Reviews > Clothing > Shirts > IBEX Wollies Zip T Neck > Test Report by Kathryn Doiron

Ibex Woolies Zip T-Neck base layer

Product Information:

I received the soft brown colour in the women's large size, the colour reminds me of milk chocolate. In general my top half fits a medium or large but my hips normally push me one size higher depending on the stretch. After talking to a sales rep over the phone to determine how stretchy the material would be, I opted for the large. The base layer is much thinner then I expected but feels quite similar to a cotton shirt. The wool material has a lot of give to it and fits me quite well both in the hip area and on top. I feel that if I had gone one size up the fit would not have been as good.

The woolies zip t-neck is meant to be used as a base layer any time of the year. The wool material is thin enough to fit under most of the items in my gear drawer. I find I have been tucking the base layer into my pants where I don't normally tuck in my shirts. The wool layer has been nice against my skin and I haven't had any issues with itchiness. The base layer is soft and all the seams are flat stitched. I have not had any binding issues or rubbing from seams and the care label is actually printed onto the inside back. I did notice that the seam from the cuff is a little tight when I try to pull the sleeve up when washing my hands.

The woolies zip T-neck came with an info sheet that claims this to be antimicrobial, temperature regulating, anti-wrinkle, machine washable, breathable, quick drying, stain resistant as well as flame retardant. While I will be testing the most of these claims, I am not sure I will be testing the flammability of this base layer. And while I have sat close enough to fires to get hit by embers, I don't plan on purposely doing that.

My test plan over the next couple of months will be to wear this base layer on all my trips. I have a few plans to go on some multi-day skiing trips as well as a few overnight winter trips and some day hikes. I have been wearing the base layer while here in frigid Montreal since I was home for the holidays and finding it helps in keeping me warm.

I think it says a lot for a piece of clothing if I put it on and promptly forget I am wearing it. I have very few complaints about this base layer. When I wear it next to the skin, it is soft and comfortable and keeps me warm even when soaked through with sweat. I actually find that this base layer tends to wear and wash like a cotton shirt. The seams are comfortable and don't cause any chaffing whether I am wearing this for hiking, backpacking or kayaking. The only complaint I really have is for the zipper. I generally leave the zipper down to help with air flow but when I find myself cold, I zip the zipper up for extra warmth. I find that the collar doesn't seem to snuggle uniformly around my neck but rather, the front part tends to be tight against my neck and the back part seems to gap open. It feels like the base layer is being worn incorrectly. I did also get a little chaffing around the zipper area when it was up, but I generally didn't notice it when unzipped.

I have taken this base layer out on numerous hikes and backpacking events. I have been out on at least 4 day hikes, 2 overnights, and about 5 kayaking trips with this base layer. I would either wear the layer directly against the skin or I would wear a wicking sports halter underneath. The day hikes have been 3-5 miles (5-8 km) at a stretch with temperatures as high as 70 F (20 C) and as low as 50 F (10 C). The kayaking trips take place on the Potomac with water temperatures between 40 - 50 F (4 - 10 C) and air temperatures between 50 and 70 F (10 - 20 C). On the overnight trips, I wore the base layer both as an undershirt and as a sleeping shirt. The first trip was so cold, that I couldn't bring myself to remove any layer of clothing. Temperatures dropped to the freezing mark, the hike in was about 5 miles (8 km) with no wind or elevation gain. The pace was slow to avoid sweating. The second trip was to the same area but via a different route, making for a 1 mile (1.6 km) hike in with no elevation gain and again freezing mark temperatures.

I generally wash the base layer after each use. Unless I am wearing it over a weekend backpacking trip, or just to keep me warm around the house, it get tossed in the laundry. I have both machine washed and dried the base layer as well as hung the base layer to dry. When I machine dry it, I do find I get some static buildup but I have not noticed any signs of shrinkage, stretching or additional wear with machine drying. When I wear the base layer for more than one day in a row, I find that when the base layer is wet with sweat it does tend to smell a little but once it dries, there is very little smell associated with it. Sometimes all I can smell afterwards is my deodorant odour.

I previously noted that the cuff seam was a little tight. I find that is still the case but the seam has relaxed with use and washing to the point that while still a little tight, it is not nearly as bad as it was. I have found the base layer to be mostly odour-free once it has dried. When it comes straight out of the drier, it is a bit wrinkled but they relax once I wear the base layer. When I hang dry it there are no wrinkles. The base layer is breathable, dries quickly when hung (I need to time this but it tends to feel quite dry when removed from the washer). I haven't tested or noticed any flame retardant abilities or its stain resistance.

Future testing plans will include wearing the base layer in warmer temperatures to see if it will help with temperature regulation and possibly help keep me cool. I will also be using the base layer more as a light weight long sleeved shirt as the weather warms with t-shirts underneath so I can peel when warm. I will also look into how well the base layer keeps sun out.

Pros: Snug stretchy fit, keeps me warm even when wet and seems to be odour resistant.
Cons: Zipper can be a bit scratchy, and collar doesn't seem to sit right when zipped up.

This concludes my field report on the Ibex Woolies Zip T-neck base layer. The long term report will be appended onto this report in two months time (around June) and will include more field testing and long term wear. Please check back then for further information on the Ibex base layer.


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Reviews > Clothing > Shirts > IBEX Wollies Zip T Neck > Test Report by Kathryn Doiron