Aldi Cycling Gear Heads Up

[Cyclezee]

Aldi cycling gear is coming again soon https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/coming-soon/cycling/;)

 

[tillson]

The only thing which I can see that is remotely cycle related on that link is the Scouring Balls. I like to put them down the front of my Lycra shorts and and then go out and impress the ladies.

 

[eHomer]

The cycling stuff is under the "coming soon" menu tab, for sale items on 26th Sept.

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/coming-soon/cycling/

I may treat myself ton another pair of SPD shoes !

 

[Cyclezee]

The only thing which I can see that is remotely cycle related on that link is the Scouring Balls. I like to put them down the front of my Lycra shorts and and then go out and impress the ladies.

Brilliant idea Tillson, must try that myself, they might also remove the desire to scratch that annoying itch when in company

 

[103Alex1]

Pride may soon turn to humiliation after the 1st ride though ... after they wear through your lycra and bring a whole new meaning to the term 'silver fox'

 

[eHomer]

The individual cycling items are listed now, and there's an "Under-Helmet Cap" listed for £4.99.

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/thursday-26th-september/product-detail/ps/p/under-helmet-cap/

I seem to remember a thread on here a while back where people were talking about using snowboarding helmets for winter cycling use, as they're warmer.

I've never seen "under helmet" caps before, anyone used them ? Are they any good, or better/worse than the snowboard helmets ?

(sorry to bring up the word "helmet" after the lycra stuffing chat )

 

[103Alex1]

The individual cycling items are listed now, and there's an "Under-Helmet Cap" listed for £4.99.

https://www.aldi.co.uk/en/specialbuys/thursday-26th-september/product-detail/ps/p/under-helmet-cap/

I seem to remember a thread on here a while back where people were talking about using snowboarding helmets for winter cycling use, as they're warmer.

I've never seen "under helmet" caps before, anyone used them ? Are they any good, or better/worse than the snowboard helmets ?

(sorry to bring up the word "helmet" after the lycra stuffing chat )

Yes I wore one last Winter sometimes ... if the helmet was on. It was Merino so pretty warm. Think I read somewhere the "experts" say you're not supposed to (wear skullcaps under your bicycle helmet) for some reason but can't for the life of me remember what the reason was. Didn't find it necessary most of the time but I still have all my hair (mercifully for now !)... and can't help thinking a Balaclava is by far the more useful purchase. If it's cold enough to need an under-helmet cap then it's long past the threshold where you want your face and neck covered so stick one one and kill 2 birds with the same stone.

Don't know about the snowboard helmets. I've never felt the need to go that far for warmth. Maybe if I gave up pedalling ...

 

[Streethawk]

Under helmet caps are great when it turns really cold, it makes a huge difference. Anything above 5 degrees though and they're much too warm. I havent used one for a few years as i use my Casco E-motion in winter now and it's sufficiently warm on it's own, especially with the ear warmers in place. Ebikes dont make you sweat as much, so we can wear warmer gear before sweatting becomes a huge issue, but conversly, we also feel the cold more.

I'll be buying some of the merino stuff and maybe the toolkit, you can never have too many tools.

 

[Mike63]

[QUOTE I like to put them down the front of my Lycra shorts and and then go out and impress the ladies. ][/QUOTE]

.....look but don't touch

 

[tillson]

There is also a £5 off voucher if you spend more than £40. You have to buy a copy of The Daily Mirror though.

£5 off £40 @ Aldi in Thursday's (26th) Daily Mirror & Daily Record + Vouchers - Hot UK Deals

 

[eHomer]

.... You have to buy a copy of The Daily Mirror though....

There's always a catch

Still, I could always use it to clean the chain, after taking the vouchers out...

Thanks for the feedback on the under helmet cap. At under £5, I think I'll give one a try.

 

[eHomer]

Just looking at the SPD shoes on there again, and I notice they say "in sizes 5 to 10".

Does anyone know if 10 is the biggest size Aldi have sold cycling shoes in the past ?

I take size 11 , and I never thought of my feet being unusually big !!

 

[eHomer]

The heads up for the Aldi cycling gear got me back into looking at another pair of SPD shoes, and after much googling I thought I'd ask for experiences on here with "cheap" cleated shoes.

There's quite a few negative postings on the web about alleged poor quality of previous Aldi cycling shoes, centred mainly on the cleats twisting loose and ripping out or trapping people's feet. As always with self published feedback, it's tricky trying to separate the wheat from the chaff.

A lot of the opinions are the unbiased accurate knowledge from experience that we all search for, but many are inaccurate derogatory reports from people who couldn't bang a nail in straight !

You frequently read statements like "you get what you pay for", which is not always the case these days, you can often pay a lot more and still get rubbish.

Has anyone on here used and found Aldi shoes to be significantly inferior to the branded name at upwards of twice the price ?

I also found Muddy Fox cycling SPD shoes at £22, purportedly reduced from £79, which is undoubtedly a marketing ploy, since they've been available for around £22 for many years, and never the higher price.

They're marketed almost exclusively by Sports Direct, which also seems to be held in low repute on cycling forums.

Muddyfox MTB100 Mens Cycling Shoes - SportsDirect.com


I know I'm waffling away again on here, but would be interest in hearing actual experiences with cheap shoes like Aldi and Muddy Fox. Are they really cr*p, or are they reasonable value if used correctly (eg with the cleats firmly bolted on with threadlock !)

 

[ghouluk]

muddyfox clothing is definitely in the value end of the spectrum, i haven't used their cycling shoes, but the winter tights i have from them are not great - the padding is in the wrong place and really thin - that said they did only cost 12.99 or something (allegedly reduced from 36.99, spot the common marketing lie here) and work well as an additional base layer over padded shorts in the winter.

the misses uses aldi cycling shoes for her spin classes, and i'm pretty impressed with the construction and quality to be honest, she does tend to give them a bit of a beating in sprints in classes, and no problems with cleats ripping out or coming loose - although can't say a lot about comfort, waterproofing, or durability to abuse though as she only uses them inside.

 

[103Alex1]

Haven't tried 'em so can't say. But I will say I've hammered my Shimano shoes for months and they're virtually as new.

Some bargains at chainreactioncycles in a range of sizes at the moment : Shimano MT33 MTB SPD Shoes 2013 | Chain Reaction Cycles

 

[eHomer]

Thanks for the feedback on the Aldi shoes, though I think I may be stumped now by their not supplying any sizes above UK 10. If I go for the cheapo ones it'll have to be the Muddy Fox ones, they at least do go up to my size ok (eu 46).

Thanks also for the link to the chain reactions sale of the Shimano MT33 shoes, shame they haven't got a wider range reduced at the moment, I'm trying to avoid laces.

I've been using an old pair of Shimano MT42 for quite some time now, which are very similar, but have a velcro top strap over the laces. One of my main reasons for looking for another pair of SPD shoes is to get away from the laces, and just have velcro straps. I know it sounds lazy, but it would be so much quicker to put them on and take them off, (it's a wrinkly thing ).