Synthetic T Shirt Suggestions?

I'm in the market for a couple of new t shirts for climbing. I prefer full synthetic since it gets really humid in Wisconsin in the summer. My experience with wool was that it is fragile and itchy. The shirt also needs to not smell unlike the Champion shirts I tried that smelled horrible within the first couple of wears. An athletic cut would also be good, though not painted on. Any suggestions?

The Patagonia capilene with the anti smell polygiene seems like it might be good but $40 for a t shirt is a lot. I need a couple of them so if I am on a trip I don't have to wear the same shirt every day.

so if I am on a trip I don't have to wear the same shirt every day.

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if you're not showering just get used to the idea that you will stink, your clothes will stink, that's just how it is.

I like the Patagonia ones.  I have a couple of the capilene.  If you have time to wait for a sale, they can get pretty cheap!

The patagonia t-shirts out last cotton threefold so it's really a pretty good deal.

I picked up a bunch of the 32 Degrees Cool Mens T shirts at Costco on sale for $5 per 2 pack. I think they are normally $10-15 for the 2 pack. These are awesome shirts that wick away sweat and air out quickly.  I brought a couple with me when I was traveling around Europe for a couple weeks and they smelled significantly better than any of my cotton shirts by the end of the trip after wearing them multiple times. Costco will probably start carrying them again in the spring. 

https://www.32degrees.com/products/mens-cool-crew-neck-tee-shirt?variant=34007198414

If this is for warm weather, why not use cotton? 

Outdoor Research Echo Tees. Everything's going to stink. Wearing a different shirt each day is silly.

Under Armor shirts are less than $20 when on sale. I got mine 50% off. They don’t stink after wearing them a couple days in a row. 

ebmudder wrote:

If this is for warm weather, why not use cotton? 

Second this. I'll wear synthetic or merino in the alpine, but normal climbing cotton works just fine. 

I second Tim G's recommendation of the 32 degrees cool T shirts at Costco. The ones I bought were not quite as cheap, but still a bargain. They're very light, breathable, and comfortable. I've also been very surprised at how long they've held up.

Luke Lindeman wrote:

Outdoor Research Echo Tees. Everything's going to stink. Wearing a different shirt each day is silly.

I agree on all fronts.  Although if you're looking for durability the Echo line isn't the greatest.  I only use mine for running and it's getting a little ratty after six months just from that.  For a $35 t-shirt that's a little obnoxious, but they are absolutely amazingly light and comfortable.  I've literally looked down to check and make sure I have a shirt on while wearing them.

I like the Patagonia Sunshade with a hood for days out in the sun. Especially on multipitch. You don’t need to worry about sunscreen and they keep you cool. 

ppl seem to love the patagonia capilene stuff but mine got all stretched out around the neck within a yr.  The material does feel pretty amazing though.

Old Navy active wear.  And yeah, unless you spend a ton for the coppor impregnated stuff, it will end up smelling, but at about $5 - $7 each (on sale), they are durable and comfortable.

Tim G. wrote:

 Costco will probably start carrying them again in the spring. 

https://www.32degrees.com/products/mens-cool-crew-neck-tee-shirt?variant=34007198414

I checked the inventory, looks like it will be $9.99 for a 2pk this season, item #1188833.  I see them in transit to AK and HI  warehouses already and on order for other regions, so they should be in stock very shortly.

They are on order in NW, BA, TE, and SE regions. It's on hold in the rest of the SD and LA region, not sure when they will get them. 

I don't see any on order or hold for the NE and MW regions for some reason.

Thanks for all the suggestions! I will check them out. Since I want to get a couple shirts maybe I will try more than one style and see what I like.

if you're not showering just get used to the idea that you will stink, your clothes will stink, that's just how it is.

I should have been more clear about the smell issue. Even after washing the Champion shirts smell a little, before I even put them on. They really stink if I do anything in them, before they even get sweaty. I'm cool with being smelly and wearing smelly clothes if I'm living out of a tent and going a few days or more between showers.

I agree with only needing one shirt for backcountry travel but for car camping and climbing every day I like to alternate shirts so one is always dry and ready to go in the morning. With only one shirt that doesn't always happen when it is really hot and humid.

If this is for warm weather, why not use cotton?

Cotton works OK for a lot of things but I find it gets completely water logged when there is anything like the 90% humidity we get here in the summer. I would be using the shirts for occasional running too. Nothing really works great then but I don't want it to be worse than it has to be. It's my personal preference as much as anything, I can understand people being happier with cotton.

One suggestion I didn't immediately see on here is bamboo. For example, check out Free Fly apparel (they are a "snotty" ocean fly fishing company). Like others on here I find polypro to stink, but wool is too itchy for me (even the super nice Ice Breaker stuff like Bruno-CX pointed out...though I do like IB for my second, not on skin layer). 

Bamboo is SUPER soft, doesn't stink, and dries very fast.

https://freeflyapparel.com/

J. Albers wrote:

One suggestion I didn't immediately see on here is bamboo. For example, check out Free Fly apparel (they are a "snotty" ocean fly fishing company). Like others on here I find polypro to stink, but wool is too itchy for me (even the super nice Ice Breaker stuff like Bruno-CX pointed out...though I do like IB for my second, not on skin layer). 

Bamboo is SUPER soft, doesn't stink, and dries very fast.

https://freeflyapparel.com/

How durable is it? I generally wear underarmour, but they're not particularly abrasion-resistant. I'd love to find a performance fabric that can take more of a beating.

I really like these: http://www.patagonia.com/product/mens-capilene-daily-t-shirt/45271.html 

Material seems to be durable, they don't smell as bad as the other full synthetic shirts I own, and they don't stick to me when I soak them thru like the cheap ones.

Andrew Krajnik wrote:

How durable is it? I generally wear underarmour, but they're not particularly abrasion-resistant. I'd love to find a performance fabric that can take more of a beating.

I've only had mine a few seasons, but so far they seem to be just as durable as polypro or wool.