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 REVIEWS 15 / 06 / 05
 

Mountain Hardwear ThermaDry Zip T Tested

Mountain Hardwear ThermaDry Zip-T Tested

Price: £30

Weight: 200 grammes (medium)

Features: Thermadry fabric, 2-inch stand-up collar, *" deep front zip, long sleev esm seams away from abrasion areas.

Decent wicking and thermal performance.
Doesn't dry as fast as thinner fabrics.


The Concept MHW bill ThermaDry as a cold-weather baselayer so it's intended to offer decent wicking to transport moisture away from your skin along with a little bit of extra thermal efficiency - it's cold right, so you want to stay a little warmer.
Features ThermaSkin is MHW's own brand bi-polar polyester fabric, it's essentially similar to most other polyester base-layer materials in that it uses the structure of the fibres to move moisture away from the skin then spread it out to evaporate or pass through other layers into the great wide open.

The Zip-T is our favourite baselayer configuration with warmth and sun protection from the high collar, ventilation from the zip and forearm coverage thanks to long sleeves, it's simply very versatile.

Finally, flat-locked seams are positioned neatly away from abrasion and wear areas.


In Action We've been using the ThermaDry Zip-T for a while and the experience has been happily uneventful. That's not a negative thing, it just means that the garment has got on with doing its job in a quietly effective way from winter through to early summer.

Like we said, the long-sleeved zip-neck is our favourite design for its versatility and sun protection - ideal for glaciers for example - and the MHW version works just fine. Wicking is on a par with similar polyester base layers from other brands and while not quite as effective as thinner fabrics, is still very decent.

The slightly thicker material does make for slower drying however, so be prepared to wait if you're indulging in a mid-trek laundry session. The same's true of other thicker materials as well, and the extra thermal effectiveness in colder conditions is arguably worth the slight inconvenience.

In very hot conditions it can get a little too warm, particularly in the black colour way tested, buton early summer days it did just fine. So far it doesn't seem to pong either, so good marks in the skunk test.


Verdict


Quietly efficient, the ThermaDry Zip-T simply gets on with its job of transporting moisture away from your skin to the point where most of the time, we simply didn't really notice its performance. It's comfortable ,effective and on a par with similar baselayer fabrics from other top brands, though it doesn't wick or dry as fast as thinner fabrics.

All in all, a very decent baselayer that's happiest in mild to cool conditions. Also available as a crew and in tights form.

Performance

Value


Merrell web site


Pushed for time: MHW's version of polyester baselayer fabric simply gets on with the job in a quiet and effective way. A little slow to dry perhaps, but the pay-off is greater insulation in cold weather.


Know more or want to?

If you'd like to add your own experiences of this product check out our user review system and post your opinions to the world. If you have questions you can mail us direct, ask Richard Gear or try a posting to our gear forum.


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