 more like. i'm cold. put something warmer on. i'm warm now take something off.
whatever or wherever makes you cold/warmer is irrelevant.
understanding what the layers you have chosen do helps.
e.g. on saturday the wind was making me a little chilly. put hat on. warm up. take hat off.
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> Makes layering much quicker [...] and saves fleeces/base layers binding. A 'gliss inter-layer'... > I've read of some folk using two micro-pile tops too Mark Twight's quite keen on two shelled micropiles in his 'Extreme Alpinism'.
I'm not quite as good as Mark Twight. Buffalo used to suggest using a windshirt over their pile/pertex top when the weather got wild, which I've done a couple of times also - keeps the wind from whistling through the zips. But two windshirts is a good option this time of year in Scotland when it can be cold-ish, damp, and pretty windy - silly to take a windshirt off to add insulation - better to just to put a fleece on and another windshirt. They needn't be more than 100gm or so. If you're slightly clever you can do it without taking your pack off or even stopping. Though also have to say that an eVent jacket - I have a 360gm Montane Quickfire - can also be a good option - the only hard shell I've ever found usable when it isn't raining. I too have heard of folk using two RAB VRs - beats me how they manage since I can barely roll the arms of one up over a long sleeved helly. I guess a gilet would give you (yet) another option. Beats me how anyone thinks there is anything new or complicated in all this; 50 years ago I went to school in a woolly vest, a shirt, a jumper, a blazer and a raincoat, or a weather/metabolism/activity level appropriate subset thereof. All that has changed since is the materials.
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sorry. a lazy bump.
and well put als. it isn't that difficult.
people still wear a woolly vest except they call it a merino baselayer pay far too much money for it and it is the bees knees (if you believe that sort of thing)
a shirt which may be a shirt or they'll call it a windproof.
a blazer aka "softshell"
a raincoat which is now preferred to be carried in the gym bag over the shoulder (gym bag also containing pumps to wear in camp aka the playground.
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 Formosaman, Yes, on occasion I do wear two windproof/water resistant shirts/jackets together in cooler wet conditions just short of an all out sustained rainstorm. It's been my experience using that system I can stay dry. Condensation isn't a problem because most of the time the two together still "breathe" better than a single membraned "waterproof". And as many have said in this thread, when the rain lets up or I get too warm I just remove a layer (weather permitting) to stay comfortable. I've done this in pretty steady rain in temps of 1C or 2C with good base layer(s) and it's worked out pretty well. When it gets colder than that here (Michigan) rain usually isn't much of a factor. And no, both of them have hoods. It just hasn't been a problem for me. But, as others have already pointed out, different weather conditions call for different ways of layering up or down or what jacket(s) need be used. All in all my "go to" stuff actually has come down to five or six items (jackets/windshirts/P&P and base layers etc.) that pretty much handle most weather conditions I'm out in. Dan S.
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I'm pretty new to mountaineering and hiking and the outdoors but in this short space of time I have already completed some notable summits and shouldn't layering be as simple as if your warm and pretty comfortable then your sorted? If you get to hot on the hills and presumably you have a rucksack then why not take off the micro fleece. If it rains get a waterproof on. Too cold or you've stopped for a breather get your fleece back or put a gilet on. Hope this helps, its the system I have used the world over and it seems to be working a treat. Craig x
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 The real knack is to not get too hot to start off with, but it’s not as easy as it sounds
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That's often the newbies mistake... wearing far too much, often combined with premature use of a cheap shell, causing horrific sweating followed by severe chills when stopped.
The one thing that has really surprised me in the recent chill is how much you need to wear on the average journey into work. Normally when moving about in -5C to about 0C, I can get away with a thick Icebreaker base layer and Rab Vapour-rise, but waiting for a delayed train for an hour, I need a Montane extreme smock to keep me warm...
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 the effect is magnifide by when you last ate.
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And a beer jacket wearing off on the walk home from the pub can also have a big effect...
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right, alcohol will push blood to the skin making a feeling of warmth and be making you chill. I feel like a textbook 
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 > right, alcohol will push blood to the skin making a feeling of warmth and be making you chill. Studies performed by the US DoD seemed to find no evidence of increased rate of cooling after consuming moderate amounts of alcohol. They also tested whether chili had any affect on the ability to thermoregulate in desert environments...
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I have long since given up on traditional layering, it just doesnt work that well for me. I run fairly hot and most shells just get clamy very quickly.I sometimes use a baselayer + paramo only adding an insulating overlayer over the top when stopping fro a brew. But even then find I often get too hot even in winter. Recently I have gone to a single layer system, so long as you can class a Rab Vaporise as a single layer. I'll wear this next to the skin in everything but the coldest and wettest conditions, even in moderate rain it seems to manage my body temperature the best, even after getting wet through. If I have to stop then I throw a overlayer insulating jacket on over the top and am warm and comftable in no time. If its really hammering down I might wear a lightweight waterproof /windproof over the top of the Vapourise. I dont really try and stay dry these days, I try to stay comftable as getting wet from sweat can be as unpleasent as getting wet from rain. But then I have a whole room stacked with outdoor gear and have the luxury of choosing what works best for me. if you are just starting out a 3 layer system is a good place to start. Not tried Buffalo yet but might well have to give it a go soon as have tried just about everything else.
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I have long since given up on traditional layering, it just doesnt work that well for me. I run fairly hot and most shells just get clamy very quickly.I sometimes use a baselayer + paramo only adding an insulating overlayer over the top when stopping fro a brew. But even then find I often get too hot even in winter. Recently I have gone to a single layer system, so long as you can class a Rab Vaporise as a single layer. I'll wear this next to the skin in everything but the coldest and wettest conditions, even in moderate rain it seems to manage my body temperature the best, even after getting wet through. If I have to stop then I throw a overlayer insulating jacket on over the top and am warm and comftable in no time. If its really hammering down I might wear a lightweight waterproof /windproof over the top of the Vapourise. I dont really try and stay dry these days, I try to stay comftable as getting wet from sweat can be as unpleasent as getting wet from rain. But then I have a whole room stacked with outdoor gear and have the luxury of choosing what works best for me. if you are just starting out a 3 layer system is a good place to start. Not tried Buffalo yet but might well have to give it a go soon as have tried just about everything else.
Bump on that Mark. In cold conditions (below freezing) the Buffalo Mountain Shirt and other garments made from "pertex" were a godsend for me after struggling for many a year attempting to stay comfortable vs. sweaty and "clammy". Dan S.
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 I have long since given up on traditional layering, it just doesnt work that well for me If I have to stop then I throw a overlayer insulating jacket on over the top and am warm and comftable in no time. Errrrr, that is traditional layering! In summary, if you're too cold you add layers, if you're too hot you shed them. And that's it. Whileit's most typically inplemented with a thin base layer at the bottom the concept is add layers for warmth, remove for cooling. Pete.
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