Castelli Alpha

Anonymous

Tricky. I'd say you are between M and L. I am an M in the gabba at 6ft, 36in chest, 75kg

snakedoc

Echoing what has been said on this thread regarding the jacket - used mine last night and again this morning on my commutes - last night the temp got down to -2.8 by the time I got home and today it was -2 when I set off and 2 degrees by the time I reached work.
On each ride I was toasty (after about the first 10 mins of warming up) and was having to pull the zip down to cool.
I was only wearing a long sleeve baselayer underneath.

This jacket really is a fantastic bit of kit (as is the jersey).
By way of contrast, I used to previously wear my castelli espresso jacket which does not fit as nicely as it is bit loose (size small, so can't go any smaller), and in that I end up sweating as it is almost too warm for rides of about an hour and half or more.

northpole

Happy New Year all!

Just in from my first outing wearing my new Alpha along with a short sleeve Rapha merino base layer. Temperature was 5-6 Celsius and I felt perfectly comfortable with it. When I got home I realised that I was probably too warm as I was soaking but that had a lot to do with the fact that the wind was howling, there was a light drizzle and I was spending quite a bit of the spin going up gentle inclines (530m climb over 25 miles). I didn't at any time feel too warm nor was i inclined to open inner or outer zips (I naturally seem to run warm!). My concerns about the tight fit were a non issue with a single base layer - felt extremely comfortable.

Peter

robbo2011

Maybe too early for a proper assessment, but how does it stack up against the 851?

bendertherobot

Ooo! Controversial!

I take it you mean the jacket so:

1. You can find it easier in your size and colour;
2. It's cheaper, most places now;
3. It's as warm if not warmer;
4. It's definitely more water resistant;
5. It doesn't look like a Star Wars costume.
6. The neck fastening is better (i.e it's just a zip)

All round incrementaly better. But, if you have an 851 you may not necessarily need to change it.

robbo2011

I like the neck fastening in the 851, works really well for me. I won't be buying a new jacket until the 851 wears out (could be a while, I've had it 4 years and it is still near perfect). I have been riding it in subzero temperatures this week and it has been great.

But I have just pressed the button on an Alpha Jersey from Evans for those in-between days where the 851 jacket would be too warm and the intermediate Evo would not be warm enough. I have been looking for something for quite a while. So we'll see how it performs once the weather warms up a bit. (still below freezing here).

northpole

My gut feel (no Christmas pun intended) is that the 851 is the warmer jacket and that the Alpha jacket sits nicely between 851 and Evo, slightly more towards the 851 in terms of cool weather protection. Not sure if you have the other two whether the Alpha jersey makes sense over the jacket. Haven't tried the Alpha jacket in the wet yet to see how rain resistant it is and to know whether to carry a wind or rain jacket in the back pocket on slightly iffy days.

Peter

robbo2011

As I mainly ride in the hills and spend a lot of time climbing at highish intensity, I need something that will breathe really well for the climbs. Something with all round windstopper was not something I wanted as I would sweat way too much on the climbs. As the 851 has a Roubaix back panel, it breathes pretty well and suits my needs for cold winter temps.

At temperatures slightly above where the 851 is useable (>8 degC), I have been using the Evo. Where the Evo falls down is lack of wind proofing in the arms, so my arms were often too cold. To be fair, it in only rated down to 12 degC so it is not really a cold weather piece.

The Alpha Jersey has windproof sleeves and so should work better than the Evo at lower temps, but still have enough breathability for the climbs. We'll see how the theory holds up in practice.

dazz_ni45

Missed the cheap Evans price on the jacket and now none in my size. Would the jersey by much warmer than the gabba or am I better opting for the jacket as I'm after something that is much warmer than the gabba. Castelli Cafe seems to be the cheapest at the moment at £175

bendertherobot

£133 at wiggle
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/castelli-alpha- ... ip-jersey/

And, yes, with the same base layer the Alpha will always be warmer than the Gabba.

dazz_ni45

bendertherobot wrote:

£133 at wiggle
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/castelli-alpha- ... ip-jersey/

And, yes, with the same base layer the Alpha will always be warmer than the Gabba.

Thanks. Alpha jersey ordered , LS Gabba sold (still have my ss gabba)

70\ʹspenguin

As a large in Rapha , torm and shutt would XL be the right size in this for the jersey?

bendertherobot

Yes. Assuming you mean normal Rapha stuff like the jerseys etc.

70\ʹspenguin

bendertherobot wrote:

Yes. Assuming you mean normal Rapha stuff like the jerseys etc.

Indeed. And thank you.

bendertherobot

Welcome to the club! Very soon we'll have our own sub forum!

meanredspider

bendertherobot wrote:

Welcome to the club! Very soon we'll have our own sub forum!

Will it be as short-lived as the Gabba Sub-forum?

northpole

70\'sPenguin wrote:

As a large in Rapha , torm and shutt would XL be the right size in this for the jersey?

I don't think there is a full size difference between Alpha and Rapha, more like half a size. Hence I've managed to get away with an XL Alpha which, whilst snugger fitting than Rapha in XL (which is the size I always buy), is probably a better fit for me. Initially I was concerned it was too snug a fit, but that was down to the shirt I first tried the Alpha on over.

I'm 6'1"; 42" chest; 36" waist; not nearly fit enough!

