Nathan_S

Hi folks,
Just picked up the Trek Domane SL6 and while at the store, found out that casual bike shorts are a thing. I would love to grab up a few of these for longer rides so I don't have to show off my *ahem* kibbles and bits to the neighbors.

They had these in the store but $70 is a little pricey for my taste. A search of 'casual bike shorts' on Amazon produces a number of $30 range results. Anyone have any experience with some good brands? Or should I bite the bullet and buy the $70 shorts and be done with it?

Padding is a must for the longer rides.

Thanks,

Nathan

Iride01 

For less than half the price why not order a pair and just see if you like them. You'll get all sorts of answers here from so many viewpoints. For some, 70 bucks is a shoddy pair of bike shorts.

And padding really isn't a must. I've ridden several centuries with no padding. Not on the saddle or shorts. But I don't do that anymore, my butts not as tough as it used to be.

CAT7RDR

Casual bike shorts with padding? Never worked for me.
I need compression and a form fitting chamois that moves with me. YMMV

Mojo31

I have a pair of padded liners that you can wear under any pair of shorts. Look up the Club Ride brand on Amazon. Not cheap, but quality and not crazy expensive. In other words, if you can afford an SL6, you can afford their products.

Wildwood 

For me, long rides = padded shorts/bibs.

Www.theblackbibs.com

Their shorts are $35
try the bibs.

MRT2

If you can find a deal great. But these just going cheap might be a false economy. If the $70 shorts fit and you like them, it is a modest price to pay for comfort. That said, you could just go with tight shorts and bite the bullet. I doubt your neighbors will mind.

Hiro11

*spends $4,000 on a high performance road bike*
*has a hangup with cycling shorts and plans to wear baggies on a $4K road bike*
*thinks $70 is tough to swallow for a pair of shorts*

I'm not saying you're wrong, just saying there's a some cognitive dissonance going on here. Just buy some bibs and throw some casual shorts on top. I guarantee after two rides, you'll ditch the overshorts.

Elbeinlaw

Nathan: I just bought these from Amazon: "Men's Mountain Bike Shorts 3D Padded Bicycle MTB Shorts Loose-fit Lightweight MTB Cycling Shorts (Army Green, X-Large)" made by "Vayager Sports." Wore them for the first time today. I don't know how long they'll last, but on my ride this morning, they were great. Nice padding. Good pockets. Not too dorky looking, but then I'm 65, wear a helmet, wear a visibility vest, wear a helmet mirror, wear gaiters on my legs, have fuzzy dice hanging from my seat, and ride a yellow Bike Friday. YMMV. (OK, kidding about how dorky I look. I don't have the fuzzy dice. Yet.)

Rolla

Mountain bike baggies with sewn-in liners are usually overbuilt. I'm a fan of wearing a Zoic Premium liner and a pair of whatever shorts I want.

Bob N.

I use Pearl Izumi padded liners (they seem to change slightly every once in a while) and my own shorts over those. I still consider the location of seems, moisture wicking etc. in the shorts.

Kapusta

After being a lycra-only guy on the road for many years, I have been going with liners and shorts (AKA baggies) on more and more rides lately.

The issue is less aesthetics (though in redneck areas I do consider how out of place I want to look), but comfort. It seems to me that all my older (decade plus) shorts were really comfortable, but every new pair I try feel like compression shorts. They just don’t stretch as much. Sometimes this is OK, but on long rides or rides where I will be off the bike for a while, it gets a little old for me.

My favorite liners are the Endless Ride from Patagonia. The Zioc Ultras are decent too, and the fly is rather brilliant, but I wish the chamois was a little firmer. I may try the “Carbon” model next time.

For over-shorts, I like the Zioc Ether. Slim cut. I actually use the Ether 9 version as I have short legs.

I would not race in these where seconds count and I need squeeze out every second possible. But I do long road and gravel rides, and notice zero difference in my ability to keep up with those I am riding with.

I am sure I would get scoffed at by Roadies who take themselves too seriously, but they have already written me off after largely ditching clipless.

So, you do you, and let the haters hate.

As far as price.... I’ve seldom had good luck with cheap shorts/liners. IMO, $70 is very reasonable for good shorts. Cheap, actually.

MRT2

To OP. You spent good money on a nice bike, but you are worried about $70 for shorts. I had this very conversation with a friend recently. He has been wearing a pair of Bontrager shorts the last 3 years and now they have worn out, and he wants a replacement. But apparently, the replacement costs $70, which stuck him as too much. (though given the prices of a lot of bike apparel, $70 is really on the lower end of things these days). And it very well may be. But, since he wears them 3 times a week from April until October every year, that is about 70 to 80 times a year, for about 3 years, or conservatively 200 to 240 times over the 3 year life span of the shorts. So the cost of the shorts comes down to $.33 a ride. Or put another way, if you go with the cheap shorts and they only last half as long, it is a false economy as you will be replacing them more often, so effectively the cheaper shorts cost the same as the more pricey ones. And even if they last as long but are not as comfortable, on any given ride, wouldn't you pay an extra $.17 or so to be even slightly more comfortable?

Koyote

No one can see your junk when you're wearing lycra cycling shorts, so you can get over that inhibition.

I'd never even bother buying $70 shorts, much less $30 shorts, so you won't like my advice on that question.

guachi

I don't know if you've ever worn bib shorts before but I quickly learned to like having bib straps and not a waist band. It made the ride far more comfortable. Yes, this isn't what you asked about but I think you'd appreciate a good pair of bib shorts. You bought a nice bike in that SL6 (I have an SL5 and an SLR7 on order) and I think ensuring your comfort is worth it.