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XL Jerseys?

mr tim

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Mar 11, 2022
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Hi,
I'm up for buying a cycle jersey but have yet to visit a store this summer with anything bigger than a M. Yes I can buy online but I'd rather be able to browse / try on in person. 2XL would be best. If you can suggest a store in Tokyo that would be wonderful.
 
2XL in a western size is way different to a Japanese sized one.
I am XXL in the Western world but a 2XL in Japan hasn't a hope of fitting me.
 
Yeah, likewise... hence my need to try them on. Even online the sizes are a challenge to find. I've not had one before so just need to to find one that fits then I can shop online. And jerseys don't come cheap it would seem. Bianchi go up to XL online but never seen one instore.
 
I don't think *any* cycling shops in Japan carry large sizes. MAYBE one of the massive upscale Tokyo shops.
The average Japanese man is 170 cm an weighs 60 kg. It doesn't make economic sense to carry cycling wear for someone who is 190 cm and 90 kg.
Your best bet is to just buy from Wiggle/PBK/CRC.
 
Hi,
I'm up for buying a cycle jersey but have yet to visit a store this summer with anything bigger than a M. Yes I can buy online but I'd rather be able to browse / try on in person. 2XL would be best. If you can suggest a store in Tokyo that would be wonderful.
You will probably find something at the Y's Road apparel store in Shinjuku.


There are three branches of Y's Road in the same 'BYGS' building. On the B1 level are (1) road bikes and (2) apparel. On B2 is (3) cross bikes and other stuff. At least, that's how it was arranged last time I was in.

Most of my jerseys - and I have a lot - are from foska.com in the UK. I like the humour, and they fit me. (Even my skin is not skin-tight.)
 
Another thing to consider is that Asian fit clothes are cut differently. Typically, the limbs are shorter and thinner. So even things that are your size torso-wise might not fit properly.

PS I have a ref Western fit Gore C5 (?) Jersey in size Large. It is too large for me and I'd be happy to send it to someone for free. It is in good condition.
 
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How big are you--might be more/different suggestions if you give your height and weight.

Eg., I'm 183/92 (and the other day 腹囲/fuku-i was 94!), and have a couple XL MontBell jerseys I like--one old, the other a month or two old. Both fit fine, it might've been nice to try a XXL, but I don't want any flapping in the breeze. The newer one has slightly longer sleeves, very nice (I have long arms), and both are summer weight long sleeves, something I prefer (scroll down the the ones that are WIC クール at 140g, SPF50).
 
and have a couple XL MontBell jerseys I like--one old, the other a month or two old.
I'm not sure if you are familiar with MontBell, @mr tim, they are sort of like Wiggle's house brand, but reach further upmarket. I have a rain coat (suitable also for heavy rain), which was no longer cheap, but has worked flawlessly.
 
I'm not sure if you are familiar with MontBell, @mr tim, they are sort of like Wiggle's house brand, but reach further upmarket. I have a rain coat (suitable also for heavy rain), which was no longer cheap, but has worked flawlessly.
Hi,

Ooh that's a start. I'm thinking my now svelte sub 100kg frame may not squeeze into a Japanese XL, but one can look at least. Thank you.
 
The "Book Off" conglomerate now has a number of stores that sell sporty togs (including cycling togs), or bikes and bike-related stuff (including ditto). They're all Most of them are in excellent condition, although many have the kind of small blemish that you'd anyway pretty soon get on anything that you bought brand new. Quite often, I see very large jerseys there.

Prices are usually under 3000 yen. Most recently I bought a wool ("merino") plus lycra mix jersey with a combination that's curiously elusive in Japan: adequate length, non-excessive circumference. I think it's rather attractive, not least because one has to search around it in order to see any trademark. After looking at it long and hard, I found a blemish; but I've forgotten what and where. It cost me 810 yen from this "Super Bazaar", including tax.

Hangers are marked "S", "LL", etc; but these don't always reflect the claimed size of the garments (let alone the actual sizes as you or I would describe them).

No "Book Off" I've been to has much in stock at any one time, so it's a matter of repeated quick visits to branches that happen to be on my way back home from rides. (This would be problematic these days, as I'm sure to be sweaty and malodorous.)

PS I've just remembered seeing some jerseys that definitely weren't in excellent condition. But they're jerseys, not carbon fibre components: you can see wonky zips, scuffing, etc, for yourself; WYSIWYG.
 
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Ooh that's a start. I'm thinking my now svelte sub 100kg frame may not squeeze into a Japanese XL, but one can look at least. Thank you.
Yeah, 100 kg is probably too much. I wore it when my weight was in the 80s. Now I am 74–75 kg, and I wear a size medium.
 
Another thing to consider is that Asian fit clothes are cut differently. Typically, the limbs are shorter and thinner. So even things that are your size torso-wise might not fit properly.

