First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew Review

The First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew is a lightweight early-season hunting base layer designed to wick moisture and dry fast. It features a blend of merino wool and 37.5 active particle technology with polyester fibers.

To get us a closer look, First Lite and 37.5 Technology sent Man Makes Fire a review unit. After testing the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew during Idaho’s archery elk season, this is what we learned:

First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew Review

Let’s get to this up front: I’m very impressed by the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew. It was surprisingly cool and seemed to deliver superior moisture management and wicking when I was hunting over several hot September days in row. Most of the sunny daytime temps were in the 70s, with one day that hit the low 80s.

For a typical September elk hunt where I hunt in Idaho, I like to wear a light merino wool base layer with a light synthetic long-sleeve camo shirt over the top. When the temps rise, I ditch the long sleeve and hunt just in my base layer.

In the area I hunt, my buddy and I spend time in cool dark timber and cool draws as well as open sunny hillsides and ridges (usually hiking in or out). We also deal with a lot of elevation gain and loss, fight through a lot of brush, and when the going is up, I sweat. A lot. For whatever reason, I tend to sweat twice as much as my hunting buddy. I only point this out because I pay attention to moisture management because of it.

So how did the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew handle sweat?

To answer that, let’s take a closer look at the fabric and 37.5 Technology — and the claims — that go into it.

 

Moisture Management & 37.5 Technology

37.5 Technology provides brands with a thermoregulating active particle technology that can be incorporated into fibers, insulation and more. These active particles are made from volcanic sand that have billions of micropores. These micropores increase the surface area of the fibers, which in turn likely make it more efficient in absorbing and releasing moisture.

In addition, 37.5 Technology says its particles also absorb infrared light in the spectrum that the human body emits. If no moisture is present, the particles retain heat. If moisture, such as sweat vapor is present, however, the particles use the energy to move the moisture out of the system. So far so good. Dozens of high-end clothing companies are using 37.5 tech.

But does it work?

My impression is that it does. This is hard to test while hunting because each climb and each day are wildly different. What I do know is this: After multiple climbs and descents while hunting, I was expecting to be hotter and wetter than I was. I felt a bit cooler in the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew than I typically do in similar hunting situations in my go-to merino t-shirts layers: a lightweight KUIU Ultra Merino 120 LT SS Crew-T and a slightly heavier IceBreaker merino t-shirt that’s so old I don’t know which version it is.

Better yet, after a big climb or a long hike on a hot day, my typical merino base layer shirts are often super saturated — very wet. It then takes a while for those other merino layers to dry out. The First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew, on the other hand, dries surprisingly fast.

The First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew with 150 ultralight AeroWool is the most comfortable merino wool base layer I’ve ever worn.

I could go from being a sweaty mess to not even thinking about my shirt in a very short time. This experience was surprising to me because I’m usually more aware of the state of my base layer and my own body temperature. If I’m not aware of a base layer, that means it’s doing its job. The First Lite Aerowool in the Wick Short Sleeve Crew does its job remarkably well.

 

Build Quality

The fit and finish is very good throughout with great stitching and reinforced flat seams.

To help with heat and moisture management, First Lite also uses some lighter, more perforated mesh-type panels in the underarms. They help with airflow.

As for durability, I made the mistake of wandering through a patch of weeds with burrs . . . and had to pick out hundreds of burrs from my Sitka hunting pants and the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew. I expected the burrs to shred the Wick Short Sleeve Crew, but surprisingly, it held up very well. There is a tiny bit of pilling throughout (as expected) but no burr tears at all.

Fit

The First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew fit is spot on. In terms of sizing, I made a mistake and asked for a XXL when I should have asked for an XL. Here’s how that happened: I didn’t believe that the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew wouldn’t shrink. Every other merino wool base layer I’ve tested has shrunk over time, particularly because I dry my wool items in the clothes dryer at home. Obviously some merino wool shouldn’t be dried in a clothes dryer, but I want my hunting clothes (and ski clothes) to be low-maintenance. If I have to air dry something and baby it, I don’t want to own it. So I abuse my base layers in the washer and drier and if they hold up, I keep using them.

I typically wear an XL in most tops, so I asked for a XXL in the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew, expecting it to shrink. Similarly, some base layer manufactures size them to fit very snugly, and I prefer to fit just a bit snug — more like a well-fitting t-shirt.

