Warm, Quiet, and non bulky clothing... is it out there?

[Preston Lay]

I noticed no shrinkage when I washed and dried the pants.

[KSdan]

I am a noise freak too. . .

Nothing beats plain wool or fleece, but if you do want windstop- realize not all wind-stop is  the same!  

The Predator brand camo, in fleece with their windstop, is the best I have found. I wore it last winter in those dead quiet cold nights and it made NO noise! NONE!  Perfect.  Anything else I tried (like Cabelas stuff) all made noise. As stated too- it is VERY fleecy/warm and quite affordable.  

Lastly- I DO NOT want to wear a safety harness to compress the bulk- that defeats the purpose.  I like lots of dead air space.  

Dan in KS

[BamaBarebow]

I have military spec thermals for base, then athletic sweat pants, longsleve camo shirt, camo sweatshirt, insulated bibs and a Columbia wool jacket from Gander Mnt. I never get cold in temps in the low teens to low 30's. The wool jacket is kinda bulky but only because its my dads(xxl) and I wear a M or L.

[highpoint forge]

No cotton! Ditch those sweatpants, sir!

[South MS Bowhunter]

Dan, Who makes the gear your talking about?

[tukudu]

Dan good luck on the compression of air space vs being safe. tom

[ALwoodsman]

I bought a Cabelas Wooltimate jacket last year. It was kind of noisy when I first got it but after wearing it a while and a few washes I don't notice it making any noise.  I have been happy with it.  I just ordered the pants last week.

[Bengal]

I've bought lots of the expensive camos out there and I like the Cabelas wolltimate the best so far. Filmed and shot deer within 20 yards, moved around plenty and didn't have a problem with noise.

[JockC]

How is the Day One wind lining for noise?

[Steve Kendrot]

First light merino wool is pretty nice stuff. You can get it in several camo patterns including asat. I'm eager to try it in the heat next year. Wool wicks and doesn't feel clammy when you sweat. I suspect it will be more comfortable in hot weather than cotton.

[Steve Kendrot]

All those big bulky layers provide for a soft landing when you fall out of the tree! But just in case, I wear my harness underneath. The cloth isn't what keeps you warm, it's the air it traps. I find my bino harness helps keep loose fabric out of the way without squishing all the air out.

[Ray Lyon]

I'm a noise freak when it comes to December whitetails.  The best wool/lining combo is from Gray Wolf Woolens. I've used their lined wool pullover in dead calm 0 degree MI December hunts and had no trouble with it and noise. It's expensive, but the best I've used.

Another trick I've used is this.  I use a HSS safety harness. I wear this under my outer clothes of which sometimes I wear an old Cabela's "windblocker" sweatshirt. It's an extremely tight weave of polyester that's as quiet as any wool that I've ever used (I don't know if they even make it anymore, bought it in the early 90's). I wear a smart wool long underwear turtleneck under the saftey vest.  In the safety vest pockets I slip a couple of the chemical hand warmer pouches and to the back of my turtleneck collar I attach one of the toe warmers with the sticky backing, and my fleece neck gator goes over that.  I've sat in 20 degree temps with 15 mile an hour winds with that setup for 3 1/2 hours in total comfort.  I buy the warmers in bulk and it costs me about $2-3 per hunt to use, but I get away with 1-2 layers less than I used to wear and it makes drawing the bow so much more comfortable. The neck patch wamer makes such a difference in my opinion, along with the fleece gator which pulls up over my face.

[KSdan]

Harness is UNDERNEATH the clothes!  Dead air space is what traps the warmth (think fluffed up down- why does it work?).

Predator has its own site. Lots of the stuff has sold here on tradgang. Very affordable.  I actually bought the Predator coat from a fellow trad-ganger.  

Also- First Lite is pricey but seems like it has a good idea. I have a sweater. Not convinced it is serious cold clothes- but moderate, active, etc. it may be the ticket.   They are redesigning the pants though because they just do not fit right.  The new ones will be out in early summer. Wait until then.

Dan in KS

[JockC]

Pretty obvious tip here, but I know that I, for one, tend to miss the obvious stuff.  You can get a number of hunts out of those heat packs if you put them in a ziploc sandwich bag when you don't need them and at the end of the hunt.  Oxygen is needed, and they don't get much if you're not fidgeting or moving.  The first time I used them (negative temps, incidentally) I nearly had a stroke when I moved my stand.

When it's really windy, I carry in a light nylon camo kiddie sleeping bag.  It actually says "GI Joe" on it, for which I've taken considerable and well-deserved grief.  I've been meaning to have a seamstress add some suspenders to it so I can stand up and shoot without it falling down.

In terms of shooting a bow, I've found I can wear a lighter upper if I take care of my lower 2/3rds.  A mid-weight anorak/pullover, neck protection, and a heavy hat do it for me.

[tecum-tha]

John,
I have one custom made woolfskin set of pants and a shirt. I am currently waiting to get my pattern folder in my last moving package from Germany. I already have gray high quality loden fabric for a new shirt. I will use gall-bladder black ink to put a stick n limbs pattern on it.
A real quiet windstopper is braintan buckskin.
I have the raglan cut pattern as a CAD file somewhere on my folders. I can accomodate to almost any size I want (smaller for early season, larger for colder times of the year).
I haven't found a source of high quality wool/cashmere etc. fabric in the US yet. My stuff came from a german fabric outlet, but I think it is closed now. I have to check...

[kevgsp]

Originally posted by JockC:
How is the Day One wind lining for noise?

Zero noise. I have the insulated wool with windstop parka and bibs and just the plain wool western shirt/jacket. No difference between the two, it's totally silent.

[Margly]

I prefer wool in really could weather
right now I use Teresa Asbells wool pullover with an extra wool sweater under and some thick wool trousers with an extra wool under wear under. This can keep the could out here in Norway at my place it`s cold but this sure helps. It fits teh body and can I can easily shoot with this clothes.

In the autumn hunting or if I`m in the mountain riding the horses I use leather trousers and a leather pullover! It`s warm, quiet and windproof.
It fits the body and easy to shoot with!

Try it and you will like it.

Margly

[Cootling]

JockC's tip is a great one (put handwarmers in a zip-loc bag to shut out oxygen and you may get more than one day out of them).  You can do even better if you then put the bag in your freezer.  If I recall chemistry 101 correctly, rates of chemical reaction are reduced by about half for each 10 degree celsius reduction in temperature.

[guspup]

Wow, I'm even stingier than you guys, I use an insulated muff to keep my hands warm in, and that way I only use one of those hand warmers. :-)

[South MS Bowhunter]

Ok guys some have mention the predator line of clothe and i have looked at their site and also GWW. New question since I do live in the south and will do most of hunts here would fleece be a good choice and would you get the liner? Somebody sell me on it please!