Eric F 

But the font!!! Think of the children!

Eric F 

That's my assumption, as well.

rsbob 

At $160-$200 per jersey, I would translate it as Expensive.

Eric F 

I'm not familiar with PNS's trends, but I've run into a few brands that have sales pretty regularly and/or have "archive" items at significantly less than their originally listed prices. I've picked up a lot of pieces that way. Subscribing to their email list will often net you another discount.

Koyote

In my experience, more expensive jerseys are better than cheaper jerseys.

(Now we can all wait for someone to argue that their $20 AliExpress jersey is definitely 'just as good' as a Rapha or Assos jersey, even though they're too smart to have ever tried either of the latter two.)

seypat

Wasn't feeling the Pas, but PNS happens to be my initials. PNS is quickly growing on me!

Kind of like when the wife and I were picking out possible names for my daughter. My wife's middle name is Arlene, which she likes because it was one of her grandmother's names.

"How about Darlene?" Rednecky sounding. "Sharlene?" More PWT. "Marlene?" Yuck, those are not going to happen.

As for the actual look of the clothes, see my 2 posts in the Hot or Not thread. Posts 2203 & 2206.

mstateglfr 

Ha, your post made me think of this old SNL skit.

Eric F 

Beware the ridicule and judgement from MTB'ers when they see you in an expensive jersey with a simple font.

My test-wife and keeper-wife both have family traditions of using the mom's middle name for a daughter's middle name. With my test-wife's family, it went back at least 4 generations that I'm aware of.

razorjack

hm.... but the brand is Danish

razorjack

I don't compare them to cheap stuff, but to something for ~60% of their price.
I looked at PNS or MAAP bib shorts (~250eur) - I know Assos has even more expensive
and I'm not sure if they are way better than Castelli or few other brands with bib shorts in 120-180 eur range.

Eric F 

Are Danish companies excluded from using words from other languages?

Eric F 

My experiences with medium-level Castelli quickly got me to a point where I won't buy their products any more. I was very underwhelmed by the quality.

mackgoo

Aliexpress.

tomato coupe

ftfy

mstateglfr 

Good point! And we all know the only people who can speak another language practice the dark arts.

rsbob 

I have bought jerseys and shorts from Assos, Ali, and Neo Pro - and unquestionably Assos make quality stuff and Ali is very low end especially for shorts, some of their jerseys are decent if you try a few manufacturers. However, since I do not have unlimited resources but appreciate good quality, Neo Pro is the closest to Assos and a long way from Ali. Neo and black bibs get my nod, but Neo makes the best fitting short I have purchased and is far superior, for me, to ASOS. But I watch my pennies and spend the big bucks where I get the largest impact.

Koyote

I get much of my kit for free from an industry connection, and it runs the gamut from low-end to high-end. Some of the bibs are only good for 20-mile pavement recovery rides, others (with better chamois) are good for 100+ mile gravel rides. Since I might do both types of rides in the same week, all of the kit gets used. But if I'm buying my own gear, it's high-end all the way: Rapha and Assos are two faves. The only people on this forum claiming that the cheap stuff is "just as good" are those who've never tried anything better.

I'll have to look up Neo Pro. Assos wasn't for me for a long time -- the chamois just didn't fit well in the bibs I had tried. But their more recent designs are different, and they're great. I don't recall the name of the one I bought a while back, but it's among the comfiest bibs I've used. I think it was about $200 on-sale.

Mtracer

I still use inexpensive short-sleeve summer jerseys, but for winter, I've settled on Castelli thermal jerseys. They are just plain nicer than any inexpensive and even some moderately expensive products, like Pearl iZumi. Same with jackets and vests. I find the Castelli products are just plain better.

And with some looking around you can get them for just expensive, rather than stupid expensive. Though I've paid full price a few times and I'm always happy with the value.

I've only used relatively inexpensive bibs and tights. But they have done the job well. I've worn out some pairs out, but only after 2-3 seasons. Some of the inexpensive jerseys are starting to fade a little, but again this is after 4-5 seasons.

rsbob 

I find that Merino wool base layers (in various thicknesses) provide excellent warmth, with even a medium priced long sleeve jersey. However, my Asos medium warmth pull up legs are excellent down to the 30s with nothing underneath. Fantastic products.

Mtracer

On colder days (40's), my go-to system is a Merino wool mesh layer for sweat management, then Merino wool base layer, Castelli thermal jersey, and then Castelli vest. In the 30's I'll wear a base layer with a jacket, but sweat becomes an issue. Less so with the best jackets, but Goretex isn't magic.

I do tend to run cold. I see some guys out in the 40's wearing bib shorts and short sleeve jerseys. Makes no sense to me.

Koyote

That’s another area in which quality really pays off: durability. I don’t know how much riding you did in those bibs and tights in two or three seasons, but I get a lot of hard use out of more expensive bibs. I’ve got two pair of Rapha bibshorts that I bought about seven years ago and have worn quite heavily – – I’ve probably averaged at least 1500 miles per year in each pair. They are just now starting to show a bit of wear and tear. Ditto for a pair of Assos jerseys that I bought a long time ago – – after 10 years of very hard use, one of the zippers failed but was easily replaced, for about $10, by a local seamstress. Otherwise, the jerseys were still in terrific shape.

I’d rather buy good stuff once and enjoy it for a long time then buy a lot of cheap nasty junk that doesn’t even last very long.

Mtracer

I'm not sure if it is number of miles or washings, probably a bit of both, that affects wear of any clothing. In my case, I probably put closer to 1,000 miles per pair of bib shorts, per year and maybe 30-35 washings per year. I.E., each pair worn and washed once a week for about 7-8 months of warmer weather riding.

In thinking more about it, I think it's closer to 3-4 years. I've only worn out a few in the 5 years I've been riding and that was just last year.

But I don't doubt that the more expensive and higher quality versions can last longer. I've just found something I like that holds up well enough for the ~$40 price and they don't pinch, cause saddle issues and so on. Sort of a don't fix what isn't broken type thing.

TMonk

The durability argument is a good one. Esp with bibs. Jerseys can last basically forever IME. I'm still at a point where I'm getting team issued stuff each season, but that may or may not last forever. Hopefully I have another decade or two of Masters racing in me. Until then, I'll ride with what I'm provided, and it ain't boutique by any means.

TMonk

I do have a couple pairs of "The Black Bibs" that are a few seasons old, and getting a bit long in the tooth. Slightly stretched, worn spots in the lower back etc. I use them exclusively on the trainer now, which is half (or more) of my riding anyway with a baby at home. Maybe a boutique brand would still be going strong? IDK, maybe I'll find out someday. Not in a rush to figure that our thought TBH, esp since they'd cost 2-3x as much.

elcruxio

Yeah we Europeans can mix and match our various languages. It's fun.