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Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:21 pm
by woodsmith
Anyone found a readily available suitable substitute for chamois creme? Sudocrem, Savlon etc. I'd rather buy a small tube of something to carry around on tours than a big pot of the real stuff.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:23 pm
by Bearbonesnorm
Maybe try without?
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:29 pm
by GregMay
woodsmith wrote: ↑Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:21 pm
Anyone found a readily available suitable substitute for chamois creme? Sudocrem, Savlon etc. I'd rather buy a small tube of something to carry around on tours than a big pot of the real stuff.
Gravy.
I haven't used the chamois cream in about 8 years now. Don't feel the need for it. Modern inserts are so good.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:38 pm
by In Reverse
You can get a little travel tube of Sudocrem that's just the right size for a tour.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:52 pm
by Dave Barter
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 3:55 pm
by lune ranger
I stopped using it too, butt if you really want some…
https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/accessories ... ml-sachet/
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 4:25 pm
by benp1
I've always heard good things about sudocrem
But I don't use anything or any pads. Just normal boxers and MTB shorts. Generally don't do long trips though, most is 3 nights generally. Although if I did, I'm not sure I'd change my approach
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 4:45 pm
by thenorthwind
I generally go without but use Happy Bottom Bum Butter for really long rides. I scoop some into a little pot - an old 35mm film canister ATM, remember them?
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 5:33 pm
by Shewie
Decant some into a smaller pot? I use the little 30ml ally screw top tins from ebay, and if you have a spare you could make a meths stove too
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 6:12 pm
by Boab
I've been using
Chamois Butt'r® for the last wee while. Comes in a big tube, but as other have said, I just squirt a load into an old 35mm film canister. I find it lasts fine up to and around 200KM, then it's heat/sweat dependant. On my recent F U R T H E R East trip, I was slathering it on so often on the second day that I ran out and had to buy a very expensive small tube of something else from Rultand Cycling as I passed.
I'm going to try their new
Ultra Balm next, which is supposed to last longer. They also do a solid stick -
GoStik Solid Anti-Chafe, which comes in a small size. Decathlon do something similar, in the Triathlon section to help get your wetsuit on and off.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 8:44 pm
by rollindoughnut
I once was getting really chaffed ass whilst doing training laps of a trail centre. Really needed some chamois cream but had none.
Then I remembered I has a pot of Vicks vapo rub in the van. That's mainly Vaseline isn't it?...
You've heard the expression 'gingering a pony' right?
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 8:57 pm
by Bearbonesnorm
Then I remembered I has a pot of Vicks vapo rub in the van. That's mainly Vaseline isn't it?...
Did you not splash a bit of High Karate* on there too?
*need to be a certain age.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 8:58 pm
by frogatthefarriers
rollindoughnut wrote: ↑Sat Jun 18, 2022 8:44 pm
Then I remembered I has a pot of Vicks vapo rub in the van. That's mainly Vaseline isn't it?...
You've heard the expression 'gingering a pony' right?
HaHa! Thanks for the best laff I’ve had in ages…
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2022 9:08 pm
by psling
rollindoughnut wrote: ↑Sat Jun 18, 2022 8:44 pm
I once was getting really chaffed ass whilst doing training laps of a trail centre. Really needed some chamois cream but had none.
Then I remembered I has a pot of Vicks vapo rub in the van. That's mainly Vaseline isn't it?...
You've heard the expression 'gingering a pony' right?
My eyes are watering at the thought...
You could always rub deep-heat on your balls, it would take your mind off your arse
Old debate I know and discussed at length previously but isn't Sudacreme a 'barrier' preventing sweat from escaping? I do use Happy Bum Butter which I think keeps me fresher down there and it's available in small ' dab of butter' tins (or was). I have been known to carry a small tin of Sudacreme too for applying at the end of the day after a quick wet-wipe wipe down.
I also use a medicated talc on my feet on multi-dayers.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 8:13 am
by NickyBoy36
I did the LEJOG a few years ago and a doctor I met by chance recommended a cream called Siopel (available at bigger pharmacies) rather than Sudocrem etc. I bought some,used it and I finished the LEJOG with no further trouble.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 8:41 am
by jameso
Sudocrem is a moisture barrier as far as I understand it so it's liable to cause problems with sweating? (edit, as Psling said). I used it a long time ago, no issues on day / 2-day rides but had some real sores on a longer ride - can't say it was the Sudocrem rather than just the long periods on the bike, may have been the padded shorts, or the combo. Don't use either anymore. Just sports briefs and a bit of Assos type cream on longer rides.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 10:17 am
by Dyffers
Cheap and cheerful stuff available from anywhere like Boots is Conotrane, bed sore cream that's much better for pressure sores than Sudocrem and costs about £1.50 a 100ml tube.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:57 am
by lune ranger
I’ve been ruminating on what everyone is putting down their pants and think you may have this a bit wrong.
