What wool?

[emfunk]

Fellas,
I know there are several out that wear wool during the coldest of hunts etc.
Wanting know what wool brand/company you all would recommend.
Do you all layer up with heavy insulated base layer?
Lookin at gettin a jacket and bib set.
What are some of the pros and cons you have all found. Never owned any wool hunting cloths.
Thanks for the help
Eric

[Bishop]

I really like KOM for heavy wool, been using it for years. I only wear 1 layer under the bottoms and a max of 2 under the top depending on conditions.

I have be wearing Teresa Asbell's wool pullovers for a couple of years now when its warmer and love them, price is great as well.

I just got a pair of Silent Predator pants and they are well made from the same wool as KOM at a much better price.

[ti-guy]

You'll have many response,there are a couple of sponsor here for wool.What I use is sleeping indian and woolrich.I wear under layer,some are synthetic and others are merino wool,and also a blend of both.Good luck on your search.

[Zmonster]

Sleeping Indian, King of the mountain, Grey Wolf Woolens are at the top of the list. Good ol Filson Woolrich and Pendleton work well, and can be found very cheap with a little leg work at salvation army, goodwill and the like.

I have some of all of the above and wool for me is the way to go. It just plain works.

Keep an eye out with our sponsors as well. GFA wool is also top notch and affordable. Ron Laclair offers some great wool that really works. And thats just to name a few.

[jhg]

There is a LOT of info on wool in the archives. Just type in "wool" under "search".

Joshua

[John Scifres]

I can hunt in just about any weather in te following:

Base light synthetic layer or cotton if I'm not going to be sweating.  I don't like the feel of any wool on my skin.

Duofold poly/wool blend medium weight.

Wool shirt from Columbia.

Wool vest from Asbell.

Wool blend parka and pants from Cabelas.

Wigwam or Smartwool socks in my Sorel Caribous with wool liners.

Ragg wool gloves.

If it's real cold I'll layer up with synthetic base layers.

If it's real windy I'll wear a different parka.

[owlbait]

The BEST cold weather wool I have is a vest from TwoTracks. I was able to layer lightly under it and keep my arms flexible for shooting my bow easily. The Asbell woll is good quality for warmer temps. My KOM jacket doesn't come close to keeping me as warm as the TwoTracks vest.

[WindWalker-AK]

Mr. emfunk,
As others have mentioned, there are a lot of choices.  Personal preference is non-camo, for our lifestyle.
Filson's are our favorite due to the super tight weave which inhibits the wind getting through. Followed by LL Bean and Cabela's.
Though we do wear regular longjohns (NOT cotton) all winter, a "heavy" base layer is not necessary until it cools below -30 degrees below 0 (F).  But then I am on the extra chubby side.  Your requirements may differ.
While I really like the bibs, they are a nuisance during winter camping.  It is necessary to remove ones coat and/or vest, to get them lowered while taking care of business.  (Though I must admit, it doesn't seem to take as long to take care of business at -40 degrees in the bush or on the ice, as it does at the homestead.)  Then you have to be extra careful you don't drag them in anything.
Best Wishes

[GMMAT]

Well....I asked and asked and asked and asked.  I did my own research and asked some more.

Then, I bit the bullet and bought what I thought I was going to be happiest with.

I got my GWW outfitter series wool bibs and jacket, YESTERDAY!

I'm stoked.  I won't be cold, again.

Good luck.

[sagebrush]

GWW has a pretty tight weave. It keeps out the wind pretty good. I like mine. Gary

[Dave Pagel]

I like Day One a lot too.  I have a bunch of wool, including some of the high end stuff mentioned above, but if it gets really cold I break out the Day One. Just make sure you order early.  Gary is a good guy, but he hunts too and his lead time can be bit longer and rush orders before season probably won't turn out well.

D.P.

[limbow]

Dave,

What Day One outfit do you have?? Is the wool? With insulation and wind block? Thanks!!

Kevin

[Dave Pagel]

I have the wool with windblock, bibs, pullover, vest & stocking cap.

D.P.

[Buckhorn3380]

King of the Mountain and Gray Wolf Woolens both are great, never have gotten cold in either can't say enough about them but FANTASTIC.

[swampthing]

I like Sleeping Indian. Thin longjohns are all I use. His system approach work, ie: cotton LJ's in warm, silk LJ's in cool, poly/wool LJ's in cold.
Camo work good as well.

[NoCams]

Ullfrotte' long johns and Gray Wolf for me. JMHO

[Ed Q]

I know it's much colder up north right now with this winter storm we're having, but here in North Texas I finally got to try my cold winter wear with temps ranging from 13 to 20 degrees F and wind chill of about 0 F.  I took a leisurely one-hour walk in the morning as a test, and later this afternoon I took a very brisk one-hour walk up and down hills that created a slight sweat.

I found out my Korean War era M1951 U.S. military surplus mid-weight wool pants (olive drab green) work well with cotton longjohns underneath (only kind I have at the moment).  My legs never felt cold.  By comparison, my legs felt chillingly cold with blue jeans alone the day before (similar temps).  FWIW, I got those M1951s for only $15 online about 2 months ago.

Using several layers up top with cotton thermal, cotton t-shirt, cotton sweater, flannel shirt and a G. Fred Asbell wool pullover hoodie over everything, I felt no cold.  But if I took off the flannel shirt, I did feel a tinge of cold up top.  Didn't feel much difference between the non-sweat producing leisurely walk and the slight sweat producing brisk walk, but that may be because at the end of both walks I went back inside my heated home.  I guess if I were to have stayed outside I may have felt much colder afterwards from the slight sweat using so much cotton underneath - but like I said, that's all I have for now.

Feet and toes were nice and toasty using heavy wool socks and Chippewa snake boots the first time around and regular muck boots with liners the second time around.

Hope this helps others considering wool clothing for the cold.

[Montanawidower]

Big vote for anything with Ullfronte long johns under them with its cold.  I go silk, ullfronte, then top layer.  Sometimes a windblocker fleece under my wool if its single digits.

[Dave Pagel]

No Cams brings up a good point.  The long johns are key to staying warm.  No cotton and I hate polypro because of the tendency to take on a smell easily.  I use SmartWool and Ulfrotte', great stuff. I have some pictures somewhere of a late season meat hunt with wind chills at -30.

D.P.

[Bishop]

I agree 100% with the Ulfrotte'/Smartwool  long johns. Glad to see I'm not the only one that can't stand the "Stink" of synthetics.