Cold weather Gear? ( coats, gloves and such)

[Logger615]

Anyone have a favorite type of cold weather clothing that can stand up to the riggers of working in the woods? We have recently had to close our small mom and pop fab shop and honestly it has been years sense I have had to spend all day in the cold. Through some contacts at church we have secured some decent land to log and cut dead standing oak off of for firewood. I already have picked up about 20 cords of orders for firewood. We had some firewood sales and have been dabbling with the idea knowing our other biz was most likely going to have to close the doors.
I know the cold we have here in TN is nothing compared to the long months of cold up north but it's cold non the less ..haha. On average we can expect temps in the teens in the morning to say 30's for high. but it is not uncommon to be teens in the morning and high 40's the same day, so looking for something pretty versatile. Very much understand layering clothing, looking more for brand or specifics best gloves, that sort stuff of what holds up the best. TIA Jason

[beenthere]

For working in cold, then silk top, wool shirt, wool jacket best for me because I sweat a lot regardless of temperature.

[BradMarks]

Disclaimer: Not being paid to say this!!   I like Duofold thermals if they are still being made, sizing seems good, not constrained, and they are warm.  Also can't go wrong with the Carhart flannel lined thermal jeans. "Jammy Jeans", I call them.  There are lots of lined gloves, trick is to find a brand that's not too bulky so you can actually work with them.

[trapper]

for the under layer I put on a light wool sweater and the long underwear bottoms from sportsman guide that look like bib overalls.  From there layer as needed.

[clww]

Kinco insulated gloves. Tough and durable.

[sealark37]

Carhartt bibs that are insulated and the underwear of your choice. 

[Woodboogah]

Kinco gloves are a must!  Layers is the key and stay away from cotton

[thecfarm]

Heated handles on the chainsaw.

[barbender]

I'll put in another plug for the insulated Kinco pigskin gloves. They are the most durable gloves I have found for logging work, and they are warm. The only drawback is they are not water resistant, so get 2 pairs ;) I live in my Carharrt  bibs in the winter.

[Corley5]

Yup.  Kinco gloves and Carharts.

[mad murdock]

We always had a good pair of wool pants as outerwear in the extreme cold weather of a N Wisc winter. Wool hand liners inside of well oiled leather "choppers"(mitts) was the best for the hands, as well as a good wool shirt and wool coat for outer wear. When cutting after first tank of gas, the overcoat came off, and wool shirt/pants with thermals underneath were sufficient, unless a guy took a long break, the. The overcoat was needed again till a guy worked up some heat moving around. Footwear was wool socks with wool thermal liners inside of a pair of Sorel Arctic pacs. Always stayed toasty down to -35 or so. Any colder than that, and it wasn't much worth trying to work. Too much stuff would break.

[Spartan]

this is what I wear in Montana.

Tin hat with fleece headband, or full fleece head sock if windy.  Under Armor Cold Gear thermal shirt, Best I've had and worth the money.  and Layered fleece jackets.  I don't wear carhart or cotton material in the snow cause cotton stinks and will freeze you to death if it gets wet.  Look for Polyester or another synthetic fabric, (not too expensive though cause it will get destroyed) thats why I use polyester.  Pants are lined wool when its in snow, otherwise carhart lined, and gaiters.  Hoffman Pacs and wool socks.  Gloves are always leather insulated, and cheap cause I hook chokers also.  and if you do any mechanic work you want the cheap leather as well (Kinco).  Good for me down to -10.  after that, machines wont start and we stay home.

[SwampDonkey]

Stanfields wool and when I'm doing physical work nothing else is cold. But I wear insulated military gloves I got from Cabelas 20 years ago and a wool hat hard hat on top with cape to keep the snow and sticks/needles out of my neck. Good to go, where's the next tree? ;D Don't forget cutter's pants and an insulated Carhart coat, and not too heavy a one for me, too hot even in winter if your doing labour. ;D I can't work with bulk on.

[ga jones]

Doufold thermals kinco gloves.chippewa arctic boots.

[Clark]

I'm in the process of switching everything over to wool. Carharrts are good but they don't last like wool does. Synthetics tend to come apart on me after several seasons walking through the brush. Although not cheap, wool is the solution to most of my cold weather problems.

The one piece that is usually fleece is a neck gaiter. That will save your bacon on cold, windy days. I don't know that they make a wool neck gaiter but consider how much abuse they go through (none) the fleece will last me a while.

Clark

[clww]

I get most of my working clothes at thrift stores, goodwill, and second-hand stores. Most I've ever paid for one item was less than $5, so if it doesn't work out, I re-donate it back. I've gotten a bunch of clothing off CL, too.

[Brleclaire]

I really like the labonville winter nylon pants. Very light weight and you can get ones that chain saw chaps snap in. Very warm and water sheds off them well.

