay dry and the method is that the fibers swell with the rain to tighten the weave, how much water would you need to swell the fibers of a hunting parka?

alex
 
I think I'll try one of these old swiss army blankets.
decke01db6.jpg

Newly produced they cost about six times as much. :eek:
 
i love wool...:thumbup: i have a few different wool jackets and flannels.. and personally you can't find a better all around fiber for space/warmth...
 
wool = survival, that modern day plastic simply cannot replicate.



nuff said.



edit: if your wool is getting wet, try treating it with lanolin oil prior to your outing. Its a little trick of the Newfie fishermen.
 
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