Q36.5 Level 3 base layer review: seamless long sleeve performance

Every time you start putting together your clothing for a ride, start with a base layer. A great base layer is the foundation that helps you feel your best and allows your whole system of clothing to work as optimally as possible. The challenge is that every climate is different and the temperatures we all experience range drastically. This is the reason that we have such a wide range of options in our list of the best cycling base layers.  

Given that I tend to ride through the winter, long sleeve base layers are something I'm always evaluating. New options come to market and it feels like there is an endless array of choices. More recently, a new style of almost completely seamless base layers has started to appear. Assos has one and so does the brand started by the former director of development for Assos, Q36.5. 

The two brands are often somewhat similar but in this case, there are a lot of differences. Assos positions the single seamless base layer available as the best of what you can buy from the brand. Q36.5 instead takes the technology and applies it to every base layer that the brand offers. I've spent a bit of time with the level 3 long sleeve Q36.5 base layer and now I'm ready to share some details. If you are looking for an incredibly comfortable long-sleeve base layer, keep reading to see if this one is the right choice for you. 

Design and aesthetics 

If you click on an article about the latest carbon race wheels, you expect a deep dive into the technology. The industry revolves around a year-to-year churn of lighter, stiffer, and faster. Making that a reality falls on the shoulders of ever-advancing technology and designers who are able to extract the potential of it. What no one expects is that even a lowly base layer is subject to that same level of technical innovation and ever-advancing design. 

If there was ever an example to change your mind about this, it's the Q36.5 Base layer 3. At the heart of the design is a cutting-edge, three-dimensional knitting machine from Karl Meyer. Instead of seams and variations in fabrics, everything is knit in a single piece. There's no edging, the only seams are incredibly limited, and instead of swapping fabrics the knitting shifts and changes to reduce fabric density. 

If you are reading this and thinking it sounds familiar, it is. I recently wrote the Assos GTO Winter LS DermaSensor Base Layer review and the similarities are striking. Assos doesn't mention the third-party company that makes the design possible but that's not unusual for the brand. It might be the same process, or not, but it's not super important. The two pieces are certainly similar but there are lots of differences as well. 

Right at the forefront, the fabric makeup is different. Q36.5 uses 44% polypropylene, 44% polyamide, and 12% elastane which, while similar to the Assos numbers, swaps Polypro for the polyester that Assos specs. Given that polypropylene has greater resistance to water absorption, it's a substitution that makes sense overall but it's also something that reflects the different projected uses. 

This particular, Level 3, base layer from Q36.5 is a long-sleeve variation of what the brand offers for summer riding. There's a Level 4 and a Level 5 that would be a better match for the Assos base layer. Level 3 is more of a light winter, or perhaps spring and fall, piece but there is also a difference in what the two brands have done with the knit technology. Q36.5 is using a much more complex design in the knitting and has managed to even further reduce seams. 

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As with the Assos base layer, the seams that do exist, appear to further gather material in places where it makes sense to do so. There's a very short stitch under each arm as well as a long seam across the top of each shoulder and the final seams exist at the wrist. In every use of a seam, it appears the fabric was knit seamlessly then cut, gathered, and stitched to create a tighter curve. Whatever the technical reason, there is no doubt that the machine is capable of complex patterning. 

You can see that in the dual-purpose surface texture. The Q36.5 Level 3 base layer uses a hexagonal design that covers much of the surface of the garment. At first, it looks aesthetic only but when you look closer, it's actually a variation in density. The centre hexagon uses a tighter knit while the outer area uses a lighter knit with less fabric coverage. The Level 2 piece mirrors Level 3 but if you jump to the Level 1, the same pattern reverses the densities with an even lighter internal structure. 

That flexibility is the real power of the Karl Meyer machine and you can see it employed throughout the design. The neckline and the waist switch the pattern to a vertical design that maximises horizontal stretch. Under the arms, there are actual holes patterned into the knit for ventilation. On the upper back, there are more ventilation holes and here the patterning is even more complex as it switches between solid fabric and large holes. 

There are also clever aesthetic details integrated right into the knitting. You could argue that the hexagonal design has some functional use but the big arrow on the back certainly doesn't. Instead, it's an aesthetic detail and the arrow points to the washing instructions at the low back. Instead of printing them, Q36.5 chose to knit the text right into the fabric. It feels as much functional as illustrative of the capabilities. 

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Performance

When you slide the Q36.5 base layer on, you can tell right away that it is different. I always wear the same size in base layers but what that means varies a bit from brand to brand. There are some that are tight enough to get stuck on my heart rate monitor strap and require some contortions to roll down. Then there are others where they slide on with ease but don't have much compression. The Q36.5 Level 3 base layer is all that at once. 

It goes on easily and doesn't catch on my heart rate monitor. Once on though, it's compressive in a few key areas but overall, it disappears. You'll notice the band of higher compression on your bicep but it won't feel tight against the chest. The neck is about the same height as a mock turtleneck but it's intentionally a bit loose with less compression. Even if it was tight though, the raw cut edges at the sleeves and neckline almost entirely disappear. 

What I find myself noticing more than anything else is how incredibly soft the fabric is. The zonal compression helps with that but you can't ignore the fabric. Polypropylene is a hydrophobic synthetic material that tends to be soft and Q36.5 pairs it with Nylon for structure and durability. What you'll notice though is the ultra-soft polypro that feels amazing next to your skin. 

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As I've said a few times, this base layer is one of a few in the system. Level 3 is there when you want a long sleeve but you aren't looking for extreme warmth. I find it a perfect pairing with a Castelli Perfetto RoS 2 jacket and I also had success pairing it with a Pearl Izumi Attack WxB Jacket. Bottom line, I tend to use it with a light shell in mild but cool weather and that matches with what Q36.5 says on the product page. 

Q36.5 clearly states that this base layer works as low as 8C/46F and I agree. Right around there is where the Level 3 is perfect but there is also a reasonable amount of versatility on the upper end. That recent pairing with the Pearl Izumi shell was at an average temp of  13C/56F but it rained hard for a few minutes and there were also times spent at 17C/63F. The Level 3 felt like that ride was exactly what the designers had in mind. 

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Verdict

When I reviewed the Assos seamless base layer I was overall incredibly impressed but the price was hard to justify. The Q36.5 Level base layer has all strengths of the Assos piece with none of the drawbacks. It should be a slam dunk five-star winner right? Unfortunately not but the fault lies as much on me as any particular trait of the base layer. 

Q36.5 offers a range of options that runs a range of temperatures. Level 0 is a barely there option that might only find use inside while Level 1 is a sleeveless summer base layer for the hottest summer days. From there you can go all the way up to Level five with an integrated balaclava. The only option I spent time with though was the middle Level 3 and for my climate, it's an odd match-up. 

At the temperature where the Level 3 is perfect, I don't find myself needing to solve an issue. A soft shell jacket with a short sleeve base layer is often plenty and a short sleeve Windstopper base layer with a long sleeve jersey is another good choice. If your needs are different, you won't make a mistake with this piece though. 

The positives that set the Q36.5 base layers apart exist throughout the range. The fabric is incredibly comfortable and the complex knitting that changes both heat retention and compression through the garment is still there. Also, unlike the Assos piece, the prices are reasonable. Hardly bargain basement but they are right at the expected price point. Just make sure you match the temperature range to your needs.