I found this on line....thought it was interesting:
Wet Wool
Like we said, wool can soak up a lot of moisture without feeling wet. This makes wool a hygroscopic insulator. The crimp in the wool fiber forces each strand to butt against each other, as opposed to lining up side by side or laying down flat together. This keeps the tiny air pockets intact, acting as little insulators -- the key to being able to keep you both warm and cool. Air has the ability to move heat by convection -- in other words, by moving and circulating. Through convection, air can transport heat from one place to another. When air is contained in very small pockets, it can't circulate easily, so heat is retained. Same goes for cold. Think Styrofoam cooler -- the Styrofoam's tiny pockets of air act as an insulator for heat or cold (depending on what's inside the cooler). The same concept goes for wool.
There's also some science at work here. Wool fibers are made up of cortical cells, and these cells are wrapped in cuticle. This scaly outer layer is then covered by yet another layer, the epicuticle -- a filmy skin that helps to repel moisture. What's more, the epicuticle also helps out in high humidity because it has tiny pores that draw in the moisture vapor to the center of the fiber where it's absorbed by a chemical process. The hydrogen bond of water, H2O, is actually broken, creating a chemical reaction with the wool fiber molecules to generate heat when it has taken on a lot of moisture. But because the air pockets allow moisture to evaporate from your skin, you won't overheat when you sweat.
The combination of the fiber's natural crimp and the chemical and physical processes that take place when wool meets moisture make it the best all-season natural insulator on Earth. It actually absorbs water from both your skin and the atmosphere around you to create a dry and warm environment where it counts -- against your body. So the next time you pass a herd of sheep standing around in the pouring rain looking dopey, remember the complexity of their protective coat.
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Hmmm, that is what I thought.
Nah Terry....that aint wool...wool is plaid :D
Thats a pretty cool diagram, thanks.
Wool can also gain up to 18% of its weight in moisture without feeling wet.
cuz its the way God made it ;)
I have a thick Filson Double Mackinaw, that I have worn for years....in everything from a pouring rain to below 0 temps.....the dang stuff works. I'm one of those lucky folks who has no itch from wool. I still have some Army issue wool longjohns (I do believe they are some kind of blend)that were given to me by Uncle Sam in 1981. They are a bit tighter, but they still work.
I used to have a Filson Double Mackinaw that would go on to take the dog for a walk EVERY night during the long MI winters. The collar irritated my face when up, so I had some silk sewn over it. Nice.
Interesting read. Always knew it worked, never bothered to figure out why. I'm another one of the lucky people who don't get the wool itch. A dermatologist once told me that people who aren't allergic to poison ivy, don't get the wool itch. True in my case.
Thanks for the info Roger.
Tom
Nice post, Filson wool garments have worked for me for years.
QuoteOriginally posted by Lamey:
cuz its the way God made it ;)
Amen
Also...if you ever wear thin wool socks in the summer...
you will throw your clammy cotton socks away. :readit:
QuoteOriginally posted by Terry Green:
Also...if you ever wear thin wool socks in the summer...
you will throw your clammy cotton socks away. :readit:
Absolutely. I wore thin quality wool socks this passed September in Wyoming. Daytime temps of near 80, walking lots. My feet were very comfortable.
Lamey said it........ :readit:
Try as he may man cannot make a fiber better than wool or a insulator better than a down feather...... :notworthy:
I started wearing my wool socks to work in the oilfield at the end of summer and I agree, they are cooler than cotton.
QuoteOriginally posted by NoCams:
Lamey said it........ :readit:
Try as he may man cannot make a fiber better than wool or a insulator better than a down feather...... :notworthy:
Or carpet...if its wool from New Zealand.
"This", as Brother Mudd would say, "is a way cool thread!" :saywhat:
Both...wool keeps sheep cool in the summer. :campfire:
I get posion ivy something awful and wool does itch me, even the good high dollar merino. I still wear it as a base layer cause I can't find anything better.
Not only are the thin wool socks cooler in the summer, but they will also reduce the chance for blisters.
Brad, I've always had that same dilemna until I bought an IBEX 190 "Woolie" Turns out EdT knew what he was taking about. They use ZQue from New Zealand like other brands, but they won't buy it if it has "trim" added in. By far, the best merino baselayer I've bought yet.
Terry, I through hiked The Bob Marshall last summer, I wore Smartwool PhDs and Point 6 socks. Both about the loft you'd see in a cotton sock. I put on less blisters than my buddy who wore synthetics.
The rest of the group, Buy wool. and it doesn't have to be from last century either. Look at the new, more technical offerings, from many manufacturers. It kills me that right now today, even the non-hunting sect of outdoorsman, STILL haven't come up with a better performance fabric than wool.
One of the most handy pieces of gear I own? A simple, Army surplus wool blanket. I have slept under it at Shrewhaven, in Idaho, Wyoming, Newfoundland, and last night in my bed at home. I have a duplicate in my vehicle....best piece of "survival gear" I know of.
i was a hard hat diver in my younger days,i wore tradition gear mostly and woolens under my suit with a cotton wool blend long john suit under that,i dove the east river in new york and the atlantic coastal waters in the coldest of winters,always stayed pretty warm and suffered well when the suit cut and i got soaked, i would have froze to death if it was a dupont product.
QuoteOriginally posted by Terry Green:
Also...if you ever wear thin wool socks in the summer...
you will throw your clammy cotton socks away. :readit:
SO TRUE!!!
Now if I could just find some wool briefs...
QuoteOriginally posted by Biathlonman:
wool does itch me, even the good high dollar merino.
What brands have itched you?
I was given a pair of filson thermals and threw them away after I wore them once. Their 'merino' wasn't 'the bomb' like Smartwool. Don't know what filson sells now, that was a few years ago....but I was already into smartwool and still am now...
