Hello,

I need some new bib shorts, or at least I think I do. Been wearing some that have seen four years of use and I’ve been getting some backside issues – which makes me think it might be the shorts.

So I have some questions, please, oh hive mind:

1) How many seasons or years should a pair of bibs last (understanding YMMV)?
2) How do you actually tell when the shorts are worn out?
3) I have no interest in paying £180+ for shorts – what’s good at circa £80 to £100?
4) Are the Rapha core shorts worth it, or overpriced for what they are?

Thank you.

Like saddles, bib-shorts are a bit of a personal fit thing. I’ve just bought some Rivelo from SportPursuit after good experience of their bib 3/4s.

You’re right that they do eventually seem to lose their support/comfort. In my case, I have a couple of pair of Gore and a pair of Endura that are all now at that stage, but that’s after a few years of intermittent use.

SportPursuit is a good shout, thank you. Had forgotten about them.

What sort of time/distance are you doing per ride?
I rate some of the DHB bibs from wiggle but the cheaper ones get uncomfortable after a couple of hours. Mid range ones about £60 seem a good compromise for about 3-4hrs. I get a good few years of use from them. Never paid for more expensive ones so can’t compare.

Good bum cream helps comfort too.

1. If you’re running one pair of half way decent shorts, for something like three rides (and three washes) a week, they should be ok for a couple of years.
2. you get arse issues
3. no idea. DHB are recommended though as reasonable price/good quality, if they suit you.
4. unless you have a 50% discount, very very little of what rapha make is worth it.

I tend to find that (as with shoes) the more pairs you can rotate between, the longer they last.

Personally I get on with the Planet X bibs and am yet to wear any of my pairs out.

https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CLPXP3BS/planet-x-pro-line-365x-bib-shorts

The pro is marginally tighter cut than the clubman, but both are generous.

When I was less fat it was Castelli Free Aero race, when I was a little fatter Endura RideLondon specials, and now I am a bloater it’s Planet X all the way.

I love love love Assos expensive shorts. Pure road use btw, I use MT500’s off-road. I have a lot of pairs but only buy a pair every year or so. I do appox 8000km’s a year, rain or shine, winter and summer, indoor and out, rides in the hills and commuting.

I get zero issues even on 400km rides, nothing.

I use the old pairs on the Peloton etc, and have summer x2 pairs, spring 3/4’s x1 and Winter 3/4 x3. Last pair I bought must have been c4 years ago now.

Take a punt and buy a pair of Assos cheaper shorts. 😉

I’ve just gone for a new pair of FS260 bib shorts from Endura to replace a pair that are a good few years old now.

I don’t think the design has changed but the new ones are infinitely more comfortable that the outgoing FS260 they replace – I guess my fat arse had pushed the old ones to the brink! Either that or my Cambrium has worn them down. Thinking about this it must be the saddle ……

The Rivelo ones look like they ought to be good but I don’t know anyone who has tried them.

Alpkit and Howies come up often as being well rated for sizing and comfort.

Planet X bibs and 3/4 shorts have been faultless for me.
I’ve got several pairs of each, and none have worn out.
Comfortable, even on long tough days in the saddle.
Eg no probs whatsoever on recent Fred Whitton, on a unpadded carbon saddle.

I recently took a punt on some Siroko RX Squadra bib shorts from Spain. £48 to the door and I’m impressed so far. Finished much nicer than the price would suggest. About 400 miles in so far.

I used to wear Assos and Rapha but just can’t justify it these days.

Another vote here for the Planet X 365 ones. I’ve ridden in them for 4/5 hours without complaint; they are a total bargain 🙂

1)A couple of years generally
2)Sore bifter
3)Rapha Core, Morvelo (although the Morvelo pad doesn’t seem to last as long)
4)I get on with the Core. Same pad as the expensive ones, but cheaper lycra. My first pair are maybe 3 years old now and are relegated to under-baggies only duty as the elastic in the lycra has gone in patches. Still comfy though.

Galibier are worth looking at – they’re very good

My go to now is Attacus, the pad is brilliant, comfiest I’ve used by a long way, £100 for a pair of shorts quality is at least as good as the Rapha and costello ones I have and better than the Morvelo Nth series.

Morevlos basic pad is comfier than the Nth series one for me, the Castelli Progetto X2 pad is really nice, the Rapha probably a bit better again but the Attacus ones are my absolute go to.

My oldest shorts are probably just over 5 years old now and they’re now only fit for use as under shorts or for the turbo, the pad is okay still but the overall aesthetic is not for public consumption.

