Clothing

[UniCycle88]

Hi,

I am getting closer to finishing my gear list. One thing I am very lost on is clothing, I don't know anything about cycle or hiking clothing.

I will need clothing for a multi-year trip but do not plan on being anywhere that gets below 0°C or above 30°C.

I am planning on x3 socks, boxers, t-shirt.

I hear a lot of talk of merino wool?

What sort of materials should I look at? Wool? Fleece?

I am guessing I need a good breathable and waterproof jacket for on the bike?

A light down jacket for off the bike?

A good fleece top?

Waterproof pants for on the bike?

Waterproof shoes or shoe covers?

Waterproof socks?

Buff? Material?

Water proof gloves?

Summer is easy, it's the colder months I am clueless about.

Regards.

[landsurfer]

Assuming your over 18, aren't dressed by mummy or daddy every morning, and haven't frozen to death so far ... (the fact your posting would help to support that) ... you already know the answers to all your questions ...
Result ...

[jgurney]

Merino is excellent stuff. So is bamboo. Icebreaker make very good, but pricy, merino gear. Beware of items labelled 'merino' but which are really a mix with a little merino in it.

For underwear, socks and T-shirts, I suggest you look at Rohan's range. They make some ultralight and odour-resistant (silver in it) fabric, but it is pricy.

Down is good as long as it stays dry but takes a long time and careful handling to recover from getting wet. Synthetic substitutes are less vulnerable. I use a Rohan 'Icepack' synthetic down vest. Rab and Berghaus make very similar vests and jackets.

[Heltor Chasca]

Have a look at Alpkit's website. Good value tech clothing. Don't forget that once you've 'done winter' on your tour you can post kit back to a friend or relative.

[pjclinch]

For underwear, socks and T-shirts, I suggest you look at Rohan's range. They make some ultralight and odour-resistant (silver in it) fabric, but it is pricy.

Rohan make quite a bit of stuff which looks fairly mainstream but is fairly high performance and has usefully secure pocket space, a good thing on a long trip. They're my default tailors as I seem to have similar proportions to their tailor's dummy and it lasts for years.

They're not cheap, but nor are they stupidly expensive and they have a very handy clearance department, The Souk. They also have fairly regular sales, and there'll almost certainly be a good one just after Christmas.

Pete.

[Vorpal]

Kit list & discussion from the 'Too good to lose section'... viewtopic.php?f=42&t=85590

[pwa]

Everyone has personal tastes, but there are basic principles to stick to with clothing for cycle touring. They are the same principles as for hiking.

Thin layers. Take thin layers that you can wear one on top of another. So, for example, the waterproof top should be just a shell, with no insulation. Maybe a thin fleece or something similar. Thin base layer. Using thin layers you can fine tune for different conditions.

Quick drying. Choose materials that dry quickly. For that reason, avoid cotton.

Light. Choose materials that are light. It may not seem important for one garment, but when you put all your clothing on the scales, together, choosing light garments can make a real difference.

[simonhill]

Another cryptic post. Why not just say where you are going.

There are plenty of parts of the world where clothes are very cheap and you can buy as you need. There are plenty of places that aren't.

Pointless anyone commenting until they know.

[MartinBrice]

eBay is your friend. you'll take only a small amount of kit and it'll wear out. you'l buy stuff on the way. but until you decide where you're going and tell us we can't give you the benefit of our experience.
a multi-year trip might be so long you'll fly home for a few weeks now and again. don't think for one moment that the UK has the best choice and the lowest prices. you'll also see prices for kit - and food - in the UK going up as the pound has fallen to a 138 year low against the US dollar since the june referendum result and that is unlikely to change soon. so buying abroad might not be such a daft idea. But simonhill is right.

[ossie]

Hi,

I am guessing I need a good breathable and waterproof jacket for on the bike?

Can you let the rest of us know when you find one

ta

[UniCycle88]

Thanks for the answers.

I can't say where I am going as I do not know yet. I am looking for a super versatile kit for that reason. Most likely from the UK to Australia.

But the reason for this post is not for a specific trip but to educate myself on tour clothing.

Is merino fast drying?

[Vorpal]

Is merino fast drying?

It depends. The light t-shirts dry pretty quickly. The warme stuff doesn't really. BUT merino is warm, even when wet, and it doesn't get stinky like some other materials, so it doesn't need washing quite so often.

