Good quality cycle clothing - advice needed

ashleymp777

I'm soon to take delivery of my first road bike and I need to kit myself out with some decent clothing - tights, tops, base layers etc.

What good priced manufature would you recomend? Is it still endura etc?

mrushton

If money is no object then Assos/Rapha/Castelli. If you want vfm I think a lot of people on here would say Prendas.

www.prendas.co.uk

Wheelspinner

A notch down from the Assos / Rapha stuff in cost terms is Giordana, and generally they are excellent quality, especially in their dearer ranges, like "Body Clone".

Santini make nice gear too.

ajb72

Check out Wiggle's own brand - DHB. Fantastic value for money and really well made stuff for the price. I've used the bib tights for a couple of winters now and it's lasted really well.

ColinT2

.....and not forgetting Pearl Izumi

thel33ter

Shutt's worth a mention, not incredibly cheap but gets excellent reviews.

Nack

Giordana and Castelli (provided you get past their weird sizes) are indeed excellent quality. No one has mentioned Endura yet, I've got Endura bib longs and they're fantastic. Gore kit is also very good quality, a little pricey but you pay for the quality (jackets in particular).

One I would avoid is Altura: cheaper than other brands but not great quality and not very durable in my experience.

Gazzetta67

Santini and Castelli are Just as good as Assos without the ridiculous prices.

ScottieP

I would recommend: Gore Bike Wear, Shutt VR and DHB.... all great

father_jack

Aldi are great for the money

ashleymp777

Thanks guys, I'll take a look at a couple of them.

Hoopdriver

I'd skip Endura - better than Altura, but not by much in terms of durability and function. THeir so-called waterproof gloves are to be avoided at all costs. Might as well wear a sponge wrapped around your hands. Assos, Gore and Rapha make lovely stuff that looks good and lasts well but the up-front costs are very high. All three make gear that lasts, and lasts, so in the long term they work out quite nicely price wise, but of course first you have to cop that big hit on the wallet.

gregg.pedder

Hoopdriver wrote:

I'd skip Endura - better than Altura, but not by much in terms of durability and function.

Id have to disagree with the negative comments about Endura stuff. I've been using Endura for a while now and I must say whilst it isn't overly expensive i've found all the stuff I have to be good quality.

In particular I use the Stealth Extreme bib-longs and they are absolutely fantastic. Keep me dry when its wet, and keep me warm down to minus figures. The baa baa merino wool base layer is superb also, and not too expensive for what it is, and the neoprene Road Overshoes for £20 have lasted extremely well considering I use them every day and walk round in them far more than I really should.

Can't comment on the gloves, I use SealSkinz waterproof ones which are waterproof, but do get a bit clammy inside when you're really going for it (which I usually am!), and an Altura Night Vision Evo Jacket which so far has been very good for the price.

I certainly wouldn't hesitate to buy Endura products again.

Hoopdriver

I'll take the point on the Endura baa-baa layers which I have heard universally praised although I've not tried them myself, and I would have to say that the Endura 3/4 length eVent trousers I have work very well and seem destined to last. But my Endura overshoes have become threadbare and torn much sooner than I would have liked or expected (the zipper on the right one broke the second time i used it) and their Deluge gloves are simply a joke - or at least the pair I have had. I have heard much both good and bad about their gloves, and assuming we can all tell whether or not we have wet cold hands, I would guess that they have a bit of a quality control problem. As well, the cut on my pair was very poor - fingers and thumbs out of proportion, and poorly sized.

I didn't much care for Endura's waterproof jacket either - although to be fair until I got myself a Gore Fusion jacket (a GREAT piece of kit, if rather pricey) I never found a waterproof jacket that really functioned as well as the manufacturers claimed; the Gore one was a delightful exception.

Gav2000

Nack wrote:

Giordana and Castelli (provided you get past their weird sizes) are indeed excellent quality. No one has mentioned Endura yet, I've got Endura bib longs and they're fantastic. Gore kit is also very good quality, a little pricey but you pay for the quality (jackets in particular).

