Which chamois cream?

Jules Winnfield

Now that I'm riding for longer and more frequently, I'm finding that I am starting to suffer with skin irritations on my behind. My soft elastase/lycra mix underwear usually protected me but with them slowly getting smaller with each passing wash and riding up when I'm out on the bike, its time for me to bite the bullet and purchase some chamois cream. So which ones does everyone recommend? Are they basically all the same or is it a case of "you get what you pay for"?

Cheers

bahzob

In my experience they are pretty much all the same.

However just to check.

Are you wearing underwear underneath cycle shorts? Or not using cycle shorts at all?

If so that may be the problem.

imposter2.0

Like Bahzob says - ditch the underwear. Padded cycle shorts are designed to be worn next to the skin.

Jules Winnfield

I was wearing underwear underneath padded cycling shorts, I know that that must be the problem cos my underwear is now getting smaller and not protecting me anymore. So it's now time to ditch the underwear completely and just use chamois cream to offer some protection at least.

meanredspider

Yes - they're all pretty similar. I started using Assos because it used to have a pleasant tingle when applied but they've taken out that ingredient but I've felt no strong reason to go with anything else. All my cycling buddies (both genders) use it too. I like the pot too - easy to get exactly the volume you need

BTW - DON'T be tempted to use Sudocreme - it's a barrier cream for babies' bums which is a totally different job. I ended up with more problems from using it (after a recco) than I did with nothing at all.

ai_1

Using your cycling shorts correctly (i.e. on their own) will almost certainly be the bulk of the solution but I do find chamois cream improves comfort too especially on long rides. I've been using Ozone Elite which works well. I haven't tried others so can't compare but I can't imagine there's a huge difference. They all tend to be ridiculously expensive though!

JackPozzi

meanredspider wrote:

Yes - they're all pretty similar. I started using Assos because it used to have a pleasant tingle when applied but they've taken out that ingredient but I've felt no strong reason to go with anything else. All my cycling buddies (both genders) use it too. I like the pot too - easy to get exactly the volume you need

BTW - DON'T be tempted to use Sudocreme - it's a barrier cream for babies' bums which is a totally different job. I ended up with more problems from using it (after a recco) than I did with nothing at all.

Sudocreme does occasionally come in handy for healing purposes if you've suffered chafing during a ride, but would only apply it after the ride.

Used to use Assos but a few years ago something changed and it caused all manner of irritations so I dumped it! Now on Eurostyle Chamois Buttr which is very similar to old Assos...

wandsworth

meanredspider wrote:

Yes - they're all pretty similar. I started using Assos because it used to have a pleasant tingle when applied but they've taken out that ingredient but I've felt no strong reason to go with anything else. All my cycling buddies (both genders) use it too. I like the pot too - easy to get exactly the volume you need

BTW - DON'T be tempted to use Sudocreme - it's a barrier cream for babies' bums which is a totally different job. I ended up with more problems from using it (after a recco) than I did with nothing at all.

Well, that'll certainly help you relax but I doubt it will do anything for your saddle sores.

okgo

I've used sudocreme for 3 years without any issue at all. The only problem being it tends to stay in the chamois a bit, but other than that it works well and lasts a long time while being cheap as chips.

fish156

I don't find them "all the same".

Eurostyle Buttr was too "heavy" and didn't seem to let my skin breathe. Udderly Smooth was good but I seemed to need twice as much. I keep coming back to Assos which seems "just right".

I find Sudocrem is good for aiding healing after any problems, not for regular use as a chamois cream.

drlodge

Anyone tried plain old vaseline?

hypster

drlodge wrote:

Anyone tried plain old vaseline?

I've used a variety of creams and gels over the years but never the more expensive stuff like Assos. Some years ago my friends and I successfully used Physio Sport anti-friction skin barrier gel which was basically a vaseline type product with Tea Tree oil added. It worked okay but over time we graduated to something else and I don't think it's available any more (EDIT: just found some on eBay if you want to try it). Just recently after an extended use of Sudocreme I have gone back to the Physio Sport as I still have a couple of tubes of the stuff.

