hoopdaddy52
FNG
- Joined
- Aug 4, 2023
- Messages
- 37
I’m gearing up for a muley hunt in central Idaho for mid October. I’m totally obsessed thinking about this hunt and all the different scenarios for weather conditions we might experience.
From the locals I’ve talked to, it could be 70 degrees and beautiful or 20 degrees and blowing snow. I do a lot of whitetail hunting in MI so I’m familiar and comfortable with sitting in the cold/snow/rain for hours at a time.
I am less familiar with hiking in ~60lbs of gear plus meat. I realize even in cold, hiking hard while weighed down, I will probably need to strip down to some light layers to avoid sweat-soaking my gear.
Im a huge fan of merino and “regular” wool, but my king of the mountain gear is so heavy I don’t think it’s warranted for a trip like this. I do have some Pendleton 100% wool board shirts which I plan to bring as a lighter mid layer.
My baselayers for this trip will be merino, but I would like to avoid wearing the baselayers with my backpack in direct contact , to avoid damaging/overworking the merino.
I’m thinking lightweight synthetic pants and shirts will be great for periods of sweaty hiking/hauling. Dries quick, more durable than merino and a lot cheaper if it does get worn out/damaged.
I’ve noticed most hiking pants are 100% nylon and most hiking shirts are polyester.
In fact , many things in my normal wardrobe have some blend of polyester.
I’ve also noticed i hate wearing anything 100% polyester for extended periods of time. Dry-fit type shirts claim to be sweat wicking and quick drying, but I find that they kind of keep me in a low-grade sweating state. I’ll sweat a little bit, and it will like half-evaporate leaving a slimy layer between you and the shirt. And as we all know, these shirt’s eventually acquire a sweaty mildewy musk that is hard to eliminate.
Heavier polyester layers are extremely warm, but they also make me sweat. In cold weather, they are almost too warm. It seems they almost always cause me to sweat, then I end up in this state of being too hot in some areas and sweaty and cold along my back.
I tend to prefer 100% cotton or cotton-heavy blends, as I find they do a better job getting the sweat/oils off of me, keeping my skin feeling drier even though the cloth will eventually be sweaty.
So… this brings me to nylon. I actually work as a tech service rep for plastics processors, so I’m very familiar with polyesters and nylons in injection molded parts. The basic material properties of these plastics (nylon/polyester) are the same whether in solid form or in filament/fiber.
Nylon inherently can absorb moisture. A small amount, ~4% or so. When it absorbs moisture, it acts as almost a plasticizer… making the material more flexible and “tough” (toughness in plastics meaning a higher amount of “strain” or stretch before snapping/tearing).
It is more “polar”, meaning more “water-loving”, and polyester is more “non-polar”, meaning more “oil loving”. Nylon is a lot stronger/durable than polyester, but polyester has better UV resistance.
So my thought here is that nylon may be a superior synthetic material.
In theory the ability to absorb some moisture will leave the skin feeling drier. Polyester dries quick because it can’t absorb any moisture…. But leaves that sweat between the shirt and your skin. Nylon being less oil-loving should allow easier cleaning and less stink factor.
Polyester is one of if not the most consumed plastic globally. Meaning it is cheap and super available. Which is why I think we see it in almost every article of clothing. Nylon is not a prohibitively expensive material, but much less common in non-raingear type clothes.
I’ve had a hell of a time finding some 100% nylon shirts, but landed on some cheapo Wrangler ATG fishing type shirts. Also got their outdoor pants which are 100% nylon and great for $28.
I plan to wear the shirts around a little bit to evaluate whether I’m way overthinking this or if I’m actually onto something.
The lack of widely available nylon shirts has me thinking maybe there is a reason why people don’t like or use nylon on their upper body as a shirt/base/mid layer.
Also found the outdoor research Ferrosi jacket that is nylon and looks to be a great mid layer to cut the wind and a bit of cold while remaining breathable.
Interested to hear everyone’s thoughts and experiences!
From the locals I’ve talked to, it could be 70 degrees and beautiful or 20 degrees and blowing snow. I do a lot of whitetail hunting in MI so I’m familiar and comfortable with sitting in the cold/snow/rain for hours at a time.
I am less familiar with hiking in ~60lbs of gear plus meat. I realize even in cold, hiking hard while weighed down, I will probably need to strip down to some light layers to avoid sweat-soaking my gear.
Im a huge fan of merino and “regular” wool, but my king of the mountain gear is so heavy I don’t think it’s warranted for a trip like this. I do have some Pendleton 100% wool board shirts which I plan to bring as a lighter mid layer.
My baselayers for this trip will be merino, but I would like to avoid wearing the baselayers with my backpack in direct contact , to avoid damaging/overworking the merino.
I’m thinking lightweight synthetic pants and shirts will be great for periods of sweaty hiking/hauling. Dries quick, more durable than merino and a lot cheaper if it does get worn out/damaged.
I’ve noticed most hiking pants are 100% nylon and most hiking shirts are polyester.
In fact , many things in my normal wardrobe have some blend of polyester.
I’ve also noticed i hate wearing anything 100% polyester for extended periods of time. Dry-fit type shirts claim to be sweat wicking and quick drying, but I find that they kind of keep me in a low-grade sweating state. I’ll sweat a little bit, and it will like half-evaporate leaving a slimy layer between you and the shirt. And as we all know, these shirt’s eventually acquire a sweaty mildewy musk that is hard to eliminate.
Heavier polyester layers are extremely warm, but they also make me sweat. In cold weather, they are almost too warm. It seems they almost always cause me to sweat, then I end up in this state of being too hot in some areas and sweaty and cold along my back.
I tend to prefer 100% cotton or cotton-heavy blends, as I find they do a better job getting the sweat/oils off of me, keeping my skin feeling drier even though the cloth will eventually be sweaty.
So… this brings me to nylon. I actually work as a tech service rep for plastics processors, so I’m very familiar with polyesters and nylons in injection molded parts. The basic material properties of these plastics (nylon/polyester) are the same whether in solid form or in filament/fiber.
Nylon inherently can absorb moisture. A small amount, ~4% or so. When it absorbs moisture, it acts as almost a plasticizer… making the material more flexible and “tough” (toughness in plastics meaning a higher amount of “strain” or stretch before snapping/tearing).
It is more “polar”, meaning more “water-loving”, and polyester is more “non-polar”, meaning more “oil loving”. Nylon is a lot stronger/durable than polyester, but polyester has better UV resistance.
So my thought here is that nylon may be a superior synthetic material.
In theory the ability to absorb some moisture will leave the skin feeling drier. Polyester dries quick because it can’t absorb any moisture…. But leaves that sweat between the shirt and your skin. Nylon being less oil-loving should allow easier cleaning and less stink factor.
Polyester is one of if not the most consumed plastic globally. Meaning it is cheap and super available. Which is why I think we see it in almost every article of clothing. Nylon is not a prohibitively expensive material, but much less common in non-raingear type clothes.
I’ve had a hell of a time finding some 100% nylon shirts, but landed on some cheapo Wrangler ATG fishing type shirts. Also got their outdoor pants which are 100% nylon and great for $28.
I plan to wear the shirts around a little bit to evaluate whether I’m way overthinking this or if I’m actually onto something.
The lack of widely available nylon shirts has me thinking maybe there is a reason why people don’t like or use nylon on their upper body as a shirt/base/mid layer.
Also found the outdoor research Ferrosi jacket that is nylon and looks to be a great mid layer to cut the wind and a bit of cold while remaining breathable.
Interested to hear everyone’s thoughts and experiences!
