I received my two wool blankets from Harbor Freight yesterday in the mail. I really had no idea what to expect when ordering them because they were only $10.99 per piece. It was difficult to believe that they’d be any good, considering Iv’e seen other wool blankets selling for hundreds of dollars. As a matter of fact, I recently purchased two other Army style wool blankets for $24.99 each and I thought that was a steal. How good could the Harbor Freight blankets be? I mean, really. For such a low price, they couldn’t be very good at all. Or could they be?
I have this nagging feeling in my mind that is telling me that once upon a year, wool blankets that were used in the Army, for survival or for camping were as inexpensive at they could get. No one really thought of them very much and it wasn’t until the internet came along and popularized them did they start selling for an average of $50 each. I honestly don’t think they’re worth that much and I think the cost to make these blankets is pennies on the dollar. Something tells me we’re getting hoodwinked and that’s why I wanted to test out the cheapest wool blankets I could find. The Harbor Freight ones.
Okay, the blankets I purchased initially measure 66″ x 90″. These new blankets measure 60″ x 80″, so they’re somewhat smaller. The first blankets are also fire retardant and these aren’t. Those two things right there may explain the price difference. I’ll tell you though, the first ones stunk like oil and these do too, just not as bad. I’m hoping that if I hang them on the clothesline for a while, they’ll air out and that small will disappear. As I’ve said before, I’m not planning on washing any wool blanket ever because the washer will remove too much material. That’s the material I paid for, so I’d like it to stay where it is.
When I received the first wool blankets, I was struck by how thin they were. They’re four pound blankets though, so I chalked that up to them being dense. These new blankets weigh in at 2.8 pounds, so while they are somewhat thicker and more bulky in appearance, they’re less dense. I’m sure that will make a difference in their heat keeping abilities. Since I haven’t tested out either yet, I’ll have to get back to you on that.
Let’s take a look at some photos of these new Harbor Freight blankets. I can tell you that I was very impressed by them when I first opened the box they were shipped in. For only $10.99 each, even if I had to buy three of them to snuggle up in to stay warm, I still wouldn’t be spending a lot of money. Heck, I could buy 10 of these blankets and still not pay as much as I would for one of those more expensive ones. That’s actually not a bad idea. If I were to go camping with my truck somewhere or in a camper, I may just do that. You can never have too many wool blankets.
This first photo is of the Haul Master wool blanket tag. All the specs are given on it. The blanket is made out of 80% wool and a few other things.
Here’s a photo of the wool blanket itself. On the website, it states the brand as being Western Safety, but in person and right on the blanket, it states the brand is Haul Master. Strange, but I’m sure all these blankets are the same thing.
This is a much more close up view of the fibers this blanket are made up of. Does it look like 80% wool? We’ll never know if it really is.
And this is a view of the thickness of the blanket. Not bad, for what I’m used to.
Now let’s take a look at the seams. The first photo is of the corner seam and the second photo is of the edge seams. Nothing to write home about here. The threading is satisfactory.
As I was taking these photos, I placed the folded blanket on my knee. Here’s a shot of that. Sort of like a bird’s eye view.
And these final two shots are of the new Harbor Freight blankets sitting on top of the Ever Ready wool blankets.
They look warm, don’t they? I can’t wait to try these out camping. I’m sure I’ll love them.
What are your experiences with wool blankets? Do you have a favorite type or brand? Have you ever tried alpaca wool? I hear that’s pretty awesome. Let me know. Thanks for reading!
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