I live in Canada. I'm going to MEC today to try on some Castelli bibs. Don't see me being wowed though.

swack (sweaty back) is my mortal enemy.

Bibs are way more comfortable, no need to worry about showing off your tramp stamp or beer gut do to the infamous gap that seems to form between shorts and jersey's.

As far as taking a dump, in 14 years of doing this I can't think of one time i've ever taken a dump while on a ride. However if your hopping off the bike and doing some running in them that could be a different story.

I switched to bibs a month ago before my annual week-long ride in the Colorado mountains. Wow, had I know they were going to be that comfortable I would have switched years ago. They rock. The bathroom issues, even on all-day rides, aren't a big deal. Buy full-zip jerseys.

It's hotter than satan's jock where I live and the bibs aren't too hot for me, so I think that's a non-issue.

The only real negative I can come up with is price, but frankly comfort is worth it.

A version of other replies, bibs stay in place better. I don't care if anyone sees my straps with jersey unzipped - I think it looks cool. Plumber's Butt = not cool.

And the inconvenience of having to remove the straps is mitigated my full-zip jerseys. It becomes trivial to remove the jersey and therefore not a big deal to go to the bathroom. And as I said before, if you need to remove the jersey and straps to pee, you are doing it wrong.

That said, some people still don't like them. To each his/her own, but it's one of those you at least have to try to understand. I didn't "get" them either until I tried them, now I can never go back.

Bibs have straps shorts don't...bibs are much more comfortable

/thread

Like others have said, it's whatever works best for you. Shorts are comfortable to me and I haven't had the experiences with saddle hook that have been mentioned. But the one pair of bibs I own is a budget version from Performance so they may not provide a good comparison to my PI Pro shorts. There have been enough comments in this thread about comfort to make me wonder if I've been missing something so I'll try a better pair of bibs and see.

What's the point of a Ferrari? I drove a Miata once but I didn't think it was that special, so I don't understand why people like sports cars.

This is what I tell women who won't try bibs because they think it's too complicated when they have to pee. Full-zip jerseys.

I was never bothered by shorts until I tried bibs. Now I notice how uncomfortable shorts really are. Bibs are superior, but I never would have known had I never tried them.

I won't try bibs because unless you are lightly blessed, straps would just be an annoyance to have to deal with as a woman. I think there is a reason why you see very few bibs for women. Women who race/are professional cyclists are likely thin enough and have small enough boobs that a strap would not be a problem.

It really comes down to preference. I never notice the band in my shorts, and since I ditched my PI shorts (100 buck diapers, those are) and switched to voler shorts, I do not have chamois hook on my saddle. No crack revealing here, because my shorts go high enough that my crack would have to be at the small of my back.

I tried on the Castelli Tre bib shorts on the weekend. Indeed they were slimming. No artificial muffin top creation. Seemed awfully low in the front, enough that my jerseys would end up showing navel at rest.

I can see the advantages but the shoulder straps would not be for everyone I'm sure. Especially women.

Pro's
>junk is snug and right where you tucked them
>no/less rub on the naughty parts
>good/quality bibs are cut low in front so peeing is as simple as shorts

all good quality bibs are cut so much better than the entry level ones that you must try it before you knock it

Con's
>a bit more $$ for good ones (but could well be worth it)
>you will want to wear them all day, even to work you'll love 'em so much
>hot is hot. Do you ride mid-day when it is humid and 85? It's hot. (again, then better bibs have little material from the waist up)

Well I have been riding MTB for 18 years without any kind of padding. I just got my 1st rode bike 3 days ago and lets just say I am in the market for some padding. Since I have never tried shorts I guess I could dive right into bibs. These are the ones available at my LBS. I guess I can go try some on.

Any good online links for bibs?

If the Freds don't like bibs, why would anyone even care?

To each his own.

MEC also carries the descente strata endurance -- a better bib than the castelli and my current fave. good luck finding a size in the store, i got mine online.

bibs aren't a cure for idiocy

I have descente shorts right now and wanted to try the descente strata endurance. No stock. I'll poke around and try them out as well, thanks pdedes.

Yowsir!

Yeah, like I said, chicks with next to nothing up top would likely have no issue no matter how the straps are configured or located. That would be extremely uncomfortable for me.

I think the recurring theme is that you'll never know how comfortable (or not) they are for you unless you try them. I would recommend that you don't go with some cheapie bibs, if you can at all help it. My first pair of bibs were Performance branded bibs. While the Bib portion of it worked great for me, the chamois part didn't give me the right support. Granted I kind of knew it since I owned a pair of the Shorts version of the same (hence I own both the shorts and bib version). Bibs are more comfortable for me. When I decided to spend a little extra on the higher end Bibs, I found them extremely comfortable! My advice is go find out for yourself!

Cycling does not cure being moron either

well said. especially morons who deliberately remove the function (and form) of a 3pocket jersey by wearing bib tights over said jersey.

This.
And try on at least three or four different brands and possibly a range of prices. I've tried Assos, Castelli, Pearl Izumi, Craft, and Gore - they all have different fits and designs. Even sizes are different by brand. What may be a med/large would be a l/xl in another brand. Take the time and visit more than one shop if need be. It is best to try them on in person and not buy your first pair from a catalogue or online.

It's often worth saving your $80 and waiting a few more weeks until your following paycheck can get you the $160 bibs. Bumping up the price point gets you extra bells and whistles like better back ventilation/wicking material, better panel construction, and better chamois. People spend at least that much on their saddles - consider spending it on what is actually going to be sitting next to your skin.

As far as the cons listed for bibs. I have only had those issues with one pair of really cheap Performance bibs that I used to wear about 20 years ago.
I don't skimp on gear anymore (stopped buying just to get something/anything) and don't have any of the problems with bibs people have listed. I wear Assos brand - incredibly comfortable.

That is my song too. I have tried them and the extreme discomfort after 3 or 4 hours on the shoulders made me want to scream. I don't care what anyone says, those straps do nothing to aid cooling to say the least. Not for me thanks. I have no problem with good shorts.