I've tried Smartwool, Icebreaker, Core4, and Ibex. It bugs me.most on forearms and neck, but like I said I just deal with it as I haven't found anything better.
It is possible (though rare) to have an allergy to wool or lanolin...
yep, i have a friend who is allergic to lanolin. can't use any kind of skin lotion with it, or he breaks out and itches like crazy. that might be part of the problem.
wool is good
it has lanolin in it and that keeps the cold out and water proofs it as well
Chances of rain early Friday morning and clearing up at sun up. I'm hoping to test my wool out!
For the record, Poison Ivy kicks my butt, but wool does not bother me at all, I love it! Pendleton's wool is rather coarse though.
Eric
X2, Eric poison ivy loves me but wool don't bother me at all.
I love wool
Almost time....I sat in my tree tonight until drk, comfortable in a thick flannel shirt and moleskin pants. It got down to 52....a few more degrees and it's wool time ;)
QuoteOriginally posted by Biathlonman:
I've tried Smartwool, Icebreaker, Core4, and Ibex. It bugs me.most on forearms and neck, but like I said I just deal with it as I haven't found anything better.
Get you a thin lightweight poly and wear it underneath....as a barrier against the wool. Smartwool never itched me, but your skin might be different. I know I could NOT wear that filson I got as a Christmas present....so I know how you feel....made my skin crawl.
QuoteOriginally posted by Terry Green:
QuoteOriginally posted by Biathlonman:
I've tried Smartwool, Icebreaker, Core4, and Ibex. It bugs me.most on forearms and neck, but like I said I just deal with it as I haven't found anything better.
Get you a thin lightweight poly and wear it underneath....as a barrier against the wool. Smartwool never itched me, but your skin might be different. I know I could NOT wear that filson I got as a Christmas present....so I know how you feel....made my skin crawl. [/b]
One of my sons wear those long sleeve under Armour things between his skin and the wool. Works for him.
Increases heat 1 cal when wet. Fleece...don't think so
The merino fibers are soft and long, so I don't find them itchy at all. I wear no synthetics, wool and more wool. Merino against skin, and KOM, amongst others outside of that. Ok, ok, synthetic underwear :D
All the synthetics try to compare to....you guessed it, wool. But they melt, stink, clam up, and don't do what wool does.
Combine it with down and I think we have a combo that can't be beat. When it's really cold, I just add down and I'm able to function!! It took a long time to find the magic combo. I'm miserably cold all the time compared to those that don't seem to mind the cold.
I think those of us highly affected by the cold can make a true comparison in gear when compared to the grizzly bears able to go almost naked and continue to function as if 70 and sunny!
My great uncles wool long-john's, wool vest and wool sweaters up top (different thickness) and a with wool jacket. Silk boxers ;>) I do own Gortex outer wear but am increasingly disappointed after a long day of rain in the Pacific NW.
Just today I bought a 100% wool DRESS pants from the Salvation army for hunting only.
Great for a layer, especially under rain gear.
Feels kinda funny wearing dress slacks to a hunt, but they are wool!! I guess I'll need a new, "non camo" avitar - picture
I have Camo's etc but this year I decided to go old school and practical and am sticking with wool's and plaid.
Thin wool socks! That's news to me I'll be shopping for a pair tomorrow
QuoteOriginally posted by Lamey:
cuz its the way God made it ;)
:thumbsup:
every day I learn something..
Just came back from Elko county, NV. Therre were sheep herders bringing 'meadow maggots" down from the high country. Snow, rain, cold-they just don't care. Wool, 80 million sheep can't be wrong. and credit to the Creator for wisdom unmatched by human engineering.
I wa looking for some thin wool undies. Found lots on line for %30 a piece. went to costco and got some for $20-made in RVN. I neever saw any sheep when I was there. anybody else see any?
I have an ancient all wool military sleeping bag that is relatively light and compact but very warm, especially is a good ground cover is used.
If you look at pics from WWII, the germans and russians all wore great coats for winter fighting. they were thick wool and at night they just pulled their legs in the coat and slept.
Some of that type wool clothing is on surplus sites. I have a pair of german wool issued trousers for the last 35 years-the seams fianlly are giving out, but the wool is fine.
I wore wool all last weekend, teens at night and 50's during the day. Lots of walking to different canyons with then hours spent glassing from windswept crests. Seems like you either like wool, or you have not tried it seriously enough!
Roger, Mike V just imparted that little nugget of information about wool socks year-round as well. I recently switched over to them and am absolutely shocked at the results. I'll be stocking up on thin wool socks soon. I wore them the entire time I was in Georgia a week ago (thanks to Mike's suggestion). 80 some degrees and so humid you couldn't walk outside without sweating and it poured the last day.
My feet were perfect every day.
I learned in military that cotton will kill you and wool will work in ANY WEATHER...it has an apparent ability to adjust and let your body breathe while keeping heat in. I wear a thin wool shirt in any temps below 70* when hunting. I wear wool socks most of the time as well...different thicknesses...but my favorite are some for hiking with padded heel and toe.
clearly mother nature had it right from the beginning....then when dirty or sweaty you rinse in cold water and lay over a rack or chair outside and in couple days the smell is gone and it is back to normal. :)
My Swandri jacket I got from Paul Brunner many years ago is still one of my best....a pile of Woolrich mackinaw and alaskan shirts....and now I wear regularly the lightweight shirt from Classic Sportsman. outstanding in every regard.
Just a thought. If wool makes you itch, you may want to consider wearing a layer of silk underwear of the type found in ski catalogs under the wool longjohns. It is very light and comfortable. It also is a good insulator. This has worked well for me.