Ultimately, I should have stuck with an XL for the best fit for me. For reference, I’m about 6’3″ and 220 pounds. I recommend that you order your usual t-shirt size.

Shopping for your hunter? Check out our guide to the best hunting gifts for 2022 and beyond!

Merino Wool Blend?

First Lite doesn’t report the exact merino wool percentage in its Wick Short Sleeve Crew on its product page, but based on various other references to Aerowool and 37.5 Technology, I believe the Wick Short Sleeve Crew has about 65% merino wool fibers with about 35% polyester with the active particles.

However that’s woven into the fabric, the result is a great fit that doesn’t shrink, even on medium heat in a clothes dryer.

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Soft & Comfortable

Most merino base layers, even those made with thin, high-quality 17.5 micron wool fibers, are very slightly itchy compared to soft cotton t-shirts. For me, that very slight itch goes away within a minute or so and the odor and warmth properties of merino makes it worth wearing.

The First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew with 150 ultralight Aerowool is the most comfortable merino wool base layer I’ve ever worn. This is likely due to the blended nature of the fabric. The shirt retains enough wool, however, to feel natural on your skin and not synthetic. I like it a lot — way better than I was expecting.

 

Odor Control

Merino wool has natural odor control properties that somehow reduce the funky smells produced by odor-causing bacteria.

I can wear wool socks and wool base layers for a week straight and not have to worry about smelly clothes. This is one area where the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew fell slightly short compared to my 100% merino wool base layers.

In my experience this fall, I got four straight very hard days out of the First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew — in warm September days — before it started to stink.

I’m not counting this as a drawback because these were all-day hunts and I’m a sweaty guy. I do think that my own personal biome can eventually overwhelm most any synthetic fabric. I wouldn’t be surprised if other guys could do the same hunts and get twice as many days out of the shirt than myself.

I will say that once I washed the Wick Short Sleeve Crew, it smelled completely refreshed . . . and future uses exhibited zero odor. 37.5 Technology says that its active particles help absorb and trap odor, releasing it when it’s washed. If that’s true, I must have filled up the active particles after four hard days!

Either way, odor control is very good. If my 100% merino wool ranks a 10 out of 10 in odor control, the Aerowool blend with 37.5 tech ranks 9/10.

Competitive Options & Alternatives

There are many solid-color merino wool base layer competitive options available, but there are far fewer camouflage merino wool base layers. For archery elk hunting, we prefer our base layers to be camo for hot days when we shed layers. If you are looking for camo merino wool hunting base layers, consider these alternative options:

KUIU ULTRA Merino 120 LT SS Crew-T — The KUIU ULTRA Merino 120 LT SS Crew-T is a rugged, lightweight merino base layer. The blend is 70% merino with 30% nylon. Like the First Lite layer, KUIU uses soft and fine 17.5-micron merino fibers. One key benefit is shared between KUIU and First Lite base layers: The shoulder seams are placed to the front and back for added comfort under shoulder straps on hunting backpacks.

Sitka Merino Core Lightweight Half-Zip — Sitka doesn’t offer a merino-based t-shirt base layer, but the long-sleeve Merino Core Lightweight Half-Zip meets a similar need. It features premium 17.5-micron merino wool spun around a nylon core, which helps it retain its shape and strength. One key benefit is the chest zipper, which is nice when you want to dump heat. Similarly, zipping up the short collar can help you retain warmth.

First Lite Wick Quarter Zip — If we were going to recommend one base layer for archery elk hunting, we’d recommend a lightweight, long-sleeve quarter zip version. The long sleeves give you a bit extra warmth on cold mornings and nights, as well as camo coverage during the day during an up-close hunt. The quarter zipper lets you manage heat along the way. The First Lite Wick Quarter Zip uses the same lightweight 150 AeroWool as the short-sleeve version, so we expect it to be a winner, too.

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The Bottom Line

The First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew is a high-quality merino wool and synthetic blend base layer that delivers superior moisture management. It fits well, feels great, fights odor, and comes in multiple color and camo patterns. If you prefer natural fibers like merino wool over fully synthetic base layers, the First Lite Aerowool blend might surprise you with its comfort. Very highly recommended.

Get the Gear:

• First Lite Wick Short Sleeve Crew — men’s
• First Lite Wick Short Sleeve — women’s