I have gone stoveless for up to two weeks. I prefer to focus on proteins... Tuna, Jerkey, trail mix, protein bars (the high protein Cliff Builder ones).... etc.
Outdoor Research Echo, which comes in short-sleeve Ts and 1/4-zip long sleeve versions.Originally Posted by Kc Fiedler
I need to weigh it to know just how light it is, but I have a long sleeve spf 50 shirt that is made for kayaking that I wear that I really love. It is as light as many of my "fancy" synthetic backpacking t's. It is a stink magnet but it wicks and is so light and cool. Made by NRS. This is not exactly the one I have "NRS H2Core Silkweight shirt" but it is very close; one thing nice about kayak shirts is they are designed without seams on the shoulders because of PFDs and are very compatible with backpacks. Lots of options from the kayaking category.
Ditto this. I once was about to select a lighter-looking garment, but decided to weigh both. The one that looked bulky and heavy was actually 3 or 4 ounces lighter. Do that four times and you've saved a pound. Everything in my pack gets weighed.
I use the scale at home to pack the first load of food, too. I have a formula that works for me for miles per pound.
"Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence." John Muir on expedition planning
I weigh everything which factors into my choices but I've long ago learned gear choices have to be made in context with many other factors even beyond cost, quick to dry, for 'summer' use(lol) - whatever that means, for N. American forests - what does that mean?, etc. Before I learned to do this I made many more stupid light choices than I currently make as one on the UL Merry-G Round always in search of the UL Nirvana kit - 'loadout' - that I assumed was the lightest. As a gear junkie and budding ULer my mindset was lighter is better...always. This mindset led me to seeking out lighter wt tees too. I too thought - outside of realizing a deeper more balanced context - that my 4.4-5.1 oz tees where too heavy?, not living up to my UL Dream Kit - 'load out.' Searching for sub 4 oz shirts, which from what I know is getting near the threshold of the lightest tees(I know of one 2.6 oz model and another brand/model 3.1 oz in my XL, yes I weighed these) became a UL goal. After all every gram counts right? lol. It all adds up, right? I had two of the ORIGINAL Golite Drimove 'Silk' tees Dan Durston talks about. They were only available in a weird shade of baby like blue and neon yellow like color. Dan lists his at 1.9 oz? My XL were 2.6 oz. These two very vey light wt polyester tees were, again, the Drive 'Silk' not the Drive Lite that replaced them. I bought them out of prioritizing wt and dry time...period! They were like $35-38 each when I bought them in 2007. Yeah, I saved 1.8 oz compared to the my other lightest wt polyester tees. They also clung and hung on me like a wet rag making them feel uncomfortable, quickly dried in full sun with low humidity on a Arizona summer hike but held the humidity on a jungle summer hike with high humidity and sometimes high tree cover, gave me chills wearing a wet one that would not dry on a summer week long hike in Glacier NP, and equally chilled me not drying on a Olympic NP week long hike, also quickly lost shape resembling a long ladies night shirt after the second after washing according to directions(Durston's shirt looks like it's beginning to do the same), and pilled significantly resulting in wearing through in short order. In short, performance was sketchy under various scenarios in N. American FORESTS, durability sucked finally making me admit some of GoLite's products were basically so light wt they could be considered throw away pieces in short order, ....On a four star scale of gear wt they were definitely 4 star but overall - within a deeper wider consideration of balance and context - they were perhaps a 1.5 - 2 star shirt.
Had to buy some work clothing to paint a house during a humid rainy NJ summer two summers after that GL UL Nirvana shirt seeking episode. These were throw away clothes for the painting job. At Walmart on a clearance rack found a poly Champion branded tee for $4. It had lighter wt more breathable mesh down the sides from the armpits to the waist. Busted my arse to quickly get the house painted because once done I had a LT thru planned. Loved that shirt for how cool it kept me, how fast it dried, and how it didn't cling even when sweat soaked painting the house. On a whim i weighed it - 3.1 oz in xl. I wore it happily with the great big Champion logo on the chest on that LT thru.
I guess the UL Nirvana kit 'load out' seekers are alive and well still. Me, I make shirt choices in a wider context beyond cost, wt, etc.
There's no end to those, especially gear junkies and those with already nice UL kits, that will go to extremes analyzing gear ceaselessly to save a few ounces in gear wt but who ignore or have rudimentary knowledge of dialing down consumable wt.
I can't find a lighter t-shirt, but I'll bet you could save weight on your 6 ounce stove (unless that includes fuel). My cat food can stove with pot support is only 2 ounces.
OR echo is the lightest shirt I know of out there currently, Im not a fan of the cut however
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