Review: Team Dream Bicycling Team & Endo Customs Kit
background
The Team Dream “Dot's What’s Up” kit is a collaboration of two LA based cycling brands. Here is a quick background.
First, Team Dream Bicycling Team (TDBT) is a blog and Instagram account covering cycling culture mainly in California and the western US. Like few other blogs, TDBT has been releasing branded kits, each in limited runs. I’m not entirely sure how limited the runs are but they sell out fast. The recent second release of the fade kits sold out in most sizes in only a few minutes. According to recent news posted on Instagram by TDBT, they are opening up an office/storefront in LA along with their other project Ringtail.
Second, the TDBT kits are produced by the super hot Endo Customs who specialize in custom kits. However they have recently launched their own in house designed kits (also sold out). Some of the other custom kits produced by Endo Customs include The Radavist (blog), CBNC, Tracko, Mudfoot, Golden Saddle Cyclery, and more. A pretty good list is found here.
The following review will cover a season in the Dot's What’s Up jersey and compressor bibs from TDBT and Endo Customs. Click on any of the pics below to open them up in a lightbox for a better view.
initial impressions
The first thing you’ll notice about the Dot's What’s Up kit is the design and that’ll before it even arrives. Surely it’s probably what drew you to it in the first place.
Overall the kit is on the lightweight side. The jersey is 157 grams and the bibs weigh 212 grams. The construction appears and seems well crafted. The Endo Customs jerseys breathe well and I’d describe the bibs as very high compression sizing when I first put them on… but more about that later. The lengths of each garment are in line with modern style with generous sleeves and legs.
Shipping was quick once it left LA. It took about two weeks to start it’s journey and another week to my door.
design
The Endo Customs kit design is best described as essentials with no frills. They’ve used good quality materials with simple tried and true patterns to include all the expected features. First I’ll outline the jersey then the bibs.
The jersey is made of polyester and has a full front YKK zip and 3 rear pockets. The collar is standard height and so are the pockets. Speaking of the pockets they are well sized to fit a pouch, jacket and your food without feeling stretched or loose. The height of them makes them easy to get into on the bike and off the bike. The bottom hem of the jersey has a generous strip of silicone (they call it Endo Gel-Fast Elastic) to help keep the jersey down and in place. There is no silicone or elastic on the sleeve hems.
The bibs are a compression style so they fit very snug. The bibs are made with an 8 panel anatomical design (not including mesh straps) and are made with a 2 layer high abrasion resistant fabric with MITITECH compression technology. The material is rated for 50+ SPF/UPF sun protection. The Chamois is a Cytech EIT Carbonic COMP HP which means it’s a high quality pad designed for comfort on longer rides. Cytech is arguably the leader producer of chamois’ for cycling and can be found on brands such as Assos. This particular chamois has a centre channel for perineal comfort and varied thicknesses to provide the right support in the right areas. The chamois is preformed into a 3D shape to help minimize any rubbing in the wrong places. The legs of the bibs are an extended race length and have a laser cut leg bands with integrated grip. They measure about 1.5” in length. All of this keeps them in place a few inches above the knee.
What Team Dream has done is add a great graphical treatment to an already well crafted kit. The Dot's What’s Up jersey has contrasting polka dots all over with alternating white and grey dots and a reverse colored panel for the pockets. On mine the jersey is grey with white and grey dots giving it a 3 tone look and the rear pockets are a contrasting white with grey dots.
branding
Branding on the kit is pretty minimal and if anything looks to be part of the graphic design. As with all Endo customs kits, the jersey has a small patch on the front lower left and a rubber tab on the back right rear pocket. Inside the jersey has a small patch label and the collar has a printed logo. The front zip features a die cut Endo Customs logo as a zipper pull. Team Dream has added a subtle chubby bobcat on the left sleeve.
The bibs have an Endo Customs logo tab with product details on the inside as you’d expect. The bibs have a near tone on tone dark grey reflective ink Endo Customs logo on the front right leg and Team Dream has added another chubby bobcat logo to the front left leg. I’m not a fan of branded bibs but these seem to work, especially with the near tone on tone.
fit
The fit of the TDBT x Endo jerseys has been updated in 2016. For more on the specifics, read my post on the TDBT DayGlo FFF jersey here.
From my measurements, the jersey and bibs fit true to the measurements found on the Endo Customs website. While the sleeves are narrow, if you have small arms you may want to have them altered some more. The jersey overall is a non race fit, let’s call it more of a pseudo pro fit. It’s in line with current styles with its longer sleeve length. The front and back lengths are as expected with a non race fit. Long enough to cover the midriff but not too long as to create bunching when you’re in riding position. The collar comes up nicely on the neck and doesn’t feel restricting.
As I mentioned before the bibs are a full compression style so they fit snugly. You’re advised to fit up a size and I did. When I first tried them on they were very snug, but after a wash and a ride they’ve expanded adequately. Maybe a bit too much because I wish they had not. While the bibs are high compression, I find that the bib straps are a bit mismatched. They are quite generous and could be a bit smaller, however this may be because I sized up from my normal size.
critiques
Let me start this section by saying these are great kit but there are a few things to note and improve. The logo zipper pull looks cool but it has some sharp edges and will catch on the fabric. It is removable and a good idea to take it off before you put it in a wash bag if you’re putting it through the laundry. So while it’s a cool brand detail, I would rather skip it than have it ruin the jersey in the wash.
The bibs stretch out too fast and don’t breath very well in really hot weather. The bibs loosened up quite a bit after the first wash and ride and I prefered the high compression of the first ride. Not sure if there is something that can be done but would be good to address. Next time I may try the medium and see if that is a better option for me. The dual layer M.I.T.I. fabric they've chosen feels great and seems to wear well but it doesn’t breath enough on those really hot days. Dual layer is really common in bibs, especially in high patterned bibs but it’s worth noting that they don’t breathe as well as a single layer construction. So for that reason I choose another bib when the temps start scorching.
bottom line
To sum this all up to a bottom line, the TDBD kit collab with Endo Customs are a high quality comfortable kit suited to both club rides and racing in style. They are well crafted with the right touches and rad graphic design on top. If you like the design and you can get one while they have them, you won’t be disappointed when they arrive.
