Winter Cycling - best base layers

im pretty set with my bike gear except for a few items. but now i need base layers for work. recently got a new job where i will be doing labor outdoors in all seasons. with winter coming up i need to stock up. after hitting some stores and looking around online im overwhelmed/tired. so i look BF for guidance. suggest your favorite base layers. prefer no cotton and a higher % of wool the better!

ibex wool

wool, Is my trusty base layer Keeps, and if i get to warm and sweat, it keeps me warm even once the sweat cools. Unlike Cotton Once you sweat, the sweat will eventually get cold, and you will get cold very fast and will stay cold untill you take the cotton off

+1

Wool all the way. Wonderful stuff.

I have wool from ibex, icebreaker, and mec, but i always arrive at work and its wet with sweat. But it feels so great and when its cold i want to wear the wool because it feels so warm.

Maiden mills powerdry base layers actually work much better for me since i arrive at work and they are much drier than the wool. As mentioned above, wool stays warm when its wet, but i prefer to use a base layer that doesnt get wet.

In the end i do much better with the powerdry, it just doesnt have the same next to skin feel of the wool, but for the purpose of a base layer it surpasses wool.

i do:

top: polypro, light wool sweater, LG jacket
bottom: shorts, polypro, Zoic pants

works great.

Wool is the best. I currently use a 100% merino wool base layer that Sugoi makes.

Maiden mills powerdry....>>>> Malden Mills,AKA Polartec is now (Polartec LLC) new owner same good stuff..

+1 for PowerDry. Duofold medium weight works well for me, also. The folks that I ride with swear by UnderArmour but it is twice as expensive as PowerDry from Foxwear.net or Duofold.

ok are there any links you all can direct me to? all my in store searches have led me to wool/cotton blends. or cotton/wool/polyester blends.

Try foxwear.net. I'm not affiliated but just a happy customer.

http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?page=long-underwear&categoryId=502848&storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1

lots of Polartec, of various weights. also some Smartwool and UnderArmour. The Polartec, at least, has pretty good pricing.

Past threads say , don't put tights underneath your club's bike shorts. That causes chafing. I tried it once on about a 3 hour ride. Did not seem to make much difference. Tights can be a base layer. Has anyone tried tights and cycling shorts. ( TIghts under shorts.) Want my club shorts exposed. Wish they made a crotchless tight for such.

No one has mentioned Smartwool yet. Rivendell also sells a nice wool base layer, but I haven't tried it.

have a look at sierratradingpost.com.. they have all kinds of base layers...

Past threads say , don't put tights underneath your club's bike shorts. That causes chafing. I tried it once on about a 3 hour ride. Did not seem to make much difference. Tights can be a base layer. Has anyone tried tights and cycling shorts. ( TIghts under shorts.) Want my club shorts exposed. Wish they made a crotchless tight for such.

Never thought I would see that phrase on BF :D

I also wouldn't want to wear my tights UNDER my shorts. The Chamois is there for a reason. One of which is to keep the sweaty funk away from my tights.

-D

^. Just sayin after trying it once , because it appears others do; did not notice much difference in issues with chaffing , etc. Guess I thought leg warmers can be a pain with staying up. Reason to want to search for another solution. Our club has no winter kit. Winter is short where we live.

Question for the people that swear by wool for the base layer:

A. Is it that you're happy with wool, and the you don't need to look further?
or
B. You've tried the synthetics (polypro, under armour, nike dry fit, ...) and wool is better?

I would be interested and different statement said if it were A versus B?

Thanks

For cool (55-40F) temps, I like silk. See sierratradingpost.com for inexpensive and machine washable silk longsleeve shirts and pants.

I have complete SmartWool for my base layer. Socks, tights, and sweater (shirt?) keep me plenty toasty with nothing else but rain gear. Oh, I do wear a pair of Novara cycling underwear. My tights go on over the underwear.

Question for the people that swear by wool for the base layer:

A. Is it that you're happy with wool, and the you don't need to look further?
or
B. You've tried the synthetics (polypro, under armour, nike dry fit, ...) and wool is better?

I would be interested and different statement said if it were A versus B?

Thanks

I've tried both. The wool stays warming whatever the conditions. Synthetics+damp+wind = chill.

------------wool does not ever reek--------------it goes well with
the ride to work, stick it in the corner, hang on a chair to dry, [or it may not dry]
put it back on and ride home,
it will never smell like a stanky ass gangrene foot

------------all synthetics and blends reek---------
you go to work, it may or may not
dry out, put it back on ride home, nastyness will abound


wool trumps all others when it comes to warmth equal to or better than
any fancy synthetic or blend AND no funk factor. silk is the same.

all others...have fun washing them constantly and still smelling bad

------------wool does not ever reek--------------it goes well with
the ride to work, stick it in the corner, hang on a chair to dry, [or it may not dry]
put it back on and ride home,
it will never smell like a stanky ass gangrene foot

------------all synthetics and blends reek---------
you go to work, it may or may not
dry out, put it back on ride home, nastyness will abound


wool trumps all others when it comes to warmth equal to or better than
any fancy synthetic or blend AND no funk factor. silk is the same.

all others...have fun washing them constantly and still smelling bad

why do you smell so bad?

I do the Duo/wool sweat/outershell trio and it works great. I dont stink if i change the base layer every few days.

why do you smell so bad?

I do the Duo/wool sweat/outershell trio and it works great. I dont stink if i change the base layer every few days.

it's not me, I shower twice a day

most synthetics I happen to have get nasty, but the wool never does

maybe i am using old school synthetics.

PI's basic synthetic poly pro works well for me. But take my advice with a grain of salt. I live in San Diego.

For next-to-skin I like cashmere the best of all woolens. Merino is second best among those I've tried. Both are light and warm and SOFT. Keep a sharp eye out at the thrift stores in upscale neighborhoods, and you'll find cashmere and merino sweaters for $3 or $4. Brand-new sweaters might cost a hundred times more than that.

I also have no problem with the synthetic T-shirts as a winter base layer. I just wear my summer Ts, especially the ones that are starting to look a little frayed or faded.