Military 'woolly pully' sweaters

[Tark]

Bond sweater came in the mail and tried it out...size small is a good fit for my 90 cm chest (it is more forgiving and flexible than their standard woolly pully in the same size but it isn't oversized) plus the hem is longer--a good choice to prevent having to pull down the sweater when it rides up your body. The cuff edging and turned welt feels like a good durability measure against future fraying. Overall I'm pretty impressed by this sweater and will get the olive green variant next year to replace the surplus 80/20 wool-poly one I've got.

 

[Harp]

Time to break out the heavy wool kit, cold front approaching northern Illinois.

 

[Ticklishchap]

It has been perfect weather for Woolly Pullies over the past few weeks - I have worn a WP or a Guernsey sweater every single day. Long may it continue!

 

[Don1]

I'm thinking of getting one of the Outdoor Knitware woolly pullys and trying to get an idea of the weight of the sweater. I don't suppose anyone has weighed theirs and could give me a rough idea? I'm specifically looking at the Welbeck in M (that's the one without patches). I'd be using it for camping trips so just trying to gauge how heavy it would be!
Also, does anyone have any experience with the Belvoir from OK?

 

[Cornelius]

I have a standard WP with shoulder & elbow patches, and it ticks in at just under a pound on my antique analog scale. If you'll be camping anywhere with genuine risk of cold weather, I'd say it's well-worth the weight. Keeps you warm without trapping perspiration, rather crucial if carrying a pack or canoeing.

No experience with any other OK models myself.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I have several of these great sweaters, the are excellent. I just weighed one of mine and it comes to 1 pounds and 3 ounces.
Hope this helps. Let us know hoe you get on.

 

[Ticklishchap]

I'm thinking of getting one of the Outdoor Knitware woolly pullys and trying to get an idea of the weight of the sweater. I don't suppose anyone has weighed theirs and could give me a rough idea? I'm specifically looking at the Welbeck in M (that's the one without patches). I'd be using it for camping trips so just trying to gauge how heavy it would be!
Also, does anyone have any experience with the Belvoir from OK?

I agree with Cornelius and Steve, having worn Woolly Pullies for decades. I have several of the Welbeck versions and like them a lot but in my view the versions with patches have the edge and I wear those more often. I’m not keen on the Belvoir: zipped cardigans look a bit ‘common’ in colloquial (British) English.

 

[Harp]

I’m not keen on the Belvoir: zipped cardigans look a bit ‘common’ in colloquial (British) English.

...look "a bit much" in colloquial (American) English.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I have just purchased, 2 more sweaters to add to my collection, a Bottle Green, WP, crew / round neck wool heavy ribbed, with shoulder and elbow patches & epps. I have been looking for that colour and neck line for ages, (I do have one in Vee Neck), it is quite a different shade to the Moss Green colour. The other sweater I purchased is a USA Engineers Type, in Brown, with a button down neck line, it is quite tight fitting and warm, this I bought from a well known online auction site, it appears to be unworn, the other one came from a surplus store in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, in the British Midlands, again it is in very good condition.

 

[Ticklishchap]

I have just purchased, 2 more sweaters to add to my collection, a Bottle Green, WP, crew / round neck wool heavy ribbed, with shoulder and elbow patches & epps. I have been looking for that colour and neck line for ages, (I do have one in Vee Neck), it is quite a different shade to the Moss Green colour. The other sweater I purchased is a USA Engineers Type, in Brown, with a button down neck line, it is quite tight fitting and warm, this I bought from a well known online auction site, it appears to be unworn, the other one came from a surplus store in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, in the British Midlands, again it is in very good condition.

How different is the colour from the Moss Green? I ask because I have had a number of dark green WPs over the years and think that the ones I had in the 80s were darker - a deeper shade of ‘bottle green’ than the later ones from Kempton and subsequently OKW. The darker ones might have been Bridgedale.
I have two Moss Greens currently, one with patches but no Epps, the other a Welbeck version. I am considering - at some point - either getting the version with Epps and pen pocket or asking OKW if they will introduce a darker shade of green than Moss.

 

[Ticklishchap]

...look "a bit much" in colloquial (American) English.

I was trying to imply that zip cardigans are, in the English context, just a bit downmarket. They are also quite ‘unisex’ in style and IMHO not as quintessentially masculine as WPs and fishermen’s sweaters.

 

[Harp]

I was trying to imply that zip cardigans are, in the English context, just a bit downmarket. They are also quite ‘unisex’ in style and IMHO not as quintessentially masculine as WPs and fishermen’s sweaters.

As I suspected. Sweater semantics, indigenous colloquial, sartorial gender demarcation. All add to the mix.

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

How different is the colour from the Moss Green? I ask because I have had a number of dark green WPs over the years and think that the ones I had in the 80s were darker - a deeper shade of ‘bottle green’ than the later ones from Kempton and subsequently OKW. The darker ones might have been Bridgedale.
I have two Moss Greens currently, one with patches but no Epps, the other a Welbeck version. I am considering - at some point - either getting the version with Epps and pen pocket or asking OKW if they will introduce a darker shade of green than Moss.

