In this review the item was free and I get a commission for sales from the link in the blog but you will pay the same price as you would otherwise.  Thankyou for helping to support the site.

This is a first look review of a fresh new kickstarter campaign from Kickstarter veterans Outdoor Vitals to bring their Dragonwool and Satu clothing line to market. The Satu Pant and Dragonwool are being launched in the same campaign and I have a separate review of the Satu Pants here.

In Depth Review

The merino versus synthetic debate might be dead.

I often debate about wearing merino wool versus synthetic fabric when outdoors. I opt for merino when I want warmth and odor beating properties, but wool often takes ages to dry and can be very clammy on days when it isn’t beating down with rain. I opt for synthetic fabrics against my skin when I want dryness and wicking, but when synthetic clothing gets wet it doesn’t keep you warm in the way that wool does.

I’ve been a fan of Outdoor Vitals gear since I moved to the USA 2 years ago. Their Quilt kept me warm and safe throughout my 340 mile leatherman loop last year when I was outdoors for 9 days in March. I also strongly recommend their tarp for outdoor camping.

I got my hands on the new Dragonwool products just before the Kickstarter launch so I had a few weeks to ‘do my worst’ to them on trail and get a review out with an early first look.

What is Dragonwool ?

First of all It’s not from dragons. So that’s a shame. What it lacks in firebreathing and gold hoarding it more than makes up with by being a fabric that gives you ( and me) the best of both worlds when outdoors. In testing I found this fabric gave me warmth even when saturated but dried incredibly quickly. It wicked sweat from my body like a synthetic top, but resisted ‘that smell’ from active use that you get from synthetic fibres.

Unlike merino wool, when I rather aggressively washed it like a normal sport top it didn’t shrink to half its size and change shape when washed. Basically Outdoor Vitals have created a range of clothing that has all of the advantages of synthetic and merino wool fabrics with none of the down sides of either.

Outdoor Vitals Dragonwool Hoodie

This hoodie is really only a hoodie in name only. When you hold it it feels and looks like a lightweight sports long sleeve top that has a hood to it. There is a zip front for easy on and off and heat regulation and the arms have a longer athletic cut which I like because you can tuck your thumbs into the thumb holes and keep your hands warm on colder day.

The dragonwool fabric is wool spun in a new way from New Zealand which is more durable, dries faster and warmer and is more lofty than merino. On the outside of the garment is the polyester filament so the wool pulls moisture off and polyester makes the moisture go away.

Although being light and thin the hoodie still has a UPF rating of 50 so it blocks out the sun. I wore it on a long hard trail run for an hour and found it had fast drying times and wicking from my sweat as well as being very odor resistant. The hoodie also works well with temperature regulation by keeping you cool when you are hot and warm when you get cold. The 200 weight fabric honestly feels like a 100 in the warm and layering it works great as a baselayer and as a standalone it works well too. It honestly feels synthetic and does not feel like you are wearing wool at all.

I actually really like the grey green color as well. It reminds me of the British Army Norgie Tops.

Outdoor Vitals Dragonwool Boxer

The boxers are a good length and built for comfort. Again this uses dragonwool fabric so its designed to be long lasting. The fabrics two sides of the merino wool inner paired with the jersey face polyester means it dries fast and keeps me warm ‘down there’ when I need it. I often spend days on the trails in one go so this is the kind of underwear that keeps me from chaffing without me smelling like a hobo.

Outdoor Vitals Dragonwool Thermals

This thermal is a 3/4 length with zip all the way down the leg from the waist to the ankle. The idea is that they can easily be put on and off without taking your boots off and I found that the zips allow you to temperature regulate as well. Again they are made of dragonwool. The 17.5 micron wool fibres pulls moisture off your body well and I found they were much stretchier than merino . The multifilament polyester on the outside wicks moisture away and I found it dries much much faster than merino.

The thermals manages moisture well, are odorless and very comfortable on the waistband and round the body. They are warm when it needs to be and cool when it needs to be.

Gripes

I love the hoodie and boxers. The hoodie could well turn out to be the best addition to my outdoor gear for 2020. My only real gripe comes with the thermals. My personal opinion is that they are over engineered and I would prefer to see a full length version with a slightly more slim fit without the fly and without the zips. This would mean I could wear them running on trails. I’m not convinced about the leg zips, if they are designed to help you get them on and off when you keep your boots on then I don’t understand why they have a fly because who takes their last layer off in the woods and keeps their boots on?!

Closest Contender

The only company that comes close to this is the Planet Earth Hoodie from Vollebak which also combines merino and synthetic to great effect. Vollebak also make a lighter Planet Earth T Shirt that is a similar weight to the hoodie.

Verdict

This is a huge leap forward in outdoor clothing from a company that delivers consistently on price and innovation in a number of areas. The dragonwool hoodie in particular is a superb piece of clothing for those times when you get all weather in one day and I suspect I will spend a large amount of my thru hiking and fastest known times this year wearing it. I’d like to see the thermal in a full length without the zip and fly but that put aside you wont be disappointed with these items.

Find out more about this Kickstarter Campaign here.

About Outdoor Vitals

Outdoor Vitals challenges outdoor enthusiasts to “Live Ultralight” through use of premium ultralight products that eliminate waste.

While in college the founder (Tayson) developed a passion for ultralight outdoor gear. His goal was to lighten his pack and stay comfortable in the backcountry. After college, he set out to help others more fully enjoy the outdoors by starting Outdoor Vitals; a premium outdoor gear company with a unique business model.

Outdoor Vitals focuses on designing premium ultralight products that are comfortable and multi-functional. Their high standards of quality and versatility keep customers from buying multiple items or replacing gear to often. Living Ultralight means buying less quantity and getting higher quality!

They specifically don’t sell through retail stores to avoid their additional markups on gear! This is a hard thing to do for them as a business, but saves you 40% or more on your purchases. It’s all apart of our vision to Open The Outdoors to everyone!