I would say anything is better than nothing but it all depends on a number of factors - shorts insert, length of ride, road conditions, weather, tyre size and pressures etc. etc. I can't really believe that the expensive creams like Assos are really that much better than anything else but that's an individual choice. It's all the luck of the draw I think, sometimes you can go for hundreds of miles with no problems and other times you get a spot that you just can't seem to shift. Usually just before a big sportive, probably caused by all the increased training you have been doing.

ai_1

drlodge wrote:

Anyone tried plain old vaseline?

No and I don't intend to. I think it would work fine - runners seem to use it a lot to avoid chaffing, but it's awful messy stuff and would, I think, make a mess of your clothes.
Anyone use Bodyglide instead of a cream? I've used it a couple of times for shorter rides and I think it was beneficial but probably not to the same extent as a chamois cream.
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/bodyglide-skin- ... ular-369g/

drlodge

Reason for asking is that I've never used any kind of cream before, never needed to. But I've now got one small sore (which seems to be healing) and a 160 mile ride on Sunday. Was thinking of applying some vaseline to help prevent chaffing and hopefully not make matters too much worse. I have been applying some bepanthen cream on it to help the healing.

Did 30+ miles last night without issue and no cream, so its not like my back end feels like its on fire.

ai_1

drlodge wrote:

Reason for asking is that I've never used any kind of cream before, never needed to. But I've now got one small sore (which seems to be healing) and a 160 mile ride on Sunday. Was thinking of applying some vaseline to help prevent chaffing and hopefully not make matters too much worse. I have been applying some bepanthen cream on it to help the healing.

Did 30+ miles last night without issue and no cream, so its not like my back end feels like its on fire.

For a one off use, Vasoline would probably do the trick - it just might end up leaving some residue on your shorts.

crossed

I've been using Assos but decided to try the Chapeau stuff after seeing it in a bike shop last week.

The Chapeau stuff wasn't very good at all and left me somewhat uncomfortable after a 70 mile MTB ride earlier this week. I'm going to be going back to the Assos from my next rid onwards as I've never had any issues with it.

Escher303

Jules Winnfield wrote:

Now that I'm riding for longer and more frequently, I'm finding that I am starting to suffer with skin irritations on my behind. My soft elastase/lycra mix underwear usually protected me but with them slowly getting smaller with each passing wash and riding up when I'm out on the bike, its time for me to bite the bullet and purchase some chamois cream. So which ones does everyone recommend? Are they basically all the same or is it a case of "you get what you pay for"?

Cheers

I've used a few so called cycling specific chamois creams then tried Boots Aqueous cream which seemed to be entirely indistinguishable from the bike branded stuff but considerably cheaper. Then Aldi had something similar for even cheaper than that so bought a job lot.

http://www.boots.com/en/Boots-Aqueous-C ... l_1132127/

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/a ... ous-cream/

Aldi won't have any in at the minute but worth looking out for in their special buys. IMO many of the cycling branded stuff is much the same, the ingredients looked very similar.

meanredspider

I'm always surprised when people baulk at the price of chamois creme - it must be one of the cheapest things you can buy on a bike and a tub lasts months.

hypster

meanredspider wrote:

I'm always surprised when people baulk at the price of chamois creme - it must be one of the cheapest things you can buy on a bike and a tub lasts months.

As with anything, if the user can discern no real difference then why spend three times the price on something that does basically the same job?

meanredspider

hypster wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

I'm always surprised when people baulk at the price of chamois creme - it must be one of the cheapest things you can buy on a bike and a tub lasts months.

As with anything, if the user can discern no real difference then why spend three times the price on something that does basically the same job?

That's true. But often people look for alternatives because they perceive it to be expensive. On a "per use" basis, it's pennies - there's probably lots of things around your kitchen or bathroom that are costlier. I wasted a load of money on Sudocreme because someone told me it was a cheap alternative. Take aqueous cream - as far as I'm aware, paraffin wax isn't antibacterial nor, in another example, is Vaseline. They're designed to do different jobs. So, in some ways, it's not surprising that they're cheaper. For starters, they're typically one (or maybe two) ingredients. A scan of the Assos stuff suggests there's about 20 ingredients and they will ALL have a function. Now, it's not to say that aqueous cream might work for some people and for all people in some circumstances (in the same way that cheap shorts do). But, just like cheap shorts, you might buy them and find they don't work.

hypster

meanredspider wrote:

hypster wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

I'm always surprised when people baulk at the price of chamois creme - it must be one of the cheapest things you can buy on a bike and a tub lasts months.