PS I have a ref Western fit Gore C5 (?) Jersey in size Large. It is too large for me and I'd be happy to send it to someone for free. It is in good condition.

Do the European brands actually have special sizes for Japan? Pearl Izumi may or may not have special domestic sizes.

As for purely domestic cycling brands like Wave One or Sunvolt, yes, they are off by at least a size. An dhb XL is like a Wave One XXL.
Supposedly the American brands are another size bigger than European brands.

That said, whether something fits is partially cut, and partially how stretchy the fabric is.
You need to be especially careful with winter bibs if you have big thighs (like moi), since they don't stretch much.
 
Do the European brands actually have special sizes for Japan? Pearl Izumi may or may not have special domestic sizes.
AFAIK the European and North American brands don't. E. g. my 7Mesh gear fits me perfectly. I am not sure about MAAP, our second-get team jerseys are made by MAAP and the bib shorts are very, very tight around my ankles. To be fair, I have fairly sizeable thighs. The jersey fits me fine (no doubt because I have a cyclist's body with no appreciable upper body strength).

You are right about Pearl Izumi. One of my favorite pieces of sports clothing ever, my Pearl Izumi Pro softshell jacket, and I'd be very much inclined to buy another one. But at least in Japan I can't, their gear doesn't fit me.
 
The "Book Off" conglomerate now has a number of stores that sell sporty togs (including cycling togs), or bikes and bike-related stuff (including ditto). They're all Most of them are in excellent condition, although many have the kind of small blemish that you'd anyway pretty soon get on anything that you bought brand new. Quite often, I see very large jerseys there.

Prices are usually under 3000 yen. Most recently I bought a wool ("merino") plus lycra mix jersey with a combination that's curiously elusive in Japan: adequate length, non-excessive circumference. I think it's rather attractive, not least because one has to search around it in order to see any trademark. After looking at it long and hard, I found a blemish; but I've forgotten what and where. It cost me 810 yen from this "Super Bazaar", including tax.

Hangers are marked "S", "LL", etc; but these don't always reflect the claimed size of the garments (let alone the actual sizes as you or I would describe them).

No "Book Off" I've been to has much in stock at any one time, so it's a matter of repeated quick visits to branches that happen to be on my way back home from rides. (This would be problematic these days, as I'm sure to be sweaty and malodorous.)

PS I've just remembered seeing some jerseys that definitely weren't in excellent condition. But they're jerseys, not carbon fibre components: you can see wonky zips, scuffing, etc, for yourself; WYSIWYG.
I've a couple locally I can pass by. Thank you for the suggestion. Given how much I perspire in my current shirt during the summer I'm not 100% I'd by used, but even just one as a starting point would be fine.
 
I'm not sure if you are familiar with MontBell, @mr tim, they are sort of like Wiggle's house brand, but reach further upmarket. I have a rain coat (suitable also for heavy rain), which was no longer cheap, but has worked flawlessly.
Had a look in Mont Bell locally. Sizes didn't go as large as the web store. The baggy mountain bike shirts have potential though.
 
I've a couple locally I can pass by. Thank you for the suggestion. Given how much I perspire in my current shirt during the summer I'm not 100% I'd by used, but even just one as a starting point would be fine.
NB the great majority of Books Off sell no jerseys. There are even considerable differences among the Book Off Super Bazaars. But the company's website is quite informative: be sure to check on the website that the branch you're thinking of going to sells sport-related clothes, or bikes, or both. For stores that do have cycling freds' clothes, there'll typically be just a dozen or so on offer at any one time, and none will appeal, and you'll resent having wasted the ten minutes you invested in finding where they were within the store. But the next time you visit, you'll know where to go. I've got five or so jerseys there, and their total price could be less than one from Mont Bell, let alone one decorated with scorpions.

Book Off's crappier jerseys are a little scuffed in places, or have zip(per)s that are a bit reluctant to move, or have tired elastic. I don't think Book Off sells anything that's at all malodorous.

Confession: I rather enjoy a brief visit to a Book Off towards the end of a ride. Its (cycling-unrelated) wares often provide unintended comedy relief. Check the "commemorative" plates and the like -- they can be fascinatingly horrid.
 
Had a look in Mont Bell locally. Sizes didn't go as large as the web store. The baggy mountain bike shirts have potential though.
Yeah, MTB clothing is usually much baggier. And even relatively thin people don't look so thin in lycra.
 
Y`s Road "Wear" in Shinjuku has probably the largest selection of cycling wear in Tokyo (aside from their Ueno and other locations).
They stock L and some XL. Go now as they have some good sales.

As for Euro brands special sizing, none that I know of do special Asia sizing on any large scale.

Pearl Izumi Japan and Pearl Izumi USA/EU are wholly different companies, totally different line-up.
 
Rapha has up to XXL online.
Can't say for sure, but I guess they might have a few big sizes in their store in Shibuya as well.
 
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