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Review Pearl Izumi Cold Black Racer Pants

Sibreen

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Jul 23, 2010
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Bought some of these after I crashed and tore a hole in my other cycling shorts. My previous pair were Pearl Izumi Comfort Pants, and they were fine for the price (about 4000yen). They were, however, a little hot near my weener, and the stitching where the pad meets the lycra this year started to cause some chafing.

The Cold Black Racers don't have traditional stitching but use some kind of tape which attaches the pad to the lycra - this was the appeal for me, anyway. Went for a spin on the bike today, and the cycling shorts were phenomenally comfortable. The pad is slightly thicker, the shape suits my bum better, and feels softer to the touch (of my bum). They were cooler near the testicles, too, and no chafing (though, probably I need to ride with them some more to confirm this).
The Cold Black material is supposed to be some special heat reflecting blackness. Didn't feel much difference on the thighs or bum, though.

Got them on sale at Amazon for 8000yen.
They say you get what you pay for with cycling shorts. I am now a believer.
 
Paying 4000 yen for a pair of cycling shorts and expecting them to be good , you deserve all the chaffing they could throw at you ;)
 
Well thats not true. Somehow I don't think rapha gear costs anywhere near what you are paying for it to make. It is basically the Loius vuitton of cycling gear.
I'll bet the manufacturing costs for a bib is less than 4000Y
 
Well thats not true. Somehow I don't think rapha gear costs anywhere near what you are paying for it to make. It is basically the Loius vuitton of cycling gear.
I'll bet the manufacturing costs for a bib is less than 4000Y
You can't compare manufacturing costs of one brand with the retail price of another.
 
I'm not I'm comparing manufacturing costs across all brands and comparing it to mark up for different brands.
 
My point was that a pair of 4000 yen shorts will always be a pile of cr@p. 4000 yen is the retail price. Not sure how much they would cost to manufacture (probably around 100 to 300 yen I guess).
Personally, I have bought three pair of shorts costing around 4000 yen. All are utter sh1te.
Spending double that certainly seems to give you a much better pair of shorts.

Yes, Rapha is expensive. Value is a personal opinion and for me, I think Rapha bibs are worth it. I'm anything but rich, however I think that buying one pair of Rapha bibs per year (¥76 per day) won't break the bank.
 
Facebook tells me there's a Rapha summer sale on now.

The kind of sale where the items you really want are available in huge or tiny sizes? Seemed to be that way anyway.

I went to order a jersey and they said "Free shipping with another Y27,695" or something like that. LOL.

Put me off ordering the original thing somehow. Still thinking...
 
Facebook tells me there's a Rapha summer sale on now.

The kind of sale where the items you really want are available in huge or tiny sizes? Seemed to be that way anyway.

I went to order a jersey and they said "Free shipping with another Y27,695" or something like that. LOL.

Put me off ordering the original thing somehow. Still thinking...

You have to spend just under 28,000 yen to get free shipping. So if the jersey is, let's say 15,000, you'd have to spend another 13,000 yen or so. Or pay for shipping.
They do have a few things in medium or large, but not much.

Anyway, sorry @Sibreen for getting this thread off topic somewhat (I blame that good for nothing blobman ;) )
 
Thank you for the review, @Sibreen.

I prefer bib shorts. For years I spent too much on Assos bibs. Now I buy Foska bib shorts at around £45 (¥7,800 ish).

I find the Foska bibs very comfortable - more comfortable than Assos in some respects. But on two of my four pairs the stitching that holds the pad in place has started to come undone. No problem for me - I'm happy to spend a few minutes with a needle and thread. And I've reported the quality control issue to the company.
 
Sorry I knew I was exaggerating a bit.

That was yesterday and the Large I wanted is already gone. The color in the other jersey I could have possibly ordered is gone too. Ready to give up.

Yes and back on topic, I have no complaints about any Pearl Izumi stuff I own.

I would complain about the padded Specialized gloves though. They get a funky smell, hard to describe but nasty after only one sweaty session - from the palms. Also tore the first pair that I returned and got exchanged on the first wear. Won't be buying those again.
 
@Sibreen do they do them in bibs? I'm looking for some more weekday riding bibs. Was gonna get some shimano ones but might get the PI racers if they have them in bibs.
 
@Half-Fast Mike and @leicaman - what's the advantage of bibs over non-bib cycling shorts?

The bibs that @bawbag linked to are one rank down from the shorts that I bought, as they have the 3D Neo pad and not the 3D Neo Plus pad that mine have.
Leicaman, these seem to be the closest equivalent in bibs.
 
?



??

Must be the heat..

Apologies, I should have been more precise.

I may actually have those same Pearl Izumi shorts, maybe slightly different but about the same price and I agree with your favorable review.

Probably preaching to the choir here but I'll go further to say I've bought a lot of Pearl Izumi stuff because I've found they've managed to keep a good level of quality, from fit to function over the whole range, from shorts, winter jackets and leg warmers to gloves jerseys and wind breakers socks etc. I'm not so sure about their bottom priced items, but I generally think the "you get what you pay for" adage is a good rule of thumb to follow.

What it's not is pimpy-styley, and that's where Rapha comes in, which is on another level I suppose - I'll have to take word for it since I have no firsthand experience.

Sorry am I doing it again??

I must have thought I should mention the thing about those Specialized gloves because I didn't think it warranted an entire thread but I would hope to steer people clear of those things. It was an impulse buy that backfired.

While I'm at it I might as well also say if you're thinking of getting those S-wk's Turbo tires, don't!

Anyways, Sorry Sorry Sorry to the original poster Sibreen.
 
@Half-Fast Mike and @leicaman - what's the advantage of bibs over non-bib cycling shorts?
The reason I prefer bibs is that there's no waistband or drawstring so there's no pinching at the waist. I feel that it's easier to breathe as there's no limitation of expansion of my (already sizable) abdomen. Also there's rolling down or slipping with movement over time, so the chamois stays in place.

I should add that bibs can make advanced toilet stops a little tricky. Fun discussion of that over on BikeForums. http://www.bikeforums.net/general-cycling-discussion/102819-bib-shorts-how-do-i-pee.html
 
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