Coyote2

Hi all. I've read that 100% merino wool jerseys are actually comfortable in warm weather. Seems hard to believe. Anyone have experience with this? (By "warm" I mean temps over 80 degrees fahrenheit.)

EventServices

Yes, because wool wicks.

It's not what you'd expect, but it does work.

But you can't be wearin' a cotton t-shirt underneath it. That would defeat the porpoise.

cyclintom

Just because people lie doesn't mean it's so.

Marino Wool is hotter than hell in the summer. You can bet that if wool was all that great that Coolmax and the others would never have appeared.

I have a double wide closet full of cycling clothing and I fell for that "wool is comfortable in summer" crap. Well, there is something to it but not much. And the moths eat your classic wool jerseys and leave the polyester ones alone.

Goonster

I wore a modern wool jersey on the first twenty-four hours of a 400 mile brevet last season.

Temps were 95+, relative humidity was 80% plus.

I won't tell you it was comfortable, but the jersey was the least of my discomforts on that ride. No worse than the synthetic jersey I wore the next day. I would, and will, wear wool jerseys again in the heat. I ain't lyin' about any of this.

Wool will not magically turn oppressive heat into a cool breeze, but it does wick really well, doesn't stink as much, and is versatile if you do long rides in varying conditions (like long rides that have you riding into, or through, the night).

With respect to the "if wool is so great, how come synthetics have mostly replaced it" argument I'll say:

- wool isn't for everyone
- wool isn't best for all applications
- it's nice to have choices
- you can just toss synthetics in the washer
- today's wool is much better than 1978's wool, thanks to selective breeding of merino sheep and other things

bbattle

And we can't go around defeating porpoises. The dolphins might start getting ideas.

angelo

I have had really positive experiences with wool. The modern merino jerseys/shirts with the really fine fibers are the ones to get.

I'd say that wicking capability is comparable to synthetic jerseys, but the real advantage of wool over synthetic is that it does not smell bad after a workout.

socalrider

I love my wool jerseys but would not be wearing one above 80 degrees.. The synthetic jerseys I have just seem to work a little better.. I have a couple that also have full length zippers on them.. Wool is wonderful in Cool to Cold weather..

$0.00/Gal

Smartwool, people. Smartwool.

www.smartwool.com

All of the great inherent properties of a good synthetic shirt or jersey except it doesn't hold onto the smell like a synthetic does.

Now if they'd only make a real cycling jersey.

Olebiker

We oldtimers gave up on wool as quickly as we could. A CoolMax jersey will be much more comfortable in the heat and a lot less trouble.

Olebiker

At the end of a ride you can just pitch a CoolMax jersey in the laundry and not have to worry about any special laundering techniques. The only time you would have to worry about the lingering smell is if you are on a multi-day tour and did not have access to a washing machine.

$0.00/Gal

I wore the same pair of smartwool socks on a 500 mile tour last summer and they never got crusty or smelly.

Everyone can now vomit.

DocRay

I hear some guys call it "the porpoise".

BF administrators -how hard would it be to have a spell check feature in thread posts?

gcasillo

^^^ Probably as easily as it would be to implement a wit detector.

telenick

^^^ Funny

I can't wear wool if it's above 80. But I usually cycle at 9K+ feet. At that elevation, 80 feels like 100. At that temp, I like a very lightweight sleeveless with a full zip.

zacster

As another oldtimer, I wouldn't go back to wool in the summer. In the winter I use capilene as a layer, never wool either. So I guess I wouldn't go back to wool, period.

HigherGround

I wear Smartwool socks all year long, and I love them. They also make a great, low-cut sock that works well for cycling. I had high hopes when I tried a jersey from Woolistic, but it itched so much that I had to take it off in less than a minute. I was pretty disappointed. However, I hear that Swobo is making a comeback, so perhaps they will have some good designs. They used to be pretty well regarded.

cyclintom

I said that there SOMETHING to it but not much. The one thing I'll agree with you wholeheartedly about is that wool doesn't smell on the second day and polyester does. By the third day without washing wool still smells fine though it's getting itchy. But on the third day no one can get downwind of you in polyester.

I'd warrant that you are talking about summer jerseys and not winter jerseys. If you sweat a lot into the wool it gets really heavy and then begins to stretch. Unless you're storing them in a moth proof container holes start appearing in a year.

