Wool article in TBM.

[huntnut]

I just got done reading the WOOL article in the new Traditonal Bowhunter mag. That really opend my eyes up to how good this stuff is. I like the part where it said that wool will produce heat when it gets wet, I never knew that. I think I'm asking Santa for some new woolies for christmas.

[Deadbolt]

I haven't read the article but I made a biog investment this year with some help from others around here in wool and fleece and I have never been so warm on stand!  Lasts aturday it was 18 degrees int he morning and I was fine in stand!

[longbowben]

I have been hunting in kom wool for 8 years it looks new sheds water and very confortable,quiet,go buy it.

[Billy]

I'm new to wool as well. It always made me itch...come to find out it was mostly in my mind.
When I decided to get some of my own...the price made me itch. Then I went to Goodwill and Salvation Army stores and found a good way to scratch that itch.
Even the wool vest I got makes a huge difference.
Staying warm the "old" way, is good!

[huntnut]

I'm going to hit some army navy stores and see if I can find at lest some pants and shirt or jacket.

[JBiorn]

I sure do love my Swanndri bush shirt. Warm, dry and stops the wind very well.

[Brian Krebs]

I have gone through the ice in the dead of winter- 30 below- and found out that if your wearing wool; you can take it off... and give it a few minutes.  Then smack it against a tree or a rock and the frozen water will fall out for the most part; and then the wool will be able to keep you alive.
I hate to admit it - but its happened to me a couple times...
Wool army sweaters are cheap; and a good investment. If its cold; who knows what color or pattern of wool is under your outer wear? I often wear a red checked wool shirt under my camo wool; and if the wind is ripping; I wear a camo nylon windbreaker over that.
Wool can save your life!!!

[Stone Knife]

That was definitely a good article. I wear wool all the time nowadays. I have some gray wolf that fits the bill for me and i also like woolrich. I still have my dads woolrich pants and coat that he bought in the early fifties. I still use the pants and my wife wears the coat while at her horse in the cold weather. I would like to see if any of todays stuff will stand the test of time.

[Labs4me]

When I read all these articles about wool, it makes me feel as though I am the only bowhunter who has ever hunted amongst thorns and briers during a steady, cold rain. As a base layer or middle layer of clothes, worn UNDER a true rain-proof outer garment I can appreciate wool's insulating value. On cold, wet mornings in a duck blind or in a tree stand, nothing feels as good against my neck as my Filson woolens. But truth be told, the surest way to commit myself to about 1-2 hours of brier/thorn removal duty after a hunt would be to wear my wool as an outer layer- it's just not practical in my neck of the woods.

IMH experience as a veteran waterfowler (hence, "Labs4me"), the other issues with wool is that it is bulky, slow to dry, and heavy when wet. To go out hunting in a steady, protracted rain wearing a wool shirt or sweater coverred by a wool coat is great if hunting in wet clothes later that afternoon or the next morning is your bag. As a bowhunter/waterfowler who apprecieates the challange of staying comfortable while hunting during miserably cold, wet conditions, IMHO wool is MOST effective when worn under a waterproof, windproof, silent outer garment.

Labs

[Stone Knife]

Labs, what you say is true, but no one says that wool can't be worn under something else. I have had many different kinds of hunting clothes and even with the latest waterproof materials you will eventually get wet under them, be it from the rain or from sweat. When you do you will get cold, but wool will keep you warm under these conditions. By the way i like your avatar in the past i have had a black and yellow lab, best dogs there are.

[Jeremy]

I agree w/ Labs!  As an insulating layer it works great, but as an outer layer...?  Even the good stuff nowadays doesn't cut the wind very well - hence the windproof lining.  Putting the wind barrier on the inside of the wool negates much of it's insulating value.  JMO.

Oh, I do wear wool  

[Stone Knife]

This is my 34th consecutive hunting season, when i started out i wore wool when it was cold and canvas when the going got tough. I have tried everything in between then and now. Today I wear wool when it gets cold and canvas when the going gets tough, some things just work good and are hard to improve on.

[tomh]

i just got a swanndri off the bay and ordered a new filson cruiser this morning...Love the way merino wool long underwear feels and works. Have lots of other wool clothes. If it gets really windy I can put on a windbreaker layer of another material. If it rains I have hi tech stuff to go over the top.
I like the breathability and temperature range flexibility wool has.
And that it is a natural, renewable resource that has a long history to it. I guess I am a fan.  

[Scott J. Williams]

I grew up in Michigan, hunting when Wool was king.  I assure you, the time I spent pulling seeds and other stick-ems off my wool was not that bad.  

I like wool because it is so silent, and of course the way it keeps me warm.  Man made stuff just can't cut the wind like some good wool. I just purchased a bunch of shirts and jackets off ****.  I didn't spend over 25 dollars including shipping.  

I think I will check some more right now......

[Eric Krewson]

When I have my wool on it seems that animals don't pick me up as readily as they do as when I am wearing cotton or synthetic blends. I suspect it is the ultimate non reflective fabric

[bearhair]

I found a fabric store that sells bulk wool.  I just copied the pattern of an old sweat shirt and now have several wool sweaters.  With the cold northern winds we can get up here I definately wear a windproof jacket on the outside and a couple layers of wool underneath.

[Dan Worden]

If you get burrs/stick tights etc on your wool take a semi sharp broadhead to it. Yup, just shave them off.

I wear wool all the time. Hunting or not.

[8th Dwarf]

Wool saved my life!!!!  Had I been wearing Poly Pro when I was caught in a fire in Nunavut, I would not be writing this today!  

I wear wool or silk only now in cold weather.  Merino wool long johns are unbelievably warm and DO NOT ITCH!  I have three sets of the old Swanni wool clothes and recently I had Hidden Wolf Woolens send me some solid gray wool, which I had made into garments the same as the Swanni stuff.  In the mid west with the gray trees, this stuff is even better than camo.  

Pants, vest, outer shirt, and warming packets, coupled with Wooly Booger hand warmers and you can sit all day in brutal cold.  Survival is much more likely in a nasty situation with wool, too.  It's QUIET, too.

Too Short

[ChuckC]

A nice trick for burr removal.  I use a curry comb for cats.  You know, that thing that resembles a long hacksaw blade that was bent around a can, with a leather handle at one end (hmmm ideas here).  It has safely removed all burrs from wool and synthetic materials for me.

I use it every year with great results.
ChuckC

[ChuckC]

Paul.  are Wooly Buggers still available ?  Where ?
Chuck