Recommended Winter Gear?
 

Thinking ahead to winter here, and am thinking that I need to pick up some better warmer clothes.
I have played many a winter game, but have had to wear 5-6 layers of clothing to keep my ass warm enough. When all the clothes are on including my winter whites, I tend to look like the Stay Puff Marshmellow man.
So I am asking those that KNOW what works in keeping the body warm and dry. Well, maybe a mid level list. I have seen a single sweater that runs over $300 and that is just not realistc for most of us.

So, if anyone can inform me on some suggestions to get, I would most appreciate it. Links to products would be much welcome as well.

Thanks.

Polypropylene works fucking wonder's in the snow & is AFFORDABLE. Had just one pair of it when I was using it & was nice and comfortable out in the snow. Only had the polypropylene & a thick cargo pant & fleece top on & boots/gloves/ect of course.

I hear Underarmour is good in the cold as well but have yet to test it. Can only speak from first hand experience.

Near the bottom of the page. http://www.sealsactiongear.com/products_clothing.html

UnderArmour rocks in the cold. I've played a lot of football games in the cold wearing that stuff and I stayed warmer than I was during some early season games. Definately the shit.

Hi Mark, I've tried different things and found that you really need to use the tried-and-true layering approach. A moisture-wicking t-shirt like Underarmor, 5.11 or similar from your local athletic store, midlayer (I use a light synthetic turtleneck), good fleece jacket and a goretex GI ECWCS suit are perfect in weather ranging from 0 to -20. You will still work up a sweat during heavy physical activity but the above-described combo will let moisture evaporate quickly during a break. The t-shirt and turtleneck will not remain wet which is extremely important for comfort in cold weather.

You can range the weight of fleece - wear a Polartec 100 for warmer days and get the big guns like Polartec 300 for really cold weather. Or you can just get a midweight one which will be a good compromise for any kind of weather. I use a jacket similar to Cabela's Polartec ECWCS 300 and it works wonderfully in the field and is trendy enough to wear around the town too.

To keep the lower body warm I wear a cheapo pair of fleece pants ($20 from Wallmar) underneath the goretex pants and it has always been sufficient even on crazy cold+windchill days.

The GI goretex is an excellent piece of kit for being out in the fall and winter - it provides camouflage, it will cut the wind completely, it will keep you dry in wet weather, the pants won't get wet and accumulate 3 lbs of ice on them when you wade through the snow, the jacket has a hood and underarm zipped vents which are very handy for a quick cool-down.

I tend to get cold fast and I found that for me to stay warm it's critical not to let heat escape from my neck, so a simple combination of a synthetic (or wool, stay away from cotton) turtleneck and a balaclava help me stay very comfortable even on cold days with a high windchill factor.

The last but not least - the described clothing system will maintain a leaner profile as there really are no bulky layers you have to wear, it's light and won't constrain your movement.

If you do go for the ECWCS, I'd recommend getting the Generation II stuff, it doesn't have the liner, has a somewhat more generous cut and sports a rollaway hood. Gen I stuff is cheaper and will do the job just adequatly though.

Used US or German goretex sets are widely available and won't cost too much, I got my US one from www.armygear.net and it cost me under Cad $100 shipped.

For -30's with wind chills down to -40's at the airport I wear:
Feet :
Helly Hansen polypropolene socks (thin)
Helly Hansen polypropolene socks (thick)

Legs:
Helly Hansen Polypropolene thermal long pants
Canadian tire brand Snow-boarding pants (with reinforced crotch and knees)

Torso:
Helly Hansen Polypropolene thermal long sweater
T-shirt
Hoodie
Mark's work wearhouse brand Bomber jacket (issued by work, did not buy)

Head:
US Army issue Extreme cold weather mask (with removable mouth piece)
Touque
Hood from hoodie
Ear defenders (issued by work, did not buy)

Hands:
Thin polyester gloves
Ski-do long mitts with long fore-arms.

Keeps me nice and warm, even while sweating my ass off. And the total cost was less than $400 bucks.

I wear my CF Issue Extreme cold parka. I was in a game last winter which reached -32 i believe without the windchill. our guns didn't last long, but i could have played all night.
http://www.airsoftcanada.com/gallery...php?i=306&c=30
I'm the guy to the far left with the OD boonie. If you want to get one of those jackets, ARMYISSUE is where you need to go.

