Introduction:
These are dark (nearly black, called "graphite" by the manufacturer) boxers of non-scratchy, stretchy "superfine" merino wool. You can find a more detailed description in my Initial Report.

Field Experience:
I've taken these for a number of long walks, though only one intense hike of (barely) more than 16 km (10 mi). Terrain was hilly, though the altitude no more than maybe 400 m (1300 ft) above sea level, with temperatures not far above freezing. The Roaster Boxers did not roast anything, I am pleased to report, but did keep me warm.

Fit/Comfort:
They still fit much like I have described them in the Initial Report. When I first washed them (cool cycle in a washing machine, dried on a line), they fit rather snugly afterwards, which to my mind was an improvement - I wondered whether they were meant to do this - had the manufacturer calculated some shrinking into the design? But no, after wearing them for a half hour or so, they went back to their previous shape. While I wouldn't have minded them being that bit tighter, this is definitely good news as far as long-term durability is concerned.
I have found that I do not like wearing them under tight pants. The fact that they do not hug my legs tightly means that they can (and do, after a while) ride up underneath the outer layer and cause some bunching. Under somewhat loser clothing (not baggy, just less snugly fitting than a tight pair of jeans) it was fine.

They have not caused me to wear them when jogging, however. While the fit and warmth does not preclude their use in this circumstance, they just seem a bit more substantial than is warranted. When jogging, I generally need no more than a slip and long jogging pants (if cold) or short jogging pants (if warm). Adding these boxers is superfluous where I'm concerned. Still, heavy sweating did nothing to them. Even after sweating heavily, the boxers seemed to have absorbed little moisture, though they did not leave me clammy underneath. I take this to indicate that they've had a good throughput of moisture. I do note, however, that I sweat much less on my lower body than on my upper, so the total load of moisture thus generated likely wasn't too high.

Warmth:
The boxers feel nicely warm, but not overly so. At least in temperatures not too far above freezing (I haven't been able to hike in anything warmer yet), they were comfortably warm. This has enabled me to wear largish, thin nylon pants (cheap supermarket jogging pants) over them for a small dayhike which I might otherwise have considered too thin. This would not have worked in very windy conditions, but as the entire stretch was through rather dense woods, this was not a problem. My usual hiking pants have a bit more substance, but they too aren't windproof (or even close to it). Wearing these over the Roaster Boxers, my lower legs could feel the windchill when crossing exposed areas, but the boxers kept the bite off the parts of my body underneath it and thus added welcome comfort.

Durability:
I hadn't thought that I'd even include "durability" as a heading in this report. However, due to circumstances I'd rather not get into here, the boxers ended up being washed at 90 C (195 F), which I'm sure is at least equal to the "hot cycle" on a US washing machine, and thrown into a dryer afterwards to boot. This is a point at which I feel the need to stress again that this garment does not look nor feel like wool to the uninitiated...
The effect this had on the boxers in question was ... nil.
zip. nada. niente. zero.
Let me say this again: I have been unable to ascertain any appreciable amount of wear, shrinking or what have you on these after this encounter with the worst modern conveniences can throw at wool clothing. While I do not intend to let this happen again to my boxers, it still makes me happy. I had originally worried that it might be easy to damage these through being less than very careful with washing (though I hadn't even imagined the possibility of the boxers ending up in a treatment this far removed from the washing instructions). I am glad to report that my mind is now entirely at ease in this regard.

Drying:
When not machine drying (which the tag symbol indicates one shouldn't, though I now wonder why it does so), these boxers dry very slowly. It has generally taken them roughly twice as long to dry as a standard, midweight cotton T-shirt hung on the same line. However, it's been easy to put them on straight out of the washing machine. They then felt clammy only for a very short time - wool really does seem to be warm even when wet. They then dried very quickly on my body. I find this excellent.

Personal Biographical Information:
Name: André Corterier
Gender: M
Age: 33
Height: 1,85 m (6 ft 1 in)
Weight: 80 kg (175 lb)
Email: andreDOTcorterierATfreenetDOTde
Home: Bonn, Germany

Backpacking Background:
I began backpacking in my late teens using Europe’s "InterRail"-System – weight hardly mattered, as we were on trains a lot. I recently rediscovered backpacking and have started out slowly – single-day 15 mile (24 km) jaunts by myself or even shorter hikes in the company of my little daughter. I am getting started on longer hikes, as a lightweight packer and hammock-camper. I’ve begun upgrading my old gear and am now shooting for a dry FSO weight (everything carried From the Skin Out except food, fuel and water) of about 10 kg (22 lb) for three-season camping. Not quite there yet.

Read more reviews of Ibex gear
Read more gear reviews by Andre Corterier

Field Report

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