wool jackets and sweaters

[CodenameWalrus]

QFT, Martin.

[PineMartyn]

QFT, Martin.

Thanks CodenameWalrus. Had to Google 'QFT' though. My first thought was, "Dem's fightin' woids!"

Cheers,
- Martin

[Treeline]

Even though good wool sweaters and jackets cost more, to me it is worth it because they tend to last a very long time. I have favorite wool sweaters that I have been wearing for 15 years and they are still going strong. It's kind of like buying tools; spend more and buy the high quality tool, or spend less on the "throw-away" tool, which you'll replace several times and end up spending more in the long run.

As others have already mentioned, look for the good brands used and save some $. Thrift stores, EBay, etc.

[Yevoc1]

Goodwill! The majority of my wool come from there.

[borego]

It also depends where you live.

It's hard to find wool in fl, not that common let alone cold. sometimes you get lucky


sometimes

[1066vik]

What the "go to" places for wool clothing? I have googled and came up empty handed or found sites with ridiculous prices.

what size and what do you consider ridiculous?

[Seeker]

Guess i ought to contribute a source of wool (aside from Sheep!)

I got a nice Filson Cruiser off ebay for about $110 around 4 years ago. It's in great shape with hardly any wear. It's the gray one. The green ones go for more.

I also found 2x merino wool sweaters cheap. One is an LL Bean pullover. Lists for about $100, but i got it off the "scratch and dent" rack at one of their retail outlets for $5 because it had a small 'pull' and they couldn't sell it 'new'. The other is like one of the army wool sweaters, with the high collar and the 5 buttons. Mine only has 4 i think, and it is SOFT. LOVE it. Again, $5, this time at Goodwill.

I found a wool field shirt on ebay a couple years ago for about $25. indestructible, but itchy around the neck.

I also got a pair of the army wool cold weather pants off ebay this year, for about $25-30. Found those old figure-8 suspenders with the hook on them for $2 at a local surplus shop, and had a pair of the pants liners already.

[MiddleWolf]

try military surplus websites and stores...the old wool sweaters the army issued back in the day are amazingly warm and i wish i had kept mine when i got out. also look at second hand stores...its a possibility.

+1 on this advice adding thrift stores, rummage sales, estate sales, and any other garage/yard sales you can catch. Wool garments in good shape are popular with more then just bushcrafters so good hunting.

[theresyourtrouble]

I bought a Columbia wool jacket just like the one Dave Cantabury uses. It is bomb proof as he likes to say.
One advantage to wool is the camo aspect in that it does not have a sheen to it like many outdoor clothing, and it is quiet.

whats the name of that jacket, ive been looking for it for a while. i always assumed it was a cabelas jacket.

[PineMartyn]

skbenton,
It occurs to me that showing might be more persuasive than just saying, when it comes to getting good winter clothes inexpensively, especially wool garments.

Last winter I made a series of instructional videos about winter camping for people who are interested in giving it a try, but not sure where to begin,
I devoted a part of one of these videos to the very subject under discussion in this thread. Below is a video of me, camping in an igloo, showing and discussing what clothing I take with me winter camping, why I wear mostly wool, where I get it, and how much I paid for it.
That portion of video starts at the 5:55 mark, so one needn't watch the whole video.



Hope this helps,
-Martin