UKC

Pushing for the award for potentially the most boring thread on UKC.

What do people think is the best beanie to wear under a helmet? Having had a succession of useless ones that where too big with loads of excess material I'm after recommendations. 

Potentially a decent powerstetch beanie? Or maybe even a balaclava for winter use?

You'll have to try harder than that.

Here's a slightly obscure suggestion, from a company that caters mostly to paddlers:
https://www.chillcheater.com/head-gear/transpire-fleece-beanie-13248

Quite thin, stretchy and without bulky seams or anything like that.  Their proprietary 'Transpire' fleece is a bit prone to going bobbly but it wicks extremely well and remains nice and warm while it's damp.

They do a balaclava too if you want to go crazy.  If you ask nicely they could even do you a full 'ninja' version.  (Almost everything they sell is made in their own workshops in Devon, so most of it is customisable at no extra cost.)

E2A:
Less important for a beanie than other bits of baselayer obviously, but as synthetic materials go this fleece also seems to be remarkably resistant to becoming stinky.

Arcteryx - 'Molly and Moe' Toque.  Pretty much perfect under a helmet.

Although...I think they may be discontinued?

Why not turn it around and ask what’s the best beanie to wear over a helmet? Maybe a stylish Barts? That way not only is your head protected but you’ll look good for the Instas 

I’ve got a thin merino one from icebreaker which I love. Only downside is it packs down so small it’s basically perpetually lost having been left in a trouser pocket or something

Ex-Army type, these fit under the helmet then turn up at the bottom over the helmet, best of both worlds!

For ultimate weight-saving try a 12" square of cling film

Tin foil keeps the mind rays out

I have one like this - https://www.mountain-equipment.co.uk/collections/mens-hats/products/branded...

Seems to fit under fine and doesn't bunch or go over eyes, but is crucially long enough to keep ears warm. There seem to be equivalents by Rab and I'm sure others. Often show up for a tenner or so in sales...

Not having a haircut until the spring might even be a better option. Less risk of getting C-19, cheaper, environmentally friendlier, effort free and hip. Really, can’t see any downsides. 
 

Back on topic, I quite like a Montane one. 

I have a Mountain Equipment powerstretch beanie - but I'm not a huge fan of it, it doesnt fully cover my ears and I hate hats which feel short like that. A Buff (in 'covering head with flap hanging over the neck' mode) is my go-to for almost every scenario these days. Keeps the wind off, keeps the sun off, can be soaked in water to keep you cool (in sunny or alpine climes). If it's not warm enough, my midlayer and softshell both have hoods. For winter in the hills I replace it with a thin woolly balaclava.

Depending on temperature, either a Decathlon cycling skull cap or a Ron Hill thin fleece running hat.

I use a cycling skull cap, mainly because I have it for cycling but they are low bulk and pretty warm for the weight, something like this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Brisk-Cycling-Elegant-Thermal-Stretchable/dp/B00R0...

https://www.montane.com/mens-c1/montane-prism-hat-p739

Primalofty

For the proper cold days I find little beats a softshell balaclava. Cuts the drafts big time and keeps you warm.

Otherwise I tend to rely on the hood of my midlayer which works well. I've personally found there's more benefit gained from stopping snow and wind on the back of neck then insulation up top.

Back in the heady days when I used to winter climb I swore by using balaclavas, as it resolved the issue of cold spots in/around the neck. Never wore one rock climbing, but for Scottish/Alpine winter they are - at least in my opinion - unbeatable. I think the one I had was a Marmot Super Hero Balaclava, which had a blend of Powerstretch and Wind Pro, that seemed to work really well. That said, given the length of time we're talking there's a distinct chance it's been discontinued for the best part of a decade!

For me, sadly, while that might help keep my ears warm it would make no difference to the top of my head. More like the hair equivalent of a headband than a beanie ;(

One that fits

They work great - but you look like someone from an episode of black adder for the walk back without a helmet on ? 

Can't get more versatile than a Buff. 

Another cycling beanie user. Thin Boardman one from Halfords   An Outdoor Research balaclava in winter. Pal uses a buff which works well.

I have a tie-dyed power stretch one from Buff. Rather than advertising a brand for free, people think I sell weed. 

Dunno, but my wife swears that her beanie (blue, white, and pink knitted job) adds a full grade to her climbing when it gets cold enough to come out.  Me, I just swear.