Peter

designman

Went out today wearing my Alpha Jacket in temps of around -1° to +2° wearing a Helly Hansen HH Freeze 1/2 Zip baselayer underneath and was really cold, I thought the jacket would have been warmer.

bendertherobot

designman wrote:

Went out today wearing my Alpha Jacket in temps of around -1° to +2° wearing a Helly Hansen HH Freeze 1/2 Zip baselayer underneath and was really cold, I thought the jacket would have been warmer.

I'm very surprised by that, particularly given that the HH Freeze is something I wouldn't be pairing with the Alpha until below zero!

What was your previous jacket?

bendertherobot

meanredspider wrote:

bendertherobot wrote:

Welcome to the club! Very soon we'll have our own sub forum!

Will it be as short-lived as the Gabba Sub-forum?

D'ya wanna be in our gang? :shock:

meanredspider

bendertherobot wrote:

D'ya wanna be in our gang? :shock:

Let me think:
Gabba, Mannaggia, AirJack x2, Rapha Winter Jersey, iTBuru
No thanks - there's only so many jackets I can wear

northpole

bendertherobot wrote:

designman wrote:

Went out today wearing my Alpha Jacket in temps of around -1° to +2° wearing a Helly Hansen HH Freeze 1/2 Zip baselayer underneath and was really cold, I thought the jacket would have been warmer.

I'm very surprised by that, particularly given that the HH Freeze is something I wouldn't be pairing with the Alpha until below zero!

What was your previous jacket?

Me too as I tend to get cold easily. I was out today, Garmin hovered around 0 Celsius. I had one short and one long sleeved rapha merino base layer under the jacket and I was absolutely fine - I had feared that may have been inadequate but no probs. Very pleased (other than my level of fitness!!).

Peter

nibby

Was out in my Jersey today with temps from -2 only rising to just above Oc near the end.

With a thicker base layer underneath I was more than comfortable. In fact probably an ideal temp for the type of riding.

I nearly bought the Jacket a few weeks back when they were on sale at Probikekit with the added discount I think it brought the Jacket down to around £142 ish but was too late and they sold out in my size and colour.

I'm thinking though that unless it get's colder than today and I can actually ride in it without being too icy etc then the Jersey will be more than enough for me.

I think the right baselayer underneath is a big help though and I suppose everyone is different with how they cope with the cold though.

That said if I ever see the Jacket for the sort of price a few weeks back I will be buying

robbo2011

I never cease to be amazed at the crazy temperatures some people manage to ride in with only lightweight clothing. The Jersey is only rated down to 8degC so -2 is a full 10degC lower than that. It is not really a winter piece.

For comparison, this week I have been riding in subzero temps with an Assos fugu winter plus base layer, an airjack, fugu balaclava, fugu gloves with inner gloves, Winter LL tights and three pairs of socks and would say that with the temp dipping to -4degC, would not have wanted to be out for more than a couple of hours or so.

bendertherobot

robbo2011 wrote:

I never cease to be amazed at the crazy temperatures some people manage to ride in with only lightweight clothing. The Jersey is only rated down to 8degC so -2 is a full 10degC lower than that. It is not really a winter piece.

For comparison, this week I have been riding in subzero temps with an Assos fugu winter plus base layer, an airjack, fugu balaclava, fugu gloves with inner gloves, Winter LL tights and three pairs of socks and would say that with the temp dipping to -4degC, would not have wanted to be out for more than a couple of hours or so.

MUFFS!

Gaz777

I'm still waiting for my jacket and jersey to arrive so went out in my old set up today and was frozen after three and a half hours. Temp was -1 the whole time. If they had arrived, I'd have been trying the jacket out rather than the jersey today.

robbo2011

bendertherobot wrote:

MUFFS!

Well I guess I wasn't cold at any time, so I guess I don't really need to

nibby

robbo2011 wrote:

I never cease to be amazed at the crazy temperatures some people manage to ride in with only lightweight clothing. The Jersey is only rated down to 8degC so -2 is a full 10degC lower than that. It is not really a winter piece.

For comparison, this week I have been riding in subzero temps with an Assos fugu winter plus base layer, an airjack, fugu balaclava, fugu gloves with inner gloves, Winter LL tights and three pairs of socks and would say that with the temp dipping to -4degC, would not have wanted to be out for more than a couple of hours or so.

I think the right layering is key here. I had a woolpower active baselayer on today which is warmer than my Craft I normally wear. If I had worn the Craft I would have felt the cold but with the Woolpower I was fine.

Feet and Hands!! Now that's another story

meanredspider

robbo2011 wrote:

For comparison, this week I have been riding in subzero temps with an Assos fugu winter plus base layer, an airjack, fugu balaclava, fugu gloves with inner gloves, Winter LL tights and three pairs of socks and would say that with the temp dipping to -4degC, would not have wanted to be out for more than a couple of hours or so.

I was really disappointed (possibly for the first time with Assos) in the FuguGloves - barely warmer than the Early Winters and get wet on the palm side really easily in rain. But what you are wearing is pretty much my -8C and lower set-up: you obviously don't do cold weather

robbo2011

Yeah, the fugugloves aren't the best, I wear liner gloves when it gets down below freezing, otherwise they are just not warm enough.

Not sure I don't do cold weather, I just would rather not feel cold on the bike!