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rebeccmeisterCertain repairs will always jump the project queue. Bike gloves, for instance. I wear bike gloves basically every day, so if they fail it's a problem.
This is the third pair of these gloves that I've owned:
The first pair eventually wore out. I somehow lost the second pair on my way to the 300k solo brevet this spring, but I already had this backup pair ready to go. The second pair also experienced some stitching failure at the exact same seam. I might need to go one size larger the next time I order more.
And I should probably order more sooner rather than later. Bike gear manufacturers like to switch up styles, even when the prior style already worked perfectly well.
My Paris-Brest-Paris vest was also showing wear from daily wear, especially around the arm holes. I have been doing some reading about different types of thread, which leads me to the observation that perhaps the manufacturer of these cycling vests used the wrong type of thread, because the stitching is unraveling faster than the fabric itself is failing.
From this photo you can see that the vest material itself is also beginning to fail. What you cannot see is the permanent stink, which is because the vest is made of polyester. Somewhere I was reading that polyester fabrics are oleophilic - that is, they will bind and hold onto oils, and apparently this is a big part of why polyester clothing starts to stink so quickly, even after washing.
When I was in middle school, one of the souvenirs I got for participating in the 30-mile Chilly Hilly bike ride around Bainbridge Island was a simple nylon mesh reflective vest. It was an over-head mesh fabric design with a front flap and a rear flap, with two pieces of elastic on the sides to hold the front and rear flaps in place. I have yet to find a replacement vest that's nearly as good and long-lived as that one was. But I suspect I'll be back on the hunt for a cycling vest again sooner rather than later.
This is the third pair of these gloves that I've owned:
The first pair eventually wore out. I somehow lost the second pair on my way to the 300k solo brevet this spring, but I already had this backup pair ready to go. The second pair also experienced some stitching failure at the exact same seam. I might need to go one size larger the next time I order more.
And I should probably order more sooner rather than later. Bike gear manufacturers like to switch up styles, even when the prior style already worked perfectly well.
My Paris-Brest-Paris vest was also showing wear from daily wear, especially around the arm holes. I have been doing some reading about different types of thread, which leads me to the observation that perhaps the manufacturer of these cycling vests used the wrong type of thread, because the stitching is unraveling faster than the fabric itself is failing.
From this photo you can see that the vest material itself is also beginning to fail. What you cannot see is the permanent stink, which is because the vest is made of polyester. Somewhere I was reading that polyester fabrics are oleophilic - that is, they will bind and hold onto oils, and apparently this is a big part of why polyester clothing starts to stink so quickly, even after washing.
When I was in middle school, one of the souvenirs I got for participating in the 30-mile Chilly Hilly bike ride around Bainbridge Island was a simple nylon mesh reflective vest. It was an over-head mesh fabric design with a front flap and a rear flap, with two pieces of elastic on the sides to hold the front and rear flaps in place. I have yet to find a replacement vest that's nearly as good and long-lived as that one was. But I suspect I'll be back on the hunt for a cycling vest again sooner rather than later.
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Date: 2024-06-16 08:16 pm (UTC)I need to buy new bike gloves. I have an inexpensive pair, because the nice ones a friend gave me didn't have enough padding - I tend to lean on my hands too much. But after two years, the velcro on these doesn't stay closed.
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Date: 2024-06-16 09:29 pm (UTC)Here's what I can say about bike gloves. The ones I bought are Specialized Grail gloves. They do not have a massive amount of padding, but they do have the right amount of padding for me, in exactly the correct places. From what I understand, Specialized went to the trouble of actually studying the ergonomic needs of our hands when they are on bicycle handlebars. They used what they learned to redesign the padding shapes on their gloves. I also learned at one point that too much padding on gloves or handlebars can be like riding with a seat that has too much padding. Instead, I seem to generally benefit more from gloves that provide a good grip, so that I don't wind up feeling like I need to do a lot of extra work to hold onto the handlebars.
They also don't have a velcro closure - S gets annoyed with how velcro inevitably fastens itself to inappropriate places when velcro items are put in the wash, so I try to strategically limit velcro-based items.