GORUCK is having their X-Mas in July sale. Many of our favorite clothing pieces and a few bags are on sale (in select colors). If you’ve been thinking about making a purchase, now’s the time.
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With all the performance clothing we’ve reviewed here, one would think that there would be at least a few good polos (or short sleeve button-ups) available. With today being the first day of summer, we’ve been searching for the best performance polos that can be taken from casual to business casual and have not had as much luck as we expected.
I’ve already reviewed the Ministry of Supply Apollo 3 Polo, but we have still been on the hunt for the perfect summer collared shirt. I’ve recently ordered (and returned) the Arcteryx A2B Short Sleeve Polo, Triple Aught Design Caliber Polo, and RYU Tech Polo.
The Arcteryx A2B Polo is made from a very thin Polylain fabric (50/50 merino/polyester). This would be a great fabric for the hottest days of summer, but Arcteryx ruined the shirt with a weird, semi-shiny and nylon-y, button placket and collar. While the shape and structure of the collar were decent, the material made it stand out from the rest of the shirt. Combined with the lines of sewing to imitate buttons and the same fabric of the placket, this shirt doesn’t blend into your everyday wardrobe. If you decide the style is what you are looking for, the sizing is very large, and you probably want to size down from the chart.
The Triple Aught Design Caliber Polo is made from Polartec Power Dry (100% polyester) with a Polygiene odor control treatment. The fit and collar on this polo were great, the fabric and the webbing attached slot buttons just made it very casual. If that’s what you are looking for, this might be the performance polo for you.
The RYU Tech Polo is made from a four-way stretch fabric called TecLayr (96% polyester, 4% spandex) with a Polygiene odor control treatment. While this material and the fit seemed great, again the collar and button placket were the issue. In this shirt, they are made from a very thin, weirdly stiff (almost like plastic), nylon-y material that gave that technical sheen. The collar also didn’t lay right — it was stiff and floppy at the same time, if that makes any sense.
Hopefully this helps if you are searching for a summer collared shirt. If you have any suggestions or ideas, feel free to reach out. In the meantime, Ben has been trying out the Wool & Prince 100% Merino Polo and will share his thoughts in a full review soon.
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Bluffworks is currently offering 10% off with code LISTEN. We’ve reviewed and love many of their products, including the whole Gramercy line and their Meridian Dress Shirt.
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My journey becoming a one bagger started in 2015 with an eBags TLS Mother Lode Weekender Convertible, moved onto an Osprey Farpoint 40 in 2016, and has brought me to my Mystery Ranch Urban Assault and GORUCK GR1 26L.
I was traveling with the typical backpack or messenger bag and a roller suitcase. As I started to travel more for work, I realized this setup was making my life more difficult while traveling. It seemed like 2015 was the year when one bag travel was becoming popular, so I was able to get some advice and give it a try.
I started traveling with a set of cotton clothing for each day, a pair of sneakers, and too many electronics. All together, this made for a stuffed and heavy backpack or a full sized roller bag. Whether I packed all this into my eBags backpack or a roller bag, it ended up getting gate checked (or checked to my final destination) on any small plane and many full flights. It only took a few trips before I got very tired of all this and got motivated to slim down on my packing.
To start packing lighter, I started to move to synthetic underwear and polos. While this didn’t allow me to pack less clothes, it helped my clothes pack smaller and better fit into my bag. After packing like this for a while, I decided it was time for a better bag.
The Osprey backpack, while not much smaller, was easier to fit under the seat while flying. Once I experienced flying without fighting for overhead bin space, I was sold.
The next phase of my journey consisted of beginning to explore better technical clothing that I could wear for multiple days. That search brought me to Wool & Prince Button-Downs (our review) and OUTLIER Futureworks pants. These two items are still part of my wardrobe and come along on almost every trip. The Wool & Prince shirts are almost magical in how many times they can be worn without needing a wash. The next key acquisition was Darn Tough socks and a merino undershirt, further reducing my clothing load.
At this point I had shirt and pants, socks, and an undershirt that gave multiple wears. I tried to find underwear that could last for multiple days, so I just wash my underwear in the sink. Finally, I decided to leave the pair of sneakers at home and just do bodyweight exercise in my hotel or walking for exercise. If I had one tip for one bagging, it would be to leave the extra shoes at home — you’ll be amazed at how much space you save.