Hey Guy's I helped a lot of guys get warm last winter. This year I have more goodies. The CF extreme cold Parka will take you down to -40C. The other popular item was the wool combat sweater. Snug and warm. The army has issued a new polar fleece set thatts been really popular too. The white acrylic face masks allows cold protection with out over heating the head.
The great thing with Canadian surplus is that its not one makers opinion of what might be warm. Its been tested by the military and they spend a lot of cash making sure they get the right stuff for cold weather combat senario's. The mitts and boots are a little extreme for ASC play but the goretex gear has been very good for late fall and winter games. I'll post more winter stuff as the season comes up again. :salute:
Cheers
Jeroon

Steve, sorry I hadn't realized you were not gonna have any long johns under the combat pants that day sorry.

look at picking up at body warmer tight long sleeve shirt from crappy tire. it's in the hockey stuff, I've heard alot of great things about it. I mean it keeps the cold out when you're just sitting on the bench, but you don't over heat in it either. more available then under armour (well to me it is around here) and it's cheaper if you use crappy tire money (it's $32 or around that)
but basically any of those polypro things that I get issued are the cats meow for if you're on the move all the time.
personally I try to just wear the extreme cold weather pants, poly pro, unzipped goretex shirt, and a extreme cold weather jacket schell. does the job for me.
Greg

Haha, ya I think was pissing out ice cubes at one point. Almost looked like a slushy dispenser at your local 7/11 8-O

Don't know if by "gear" you mean down to the nuts and bolts, but if you do:

GOOD wool socks. Definately. My feet get cold very easily and when I went to decent wool socks it was night and freaking day.

You want the thick 2-layer-knit things. The one with the poofier knit on the inside and the thicker denser knit on the outside. I got mine at Work Warehouse. Never looked back, and hell -- they weren't even very expensive (under 20 for 4 pairs as I recall, but that was a very long time ago now so I don't know if that's still accurate. I've literally worn out all but one pair at this writing).

They wick moisture away well and also insulate great.

I just bumped my stock up with a crap load of wool socks black wool toques and a pile of the wool CF combat sweaters. I have a selection of the Issue fleece and a couple dozen of the CF white acrylic Balaclavas. I love carrying cold weather gear it more interesting and the combinations of layers help to regulate your personal temp. warm and dry under any conditions. Had a blast playing at -35*C and only a few players froze their toze. Over the next several weeks I'll be getting cold weather stock in so if you plan on picking some up give me advance notice and I'll see what I can find for you. Now is the best time to get gear while its still around and before everyone else has pulled all the treasured pieces.
Cheers

Under armor is definatly the way to go!! If you want to see the complete line go on www.uscav.com but its king of expensive though

Also you can check flecktarn.co.uk for a cheap gortex suit and a good winter parka. I will order that on my next pay check

I push buggies in a t-shirt at 10C, and a light spring jacket when it's -15C, so I don't think this thread applies to me. :lol:

if you go to an athletics shop near you, they will have UA, at least the bike shop here in Waterloo does....

Even better, try a pair of Smartwool socks; your feet will thank you. Yeah, they run ~20 bucks a pair, but they keep your feets _comfortable_, _year_round_. When there's deep snow though, I also add a pair of sealskinz goretex oversocks; smartwool keep your feet warm even if they're soaked, but it's better for your tootsies if they ain't.

Getting away from feet though, I find for the upper torso, the combo of sweat-wicking t + fleece + water-resistant/super-thin layer (in my case the Arktis rainshield) to be awesome.

Under Armour. Get the cold gear mock turtle neck. I got the sleevless ones for football, works great. Tight to the body, sweat absorbant, keeps you nice and dry and very warm.

Definetly UnderArmour HeatGear.

Sorel Snowlion white winter boots have kept me toes warm and cosy for the last 4 years. :-D

Thermal tights are nice. That and good socks and gloves. As long as my feet and hands are dry I'm peachy

Hey, this may be a bit off topic but what do you guys use for a canteen durning the winter? (I'm sure they can easyely freeze up after being outside for too long) it's probably even going to be wrose for me because mine is metal :-(

Erik

CF Issue Prospector goretex boots, went down to -40 or something at a thunder bay expedition. Didn't even feel it, whereas the guys wearing the Mukluks had to dryout their boots and layers by a fire after the x-country skiing.

Camelbak I have one of the original ones so the whole thing including the insulating cover fits in my TT vest.