Hi, All, The Compass Knickers are about a plus-two to plus-three length on me when worn below the waist but above the hip, and run true to size.
The front zipper pockets are pretty shallow--you'll be using those zippers--and the (right hand only) back zip pocket is large enough for a couple of credit cards or perhaps a wallet, so phablet users will need to look elsewhere for portable-TV-tracking-device storage. As a left-handed user of these shorts, I'd prefer to also have a left-hand rear pocket for my wallet etc. The elasticated waist band was soft, and the belt held my clip-on pocketknife in place well. There is a mesh back panel that is visually inobtrusive and may help with ventilation, though the regular material did fine in this regard. The (polyester? my pair have no branding, size tags, or other markings at all) material is quite thin, sheds water, dries quickly, drapes beautifully, breathes well, and has a subtle 2-way stretch. The articulated knees, crotch gusset, etc result in a garment that does what it is supposed to do--disappear while riding while still looking like casual wear off of the bike. They are trim, but not restrictive, and the lack of obnoxious stitched-on logos etc is a welcome touch for modern cycling clothing. Stitching and reinforcement is inobtrusive, tight, and even. Obviously, I've not yet had a chance to ride more than seventy miles or so in them to date (i.e. they were fine yesterday), but they held up in the washer, and dried very quickly on the line (minutes). I'd prefer another inch in the length for the 32" size, but I've got long femurs. They are not vanity sized at all, so if you wear a "32" khaki or pre-shrunk Levis, then you'll be happier in the next size up. I have a true 32" waist, usually take my khakis and straight-leg jeans in at the waist to fit my thighs, and I pretty much max the Compass knickers out. If I order another pair, they'll be sized up. They're fine summer-weight knickers, nicely tailored, without frippery or unnecessary details. Cheers, Will William M. deRosset Fort Collins, CO On Monday, October 5, 2015 at 10:17:49 PM UTC-6, Jan Heine wrote: > > The fit of the knickers certainly isn't form-fitting - that would defeat > the purpose. We clarified the language - what we meant to say is that if > you wear padded shorts underneath these, you should definitely order one > size larger than you would for your normal pants. > > The whole idea of knickers is to have pants that look good, but otherwise > disappear when you ride. Ours are based on Japanese cyclotouring and hiking > knickers, which are quite sophisticated, with articulated knees and hidden > drawcords at the leg cuffs. This makes them incredibly complex to sew, > which explains the price. If we priced them like most clothing companies > price clothing, they'd be unaffordable... > > Jan Heine > Compass Bicycles > www.compasscycle.com > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
