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Rapha - Worth the extra £££

Churchill123Churchill123 Posts: 341
edited April 2013 in Road buying advice
So i'm after a new jersey & some bibs - Is it worth paying the extra money for Rapha rather than buying Castelli ?....

Posts

  • lawrenceslawrences Posts: 1,011
    oh dear.

    there's been a few threads on this subject and none of the have been pretty.

    Just depends on how much value you put on the extra quality and how much value comes from the label. Castelli and Rapha both produce good kit.
  • goonzgoonz Posts: 3,106
    Nope, hate it all over priced tat!
    Scott Speedster S20 Roadie for Speed
    Specialized Hardrock MTB for Lumps
    Specialized Langster SS for Ease
    Cinelli Mash Bolt Fixed for Pain
    n+1 is well and truly on track
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  • danlikesbikesdanlikesbikes Posts: 3,898
    Both good bits of kit, partly will come down to the design I guess as you might like one and not the other.

    In terms of quality think as others have said been plenty of other threads all stating that they are both good quality manufactures. FWIW the Rapha brand do have repair/swap option when purchasing so suggest you look on their website for the details.
    Pain hurts much less if its topped off with beating your mates to top of a climb.
  • pkripperpkripper Posts: 652
    They're both very good kit, and I have a mix of both. My preference is towards castelli shorts and rapha jerseys, but it's horses for courses - if you like the sizing and style of either, you're not necessarily going to be disappointed vs. the other.
  • giant_mangiant_man Posts: 6,878
    Assos. you just need Assos.
  • MartinB2444MartinB2444 Posts: 266
    Last night I went out with Assos bib shorts and a Polaris jersey. Love em both.
  • pkripperpkripper Posts: 652
    MartinB2444 wrote:
    Last night I went out with Assos bib shorts and a Polaris jersey. Love em both.


    But I bet they hate their parents as a result.
  • GrillGrill Posts: 5,610
    Rapha makes fantastic kit, but so does Castelli. My favorite bibs are my Castelli Body Paints although the Aero Race aren't bad either. Rapha jerseys and bibs are solid and I have a few. They last absolutely ages and are incredibly comfortable. They're also easier to size as Castelli is more for the long and lean crowd.
    English Cycles V3 | Cervelo P5 | Cervelo T4 | Trek Domane Koppenberg
  • Churchill123Churchill123 Posts: 341
    giant man wrote:
    Assos. you just need Assos.



    None of the assos jerseys appeal to me aesthetically - Can't disagree that it's fantastic stuff though!
  • danlikesbikesdanlikesbikes Posts: 3,898
    Churchill123 wrote:
    giant man wrote:
    Assos. you just need Assos.



    None of the assos jerseys appeal to me aesthetically - Can't disagree that it's fantastic stuff though!

    Me too, but looked at some of their kit at a recent bike show & its easy to see that the stuff is top quality.
    Pain hurts much less if its topped off with beating your mates to top of a climb.
  • iPeteiPete Posts: 6,076
    ffs.

    The answer is both ;)
  • FatTedFatTed Posts: 1,205
    Rapha Jerseys & Jackets, Castelli Rosso Corsa line the "Gabba" is pretty cool, Assos bibshorts. This forum seems keen on Torm, I like Groundeffect and some of the Gore, craft and Defeet products. Specialized and Sidi shoes.
  • Mike54321Mike54321 Posts: 20
    If you're buying top end Castelli stuff you wont be paying anything more if you want to get Rapha.

    Both are great quality, as with everything value for money inevitably gets worse when you go for higher end stuff. You can't go wrong with either if you've got the cash.
  • mjbennettmjbennett Posts: 532
    Look at Torm jerseys - which are rapha 'influenced'. Bought one the other month to try out and it is very very similar - good quality, sportwool and...wait for it.... -made in china - just like Rapha jerseys ha
  • ianbarianbar Posts: 1,354
    i generally wear mavic gear which i have found more than adequate, i have a raphia classic jersey which is fab but at same time cost nearly 3 times what my mavic did. unfortunatly we all have our own favs and budgets and it takes buying it all to really find out what we like!
    enigma esprit
    cannondale caad8 tiagra 2012
  • metronomemetronome Posts: 670
    ianbar wrote:
    unfortunatly we all have our own favs and budgets and it takes buying it all to really find out what we like!

    challenge_accepted.png
    tick - tick - tick
  • LegendLustLegendLust Posts: 1,022
    ***
    Selling my Legend frame
    http://owningalegend.wordpress.com/2014 ... ced-price/
  • ajb72ajb72 Posts: 1,178
    Rapha kit comes with a lifetime repair service, so worth taking into account when comparing manufacturers and prices. Assos also good for repairs too and make the best shorts IMO.

