Archive for category: Tips

We tend to bang on a bit about the fact that we use microfibre for our kit (for cycling jerseys, custom technical t-shirts, cycling caps etc), but what is it and why is it so great?

Microfibre is essentially a thread that is less than a 100 times thinner than a human hair, which gives it some special properties – it is very soft on the skin and can give you very vivid colours when using sublimation printing, but the main benefit is its wicking proprties. Wicking just means that moisture (sweat) gets absorbed from your skin and transferred to the outside of the fabric so that it can be evaporated away, so that you stay dry.

For our cycling jerseys we use an extra special microfibre that has lots of tiny holes in to further aid evaporation and also has a cell structure that bacteria find difficult to bed down in; this means that they cannot get to work on your sweat so easily, so the jersey doesn’t smell bad. The fabric is also very stretchy to give a contoured fit and ultra-lightweight so that you hardly notice you are wearing it. Pretty clever stuff!

There are a lot of different microfibres available to make technical clothing from and we spend a lot of time making up samples with different fabrics and trying them out on the bike, in the gym, in the pool or wherever. It helps only employing people who are all sports fanatics! So if we are ever not in the office answering your emails, then you now know that we are out ’testing’ kit. It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it!

We have a new chamois for our shorts, which we think is the very best you will find. We have tried a large number out with the pro riders who test our kit for us and of course by the team at Fernando Carvalho and this was the very best.

So what should you look for in a good chamois? You will read all sorts of rubbish written in technical language about chamoises, but we would like to speak more plainly about it. What we think is important is that it gives support in the right places, it does not rub, it moves with the shorts as you pedal, it wicks sweat away (that is it does not soak up moisture) and it is hygienic (so it has properties that prevent bacteria from flourishing).

Our chamois is contoured so that it is thicker on the seat bones and has less support on the front of the saddle so that it does not bulk up (the density we use is 80kg/m3 for any chamois anoraks out there).

It is made from 82% microfibre and 18% elastane (a version of Lycra). This means that it will stretch in all directions to accompany the movement of your legs and because it is made in microfibre, it will wick away the sweat. (Microfibre just means that it is made of microscopically small fibres that will not absorb moisture, but rather allow it to pass straight through.)

Our chamois does not have any seams to reduce the possibility of any rubbing and by using a particularly soft and smooth microfibre finish, it reduces friction to an absolute minimum.

Finally, it has an antibacterial treatment to keep things as hygienic as possible.

So we have a great fitting chamois that is made with cutting edge fabrics all designed to make riding a bike as comfortable as possible. And we don’t believe in trying to impress our customers by blinding them with a choice of chamoises – we just offer the best and it is the same we supply to pro teams as to a first time rider.

We would like to think that you should choose us of course as your supplier, because we believe we offer the best value for money for pro quality kit and the best service. But what are the nuts and bolts you need to consider when choosing your supplier? Here are a few things you may not have thought about….

Will the supplier carry out graphics work as part of the service or will they demand extra money for it or insist that you deliver logos and graphics in a format you may never have heard of?

Will they resize logos and graphics so that they are in proportion to the different sizes that you are ordering? It seems incredible to us that some major suppliers print logos the same size for a size XS custom jersey as for a size XL, which can make designs look horribly disproportionate – all to save a bit of time in the design studio.

Can you extend patterns and lines over seams to get the design effect that you are looking for? It requires a lot of work for the production team to set up the designs so that graphics can cross seams and makes the life of the seamstress much harder. That is why a lot of suppliers refuse to do it.

When you are considering which supplier to go to, will they send you samples at no charge and with no commitment for you to place an order? Will they also send you sizing samples at no charge?

Will your supplier be prepared to make alterations to the cut of the kit to fit unconventionally shaped athletes? Will they lengthen the leg in your tri shorts or offer wide fittings in your training jacket for example?

These are all issues where suppliers can cut corners to save a bit of time and money, but you only find out about it in the small print!