Background:
I grew up in the piney woods of Southeast Texas. Camping was a quick trip into the mosquito-infested woods behind the house. I started hiking in my college years and my style has evolved over the past 17 years - from my discovery, heavy gear, period (internal frame packs, sleeping bags and tents) to - believe it or not - heavier, more expensive gear. Over the last 3 or 4 years, I have begun to take a lighter weight approach to hiking gear (I still use sleeping bags and tents, just lighter versions) and I have rediscovered the pleasure that can be involved in being outdoors with your gear. While I have flirted with lightweight hiking, I feel that I am more of a mid -weight hiker now. My philosophy is one of comfort, while carrying the lightest load possible

Manufacturer's Details
Website: www.hotchillys.com
Style: 2233
Weight: NA
Sizes: S, M, L, XL
Year of Manufacture: 2003
Colors:White and Black

Tester's Details
Style: Long sleeve, zip neck, crew collared shirt
Weight: 10 oz (289 g)
Size: Medium
Color: White

Test Conditions:
The testing has taken place in Southeast Texas in a variety of climatic conditions. The temperatures have ranged from 30 degrees F (-1 degree C) to 70 degrees F (21 degrees C). The precipitation has ranged from none, all the way up to a full downpour. Wind has varied from 0 mph (0 kph) to over 20 mph (32 kph) during the testing time.

Testing:
The Hot Chilly's Bio-Silver Bi-Ply Shirt has been used as an under shirt to sleep in and as an outer shirt to hike, sit around camp, play disc golf, and generally be outdoors in. My test plan was simple: wear the shirt in a variety of conditions, with and without deodorant, wash it, and see what happened.

The first wear/wash cycle consisted of 7 days. Three days and nights were on a camping trip and the other four days were day hikes or other short term outdoor activities. Since the weather has been colder than I am used to, I was able to wear the shirt for the entire three day trip without taking it off.

I could discern no noticeable odor on the shirt after this time period and neither could my wife, who has a very sensitive sense of smell. It was stained with grass, dirt, ashes, and food by the time it made it to the washing machine. I simply followed the laundry instructions on the label (machine wash warm) and after it emerged from the washer, I was amazed. No stains anywhere on the shirt. Considering I am very good at ruining clothes with strange stains, this was a great outcome. I let the shirt air dry overnight and in the morning I had a clean Bio-Silver Bi-Ply shirt that was ready to go.

The next two wash/wear cycles were approximately 7 days each. I day hiked most of the these days, but there were a few other outdoor activities involved as well (yard mowing counts).   What I noticed almost immediately after the first wash was that my body odor was VERY apparent after about an hour in the shirt. I was worried that this was going to mean that the shirt lost it's properties after the first wash, but things turned out differently than I expected. Once the shirt was taken off and sat for a few hours the odor vanished. Even after being worn for seven days with no deodorant the odor that I smelled while I occupied the shirt was not apparent after a little airing out.

On the second wash the shirt responded just as well as it did the first time. Grass, food, ashes, and dirt stains all came out without any special treatments. The body odor was still apparent after wearing the shirt for awhile, but it went away after the shirt was aired out. The third wash is around the corner, but I don't feel that I am going to see much change in the shirt's ability to avoid a permanent odor.

Durability:
So far I have been unable to permanently stain the Hot Chilly's Bio-Silver Bi-Ply shirt. I have put my fair share of dirt, grass, food, ashes, rust and other exotic substances on it and they have all washed out. At one point I was even in a bind and used it to blot up a spot or two of dog urine with it, but everything washed out including the stain and the smell.

I have worn the Hot Chilly's Bio-Silver Bi-Ply shirt with a fanny pack and a full sized pack and there has been no pilling of the material on the shirt's back. There have also been no rips, tears, snags or other damage to the shirt, even though there were several times that I figured something had to have happened after a tussle with a passing bush.

Impressions:
Overall, I like this shirt. The Hot Chilly's Bio-Silver Bi-Ply shirt has been comfortable, stain resistant, and does not seem to permentantly hold an odor. Due to the two layer construction, I am able to wear this shirt as outerwear in much colder conditions that usually require extra layers. In many ways, it has allowed me to spend much less time in a fleece or heavier jacket.

I like wearing the Hot Chilly's Bio-Silver Bi-Ply shirt because it fits well, is stylish enough to wear on its own, and is very resistant to my secret ability to spill drinks or food on clothing.   It stretches in the right ways and does not bind or catch on packs that are worn over it. I even like the zipper, even though I don't normally like shirts with zippers on them. The little chili pepper that serves as the zipper pull is one of my favorite things to chew on while sitting around the campfire.

Remainder of the test:
I plan to continue my wear/wash cycles, but I am going to stretch the period out to 14 days instead of 7. This will allow me to see how the shirt performs over longer periods without washing.

Read more reviews of Hot Chillys gear
Read more gear reviews by Thomas Vickers

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