    I would echo many of the other opinions here - Castelli make very good shorts indeed, but I've always found their jerseys pretty average in fabric and quality. Rapha's pro team shorts (inc thermal shorts) are superb, but pricey. Great fit, great pad and nice finishing touches. I found Rapha's Classic shorts quite average in comfort and fit, so for me not worth the investment. I've had a few Rapha jerseys and all have performed very well, merino is a great fabric for a variety of temperatures.
  • goonzgoonz Posts: 3,106
    ajb72 wrote:
    Assos also good for repairs too and make the best shorts IMO.

    Hmmm not sure whether I agree here, perhaps I dont have the best pad in mine but I actually find my Craft pad more comfortable than my Assos bibs.
    Scott Speedster S20 Roadie for Speed
    Specialized Hardrock MTB for Lumps
    Specialized Langster SS for Ease
    Cinelli Mash Bolt Fixed for Pain
    n+1 is well and truly on track
    Strava http://app.strava.com/athletes/1608875
  • itsnotaraceitsnotarace Posts: 518
    The Castelli bibs I had were poorly finished, with loose stitching and lumpy seams and pad, plus they were see through (wtf?), I returned them for refund.

    In contrast my 3 pairs of Rapha bibs are perfectly stitched and finished, supremely comfortable and I've never had any chafing from them, so no need for chamois cream.

    I might give some Assos a try one day if I can get over looking like a power ranger.
  • goonzgoonz Posts: 3,106
    itsnotarace wrote:
    The Castelli bibs I had were poorly finished, with loose stitching and lumpy seams and pad, plus they were see through (wtf?), I returned them for refund.

    In contrast my 3 pairs of Rapha bibs are perfectly stitched and finished, supremely comfortable and I've never had any chafing from them, so no need for chamois cream.

    I might give some Assos a try one day if I can get over looking like a power ranger.

    Sure those Castelli's were not cheap chinese knock offs?
    Scott Speedster S20 Roadie for Speed
    Specialized Hardrock MTB for Lumps
    Specialized Langster SS for Ease
    Cinelli Mash Bolt Fixed for Pain
    n+1 is well and truly on track
    Strava http://app.strava.com/athletes/1608875
  • itsnotaraceitsnotarace Posts: 518
    I hope not for £120 from Ribble
  • StrithStrith Posts: 541
    There's no real difference in price if you compare to top end stuff from other manufacturers anyway.

    If you're gonna spend big bucks you just need to find whos stuff fits you the best.

    Just don't buy the grand tour gloves, they're the worst gloves I've ever ridden it. The other stuff is nice though.

    Oh and I've never had trouble with castelli stuff, but a few of my mates have had bibs coming apoart at the seams, maybe just a bad batch.
  • ajb72ajb72 Posts: 1,178
    goonz wrote:
    ajb72 wrote:
    Assos also good for repairs too and make the best shorts IMO.

    Hmmm not sure whether I agree here, perhaps I dont have the best pad in mine but I actually find my Craft pad more comfortable than my Assos bibs.

    That's why I added the 'in my opinion'! You're not going to know what suits you without trying it obviously, all we can comment on to the OP is quality of the garment and our personal experience.
  • TormTorm Posts: 234
    mjbennett wrote:
    Look at Torm jerseys - which are rapha 'influenced'. Bought one the other month to try out and it is very very similar - good quality, sportwool and...wait for it.... -made in china - just like Rapha jerseys ha
    Our SportWool jerseys are handmade in Vietnam not in China, in a small family run business. The fabric is made to order in Denmark and the patterns are cut to size by an expert cutter (it's his only job !) before being passed to 12 super experienced seamstresses to stitch together. They are a deliberately small business which is why we like them!
  • mjbennettmjbennett Posts: 532
    whoops, sorry torm, you will note I said the jerseys are good quality. The china reference was a joke - my mistake....I should have checked the label first. Presumably you go on visits to vietnam for 'research purposes'. Wish I had a job like that......
  • TormTorm Posts: 234
    mjbennett wrote:
    whoops, sorry torm, you will note I said the jerseys are good quality. The china reference was a joke - my mistake....I should have checked the label first. Presumably you go on visits to vietnam for 'research purposes'. Wish I had a job like that......
    Yup, just wanted to be transparent about how we operate. Torm is just me and Al, and we also run a local bike shop so we don't get to spend too much time in Vietnam!
  • Churchill123Churchill123 Posts: 341
    Never heard of Torm before.. But having looked at the website... aesthetically the stuff looks spot on and right up my street.. I also assume it's good quality stuff so looks like i'll be ordering me a few jerseys :)
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