Aldi kit

Tashman

Morning all, over the weekend i bought some of the Aldi "Team GB" shorts. As a newbie i don't want to spend a fortune on kit at this stage. At £8.99 am i getting any value at all there? I just want to protect the crown jewels and have a little more comfort

imposter2.0

You already bought them, right? Go for a ride in them and find out...

Tashman

Cheers Oxoman, just wanted some reassurance that i hadn't just wasted money on something along the lines of the Muddy Fox stuff.

alex222

I rate Aldi cycling socks

nickbotfield

I've got a few bits and bobs from Aldi and it's a mixed bag. The accessories are good - the fleecy arm and leg warmers, socks, and overshoes get used very regularly. Their Sealskinz rip off socks are excellent. I found the bib shorts and tights fairly ropey though. The construction of them is OK, but the fit doesn't work for me - they've all ended up being baggy in the wrong places. I much prefer Wiggle's dhb stuff for shorts and tights.

crescent

Wiggle Essentials range is very good, in my experience.

Davey37mtb

I've got some the aldi mtb kit and its basic but certainly does the trick.

drummer_boy

The Mrs did the Bay Cycle Way in her Team GB Aldi kiet yesterday (shoret sleeved jersey and the long sleeved jacket) and rated both bits of kit.

crispybug2

Had a Team GB shirt from Aldi, went for a ride with a light rain jacket, some Soreen wrapped in foil and a tool kit in a neoprene case in the back pockets and came back desperately holding the stuff in with one hand as the stitching was shoddy and part of the shirt had ripped. However for the most part theircycling stuff is good value, especially the bike stands!! Get those when they next appear.

Ascot17

crispybug2 wrote:

However for the most part theircycling stuff is good value, especially the bike stands!! Get those when they next appear.

+1

At £25, the bike stand is unbelievable value!

grant2307

Ascot17 wrote:

crispybug2 wrote:

However for the most part theircycling stuff is good value, especially the bike stands!! Get those when they next appear.

+1

At £25, the bike stand is unbelievable value!

I'm after a bike stand think I will wait till one is due to pop up in Aldi

ZootHornRollo

I noticed decathlon were selling a sort of tripod workshop stand for £30 today.
Probably not as stable as the aldi one.

andy9964

Grant2307 wrote:

I'm after a bike stand think I will wait till one is due to pop up in Aldi

Have a look in Lidl, if you have one nearby. My local (South Shields) still has some in for £19.99

grant2307

Andy9964 wrote:

Grant2307 wrote:

I'm after a bike stand think I will wait till one is due to pop up in Aldi

Have a look in Lidl, if you have one nearby. My local (South Shields) still has some in for £19.99

Will look in there today, thanks!

DavidJB

Bought some base layers from Aldi 4 years ago...still going strong...long after my base layers 4x the price have bitten the dust!

Tashman

Seeing that next thursday is the launch for their winter "Special buys" what would people recommend to get or avoid?

Semantik

Tashman wrote:

Seeing that next thursday is the launch for their winter "Special buys" what would people recommend to get or avoid?

Previous winter softshell jacket I bought a couple of years ago had all the breathability of a tarpaulin. Gave it away after two commutes- avoid!

Winter gloves last year had to be returned as the lining in one of them pulled out of the glove every time you took it off and would take 5 minutes to put it back in-avoid!

Socks, non-softshell jerseys and baselayers ok for the price.

Interested in the USB light set @ £9.99- maybe someone will advise against?

fenix

Not sure what year my Aldi gloves are - but they are my go to ones in the real cold. They've lasted better and are warmer than the big branded ones. Maybe I'm careful when removing them - I don't know ?

Semantik

Fenix wrote:

Not sure what year my Aldi gloves are - but they are my go to ones in the real cold. They've lasted better and are warmer than the big branded ones. Maybe I'm careful when removing them - I don't know ?

It's not the same gloves year after year.

wolfsbane2k

Semantik wrote:

Tashman wrote:

Seeing that next thursday is the launch for their winter "Special buys" what would people recommend to get or avoid?