It was at about this time that Ben and I decided to start Everyday Wear. Through trying out pieces and reviewing them for the site, I’ve found some other great pieces for my travel wardrobe, including the Bluffworks Gramercy Pants (our review) and the Wool & Prince Blazer (our review).
It is a journey to become a one bagger, and even a longer one to get to the point where you can pack in a fairly small backpack. If you are new to one bagging and are intimidated by packing lists you see, you can rest assured that it wasn’t a quick journey for that person to gain the wardrobe and confidence to pack lightly. We are also here to help with our reviews, guides, and packing lists.
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Trip Details: Three night, four day trip by air and car for business meetings.
I wore:
I packed the perfect amount of clothes for this trip. While I could have worn one Wool & Prince shirt the whole time, I wanted to have two to be able to alternate. I did notice a hole in the armpit of my UnderFit shirt (and I have only washed cold and hung to dry), so a bit disappointed at that. The Wool & Prince Blazer was folded and put in my backpack for travel and came out crease and wrinkle free.
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Ministry of Supply is one of the older techwear brands and they’ve been developing their own custom fabrics and other apparel technologies for a while now. I’ve had their Apollo 3 Polo for a year and while I still wear it, it doesn’t check all the boxes.
The Apollo 3 Polo is made with Ministry’s custom polyester with phase change material (PCM, used by NASA to help regulate astronauts’ body temperatures). The composition is 57% polyester, 43% PCM-infused polyester. Ministry also claims a “hyperbreathable” and stretch knit.
The fabric has a nice look and feel and has held up well in the wash (machine washed cold and air dried). It is also fairly thick, especially in the yoke, placket, and collar. This makes it tough to hand wash the shirt and have it dry overnight.
The fit of this polo is described as modern (between their slim and standard cuts). I found it to be quite slim, but due to the thickness of the fabric it doesn’t cling to the body. The sizing chart is accurate, so make sure you check that out before choosing a size.
The structured collar always stays upright and sharp, but it doesn’t always look quite right (as in it can make the shirt look less normal and more technical).
The polo is very comfortable. With a close fit, this is not necessarily a given as there is just the right amount of stretch to keep the fabric from binding as you move.
As far as the breathability, I’ve found the shirt to manage moisture better than some other polyester polos I have. It seems to wick sweat away without feeling (or looking) wet.
While Ministry touts the PCM as something special, I have not been able to feel any difference in the temperature regulation of this polo. Maybe it helps keep the thick fabric from being too hot, but that’s about it.
The wrinkle resistance of this shirt is great, it’s always ready to go right out of my bag.
The main area this polo is lacking performance wise for me is in odor resistance. Being polyester with no odor treatment, I can only get one to two wears before the shirt starts to have an odor.
While this polo isn’t excellent, it is a solid polyester shirt. The unique collar will either make you love or hate the shirt, and the lack of odor resistance is the biggest drawback. I continue to wear this polo, but I am still on the hunt for my perfect polo. Ideally, I am looking for something with a lighter fabric that resists odor (so merino or a synthetic with a good treatment). Look for more polo reviews throughout the summer.
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GORUCK is having their Father’s Day Sale. If you’ve been looking to pick up a Simple Windbreaker (our review) or a Bullet Ruck, now is the time.
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We’ve posted a new guide all about business clothing choices.
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After the fuzzy pullover fleece, the most ionic Patagonia item is probably their Baggies shorts. This will be my second summer with my pair of Baggies Longs, and they have become my go-to shorts for lounging round the house, taking the dog for a walk, and hanging around outside.
My shorts are from before this season when they switched to recycled nylon, but other than that, they are identical to the current model of the shorts. The fabric is 100% SUPPLEX nylon (SUPPLEX is a brand of nylon made with smaller fibers to make the fabric softer and more water resistant). There is also a DWR finish applied to the fabric to help even further with the water resistance.