I would say that Bottle Green has a slight blueish tinge, whereas Moss Green is just very green, quite verdant. I think Bottle Green is a much older shade, I do remember seeing them occasionally on men in the late 1970s / 1980s in Crew neck versions. I have had a Vee Neck one of these for some years that I think came from a Surplus Store in Essex, this shade does not come around very often. The Crew Neck Bottle Green that I just bought is in excellent condition indeed. I was wearing it yesterday.

 

[Ticklishchap]

I would say that Bottle Green has a slight blueish tinge, whereas Moss Green is just very green, quite verdant. I think Bottle Green is a much older shade, I do remember seeing them occasionally on men in the late 1970s / 1980s in Crew neck versions. I have had a Vee Neck one of these for some years that I think came from a Surplus Store in Essex, this shade does not come around very often. The Crew Neck Bottle Green that I just bought is in excellent condition indeed. I was wearing it yesterday.

I think I had a Bottle Green crew neck in my collection during the 1980s and wore it quite often at university. It was somewhat darker than the Moss Green; I can’t recall whether there was a bluish tinge or not.
I notice that the Army surplus site you mention in Kidderminster has this sweater in only one size - too small for me I’m afraid.
I’m tempted to write to OK and ask them if they would consider that colour.
Since the 1990s I have had several WPs in dark green (darker than the Army olive);?they have all been Moss Green I think. My current ones certainly are.

 

[Ticklishchap]

I should also mention that I have the Engineer’s sweater.

 

[Cornelius]

A windchill temperature of -5°f/-20.5°c today in Chicago. Preparing to travel to and work in a barely-heated woodshop I wore two pairs of merino wool long johns under Arborwear trousers; a thin merino sock liner under some heavy merino socks in a pair of brown Corcoran jump boots; a merino t-shirt, a heavier long-sleeved merino shirt, the Outdoor Knitwear #9024 in Derby Tweed, all beneath a heavy cotton flannel which I've sacrified to tears & glue stains, etc. A vintage Sears Craftsman insulated work vest as outer layer in the shop [basically Carhartt-style, but with a better pocket layout], and a surplus Canadian Air Force winter jacket instead of the vest while commuting. Wool tube scarf & wool cap with visor, both also durable/affordable military surplus. Czech & Italian respectively, I believe?

 

[Harp]

A windchill temperature of -5°f/-20.5°c today in Chicago. Preparing to travel to and work in a barely-heated woodshop I wore two pairs of merino wool long johns under Arborwear trousers; a thin merino sock liner under some heavy merino socks in a pair of brown Corcoran jump boots; a merino t-shirt, a heavier long-sleeved merino shirt, the Outdoor Knitwear #9024 in Derby Tweed, all beneath a heavy cotton flannel which I've sacrified to tears & glue stains, etc. A vintage Sears Craftsman insulated work vest as outer layer in the shop [basically Carhartt-style, but with a better pocket layout], and a surplus Canadian Air Force winter jacket instead of the vest while commuting. Wool tube scarf & wool cap with visor, both also durable/affordable military surplus. Czech & Italian respectively, I believe?

Stuck inside all day. Ditto tomorrow, Super Bowl Sunday. Froze just reading this...brrr.

 

[Guppy]

I'm thinking of getting one of the Outdoor Knitware woolly pullys and trying to get an idea of the weight of the sweater. I don't suppose anyone has weighed theirs and could give me a rough idea? I'm specifically looking at the Welbeck in M (that's the one without patches). I'd be using it for camping trips so just trying to gauge how heavy it would be!
Also, does anyone have any experience with the Belvoir from OK?

I'd say they're a decent weight, a L weighs about 2 lbs. Not bulky, but certainly warm.

 

[Ticklishchap]

A windchill temperature of -5°f/-20.5°c today in Chicago. Preparing to travel to and work in a barely-heated woodshop I wore two pairs of merino wool long johns under Arborwear trousers; a thin merino sock liner under some heavy merino socks in a pair of brown Corcoran jump boots; a merino t-shirt, a heavier long-sleeved merino shirt, the Outdoor Knitwear #9024 in Derby Tweed, all beneath a heavy cotton flannel which I've sacrified to tears & glue stains, etc. A vintage Sears Craftsman insulated work vest as outer layer in the shop [basically Carhartt-style, but with a better pocket layout], and a surplus Canadian Air Force winter jacket instead of the vest while commuting. Wool tube scarf & wool cap with visor, both also durable/affordable military surplus. Czech & Italian respectively, I believe?

I have very much begun to appreciate the Derby Tweed Woolly Pully (WP) over the past few months. I've owned a number of them over the years and at present have two, one with just the patches, the other with patches, epps and pen pocket, but have previously neglected them in favour of some of my other WPs. I find that I really like the colour these days: it has a country gent or 'rus in urbe' look.

 

[Ticklishchap]

I have remembered that the dark green WP colour we have been talking about is in fact RIFLE GREEN rather than ‘Bottle Green’.