EB FA Ultra 195 Merino Base layers 30% off- midweight 1/4 zip for $48.30

Stoic is another great option for cheaper, quality merino baselayers. Not quite as cheap as as the EB currently, but often backcountry.com has additional coupons/sales on top of them. I was able to snag a short sleeve and long sleeve last summer for $45 total. I'm still tempted to grab some of those EB bottoms to try em out though.

http://www.backcountry.com/stoic-merino-bottom-mens -$52.50
http://www.backcountry.com/stoic-merino-bliss-shirt-long-sleeve-mens – $55.30
http://www.backcountry.com/stoic-merino-crew-short-sleeve-mens – $38.50

I got one of those short sleeve crews on SAC for $32 a pop. Actually, I got two but had to send one back because of the absurdity of a fat dude wearing a bright yellow shirt with that kind of cut. :P Styling is a bit funky for my taste, which has been the what has scared me off of getting one of the long sleeve top or the bottoms. They also don’t say what the weights are on their merino stuff- the SS Crew seems like 150-160 g/m^2, sounds like it might be the same material for the 1/2 zip bliss.

Another great option for cheaper, quality merino is RedRam, which appears to be a casual subbrand of Icebreaker. AFAIK, they only place they sell it in the US is Gander Mountain, a chain of outdoors shops oriented towards hunting and fishing.

RR Short Sleeve – $48
RR Long Sleeve – $58
RR Long Underwear – $58
RR Boxers – $30

They come in black, navy blue, and an off-white. It’s all the same weight, 165 g/m^2 or so, though they don’t say.

Not *that* cheap as is, but Gander Mountain mountain has had a 25% off sale in-store for the last two or three months, at least at the store up here as well as a the others I’ve been in around the state. I like them- I went for the SS originally because it was cheaper than the SmartWool the store also had. The cut is more casual, but not terribly so- I have the short and long sleeve tops now, and like the fit. They necks aren’t loose (pet peeve of crew shirts), and the arms are nicely snug. They’re more fitted than most cotton t-shirts certainly, though not aggressively athletic, not far off from SmartWool’s crews IMHO.

My only gripe is the colors. Black looks nice, but summer? The white would be OK for some folks, but the ability to see the pink of my nipples through it rules them out for me for non-backpacking use. The navy is very, very dark. I’ve worn the black SS and LS on 200 miles of hikes between them and they’ve performed well.

http://www.hanksclothing.com/minus-33-midweight-thermals.html

Sam – not bad! Higher micron, not sure if that's more or less itchy. But good prices for it, might have to try it out. Thanks!

nice find though, also the RedRam company!

Aaron – I bought a pair of the MW bottoms and they don't seem too itchy to me. Maybe a little courser and noticeably heavier than the 195 g/m^2, but not bad IMO.

Sam

I read about Minus33 here last year. I purchased some test items from Hanks and was so pleased I have purchased more. Wool can drive me crazy but Merino is very comfortable and my go to base layer.

Thanks for the heads up on the Minus 33 – haven't ordered any from Hank's, but a local store (Minnesota Surplus in Duluth, MN) started carrying it. Sort if surprised me, as they only really sell Carhart and Dickies clothing, some work boots, and a small selection of Lafuma packs and bags, in addition to some military surplus.

Kenyon merino baselayers from overstock.com are good deals. I have some tops and bottoms and it's even softer than a couple icebreaker items if have. $35 for long or short sleeve tops and bottoms. http://www.overstock.com/search/kenyon-merino-wool?ovexken=1

i wear the minus 33 short sleeve zip top, and it's fine. on the other hand, it is not as nice as the icebreaker/ibex material. i would say it is as ok as First ascent merino. ie, has that sort'a "chinese" feel to it.
passable. affordable. could most certainly be better.

if the other guys still made zip-t's i'd go the nicer route. but, they don't. and i gave my very sweetest short sleeve away.

Has anyone found any of these to be a bit longer in the torso? Thanks.

The lightweight, short sleeved Stoic shirts I have are quite long, longer than almost everything else I have, including Patagonia Cap. The RedRam stuff also is pretty long, which sort of surprised me considering it is marketed for casual use. The FA merino I have is pretty long, though the heavyweight FA Power Dry zip top I have is less so. The RedRam, Stoic and FA merino both are longer than all of the Smartwool I've owned or tried on.

Didn't notice the length on the Minus 33- it was long enough for me to tuck it in and do a bunch of squats and lunges and not have come out.

Worth noting that Minus 33 stuff runs REALLY big. I can't remember the last time I needed to grab a Large rather than an X-Large or XX-Large- the XL I tried on seemed to be cut like a 2XL or 3XL in some brands.

the XL short sleeve minus 33 top is 30.5" from bottom of collar to hem at home here.
that is sufficient to pad the hips correctly and pretty much cover the package in front.
i wear XL tops in nearly all garments, so as regards that, this one is quite nicely long enough. i consider it to be one of my "longer" tops.

could it be perhaps an inch longer ?
yes. in a perfect world. but what couldn't ?

is it "a bit short" ?
no way. we're good to go.

Thanks, that was some great info. I am looking at getting some short sleeve shirts for summer as I don't think the long sleeve ones will keep out the bugs. Right now I am leaning towards the Stoic because the Minus 33 stuff is a bit heavier, more expensive and darker in color, the FA stuff is definately heavier and no one knows how thick the RedRam stuff is.

How is the durability on this stuff? Just asking as I had a Pat Wool 2 that didn't last that long

And what companies would people go with for some durable wool boxer brief types?

Okay, I love the Stoic stuff and the colors in XXL