[Warin61]

Avoid cotton clothing. Jeans in particular - they take forever to dry after washing!

Synthetic clothing lasts about twice as long as 'natural' fibres. The disadvantage is smells ... bugs growing in your clothing. A bit of antiseptic will kill the bugs .. bleach is a traditional bug killer but not liked by some cloths, so any form of antiseptic will do, or very hot water - be aware of shrinkage with hot water.

Tshirts work because they are light - not much material so they don't hold much water, and they are usually not pure cotton but a cotton mix. Even so a synthetic shirt will weigh less, be quicker to dry and look better to officials.

Merino ... dries reasonably well .. better than cotton. But again the more it weights the more water it will hold .. so chose lighter thinner stuff and that will dry quicker.

Whatever you take think about washing and drying it. You don't want to be waiting around for it to dry. You don't want it to be heavy as it will take more water and energy to wash it.

Drying method! Dry inside out - so what is closer to you is dry first. Dry hanging with the bit that is best driest first upwards - socks should be hung toe upwards. Pegs? You can get 'cloth lines' that are twisted elastic type material that is a cloths line and peg all in one. Do not take conventional pegs- they take too much space and weight, take the plastic clips used to fasten bread plastic bags - light, cheap and easy to replace.

Colours? Black attracts the tsetse fly. Blue the mosquito. Most go with a lighter colour .. that is reported to be least attractive to the insects. Light colours will show up dirt and stains more than darker colours. I tend towards the lighter colours, rather not get bitten. Some clothing has a bug repellent built in ... it washes out ... say 50 washes and it is gone. The repellent tends to be rather bad for us so I tend not to go for these.

For hot weather you will want very light clothing ... but full coverage to stop sunburn. Sun cream has to be reapplied every 2 hours and is a dirt retainer .. much better to keep the sun off you with light clothing.

{edit - While you say 0°C to 30°C, it is not uncommon for temperatures in one day/night cycle to exceed that on both extremes. I am thinking of inland deserts, where it can get below freezing and above 30°C all in 24 hours. You can acclimatise .. but it takes time. }

[meic]

Rohan have really done their homework on outdoor travel clothing.

You can add to pwa's list earlier, packing volume because you are living out of panniers and clothes take a lot of space.
If you get to Oz or many places before you will want protection from sun and insects.

For a journey that long the clothes are going to need to be suitably rugged too.

I would certainly take and wear Rohan Trailblazer trousers almost all the time up to the point where you can wear shorts.
A long sleeve shirt or two from their Equator or Frontier versions.
A merino base layer or a lambswool jumper which I am happy to have next to the skin, thin to help drying out.
Depending on how cold things are going to be a Paramo waterproof jacket (Quito) or a thin shell waterproof.
I would take sandals in preference to shoes.
I would take nothing thick, every thing is thin to dry out and pack easy, if you need to then wear many at once.
I have a load of very thin merino socks which I save for this sort of travel.
Thin quick drying underpants or if you dont mind being a bit dirty wear merino ones for many days and a thin pair to wear when they get washed and dried.
That would be the core of my kit because it is wearable anywhere from UK to Oz in any season, other things would be wanted but they vary on what climate I was expecting.
Even in Australia you can get chilly and it is nice to have something really cosy when you stop but before you get in the sleeping bag. This will be the bulkiest item in the bags.

[simonhill]

Most of the gear mentioned is good quality but expensive. This may be what you want, but.

I cycle in the tropics a lot and wear a normal long sleeved gents shirt. 2 quid from the charity shop. Poly cotton so dries quickly. Long sleeves keep sun off, as does collar and double thickness shoulder material. When you get off your bike you look a bit more normal ad if the shirt is long enough it covers the lump in your shorts. Washed up you can even wear it for those visits to embassies or immigration.

You don't always need to go down the expensive specialist gear route. Thinking a bit outside the box can save you money and give you a more versatile wardrobe. Also one that you are happy to bin and replace as time goes on.

Clothes can be very cheap in Asia, although I suspect the fall in the pound will make the UK cheaper than many developed regions for the next few months. Then you can expect big pice rises for anything imported.

Edit in. Just thought, maybe better to look at pictures of people who have been on the road a while and see what they are wearing. You rarely see them in hi tech cycling gear, usually local, casual, practical, etc.