[wolf nemeth]

Hi Jason,  sorry to hear about your fab shop having to close down. All small businesses seem to be in the cross-hairs these days, no matter the quality of their product.
  We're in the same area, and when I was your age I too tried to pay the bills  cutting firewood. Some of my friends did , too.  I hate to sound preachy, but here goes:  by the time you  factor in an occasional torn tire, dented fender, visit to the chiropracter, pinched saw bar, rock-dulled chain (and these are all virtually inevitable)  you'll be making a lot less than the simply math of so-much-per-cord. Winter's almost half gone, and you do what you have to  to generate an income, but when the daffodils poke up and the ground gets soft, it might be time to do the total math and see if you've come out ahead.
   I agree with the previous poster---Goodwill has  some amazing finds if you look semi-regularly.  And when you  wear out a brand-name, nearly new  wool sweater that only cost you $4, you just get another one. Even boots ( even steel-toe boots!) will cost you a fraction of what you'd pay retail,,,,,and they're broken in!  Good luck.

[SwampDonkey]

I've got wool pants and wool underwear 20 years old. Still use it in winter. I have a real heavy pair of pants, warmer than a skidoo suit. :D

[gfadvm]

I really love my Underarmour Infrared Cold Gear fitted bottoms. Not cheap but warm and not bulky. I also don't get hot in them when the sun comes out and it warms up.

[barbender]

Another go to piece of cold weather gear for me is a lightweight polyester balaclava. Not the thick fleece kind, but the light material that resembles silk. It's enough to keep the wind off your neck, often I just wear the balaclava with a baseball cap. If I get warm, I pull the balaclava over my head and just wear it around my neck.

[thenorthman]

To start with I'm a little nuts...

Anyway our winter temps sound about the same here, high teens 20's on a cold day otherwise its in the low forties.

For me its jeans and a T shirt most of the time, once it gets into the 20's I'll throw on an undershirt and maybe something with long sleeves, if it gets into the low teens or single digits then the thermal undies go on, only wear gloves for dragging cable and then its good ole White Ox rigging gloves, keep a couple pair around for cold wet days, one to wear, one that's dry, one that's drying.

Can't see a reason to have heated handles on a saw, Hel I don't even run em on a snowmobile, just makes my hands sweat...

Feet are pretty much in wool socks year round, or thick cotton socks, depending on temp. 

Over the top goes a fake Filson's rain jacket type thing if its damp out (which is pretty much a constant here).  ( a zip up Hickory shirt that has been treated with Filson's wax, or saddle soap (filsons smells a little better) they are essentially the same thing only $50, instead of $350)

I pretty much keep moving all day anyway, so once I start going I never really cool down until I'm getting ready to go home, lately I've been taking lunch breaks... those get a little chilly so I'll throw on a battered old fleece hoodie... it comes off as soon as I head back to it though.

[pwrwagontom]

I have always had a lot of good luck cutting in the cold with a good pair of long underwear (I prefer Polypropylene because it wicks when you're moving around a lot) and one of those Carhart flannel shirts with the thermal lining sewed in.  I usually start out with a coat, and end up shedding it.

I just picked up a pair of the lined Labonville pants at the suggestion of a couple of colleagues, heard a lot of good things about those but haven't tried them in the woods yet!

-T

[Logger615]

Hi Jason,  sorry to hear about your fab shop having to close down. All small businesses seem to be in the cross-hairs these days, no matter the quality of their product.
  We're in the same area, and when I was your age I too tried to pay the bills  cutting firewood. Some of my friends did , too.  I hate to sound preachy, but here goes:  by the time you  factor in an occasional torn tire, dented fender, visit to the chiropracter, pinched saw bar, rock-dulled chain (and these are all virtually inevitable)  you'll be making a lot less than the simply math of so-much-per-cord. Winter's almost half gone, and you do what you have to  to generate an income, but when the daffodils poke up and the ground gets soft, it might be time to do the total math and see if you've come out ahead.
   I agree with the previous poster---Goodwill has  some amazing finds if you look semi-regularly.  And when you  wear out a brand-name, nearly new  wool sweater that only cost you $4, you just get another one. Even boots ( even steel-toe boots!) will cost you a fraction of what you'd pay retail,,,,,and they're broken in!  Good luck.

Ohh yea man I fully agree, luckily we are only 5 miles from the timber. Defiantly a short term fix at this point with the firewood. I am pretty fortunate I already own outright 95% of my equipment and already carry work comp and general liability ( called insurance comp and good as far as coverage) also I am only delivering in our area. Looks like we also be able to log out a few really nice trees and the neighboring property owner approached us to ask if we would like to log out his property as well. If the good Lord presents me with trees to logout to take care of the family then that's what we will do ! Now I just need to find the mills in our area that are fair and on the up and up. If you have any mills in mind, in our area please message me with info I would be extremely grateful. 

Thank you so much for all of the suggestions guys a big help for sure !!!

[wolf nemeth]

Hey Jason, hope you've cut and sold asmany cords as you wanted to.  As far as mills go, I don't know what side of nashville you're at.  Im only familiar with the S. Wilson, E. Rutherford, and Cannon county area, and there are several mills operating there. (I won't be sawing until late March) 
  You can make a decision based on phone calls, but considering the amount of effort it takes to get  timber to market, it would be better to pay a few mills in your area a personal call. Somebody can promise you the moon  over the phone, and you get there to find out there are squirrels nesting in the mill!  Do your homework first. good luck