Hot Potato

This^^^^^

no underwear, just you and your bibs. That is not intuitive, so I reiterate it for the newbies who get this far in the thread.

I use performance bibs, no problems even long rides. No lube either. They last years for me.

franco802

Well, picked up some gear and my bike today. Castelli bibs I found on blowout for $60, Shimano SH-R107 shoes, Pearl Izumi shirt at the Pearl Izumi store on blowout for $20 and Shimano Ultegra 6800 pedal for $90.

10 Wheels

I used this every ride.

https://www.dollartree.com/health-be...?method=search

Blue Church2

Another San Diegan, welcome! As far as bibs go, I have a PB Ultra SL Kit that I purchased last year and really like. My favorite kit is still my Zoca kit from my local cafe shop. Always make sure whatever you buy, you'll be comfortable in because of you aren't comfortable then what's the point? Anywho, there's a ton of good info coming through this thread so take their word!

Chandne

I don't know about all the brands since I have not bought bibs form all nor have I bought any in the past couple of years but Assos is my favorite, followed by Castelli. The Peral and Performance stuff I have tried are older and not very nice. The Sugoi is not bad actually and the Specialized stuff looks decent too. I need a couple of longer-distance bibs this year and am looking too. The chamois is the most important part, as long as the bibs fit. I use Assos cream (Chamois Butter is not as good) and find it helps with comfort over long rides. I would like to try Capo, Rapha, and Giordana but don't want to buy blindly either. Make sure the bibs are not loose. They should be pretty snug without being uncomfortable on the bike.

franco802

I agree. I did lots of research on and off this forum. Castelli seems to be a big favorite for cyclists as far as chamois go. I almost purchased Pearl Izumi bibs, but held back and found a great deal on the Castelli. They have the "Kiss" chamois that's suppose to be high end. It seems like it's a very good quality chamois.

I'm also looking for a second jersey. Was going to get a Castelli jersey, but I see lots of people giving bad reviews on the jerseys. I just see good reviews on their bibs.

Chandne

I don't have any high-end jerseys as such, but I recently bought a couple of Specialized jerseys and one Castelli jersey. They are very nice and fit well. I don't like them too flashy and I don't coordinate but since I ride Specialized, they at least match my bikes. The Castelli is also very nice and snug and comfy. My main problem is that too many are too loose around the midsection.

bruce19

Same here. For me it's just a matter of what works best and it's Assos.

bruce19

Assos chamois cream is very good. A less expensive alternative is Bag Balm.

franco802

Went on my first ride today. All proper gear and new bike. Put in 10 miles and it felt great. I was surprised my leg held up. Actually did great. After coming back and taking a break, i decided to take a ride on my mountain bike. I left on my riding gear but was also wearing some regular shorts over my bibs. Guess that was a big mistake. Now i have the same problem I did before with chaffing. Stupid lazy mistake.

Vicegrip

Performance Ultra bibs are a strong bang for the buck. I ride 2X times a day year round and the Ultra are my go to commuter Bibs. Assos are my go to for long spring summer and early fall rides.

Just say No to anything under or over bibs.

Nothing non water soluble for butt butter. This will slowly destroy your bibs. Clean dry grundle, decent bibs and a proper saddle. New riders seem to have more saddle issues than seasoned riders. Your butt gets used to a saddle and your increased fitness reduces the weight on your butt. Funny Thing is that the less between your butt and a good saddle the better.

FIVE ONE SIX

if you're looking for good kits for cheap, look into the Hammer kits, especially now cause they have 20% off all clothing until April 25th. you can easily get a jersey and matching bib shorts for less than $100, and their Voler bib shorts now are a lot better than the ones they sold years ago, i've done 60+ mile rides on them with no problems at all...

Hammer Nutrition | Fuels & Supplements for Endurance Athletes

topflightpro

I used Chamois Butt'r for chafing. If you get bad saddle sores, hemorrhoid cream is a good solution.

caloso

Support your LFS (local feed store).

PaulRivers

The good news is, it sounds like bibs will do the trick without needing to apply anything, if you just only wear the bibs.

You might be able to wear certain shorts as well. Different materials are very different. Jean material tends to wear other stuff and wear itself pretty badly. Synthetic workout material tends to be the other way - glide across other stuff and also not wear itself out either. Synthetic tights are usually the best, nothing moving around to chafe, and the material itself tends to glide over things.

franco802

I did forget to mention that I buttered up with that purple and yellow but butter that Performance sells. I bought 2 little travel packets to try it out. But my Assos cream arrived yesterday. It was kind of expensive, but the quality of the packing alone shows that it must be good stuff. Lots of people use that stuff in here.

Although, I will have to try a day where I won't use it at all and just ride with bibs and no cream.

Homebrew01

Since synthetic chamois came out 30+ years ago, I haven't needed any lube stuff.

FIVE ONE SIX

it's good, i used to use it a log time ago, but just be aware that it has an expiration date on it most likely because of the menthol it contains...

MagicHour

Like others have said, Performance Ultra and Elite level bibs and clothing is pretty nice and a good value, especially if you have credit there. Don't forget the euro style chamois buttr, or similar, good stuff.