Why wool?

[GMMAT]

Why is wool prominent amongst traditional archers (hunting/camo attire) and not among even compound hunters?

[centaur]

Maybe we're smarter!  

[ksbowman]

Because it is silent when you move ,which is very important to trad shooters due to how close you get to your quarry. Also it is warm even when wet.If I were a compound shooter I'd wear it anyway.  Ben

[Jeff Strubberg]

Ok, I will get smacked down for this....

Hype.  Most folks fall fast for the latest and greates thing.  Those who choose the rockier road (trad) tend to be less accepting of marketing hype.

If you were the type to suck down all the latest and greatest of the marketing world, would you be shooting a traditional bow?

[2treks]

Well I think it is cuz we are smarter. JUST KIDDING!
  It is the first fabric know to man and is there-fore Traditional. We as a hunter like things to be sneaky and quiet. Not reflective or shiny. Warm and comfy. But I think most of all, we like it because it works. no bells, no wistles. It fits with what we do, in boh style and function. Just like our awesome archery tackle.
  Just my thoughts,
                   Chuck

[Missouri Sherpa]

I think wool is preferred by anyone that spends time outdoors and risks getting wet and cold, and traditional archery has little to do with making that choice.  I never made the association of wool being more prominent with any particular group.  There are plenty of coumpound shooters and gun hunters for that matter that use wool when conditions call for it (think wet snow/rain on a pack in elk hunt).  I prefer to use wool anytime I can, and more often than I use it for hunting.  I use it all fall and winter for doing chores, chopping wood, scooping snow etc.  Wool is too hot for much of the hunting I do in September, hunting antelope, chasing elk or a late spring bear hunt, but just the ticket for late season white tails or a cold night on a hog hunt.

I have no way of defending this but I think I see a lot more synthetic stuff in use by traditional archers for hunting (Predator, ASAT, Sitka, Fleece of various makes) than I see wool garments.  Depends more on the conditions than the choice of weaponry.

[wollelybugger]

The old Woolrich coats have been around for a long time, worn mostly by hunters. You can get fifty year old coats that look brand new. You are not going to do that with the new fabrics.

[doctari]

I love the feel of wool, not many people do. A few years back there was a story in TBM about a terrible fire at a hunting camp in Canada. Someone thought they where boiling water on the stove inside a cabin which turned out to be white gas. Apparently the can's looked alike. Anyway a blue funnel flame was rising from the pan on the stove, and someone in camp tried to carry the flamming pot outside. During the process the pot exploded with fire everywhere. Most of these hunter's where wearing Fleece. There clothing was on fire and burned into there skin. One person perished and another was in a hospital for some time. I know fleece is a nice garment to wear, I wear it myself sometimes. I do not know if wool would have been a better choice for them. I do know that fleece is made from plastic.

[Missouri Sherpa]

I have bought several older used wool garments off of one of the unspoken internet auction sites.  You can pick up near new condition, plaid wool at a fraction of the cost of new.  It turns out to be cheaper than just about any other winter coat I can find.

[GMMAT]

I just bought a wool vest and I LOVE IT (Filson Mackinaw).  I'm on staff with a camo company and (I won't say who it is, even if asked....and it's not why I made this post) we'll have several wool garments for this coming fall.

I just wanted to know why it's preferred by many.

You all mentioned it geting wet and still being warm.  It's not water-repellent, is it?  Won't you still be wet?

Like I said....what I have in wool, I LOVE.  I want more.  I just wanna make a smart decision before leaping.

I sincerely appreciat eyou all taking the time to educate me.

Sincerely,

Jeff

[maineac]

I love wool, and have worn it back when I shot a wheeled bow and especially when I gun hunt.  It is quite and even when wet retains 70% of your body heat.  Of course it gets pretty heavy, but you have a better chance if you get really wet and it is cold out. That said I tried some of the newer UNDER wear.  I must say it has become a fixture under my wool.

[Ron LaClair]

http://www.shrewbows.com/wool_shirts/

[George D. Stout]

A smart decision is to buy wool at Goodwill. It doesn't have to wear a desgner lable, or cost $275.00 for a shirt to be functional.  

I wore wool before the word "trad" was being bandied about like a badge of honor.  If you want to be warm with little bulk, even on cold, damp mornings, it's hard to beat.  Most of my wool was bought on sale or at Goodwill, and none of it is camoflauge.

