Pretty amazed at Merino base layer

[IBarrett]

I have a couple of quite old but barely used Merino T-shirts so with the forecast for Saturday to be cold and windy I thought I'd try an experiment.
I wore one of the merino T's next to me, then my bib shorts over the top, my usual long sleeved base layer over that and Castelli Gabba jacket over the lot.
We started out on a frosty cold but sunny morning which got progressively windier then rained for the last 2 hours with temps not up beyond 5C
But the reason for the post was how good the merino was at holding the sweat while keeping me warm.
The base layer I had over it wasn't even damp, yet the merino T was soaking - as my base layer usually is.
I sat at the cafe with my jacket off and was still warm. I'm usually freezing after 5 mins.

I'm a convert but should I try it next without the extra base layer?

 

[Racing roadkill]

I have a couple of quite old but barely used Merino T-shirts so with the forecast for Saturday to be cold and windy I thought I'd try an experiment.
I wore one of the merino T's next to me, then my bib shorts over the top, my usual long sleeved base layer over that and Castelli Gabba jacket over the lot.
We started out on a frosty cold but sunny morning which got progressively windier then rained for the last 2 hours with temps not up beyond 5C
But the reason for the post was how good the merino was at holding the sweat while keeping me warm.
The base layer I had over it wasn't even damp, yet the merino T was soaking - as my base layer usually is.
I sat at the cafe with my jacket off and was still warm. I'm usually freezing after 5 mins.

I'm a convert but should I try it next without the extra base layer?

Yes, the sweat wicking mechanism works best if the sweat can evaporate from the surface.

 

[MikeG]

You say you're amazed, and then go on to describe a base layer which isn't working. I'm not sure what your point is.

 

[IBarrett]

You say you're amazed, and then go on to describe a base layer which isn't working. I'm not sure what your point is.

Did I give that impression - sorry, it wasn't my intention.
I was amazed the merino was soaking without passing it up to the base layer above it and through the entire chain of my clothing.
So it was holding the sweat yet I was still warm. Usually my base layer is soaking and at the cafe stop gets cold.

I suppose what I was wondering was
Is it to be expected that the merino would keep me warm despite it being sweaty so I could ditch the extra base layer.
Or if the merino holding the sweat is allowing the dry extra base layer to keep me warm so I should keep both.

 

[Sea of vapours]

Is it to be expected that the merino would keep me warm despite it being sweaty so I could ditch the extra base layer.
Or if the merino holding the sweat is allowing the dry extra base layer to keep me warm so I should keep both.

There are two essentially separate things there. Firstly, wool is famously 'still warm when wet', which is why the wet base layer is still keeping you warm. Secondly, the idea of base layers is primarily to transport sweat away from the skin and hence to keep you dry ,which is in large part why they keep you warm. So if it's staying wet, that's sub-optimal. It's also, pretty much certainly, because the layers on top of it are not moisture-permeable. i.e. they aren't breathable, or not breathable enough. What that amounts to is that there's a good chance removing the extra base layer will help with breathability and you'll still be warm. Certainly, changing what's above it so that it doesn't end up wet is going to be a good thing the Gabba's supposed to breath well so just lose the middle layer.

 

[si_c]

There are two essentially separate things there. Firstly, wool is famously 'still warm when wet', which is why the wet base layer is still keeping you warm. Secondly, the idea of base layers is primarily to transport sweat away from the skin and hence to keep you dry ,which is in large part why they keep you warm. So if it's staying wet, that's sub-optimal. It's also, pretty much certainly, because the layers on top of it are not moisture-permeable. i.e. they aren't breathable, or not breathable enough. What that amounts to is that there's a good chance removing the extra base layer will help with breathability and you'll still be warm. Certainly, changing what's above it so that it doesn't end up wet is going to be a good thing the Gabba's supposed to breath well so just lose the middle layer.

Not to mention that if you remove that mid-layer the chances are you won't be producing quite so much sweat as your body will be at a more manageable temperature.

 

[PaulSB]

I suffer from getting very cold after the cafe stop in winter. I've a number of base layers including merino but none solve the problem entirely.

My solution is to take a spare base layer and change in the cafe. I also turn my top layer inside out to dry in the cafe. Wrap it very tightly in a freezer bag and pop in the back pocket.

This keeps me warm for 75 miles or so.

 

[night cycler]

I have a couple of quite old but barely used Merino T-shirts so with the forecast for Saturday to be cold and windy I thought I'd try an experiment.
I wore one of the merino T's next to me, then my bib shorts over the top, my usual long sleeved base layer over that and Castelli Gabba jacket over the lot.
We started out on a frosty cold but sunny morning which got progressively windier then rained for the last 2 hours with temps not up beyond 5C
But the reason for the post was how good the merino was at holding the sweat while keeping me warm.
The base layer I had over it wasn't even damp, yet the merino T was soaking - as my base layer usually is.
I sat at the cafe with my jacket off and was still warm. I'm usually freezing after 5 mins.

I'm a convert but should I try it next without the extra base layer?

Shorts below 5 degrees? I need to change my butcher.

 

[Globalti]

Merino gets just as wet as cotton, my merino base layer can be heavy with moisture when I finish a ride. The difference is that the finer texture of cotton allows it to stick to your skin, making it feel clammy whereas merino has the ability to hold off the skin and so feels less clammy.

 

[mikeymustard]

I love merino, I've got baselayers, knee and arm warmers, and buffs. I've also got a hat that I made out of an old base that had gone into holes. I'm like the Merino Kid, me!

 

[Globalti]

Why don't you just get a couple of sheep to live in your house?

 

[mjr]

Why don't you just get a couple of sheep to live in your house?

Bah!

 

[mikeymustard]

Why don't you just get a couple of sheep to live in your house?

that's not far off actually: the wife does spinning (the yarn kind not the indoor bike kind) so there's usually a couple of fleeces hanging around!