Friday, December 21, 2012

Wool Arm Warmers... Endura vs Defeet

 I have 2 pairs of wool arm warmers in use in the gear pile. One newer pair from Endura and the older DeFeet pair. So now comes the question.. how do they hold up to each other and which pair does the better job.


The Endura Baa Baa pair are my newest pair. Ordered I admit because I had left them at my in laws and needed some before I could get them from Toronto.  First thing I noticed was that they are a muche thinner build. With as you can see in the pic thin vents on the inside elbow. And one feature they have is little silicone like dots at the upper arm to help decrease drift down the arm.

 I have noticed that they are not as effective when it gets colder say down to plus 4. The thin layer doesn't trap as much heat in. Plus the other down side is the wool easily begins having that pulled look. While it seems minor it is a potential concern as it may be to easy to have it pull apart.

 The Defeet's I have had since 2008 and are of course Merino Wool Just like the Endura's but is a much thicker build and as you see in the pic it does not have any venting. And unfortunately it does not have any silicone dots near the upper part to prevent any downwards drift.

The Defeet's because of the tight weave do not suffer from pulling and do not show much in the way of wear despite 4 years of being used and hauled around in hydration packs. And they are much warmer then the Endura's which in our Canadian climate is a huge bonus.

So the end result is the DeFeet's are the winner hands down.  While the Endura's are okay for the not so cold days the Defeet's are much more usable overall. So in the end the Endura's will go to back up duty while the defat's will continue as the gold standard.