omg a wife beater!

[Wags]

just kidding...

i'm looking for some of these that aren't cotton and am having a tough time. i've worn them since i was a junior in high school and feel naked w/o one. any ideas or recommendations?

for those who aren't familiar w/ the term, a wife beater is another name for a tight fitting tank top, usually worn as outerwear by hillbillies on the show cops

[warraghiyagey]

I've seen then in most sports stores/outfitters like Dick's and EMS.

[Almost There]

Patagonia makes them, REI I think has their own line, and Ex-Officio also makes them, none are cotton.

[fiddlehead]

Not exactly a tank top and not exactly tight fitting, but you can check these out. Pretty good price:
http://longunderwearsales.com/produc...roducts_id=197

[Heater]

just kidding...

i'm looking for some of these that aren't cotton and am having a tough time. i've worn them since i was a junior in high school and feel naked w/o one. any ideas or recommendations?

for those who aren't familiar w/ the term, a wife beater is another name for a tight fitting tank top, usually worn as outerwear by hillbillies on the show cops

Well, you gotta have a pack of cigs nearby. That way, when the guys on Cops (bad boys bad boys) are taking you away, you can say "hey wait, I gotta get my smokes." "get my smokes, maaaaan"

[mudhead]

Under Armour. If you are feeling flush.

[Lanthar Mandragoran]

nau.com if you're feeling flusher... but at the end of summer they drop the price on their base 1 sleeveless shirts to dirt cheap...

Or, go by target, Champion C9 gear should have them for ~$10 this time of year.

[Wags]

i wear both under armour and nike dryfit, but there's still something missing about having my beater on underneath

[skinny minnie]

I have been searching FOREVER for a perfect beater style tank top. Now granted, I'm a girl. But yeah, they just aren't out there. I've looked at pretty much all the brands. I hate feeling constricted. None of the outdoor brands have the right fit; they aren't long enough, the neck and arm holes are not deep enough scoops... and don't even get me started about the built in bra's!

Nike has been the best compromise I've tried so far but it just isn't good enough. I feel your pain, brother.

[Wags]

let me know if you find any w/o the bra heheh

[Rain Man]

for those who aren't familiar w/ the term, a wife beater is another name for a tight fitting tank top, usually worn as outerwear by hillbillies on the show cops

For those who aren't familiar, "wife beater" is not a "funny" or "just kidding" term. It's sad and sick. Not something to have a sense of humor about.

My oldest daughter represents victims of domestic violence. She recently had a client murdered by a "wife beater."

You need to THINK before you sink to gutter humor and it's no excuse that someone else has so little class that they use such a term as if it's funny.

Rain Man

.

[Wags]

that's what it's called by 100% of my generation - if i called it an "A-Shirt", as is its proper name, nobody would know what i'm talking about... sorry you took offense to it, but don't take your bad day out on me please. i'm a backpacker not a doormat.

[Appalachian Tater]

[JAK]

Like Rain Man I have mixed feelings about the use of the term. It's rarely used up here but I do hear it more often. Up here we say tank top, which I understand came from the use of such shirts by tank crews in WWII. I am not sure whether the term came up from the United States after the U.S. troops brought it home, or if the Canadian troops got it from the American troops and then brought it home with them. Perhaps a little of both. Anyhow, the term 'wife beater' seems to be used more by women than men. Perhaps its a liberating thing. Not sure. I will always call it a tank top.

What is a 'crew shirt' and where did that term originate?

[JAK]

Here is more on tank tops.
The first one seems to have some sort of camoflague.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tank_top_%28shirt%29

I think the use of the term 'tank top' for the more feminine variations made most people forget the orginal use of the term had to do with men and Army Tanks. This might partly explain why 'tank top' has been replaced with 'wife beater' in some circles. We don't hear A-shirt up here very often. I think I will stick to calling it a tank top, even if some people think its a girly term. I don't wear one anyways. Shoulders get too burned.

So is there a difference between a 'crew shirt' and a 't-shirt'?
Where did the term 'crew shirt' originate?

[JAK]

I haven't been able to find a good reference on the etymology of shirt names. I might have been wrong about tank tops and military tanks. The term 'tank top' might have originated from 'tank suits' from 'swimming tanks', and early term for swimming pools. I understand that 't shirt' came from shirts issued to U.S.Troops in WWI, and became a popular term by 1920. The term 'tank top' may not have ever been all that common, and may not have a military origin like the T-shirt. Not sure. Anyone? Crew shirts refer to long sleeved t shirts, originally used by rowing crews. They are my choice for avoiding sun burn.

[Lone Wolf]

http://www.wife-beaters.com/shirts.html

http://www.mtannoyances.com/?p=166

[JAK]

We used the term 'beater' growing up to refer to a boat that was in particularly bad shape. It was usually a club boat without an owner, but could also be used to refer to a second boat that could be used for training. I've used it for cross country skis also, but I think competitive cross country skiiers refer to their early season training skis by some other term, like dirt skis, or something like that.

I don't know how 'wife beater' could have become such a popular name for a shirt, particularly amongst women. I think it must have something to do with it being a reference to someone else, that its cute somehow to refer to it as a 'wife beater' presumably in sharp contrast to who the person is that is wearing the shirt and using the term. I doubt that true wife beaters and beaten wives use the term. I could be wrong. Anyhow, I agree with Rain Man and others. It ain't cute.

Perhaps we should rename the shirt, something that reflects on this ease at which some people are willing to go along with calling it a wifebeater, because its pop culture. I am not sure of an apt term for this. 'flock shirt' 'mob shirt' 'vapid yet callous shirt' 'human weakness shirt'. The problem isn't the shirt obviously.

[Deb]

Only recently have I heard the term 'wife beater' used for a tank top.

The first time I heard it, I was shocked. It's insensitive and in poor taste.

[BigCat]

I say the following without sarcasm:
One of the great things I love about WhiteBlaze is how wholesome and innocent this place is! Where else in 2008 can you find this topic being freshly debated? Stay classy WB!

PS - Regardless of your position on the issue, popular usage has already determined the result. The term is near-ubiquitous for anyone GenX or younger and has even spawned an alternate expression 'Boy Beater' for the female version. One only has to google the terms 'wife beater' and 'boy beater' to see all the initial results are clothing related.