I find the fabric to be very soft and comfortable. It also has noticeably less “nylon” sound when walking. This may be that they are shorts, but I have worn some other nylon shorts that make more noise. The water resistance/DWR make these great for outdoor activities as they resist splashes/rain and when they do get wet they dry quickly.
Since these shorts have an elastic waistband with an internal drawstring, they come in S-XXL sizing. I found the size chart from Patagonia to be accurate. For me, the 7” inseam of the Longs is perfect, but the regular version of the shorts has a 5” inseam. The bagginess of the shorts is a perfect balance of comfort while not looking too casual (I think they look better than a pair of traditional athletic shorts).
The bagginess of the shorts helps make sure they never get in the way and restrict your movement. This makes them ideal for activities like weight lifting, hiking, walking, etc., but I would not want to wear them for activities like running, rowing, etc. as the extra fabric could get in the way. The mesh liner also makes these shorts appropriate for swimming and other water sports — no need to pack a separate pair of swim trunks.
The front pockets are fully attached to the legs of the shorts preventing them from flopping around when they are full. They are mostly made with the same material as the shorts with a mesh panel at the bottom for water drainage. While nice and deep, I find the vertical construction of the pocket slightly problematic. On some occasions when sitting with my phone in my pocket I found it trying to slide back out. There is also one good sized back pocket with a snap closure.
The elastic in the waistband is comfortable, never cutting or pinching, and the drawstring is flat and holds a knot well.
These shorts are one of my favorite pairs. I still grab my Myles Apparel Momentum Short 2.0 for exercise, but the Baggies Long are my go-to for all other casual summer wear. With the exception of the pocket angle, these are perfect shorts to serve your (very) casual summer needs.
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Note: The items in this review were provided to us by Y Athletics.
You may recognize the Y Athletics brand from our previous review of their SilverAir Crew Neck t-shirt which is still our favorite workout tee. Y Athletics prides themselves on developing custom fabrics for performance athletic clothing. We recently gave their Boxer Briefs and Socks (the 2.0 version) a try.
The SilverAir Merino Wool Boxer-Brief is made from a 200 gsm merino wool blend (90% 17.5 micron New Zealand Merino Wool, 5% metallic, and 5% spandex). The bottoms of the legs also contain Y Athletics’ SmartGrip. This is a soft silicone (like what you’d find in the legs of cycling shorts) that helps keep the boxers from riding up.
I found these boxers to be very soft and never had any issues with bunching, chafing, or riding up. They provide great support for athletic activities and do an excellent job wicking moisture (they never feel wet like synthetics). While advertised as having the best anti-odor technology in the market, I never felt like I could get a second wear. On a day when I did not work out or sweat a lot maybe I could get a second wear, but I did not want to push it. The odor resistance definitely was not at the level of the SilverAir shirt.
Overall, these are the best fitting and most comfortable boxer briefs I’ve worn.
The Sock 2.0 comes in both an ankle and a crew version. They are both made out of a midnight merino blend with slightly different compositions (ankle: 49% merino, 25% nylon, 13% acrylic, 11% metallic, 2% spandex; crew: 46% merino, 25% nylon, 13% acrylic, 13% metallic, 3% spandex). The ankle socks also have a soft silicone grip on the backs to keep them from sliding down. While wearing these socks I had my Darn Tough exercise and dress socks in mind for comparison.
As midweight socks, these were certainly thicker than my normal ankle and crew socks. However, thanks to the ventilation panels they did not feel that much warmer. The extra padding can also add a little comfort if you are going to be on your feet all day, but the thicker material makes these socks less appealing if you are going to be getting wet or wanting to hand wash the socks.
As far as odor-resistance, I found these socks to be equivalent to my Darn Tough merino socks. Letting them air out overnight lets me get a few wears out of a pair.
Both the boxer briefs and socks are very comfortable and deserve consideration. While remaining more odor-resistant than my synthetic underwear, I did not find the merino/silver to give me the ability to get extra wears. (I have not tried any other merino underwear, so I can’t compare to pure merino or another merino blend.) In the socks, I found the blend to be about equivalent in odor-resistance to the Darn Tough merino blend. While extremely comfortable, I still will keep some synthetic underwear and socks in rotation for times when I might get wet or want to hand wash while traveling.
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