One I would avoid is Altura: cheaper than other brands but not great quality and not very durable in my experience.

I've got a couple of Altura tops for the winter, both are about 4 years old and are absolutely fine. They were both a good price and I'd certainly look for Altura items again.

gregg.pedder

Hoopdriver wrote:

I didn't much care for Endura's waterproof jacket either - although to be fair until I got myself a Gore Fusion jacket (a GREAT piece of kit, if rather pricey) I never found a waterproof jacket that really functioned as well as the manufacturers claimed; the Gore one was a delightful exception.

Funnily enough the endura gloves didn't fit me properly at all, and I didn't like the feel of them, so gave them a miss. Sounds like it was a good choice. I do like the SEALSKINZ ones though, they really do work very well, and are nice and light (They have a PTFE lining I think, can't be sure though).

Which Gore Jacket have you got? My Altura Night Vision is great for commuting, especially after I got knocked off earlier in the year, but does have the "bin-man" look, and when I'm on a long tough climb does get a bit steamy, but seems much better now the weather is cooling down. How does you're Gore one breath, well or not so well? Is it one of the Gore-Tex ones?

Cheers

GP

Hoopdriver

I've got the Gore Fusion jacket. Wiggle had a sale on them about 18months ago and I bought one, partly because I liked the look of it. It has an MBT cut, and so is a bit roomier than the usual race-cut offerings for road types and with judicial use of the pit-zips I have found it to breath extremely well - the first bit of kit I have ever bought that is genuinely waterproof and genuinely breathable. I have never been sweaty in it. It has been so reliable and comfortable that if it looks like rain, I'll just wear it and not worry if I guess wrong.

I've not worn it on hot days or in tropical showers - it might get sweaty then. Couldn't say. But for anything up to 15C-18C, it's worked a treat. I've been delighted with it.

Philip S

I've not been too impressed with my Endura baa-baa baselayer. It seems to have changed shape over the 2 years I've had it (shrunk a little, I think, despite having only been washed at 30 degrees). It's also very slightly itchy against the skin - not much, but enough to irritate. My Rapha baselayers are much better, very clingy, soft, comfortable and no deterioration over two years, apart from the plasticy logo flaking off the label, which is not a problem...

gregg.pedder

270 notes is a lot of money for a jacket though. My Altura was only £80, but like you say you get what you pay for.

When I come to replace my jacket (they do get grotty looking when you're commuting every day through traffic in all weathers) or get a winter training jacket I was looking at the Endura Stealth Jacket (same materiel as the Stealth Extreme Longs -which are excellent) or the Gore Bike Wear Oxygen Jacket.

I've not found the baabaa base layer itchy really, and so far so good with the sizing and shape. Can wear my base layer and jacket in most (winter) temperatures and be just the right temperature, whether im climbing of descending.

GP

ColinT2

Yeah, the Rapha base layers ooze quality albeit a bit pricey. For the depths of winter you can't for wrong with the Icebreaker 200 merino base layer[/quote]

ColinT2

Yeah, the Rapha base layers ooze quality albeit a bit pricey. For the depths of winter you can't for wrong with the Icebreaker 200 merino base layer

Muztard

I've yet to find better value than ProBikeKit clothing. All the "PBK" branded items I've bought bibs, jackets, jerseys are excellent. Some made by Castelli some by MOA etc. And if like me you buy the previous years items when the new kit is launched you get some extraordinary bargains.

danlikesbikes

Rapha base layers are a bit on the pricey side but just bought a bundle deal on them and they feel so damm good indeed. I figured that I'd be wearing a base layer so often through the winter that it was worth the investment.

Though have to say that I also have a bunch of the DHB base layers and don't have an issue with them either, they just don't feel as silky smooth and don't fit as tightly.

softlad

I'm a big fan of Giordana, Lusso and Endura gear. Howies NBL merino base layers are also excellent, although most of their range is not really bike-specific. None of this stuff has ever let me down.....