LWaB

Not quite my experience with my first wool jersey (Peugeot, a bit scratchy) or my current crop of merino (introduced to Australia via the Cape Colony). Good both in low temps and drizzle (five years in Britain) and hot sun (earlier in Australia). Mind you, at the current 30+ degree max temps, I'm only riding at night until I've adapted to Oz summers again. My plastic jerseys always feel like...plastic.

merlinextraligh

I've found my smart wool jersey to be a really good choice on days where the temp changes from the low 60's to high 70's. It's not as hot as you would think when it gets warm, and it deals with changing temps well. However, I wouldn't wear it if the temp was going to be above 80.

SteelCommuter

OK, I've read all the responses, and none of them have said the obvious. Wool is fine for summer, but you need to wear a summer-weight wool garment. You can't just put on that cool weather jersey on and go, "well now I'm gonna test this theory. Oh, it's bunk"

@olebiker: if you think plastics have made wool obsolete, you have another thing coming. You bought the hype, but segments of all the different outdoor sports are realizing the advantages of wool, and its value as a renewable resource. You don't need to go back to it, but your conception of it is stuck back several decades. Until you try the newer stuff, maybe you should reserve your opinions and let people with experience with today's garments speak, good or bad.

@ OP: Look, I would never wear my cool weather clother of any material in the summer. But I do have a number of different summerweight or "microweight" shirts made of wool and of various branded synthetics. I have used them in the upper 90s in the southwestern desert, and in the humid 90s and 80s. I wore them for everyday riding, comutes, and on hot days for the whole day. I actually bought them as undershirts for the winter, and several are not even cycling-specific. The wool shirts were absolutely wonderful, and I'd argue from my personal experience and my wife's opinions that they were more comfortable by far than the synthetics. Obviously, synthetics make plenty of people happy, but I wonder how much of it is hype, tunnel vision, and relative inexperience. Because I gave away several expensive synthetic shirts to my brother because whenever I returned to them, I couldn't stand the smell and ickiness I felt with a newly washed shirt partway into a hot ride. I am willing to concede that some synthetics might make some people just as happy.

I also bought a few wool tank tops for winter undershirts. I'm wearing one right now underneath a long sleeve. I believe in layering. It's 21 degrees outside. When it's very hot and humid, that undershirt is perfect for me.

The key is using a jersey made for the summer. You can use it in cooler months, particularly for running or as baselayer or midlayer for hiking/snowshoeing. But I wouldn't take anyone's comments about what material is workable for anything unless they give specifics about what they used. You can't just put on a cotton sweatshirt, wear it in the summer, and say cotton is too hot.

Olebiker

I never said that wool was obsolete. I "bought the hype" about wool but found out that it was just hype. My preference for CoolMax jerseys is based on experience, not hype.

Have they started making wool garments that you can pitch in the washer and dryer? When I was a little boy in rural Kentucky we did not have running water but my mother was still able to keep us in clean clothes even though she had to draw water from a well across the road. I can not for the life of me see how someone can get sweaty in a gament and, unless you are on a multi-day tour, not wash it before you wear it again. That's just nasty.

If you think that wool is somehow environmentally responsible, read up on desertification caused by overgrazing by sheep and goats.

SteelCommuter

Yes. Most of it today is. That's the point, although I don't share your phobia about wearing a wool garment a second time. I wouldn't do that with CoolMax, of course. PU.

Jarery

Stink ? I wash my clothes every day. And certain new synthetics have silver in them, kills bacteria, so no smell.

Wool is a great insulator, and beats some synthetics as a base layer, but not all. If you want a single layer that you can wear from 60 above to 60 below, then buy wool. Personally, i dont live in an enviroment that changes that much in the time I leave the house and the time i return.

When you know the temperature range your dealing with, synthetics win in certain areas. For a base layer, I want something that pulls sweat off my skin, moves it to the other side of the material, spreads it to ease evaporation, and then evaporates as fast as possible. Nothing beats polartech's powerdry material in a silkweight thickness. You can sweat up a storm, run under a hose, and it'll be dry in minutes.

Wool has the greatest temperature range of use. Wool has the best 'comfort feeling' against skin when wet. Which is good because it does get wet and stays wet. I prefer to plan on staying as dry as possible, not plan on staying comfortable while wet.

SteelCommuter

I have never, ever met anyone who thinks the anti-bacterial synthetics do not smell once they have used them for a while. Irregardless of any points in favor of synthetics or against them, this one is hype hype hype. I know quite a few shop people in outdoor stores who sell this stuff because people come in wanting to buy it, buy privately are mystified because it just doesn't work. And if they ever figure out something to add that really kills bacteria, it'll probably give you cancer or Alzheimer's like aluminum in antiperspirants.

I'm glad you like your clothes.

Jarery

I live in a city not a tent in the bush
I ride every day
I wash my clothes after every ride.
Smell isnt a factor in my decision when i go shopping.