Prices?

And to reiterate my support for the Buff: it's stretchy and won't leave your ears cold, and is about the lowest-profile thing you could ever stick between your head and a helmet. And who actually enjoys that feeling when you put, say, a hood on under your helmet and it just sits all funny and askew and doesn't feel right. Now you're walking off in a hoolie with all your warm hoods up? But your neck is a bit chilly? Ah...! And it'll be quite useful on the way home too when you need to stop for fuel and realise you don't have a mask.

If it's too cold for the Buff, you need a balaclava and to reassess the life choices that brought you to winter climbing. It works in all other instances though, and is truly versatile. And if it's cold enough that you need a balaclava, where on Earth (in the UK, specifically) are you willingly choosing to rock climb in those conditions!?

I'm really quite enthusiastic about the things. I think they're the single best detail of what I usually wear to a crag or in the hills, or in the big pointy hills abroad. Second only to a lightweight stretchy softshell. A must-have. And, at £15, possibly the cheapest, lightest and most efficient item of 'technical clothing' you'll ever own. And you'll get to look cool and individual while you wear it*. And it is a SPF rating, so it must be legitimate. It's a well-engineered and very neat solution to a problem. It's efficient, it's minimalist, and it solves a problem. And it not only solves that fundamental problem really well, but it also solves any number of problems you didn't think you might ever have when you first put your hat on. And it solves those problems really well too.

Just don't go for a nap in a breeze at the Cracoe Memorial Boulders with one. I stil have no idea where it went. On the wind, one can only assume, in the direction of Rhylstone :s

(Can I have a job please, BUFF? Un-em...I mean self-employed creative. Just generally creative. About all sorts. Very passionate about the product. Plenty of transferable skills and stuff.)

* - but don't take fashion advice from me; I wear leggings to the crag.

15 for a gram. Give me the cash now and I'll just go out and get it from the car. You wait here...

Buff's, are they better than any other neck gaiters?

Yes they are: other versions haven't quite got it right in terms of size, stretchiness and thickness .

Seconded, I wear the heavy duty Merino wool buff under my cycling helmet and really rate it.

I have a Patagucci R1 beanie my wife bought me 15yrs ago. It’s prefect, though obviously discontinued. I use a combo of that or the hoods on my various hooded fleeces.

A modern day equivalent would be the ME eclipse beanie. 

https://www.mountain-equipment.co.uk/collections/mens-hats/products/eclipse...

Correction - I've got the product names mixed up (the Molly and Moe are great beanies too)....

For under a helmet it was the Arcteryx 'Charlie' Toque.
They're so good a bought an extra spare to keep in the packaging - just in case they discontinued them.  Which...it looks like they have.

Why do manufacturers alway seem to do that?

Sadly, Buffs aren't big enough or everybody! I tried, a couple, even wrote to Buff about it,  but they get uncomfortable on a 63cm head.

My comfy beanie is an OR Merino Beanie, or a (very) old meraklon neck gaiter tube thing.

I have this from Decathlon and it works well - low profile, warm, somewhat windproof: https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/beanie-alpinism-grey-all-over/_/R-p-302830

However if you wear it without a helmet you look very silly

Slightly off-topic, but why and when did they become Americanised as "beanies" over here? This side of the border (north) they should be tammies and nothing else!

On-topic: Another bote for the Montane Prism hat. Alternatively anything in Powerstretch.

South of the border, I believe that back in the day they used to be called "hats"

On the FA of Botterill's Slab, good old Frank paused to raise his beanie for a passing lady. You wouldn't get that nowadays.

Merino from Icebreaker for me.  The key criterion for a hat is that it must not be so long that it slides down over my eyes.  I tried that once and I did not like it.  I endeavoured to rectify the problem by pushing my helmet back, several times.  Eventually, that slipped over the back of my head, so that I was both blinded and being strangled.  Really, really not good.

I also have a very lightweight baselayer hat, with a fleece headband which work well together, particularly on the walk in when the headband keeps my ears warm but steam can still escape through the top.

I used to have one of those things that are low-cut at the back and cover your ears, with an elastic cord to stop it blowing away.  The elastic cord made it very noisy - a conduit straight to my ears, and it made me look like a medieval peasant