I should think a chamois cream ought to be both resistant to moisture and something of a lubricant. In terms of skin damage moisture plus friction is a bad combination. Avoiding it is the key component of any care plan to avoid sores.
Barrier creams are on the whole moisture resistant but not lubricant. Conotrane and Siopel are essentially no different to Sudocrem - less claggy I grant you but essentially no different in term of effect. I would suggest the problem with sudocrem isn’t its barrier qualities but rather its lack of lubrication. It’s also going to leave a big soggy mess on your nethers giving bacteria a perfect environment to breed. It hasn’t been used in any evidence based healthcare environments for 20 or more years.
There are medical grade products that may be better as chamois cream —Sorbaderm, Cavilon and Derma S spring to mind (cream versions rather than spray) which are used instead of simple barriers in health care settings. These products are sold on their resistance to friction as well as moisture and are also resistant to being washed off the skin. They are light, non-claggy and expensive.
What’s probably most important is having a healthy barse during long bouts of cycling is hygiene.
Clean and air your undercarriage regularly.
Clean your shorts/pants/etc regularly.
Choose shorts to reduce Betty Swallocks.
Don’t be minging.
Maybe use a light antiseptic cream in the evening (my preference).
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 1:02 pm
by psling
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 1:53 pm
by Dyffers
lune ranger wrote: ↑Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:57 am
I’ve been ruminating on what everyone is putting down there pants...
That's a nice image
lune ranger wrote: ↑Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:57 am
What’s probably most important is having a healthy barse during long bouts of cycling is hygiene.
Clean and air your undercarriage regularly.
Clean your shorts/pants/etc regularly.
Choose shorts to reduce Betty Swallocks.
Don’t be minging.
Maybe use a light antiseptic cream in the evening (my preference).
I don't use Conotrane any more, or anything at all for rides less than about 8 hours, but a lot of my experience comes from road rides where you don't get chance to rest much for maybe two or three days, therefore airing and not being minging are difficult at best.
Off-road events I find you don't need much if anything down there as you don't spend the hours siting in the same position constantly pedalling. Next time you're walking up a climb on the BB200/300 take heart that your crotch approves.
I think the Vicks option might also work; take you mind of th saddle sores pain for a while.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 3:21 pm
by lune ranger
Dyffers wrote: ↑Sun Jun 19, 2022 1:53 pm
lune ranger wrote: ↑Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:57 am
I’ve been ruminating on what everyone is putting down there pants...
That's a nice image
A purely professional interest you understand!
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Sun Jun 19, 2022 9:34 pm
by fatbikephil
Bamboo boxers?
On my recent jaunt I wore a pair under normal baggy riding shorts with no chamois cream of any kind. It was quite warm and I was in the saddle for a reasonable length of time (9 hrs on the last day) with no issues sans mon derriere. I think a lot of the problem is that normal chamois pads get pretty minging after a while and then start to chafe, so you need some kind of lubricant to stop this. Not done an 18hr epic in the bam undies yet but will at some point.
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2022 1:02 am
by redefined_cycles
fatbikephil wrote: ↑Sun Jun 19, 2022 9:34 pm
Bamboo boxers?
On my recent jaunt I wore a pair under normal baggy riding shorts with no chamois cream of any kind. It was quite warm and I was in the saddle for a reasonable length of time (9 hrs on the last day) with no issues sans mon derriere. I think a lot of the problem is that normal chamois pads get pretty minging after a while and then start to chafe, so you need some kind of lubricant to stop this. Not done an 18hr epic in the bam undies yet but will at some point.
If its the BAM versions I got. They don't last very long! Never bothered getting another pair. Maybe it was my rock solid (carbon with hardly much padding - cos I'm silly) saddle! 6 months i think they lasted before wearing a hole or two...
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2022 11:32 am
by techno
Re: Substitute for chamois creme
Posted: Mon Jun 20, 2022 11:48 am
by Boab
