Under Armour and a couple of questions?

[Nubs]

I am currently looking into making a few purchases for this upcoming hunting season, one of those will be a set of Under Armour clothing. I have been looking around on the internet to figure out what is out there and I find myself not quite knowing what kind to get.

I hunt in Northwest WI. early season highs are generally in the upper 50's to mid 60's, sometimes 70's. During November highs are usually in the mid 20's to 30's with lows in the teens and sometimes single digits. My question is, does anybody else use this stuff and if so what have you found to work best in similar conditions? There is the 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, and cold gear. I have read reviews from different web sites and of course people from all across the country are giving there input. The only thing is, is what is cold for one person might not be cold for someone else depending on where they hunt.


My other question is, I am also looking into buying a new pair of rubber boots and am wondering what a good weight for insulation would be? I am thinking in the area of 800, 1000, or 1200 grams. Any help would be great.

[JPH]

I agree, cold is a relative term. I don't think you are going to find any one piece of clothing or pair of boots that will take you through the entire season (Sept. to Jan.).
 
I have UA Cold Gear and I swear by it, but you have to be careful b/c you will do some serious sweating in this stuff if it is 50+. The good thing about it is, depending on how you layer over it, you can wear it from the mid-40's all the way down to below zero. The key is in the layering.
 
Same for my boots. I have a pair of uninsulated rubber boots that I use in warm weather and a pair of 1000 gr. Thinsulate rubbers for the upper 30's on down.
 
Hope that helps.

[MHHC S. IL]

I would highly recommend the Lacrosse Alpha Burly Sports if your looking for rubber boots.  Mine are 800's and will keep me warm down to about 20 degrees, so you may want to look into the 1000's.

[Nubs]

Thanks guys for the info, much appreciated. JPH do you use a lighter weight UA for the early season or something else?

[Dan Schmidt]

Good advice from all! For the cold temperatures (30 or less), it is hard to beat Under Armour 3.0. I wear that as my base layer, then a layer of quality midweight fleece. Top this off with Scent-Lok outwear. The UA 1.0 is a good pick for early season, but as noted by JPH, you will sweat in it in warmer temps. During those early hunts, you can get away with something like a Mossy Oak Apex base layer, a Scent-Lok base layer or a lighterweight Browning layer. As for the boots, MHHC notes a very good choice. I also like the Muck Boots WoodyMax. Great choice for bowhunting. I prefer lighterweight insulation. When it gets cold (30 or lower), I switch to midweight hiking-style boots (Wolverine King Caribou) or pac boots (Cabela's TransAlaskan) when it is really cold. However, with a Heater Body Suit, you can get away with wearing rubber boots on most cold-weather stand hunts. The key to boots is actually your socks. Get a pair of silk-light liner socks (70% polypropylene, 28% stretch nylon, 2% spandex) and wear them under your heavier socks. This will make a world of difference by keeping your feet dry, which will keep them warmer, longer. Order your heavier socks a size larger. You need to move your toes to keep the air flowing. You don't need to spend a ton of money to stay warm. The base layer (on your skin and your feet) is #1. You can easily get by with lower-priced outwear and boots once you take care of that aspect.

Hope this helps. I hunted (and froze) for years before learning how to layer the right way!

Dan

[Patriot]

ORIGINAL: Dan Schmidt
The key to boots is actually your socks. Get a pair of silk-light liner socks (70% polypropylene, 28% stretch nylon, 2% spandex) and wear them under your heavier socks. This will make a world of difference by keeping your feet dry, which will keep them warmer, longer.
Dan

 
Dan, I have done just that for the last couple years, but my feet still get cold.  Pretty sure it's due to sweat.  I utilize 1000gr insulated Columbia rubber boots, silk liners, the wool outersocks.
 
I do walk a bit to get to my stands.  Should I completely change socks at the base of my tree before going up?  I worry about deer smelling my feet for the few minutes it takes to change socks.  I would, of course, store socks in a plastic bag during the hunt.  Any other advice? 

[Nubs]

Dan, thanks for the info very helpful.

[JPH]

Wow! Hard to add much to Dan's reply.

My budget does not allow for multiple UA get-ups. I tend to go with a thin poly-pro layer during warm weather. I will not don my primary insulating layers until I get to the stand.

If money were not an object, I would have UA for every occasion. Next would be fleece and/or wool, depending on the conditions. And as always topped off with Scent-Lok.

[buckhunter21]

Lots of good info from all these guys as usual!  I have about five pairs of hunting boots, all for different things.  I have a pair of rubber boots that I use for early season hunting (just a regular pair of rubber boots...do any of you have 'special' rubber boots that are just for hunting?  this might be a different thread), a mid-weight boot 500 grams for October hunts, a hiking style pair of boots for stalking or if I'm just going to be doing more than the average amount of walking, a 1000 gram pac style boot, and then 1200 gram rubber boot for the colder hunts.  The 1000 and the 1200 can be used interchangeably I'm sure.  I bought the 1000 gram first, and then when I got in my rubber boots kick I got the 1200. 
 
As far as what I wear underneath, layering like everyone else said is the key.  Right now, early or late season and everything in-between, I wear a tight fitting base-layer made by Rocky for my upper and lower body.  I've looked into the coldgear by UA and have thought of getting it but thought I'd try this first, and it has worked very well.  I think I paid $20 for a pair (top/bottom) and I bought two sets.  Just something to think about if you don't want to spend a lot of money I guess.  Also, late season when it gets cold, I'll wear my scent blocker (EXT, light weight, what I wear in the early season) out to the stand while carrying my parka and bibs, then once I get to my stand I'll change into these.  [:D]

[Goose]

I have a set of under armour cold gear top and bottoms. LOVE them. I pretty much wear mine all season except maybe the first couple of weeks but even then we get the occasional cold snap and I find myself glad I had them in the storage tub. I too am on a limited budget and if I could buy more under armour I think I would buy the same thing just to be able to swap them out and keep them fresh.
As far as boots I have a pair of Cabelas 2000 gram rubber knee highs, they have treated me good and I use them all season except in the late season 0 degree weather.
I will agree with the sock being a major player in cold feet, if you have a problem with your feet getting cold I would look into chemical toe warmers, they work wonders IMO.