Base layer recommendations

Max Headroom wrote: It often makes me wonder in awe at how those poor guys in the WW1 trenches coped with the basic gear they had to use in horrendous conditions, so I try not to grumble too much when the great kit I have sometimes isn't "good enough"

And even up to that time, like in the middle ages and 2000 years ago.. People have been living in northern Europe and the coastal regions here for thousands of years. Did they just huddle up under a blanket or a bear skin all the winter?
There wasn't much weaving of clothing in large scale before the industrial revolution.

The success of Amundsen beating Scott for the south pole more than hundred years ago was mostly that he copied the clothing and equipment of the Eskimos. New film about him coming this year by the way..

By the way: Here in Norway we got this impression of english boys just wearing a school uniform with shorts all winter being so frozen pale white that you're almost translucent except for the freckles, and your houses often without double glazing and insulation..
We have more or less the same climate and weather, but we have the impression that you guys just cope, while we adapt.
We got this from bad TV-series and movies i guess..

Max Headroom wrote: I grasped that you were involved in farming but wasn't sure in what field exactly ('scuse the pun :dry:).
Sheep eh? Now your forum name starts to make sense!
For a short time before joining the Royal Air Farce I had a farm job. I recall it being very hard work but immensly rewarding It was both arable and pastoral; mostly sheep barley and oat.

Yes trial and error is definitely the way forward with clothing but there's some technical stuff out there that amazes me - like the Buffalo clothing; it's just finding someone that has used it in order to get a recommendation!
It often makes me wonder in awe at how those poor guys in the WW1 trenches coped with the basic gear they had to use in horrendous conditions, so I try not to grumble too much when the great kit I have sometimes isn't "good enough"

+1 for me for Under Armour stuff Dawn, but I mostly use that for walking/hiking cycling and yoga rather than trying to keep warm. Its v expensive too - I've been lucky enough to get most of my Under Armour cheaply at US Military stores when we travel away.

Lambert is actually my given Christian name, I'm the fifth of my paternal line to bear it, though it took a long time to become comfortable with it, school and college were a nightmare, if I had a quid for every unoriginal derogatory name I would be a very rich man!

Will have a look at the other options you've all mentioned. Thank you.

yakuza wrote:

Max Headroom wrote: It often makes me wonder in awe at how those poor guys in the WW1 trenches coped with the basic gear they had to use in horrendous conditions, so I try not to grumble too much when the great kit I have sometimes isn't "good enough"

And even up to that time, like in the middle ages and 2000 years ago.. People have been living in northern Europe and the coastal regions here for thousands of years. Did they just huddle up under a blanket or a bear skin all the winter?
There wasn't much weaving of clothing in large scale before the industrial revolution.

The success of Amundsen beating Scott for the south pole more than hundred years ago was mostly that he copied the clothing and equipment of the Eskimos. New film about him coming this year by the way..

By the way: Here in Norway we got this impression of english boys just wearing a school uniform with shorts all winter being so frozen pale white that you're almost translucent except for the freckles, and your houses often without double glazing and insulation..
We have more or less the same climate and weather, but we have the impression that you guys just cope, while we adapt.
We got this from bad TV-series and movies i guess..

It's funny isn't it because the image I seem to have been presented with over the years of Norway is something similar to the frozen hell of Hoth inhabited by fur wearing, axe wielding, types driven half mad by 6 months of continuous sunshine and 6 months of continuous night. When in point of fact there is very little to differentiate us other than the languages, certainly the Norwegian people I have spent any time with have always been so lovely. One of these days when life on the farm calms down a little I want to have a drive round Norway it looks beautiful.

Ok so I got to the shops and as it turns out there was a sale on, that coupled with the wife's nhs staff discount and we're off to the races. Got a 85per cent merino top two polyester bottoms and a micro fleece jumper all for 42 quid. The merino is easily as warm or warmer than my expensive bamboo top and several steps up from the polyester one so that's a win. The legs even with very thin sweatpant shorts are as warm as jeans but I have yet to see how hot they make my lower legs in conjunction with my Dunlop purafort boots, warm feet are good but sweaty ones are not.. So far so good.