Previous winter softshell jacket I bought a couple of years ago had all the breathability of a tarpaulin. Gave it away after two commutes- avoid!

Winter gloves last year had to be returned as the lining in one of them pulled out of the glove every time you took it off and would take 5 minutes to put it back in-avoid!

Socks, non-softshell jerseys and baselayers ok for the price.

Interested in the USB light set @ £9.99- maybe someone will advise against?

I've got the USB lights from last year that were 8.99 for one - it's basically a moon comet knock off, and awesome for the price ( I have 3 whites, couldn't get a red for love nor money, so went white & tail light repair tape)
I've ordered a nebula knock off at 12.99.

I loved last years soft shell winter jacket until I tore it on a tumble, was perfect when dry but below 5* c over one of their compression base layers, but for a half hour ride i didn't quite get hot enough to need it when it was raining. I've ordered the equivalent (£16.99) this year in the hope it's as comfortable.
Gloves - I've had the same problem with the linings, and returned them (2013 pair i think), didn't try last year as was using lidl's, but they "failed" in the same accident the jacket got trashed in.

I've just pre-ordered a whole bunch of stuff (arm warmers, gloves, socks & waterproof socks,performance jacket & winter jacket, and the nebula light because i won't be able to get to them in time on the day and the few larger sizes will go quickly - can always return them - for some reason the winter jacket comes in L, but not XL like the performance jacket.

redbikejohn

LED lights are fine.

tangled_metal

I wasn't impressed by the moon clones last year. They didn't hold their charge as long as they should have but the charging process wasn't good. They supposedly signalled when charging with the side lights I believe and also when full charged. Didn't work with our two sets of front and rear lights. Definitely back up only.

I got the performance softshell. The one with a kind of gridded texture to the panel up the spine in red and black costing £30. It was a good jacket coping with colder winter conditions with just a long sleeved merino top on underneath. It coped with rain quite well.under a hard shell it was too hot even in winter rain. Pocket divider stitching failed though.

The thin half zip Jersey was ok but I've not worn it much because I had a better jersey that I found was better.

I'm looking forward to actually see the stuff next Thursday when it comes out. They usually sell out of some things but our local store gets more in a bit later on. Might be worth visiting it for a few weeks after they come on sale.

tangled_metal

Just found a softshell jacket with zip off arms that o bought in possibly the last ALDI cycle sale. Still with tags! Anyone used one of these before? I wonder whether the newer stuff coming up Thursday will better. Should I keep this one or try taking it back for one of the.newer jackets? Cheeky I know but not sure if those zip off arms would get in.the way.

BTW I think this jacket from last sale was a big improvement from the £29.99 performance jacket last autumn. The pocket is zipped with two open bottle ones. The old performance jacket just had tiny zip pocket with 3 open. The stitch through pocket dividers came undone leaving one unusable pocket.

I think ALDI are improving their cycle clothing with each iteration. Nowhere near top brands but his long before a £30 ALDI jacket is as good as day altura or endura costing a bit more?

BTW ALDI or Lidl? Which does the better cycle kit and clothing?

wolfsbane2k

Tangled Metal wrote:

Just found a softshell jacket with zip off arms that o bought in possibly the last ALDI cycle sale. Still with tags! Anyone used one of these before? I wonder whether the newer stuff coming up Thursday will better. Should I keep this one or try taking it back for one of the.newer jackets? Cheeky I know but not sure if those zip off arms would get in.the way.

BTW I think this jacket from last sale was a big improvement from the £29.99 performance jacket last autumn. The pocket is zipped with two open bottle ones. The old performance jacket just had tiny zip pocket with 3 open. The stitch through pocket dividers came undone leaving one unusable pocket.

I think ALDI are improving their cycle clothing with each iteration. Nowhere near top brands but his long before a £30 ALDI jacket is as good as day altura or endura costing a bit more?

BTW ALDI or Lidl? Which does the better cycle kit and clothing?