I can spend a day afield, when the weather is in the teens, with very little bulk.  Wool underwear, poly turtleneck, thicker wool sweater, and then my heavy wool shirt.  When I'm still hunting I can wear a pair of heavy wool suit pants (Goodwill $2.99) over my woolies.

I probably wouldn't make the cover of Cabelas catalog with my garb, but that would be the least of my considerations.

Guys who shoot compound bows,
watch the compound shows...
So they wear the clothes,
they show on those shows!

[Rick Butler]

I started my hunting career wearing wool. It was all we had for cold weather wear, and everyone wore Red/Black plaid Mackinaws with matching wool trousers in the deer woods.  Worked then and works now.

[GMMAT]

Im hearing from my wheelie bow buddies that it's heavy and that it doesn't pack well.

Valid (comparably)?

[Stringslap16]

All of the above, plus wool absorbs more light then sythentic garments helping you blend in even more.  Also I believe you don't have to layer as much as wool self adjusts to a larger temp spectrum.  

I mean wool has been underdevelopment and field tested for millions of years, kinda hard for us humans to improve on in just a few decades.

[ron w]

Wool works.///GMMAT , as for it being heavy and not packing well, if that was important to the wheelie bow guys they would'nt be shooting wheelie bows to start with.Those bows are heavy and don't pack well.One wool sweater and a light wool coat pack as easy as anything else that "might" keep you warm.

[Nate Fikkert]

GMMAT,

You are on to something with the weight.  For all my backpack western hunts my wool stays at home.  Except for smartwool socks.  If it is a truck camp or a hunt from home or cabin, wool is my choice if the weather allows.

Nathan

[BowHuntingFool]

Guys who shoot compound bows,
watch the compound shows...
So they wear the clothes,
they show on those shows!

George my friend sure do have a way with words!    

[Mike Orton]

Jeff,
For every Pro, there will be a Con.....

It's likely many of the Compound shooting wool nay-sayers are merely repeating what they been told by the magazines and talking heads from the outdoor shows.  If you pinned most down to an honest answer they'd tell you that's just what they heard or read but really haven't gotten around to trying the stuff out since it cost so much and they already spent more than their wife allowed from the budget anyways... Unfortunately sheep don't have a marketing campaign nor an advertising agency like the big synthetic clothiers.  Sheep just eat and crap and grow the best material to hunt in, wool.

You've heard the saying that the best part of life is the journey, not the destination, well...
Part of the journey is trying out all the stuff out there before you decide on what's right for you.  Spend big $$ for the synthics, make sure the back-pack camo pattern matches the designer camo synthetic cloth of the hour.  Get yourself wet in 34 degree temps and let us know how it all worked out for ya.  As you shiver to keep warm, take solice in knowing that the fashion police can't touch you and you are looking fine in the duds.

Everybody needs to make a buck today and it seems like the clothing suppliers  are no different.  Each clothing manufacturer needs a "Pro Staff" of yahoos to hawk their rags.  There is sooo much stinkin crap on the racks today...don't believe me?  Spend a few hours in a Cabelas, Bass Pro, or Sportsman's wearhouse.  It's all made overseas, it's all the current latest and greatest and next year there will be another current latest and greatest line of crap that we all just have to have in order to hunt proper.

Next trip out, do yourself a favor and stop off at the Salvation Army and Goodwilly.  Spend the equivalent of one pricy pair of super delux synthetic hunting gloves on some old wool garments.  Feel the relaxed textures inherent in wool, listen to how the wool responds when intentionally scraped up against a tree or some brush. Smell the stuff.   Did you hear that???   Neither did I....when it starts raining don't freak out, you'll still be warm, wet but warm anyway.  Shake the jacket out and be surprised at how quickly it's dry.

Is wool bulky, well, yes it is.  It's so bulky that it occupies a place of honor in my pack.  I just love stickin animals while wearing mismatched wool, shooting my longbow, getting close to my critters, while the Compound guys are discussing the finer points of that 76 yard shot they could have made if only they'd have paid down a few more dollars for the super delux Titanium plated neon sight pin with the extra long extension cord that plugs into the 220 volt outlet....

And besides, Old Guys Rule.....