As with anything, if the user can discern no real difference then why spend three times the price on something that does basically the same job?

That's true. But often people look for alternatives because they perceive it to be expensive. On a "per use" basis, it's pennies - there's probably lots of things around your kitchen or bathroom that are costlier. I wasted a load of money on Sudocreme because someone told me it was a cheap alternative. Take aqueous cream - as far as I'm aware, paraffin wax isn't antibacterial nor, in another example, is Vaseline. They're designed to do different jobs. So, in some ways, it's not surprising that they're cheaper. For starters, they're typically one (or maybe two) ingredients. A scan of the Assos stuff suggests there's about 20 ingredients and they will ALL have a function. Now, it's not to say that aqueous cream might work for some people and for all people in some circumstances (in the same way that cheap shorts do). But, just like cheap shorts, you might buy them and find they don't work.

I pretty much agree with what you are getting at. I wouldn't use something that wasn't really designed for the job but like you I used Sudocreme for quite a while but I found it reasonably successful. The problem with most creams and gels I have tried is that they seem to work up to a point. As soon as you up the mileage and/or the frequency of rides, things start to get a bit more problematic.

I guess I should give the Assos cream a try because I have the Marmotte coming up in a couple of weeks and I don't want to be sitting on a boil for that!

EDIT: Just ordered some!

meanredspider

Seriously, I've just stuck with Assos and it has seem me fine through some reasonably epic rides. Glad you are going to treat your nether regions to some for the Marmotte - I'm sure you won't regret it.

dav1d1

i have used assos and it last quite a long time, and just apply to upper part of the inside legs all way round and works fine never had any problems

Elfed

I probably use way too much as a tub doesn't last long, the last one I used was the Eurostyle Chamois Buttr. Nice and cooling, but at £13.99 and the frequent summer evening rides it went quite quickly.

The one I'm using now is Queen Helene's Cocoa Butter Cream, around £5.99 for a big pot on eBay, not a dedicated chamois but seems ok. I'll get another pot of the Eurostyle but keep it for the longer rides.

ai_1

meanredspider wrote:

I'm always surprised when people baulk at the price of chamois creme - it must be one of the cheapest things you can buy on a bike and a tub lasts months.

It's not a matter of the actual expense. It's the fact that it's a very high price for what you're getting.
I don't like getting screwed even if I can afford it. Cycling is one of those fields where I think the prices of many items are based very much on what the market will bear not what the products actually cost to research, produce and market.

okgo

IT doesn't last long if you're doing 1 or 2 rides every day. And I find assos is long dry after a few hours while sudocreme doesn't go anywhere. Can't understand the hate personally. I wouldn't use it on my really expensive shorts, but for regular riding and training it works fine and is the best value product by a mile!

menthel

I use the Chapeau non menthol one and find it very good. Its nice and thick and easy to apply. Apparently the minty tingly one is not as thick and gets some poor reports.

markwb79

Ai_1 wrote:

meanredspider wrote:

I'm always surprised when people baulk at the price of chamois creme - it must be one of the cheapest things you can buy on a bike and a tub lasts months.

It's not a matter of the actual expense. It's the fact that it's a very high price for what you're getting.
I don't like getting screwed even if I can afford it. Cycling is one of those fields where I think the prices of many items are based very much on what the market will bear not what the products actually cost to research, produce and market.

Pretty much the same in most areas I think.

Supply and demand.

Jules Winnfield

Thanks for the replies, I opted to get the Assos cream to begin with because quite a few people rated it on this thread. So how much do you need to use for each application and is it best to apply it to yourself, the chamois, or both?

twist83

I have used Rapha stuff (Like that!), Assos and another one which the name escapes me.

However hands down the best one is Udder Cream. Yep the stuff they put on cows udders when they milk them. Go to a local farm place and buy a massive tub for not a lot. Best stuff so far. Sounds odd but it really works.

drlodge

twist83 wrote:

However hands down the best one is Udder Cream. Yep the stuff they put on cows udders when they milk them.

This is what Bag Balm is primarily intended for too Hope I don't start squirting milk.