I considered the zip off jacket - around the time of the Olympics I think It was on, but couldn't find one in my size at my local store, but think with todays' weather would have been perfect.

I really didn't like the performance jacket last autumn, preferred the thick fleece style jacket that was £17.

Aldi vs Lidl - Aldi seems generally better quality but not by much. I've 5 pairs of 3/4 shorts or short shorts from both companies, and 3 S/S tops from each and after a year commuting not had any problems with them, other than the reflectives coming off the shorts. significantly better than the muddy fox stuff I was wearing before getting these.
Since my commute is 8 miles / 30 mins and I don't do much/any in the way of long rides at the moment, their price/performance point is perfect.
I generally have more lidl stuff , as lidl is much easier to get to so I pick up more random stuff from there like under saddle bags, tyre levers etc.

mugensi

I bought the winter bibs 2 years ago and while theyre ok, theyre not the most comfortable. The front water/wind proof panel doesn't really stretch and extends below the knees and so restricts knee movement. However they do actually what theyre supposed to do very well, ie they're warm, wind and rain proof. I might ty the new version this time and see if they're an improvement as the front panel is being listed as windproof only and not waterproof so the material may be more comfortable and stretchy.

I have the USB rear light since last year, its very very good, very bright and gives 2hr- 2.5hrs on high intensity flashing beam mode.

I also have the sealskinz copy socks from 2 years ago, they've been wore numerous times and still look like new and work very well, well worth the €17 I paid for them.

I have enough jerseys and jackets so can't see myself buying any of them.

tangled_metal

That performance jacket.from ALDI last autumn seemed good IMHO. It was my first cycling design jacket and kept off quite a lot. Many a night I'd get home after ride through heavy rain with the jacket soaked on the outside but I still felt dry and warm underneath. Got a bit sweaty if the mercury rose too high. Great in the frosty mornings I thought.

I'm going to check out the sale at ALDI and if the stuff looks good I'll buy. Personally I think it's good for commuting where you'll just do less than 10 miles each way. Doesn't matter if it lasts a season or two it'll still work out cheaper. I'll bit not need anything pricey I think. I reckon the brushed aluminium moon clone lights are probably the only purchase I'll make. Don't need them but last Autumn's plastic version wasn't impressive. The socket cover fell off it when I first handled it. Poor quality IMHO but they're a good design despite the finishing. BTW I persuaded my lass to get a set them offered to attach the seat bracket. In the process i switched her good one for mine. Well she never commutes often and usually gets home before rush hour truly hits.

super_davo

Problem I have with Aldi stuff is the fit. It comes up very large, so you want to go two sizes down e.g. if you take a large in a traditional cycling brand get a small, if you're an XL get a medium etc.
But if you take a medium or a small as I do, you're stuffed; unless you like big rolls of fabric in front of your chest when you're in cycling position. Which is a pity as it makes great commuting wear.

tangled_metal

Personally I found the largest size just about big enough for.me. I'm usually a large or xl but I'm xl or it doesn't fit with ALDI. The waterproof trousers or the full leg cycling tights/leggings are simply too short. I'm 6'5" so perhaps that's why.

Other than that the sizing seems a little baggy but short in the arms in xl. Well it's just about works but mainly if I wear gloves to cover the gap

wolfsbane2k

The sizes work perfectly for me, meaning I can actually get some cycling specific stuff that fits beautifully, whereas all other cycling stuff just isn't big enough.
Might be something to do with the amount of doughnuts I eat, and being 2m (6ft7) tall....

tangled_metal

Do you have short arms or something? I'm only 1.96m or 6'5" and the arms are a tad short.

wolfsbane2k

Tangled Metal wrote:

Do you have short arms or something? I'm only 1.96m or 6'5" and the arms are a tad short.

Not that I'm aware of :?
In the xl stuff from last year I found they were just about right, but 99% of the time I ride s/s within 5 mins of getting on the bike, so it didn't really bother me.
Lidl stuff is definatley slightly longer in the arm than aldi though.