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Following on from my previous post about Fox Attack waterproof shorts
Can anyone recommend some waterproof shorts that meet the following criteria
1. Fully waterproof, for use in heavy rain, muddy conditions
2. Good fitting especially around the knees
3. Can be machine washed many times without needing to be reproofed
4. Two good sized front pockets that can take a modern sized phone
5. Cost around £50
My Tenn Protean waterproof shorts met all the above criteria apart from the fit at the knees (very flappy)
The zip has now broke on them so looking to find some that are just as good but have a better fit at the knees
Cheers
Mudhugger .looks naff but works.
Machine washing regularly is going to kill any waterproof fabric.
What jumbo ^ said. My last pair were Gore - well cut and breathable, but repeated gritty riding and washing have destroyed seam and fabric after one winter.
Mudhugger .looks naff but works
Already have some fitted and as good as they are it dosent stop water from the sky getting me wet!!!
Machine washing regularly is going to kill any waterproof fabric.
I know what your saying about machine washing, normally i hose my waterproofs down unless really bad then hose them down and machine wash them
The Tenn protean shorts have been great in that respect, many machine washes in biological powder (Tenn say that's ok) and they are still waterproof, just a shame the zip has broke and i find them too flappy at the knee
I bought army surplus goretex trousers and cut them down. Fit to your requirements, properly waterproof, cost £20, robust and cheap enough you don't have to worry about wear/loss of waterproofing. They don't have pockets as they're overtrousers though.
If you can find some on discount the madison DTE shorts are worth a look, I'll pretty much live in their softshell ones from now til March because they're a really nice mix of warmth and water resistance but they do proper hardshell 100% waterproof jobbies as well.
Madison Zenith DWR, used all through last winter n by far the best waterproof shorts I've tried, I also have a pair of endura mt500 shorts which have never seen the light of day since I bought the Madison's. They are pretty long and cover the knee, not badly priced either, I always use nikwax techwash and reproof them once a year and can't fault them so far
I’ve some Altura Attack 3/4 shorts that have been amazing over the last few years. Washed and abused regularly but always come back up fighting for more.
wife has just replaced them (or so she thinks) with some mt500s which look great She said I looked like one of fagan’s orphans in my attacks, so battered and torn were they.
Leisure lakes bikes currently have Madison Zenith zip off waterproof trousers for £55,
Cheers for the replies guys
army surplus goretex trousers cut down are no good, need pockets
madison DTE shorts, water resistant is no good, will look at the 100% waterproof jobbies
Madison Zenith DWR, will take a look but don't really want shorts that need to be reproofed (done this for years with my old road bike waterproofs and its never as good as the original coating)
Altura Attacks, still have a set of these and i agree they are great shorts, the only downsides i found were the pockets were too small for my phone so it kept digging into me when pedaling and they are no longer made so very hard to find in the correct size
Leisure lakes bikes currently have Madison Zenith zip off waterproof trousers for £55
Link please as i cant seem to find them on their website, Thanks
Edit Ive found them but none in Large
Just noticed leisure lakes only have small trousers left, when I reproofed the shorts they didn't really need it but was doing a jacket so I put them in at the same time
Original Altura Attacks for me too- I wear the short ones as I always have kneepads on but the 3/4s are good too. I don't think my current phone would fit comfortably in the pockets, then again it hardly fits comfortably in any pockets.
* slightly ot, but I regard pocket fit as a basic requirement for phone choice. There’s a line between tablet and phone that is fine if you are happy to carry it in a bag...
So after reading some reviews and a little searching Ive ordered a pair of Madison Zenith zip off waterproof trousers
Found a pair in my size from Tredz for £55 with a discount code
They seem to fit all of my criteria and have the added bonus of coming slightly over the knee for better protection and can be converted into trousers too
Cheers to pothead for the heads up
I've got several pairs of altura attacks, the seam at the back of the crotch panel always seems to wear out leaving it with a big flappy panel that caches on the seat and rips off before I get home to repair it.
Other than that they're great, but I save them for wet rides rather than using them all the time to avoid wearing them out.
The Madison Zenith zip off waterproof trousers arrived yesterday and all i can say is they are a big disappointment
On paper they looked perfect, zip off legs to convert to shorts, 2 hand pockets, waterproof phone pocket, two side air vents
In reality the phone pocket's opening is so tiny that my 72mm wide phone wont fit
There are no hand pockets at all!!!!!!
Even had the wife double check in case i was going blind!
Have emailed Madison asking about the hand pockets as they are listed in their description and why they don't list the opening size of the waterproof phone pocket