1) Depends. I have a couple of pairs of Campagnolo bibs from c2005 that I still use, mostly for turbo or under baggies on MTB. Also have some Panache (US brand) ranging from 5-7 years old, and more recently (12-18 months) Endura Pro-SL (both because of kit freeloaded through work).
2) If they are worn out I’d expect to see holes and would then relegate them to under baggies. I’ve never really noticed the pad wearing out, but when I got my latest pair of Enduras I realised that the older pads were a little flat. Still fine to ride 2-3 hours though which is most of my riding. If Im going out for longer I put some newer ones on.
3) I’d look at Endura, Gore, maybe some lower end Castelli in the sale. I’ve almost come to terms with paying over £100 for a pair of good bibs. You get what you pay for etc.
4) No experience, but a lot of people wear them so they must be OK. Some of the Rapha fan bois I know aren’t nobs and are pretty good at riding bikes.

Galibier Classique (~£55) and Morvelo Stealth (£100) are my favourites.

Don’t rate the pad in any of the DHBs I’ve owned.

i have just retired 2 pairs of Endura FS260 that were getting uncomfortable on rides, my indicator of worn out. I do also have some of their Pro Sl ones for good road duties and they have a great pad and are very good, but pricey.

On the gravel and mtb I am now using Rapha Core Cargo ones, which at £100 a pair at present is I think pretty good, they are a step or 2 up from the FS260 and not dissimilar in comfort to my Sunday best Pro SL’s

Galibier are worth looking at – they’re very good

+1

This is all personal so what might fit nicely / work well for one person might not for the next.

The things that don’t work for me:

* The really cheap dhb shorts – they’re fine for a short commute but anything over an hour I find hem less comfy

* Planet X 360 bibs – got a 3/4 pair and the cut is clunky and the pad is just huge and thick without a lot of shaping

Things that do work for me:

* DHB Aeron waist shorts – I wear these for mtb and they are fine for hours and hours in the saddle. I think I tried the bibs and was between sizing for the length of the straps / couldn’t get comfy in the bib fit.

* Endura FS260 Pro bibs – I wear these for the turbo / road riding and occasionally mtb when on a long weekend and don’t have enough of the dhb shorts for a clean pair per day. I really like these – got a pair for just under £60 from certini on offer last week. CRC have also had an offer on them recently in certain colours for just over £50.

Realised my v comfy 16 year old Pearl izumi bibs were on their last legs when Mrs Epic told me she, and probably most of the coffee drinkers in the Green Welly, could see my meat and two veg through the thinning fabric

So have replaced them with a v comfy pair of Madison roam cargo bibs.

Also have some North Wave bibs which are v good.

At the other end of the menu, Btwin from Decathlon. Their bibs have a comfy (for my rs), pad, not to spendy and are lasting very well without degradation….

I’ve had some Gore ones, and some of the Rivelo ones that SportPursuit sell – both were ok. These days, I pretty much only use Santini because those are the ones I can get from our club! They are about £60/pr, very comfy and I’ll reckon on a couple of years of riding before I feel that the pad is getting a bit tired. That said, I know people who ride in shorts that are donkeys years old and they never seem to complain.

Rapha Core are good but I find they provide less compression than the more expensive ones – the pad does move a bit more as a consequence but still very comfy.

I have some Galibier ones that are probs 5 years old that I use for turbo and under MTB shorts that have held up very well.

I usually get a couple of years out of bib shorts, before the pads start to get less supportive, and I resign them to turbo / commuting use. This is with 2-3 road rides per week though, and 5500+ miles a year. Obviously rotating several pairs

My favourite pad is the Castelli KISS one – I prefer it to the higher end Castelli pad. Its simple and not too padded. And available in a wide price range of shorts.

DHB and Planet X haven’t worked out for me. Too padded and soft for my liking.

I don’t really get the love for the Planet X ones. They do a job, but they are very much the quality you’d expect at that price. Everything else I’ve tried has been far superior fit and quality of materials, including similarly priced B’twin.

Personally I replace when they start falling apart, the stitching comes away, or you can see your ass through them. I’m tight though. I’ve never really noticed any difference in comfort between different ones (apart from Planet X, which feel like you’ve just shoved a towel down your boxers).

I’ve had my rapha bibs for nearly 10years …and I’ve a few pairs now…..a few years ago they started to wear out to a point you could see the padding outside.
Turns out it was the rapha saddle causing this because on 3 pair the wear was in the same place…..I found out after a single ride on a brand new pair…got about £300 voucher from rapha for this.
Anyway after changing the saddle it’s all good….my original pair are still going strong …intact they are now my turbo shorts so if anything they get more use.
So as long as you got a good saddle and wear shorts over the bibs if mtb in muddy rides…10 years plus

1) I ride 5 days a week and rotate 3-4 pairs while they are getting washed
2) Children run away from me because the lycra has worn through. The pad on my oldest pair of DHB classics is still comfy for an hour on the turbo despite the rest of the short being pretty much transparent
3) My most recent pair are Lusso RS19 £95, super comfortable like a second skin, no sewn on leg grippers because there is silicone bonded direct to the hem to reduce the sausage legs effect. DHB changed their pad face material on their Aeron shorts in the last couple of years, it was so rough I returned the last pair I bought rather than ride on what felt like wet and dry paper.
4) I’ve never worn Rapha shorts so can’t comment.

1. mine last between two to three years generally

2. My arse is sore, I feel chaffing or I start to get spots

3. DHB, Giro in the sales, Enduro FS-260 and Rapha have all been ok for me

4. Yes, no maybe; depends if you get on with them really, I find (unsurprisingly) they’re better for roadie rather than MTB as the shape of the pad is front biased. They are well made and comfy though

1) hard to say as they get used for the turbo after outside duties have passed.

2) when you can see the crack of my erse. Sometimes this is not apparent until I’m on the bike.

3) The £80 mark is where I’m happy paying. Rapha core and Galibier Equipe are my current nice bibs. Both excellent so far and haven’t had any issues.

4) I’d say so, they size small but are very nicely made imo.

The Rivelo ones look like they ought to be good but I don’t know anyone who has tried them.

I have and they are pretty good. Not as good as Rapha, or our Le Col club shorts, but better than Castellis and Endura IMHO. Very good considering how much cheaper than the Raphas they are.

Endura pro sl are the comfiest I’ve tried so far, they come in different leg and pad sizes. Although my new chpt3 are pretty nice as well, all bought in sales before I need new shorts.

2) How do you actually tell when the shorts are worn out?

could see my meat and two veg through the thinning fabric

That’s very good point, might explain some of the looks I get at traffic lights!

I start to get spots

Another good point, I’ve never tied the two together.

I had various pairs of DHB shorts/tights which I have been using for the last year or so and I have been on a seemingly never ending quest for a comfortable ride. I tried various saddles trying to get rid of some specific soreness and in the end I figured it must be the shorts. I decided to therefore buy some Rapha Core Cargo bibs… The specific soreness has all but gone. They are not as hard wearing as the DHB ones by the looks of it but I’m not bothered about that if they are comfortable…

I do long audaxes so this is an area of interest to me…

I’ve had good results recently with the better DHB shorts (aeron something) and with the lower end Castellis – picked up in the sale. With Castelli I’ve not noticed much difference in comfort between the cheaper KISS pad and the fancier one on their high end stuff. As for sizing, I’m a medium in DHB and large in Castelli.

I didn’t get on with Howies or Lusso bibs I tried. The Howies ride up my thighs and the Lussos gave me a numb willy after a few hours.

For chamois cream, Charlie’s bum butter.

PSA – Rapha have 20% off some of their bibs currently….

Oh and the Rapha customer service is outstanding.

Planet X here too, but the Clubman Light https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/CLPXCLBS/planet-x-clubman-light-bib-shorts
DHB have been good as have Endura and Lusso
The only one that I won’t buy again are Polaris after the lettering started to fall off; “AR S” was quite appropriate though. This was several years ago so hopefully they are better now

4) Are the Rapha core shorts worth it, or overpriced for what they are?

I have a pair along with some Pro ones. The cut is slacker and they are a bit longer, but decent enough quality.

The Rivelo ones look like they ought to be good but I don’t know anyone who has tried them.

I had some of their bib longs – nothing wrong with them at all. I gave them away on here as I have too many sets and prefer the Rapha ones.

could see my meat and two veg through the thinning fabric

An occasional rider on our Wednesday ride has shorts so old the elastic has gone, so the uppers just hang round his arse and if you’re behind him, you just see his arse cheeks sat on a bit of cloth on the saddle.

He doesn’t seem to care.

I don’t like Planetx or Assos. I think giro chrono expert are good. They are about £100 I think.

Galibier has been my go to for a while but recently I’ve bought some from Sundried. Once you sign up (or whatever it is) for a hefty discount first, they are firmly at the low cost end and yet IMO decent kit. I think I prefer them to my Galibier ones, although couldn’t be sure, they are also newer.