Buying & Trying so many cycling shorts

[kajero]

I don't want to have a gazillion pairs of cycling shorts I don't like hidden away in my dresser drawers. I don't want to spend a gazillion dollars on the gazillion pairs of cycling shorts that I don't like that are hidden away in my dresser drawers. So how do I do figure out what shorts to buy (yes, I've read reviews) so I don't wind up with a gazillion pairs of shorts I don't like? If I try riding in them and I don't like them, I can't return them because they are worn. So what do I do? I don't mind buying them on line and returning them if I don't like them, but how do you know they will even work if you can't try them out while riding your bike?

[zoom-zoom]

This is the million dollar question. And it reminds me that I have at least 3 pair in a drawer that I need to sell...

When you do find a short/brand that works, stick with it. For me it's Pearl Izumi. But even that's not a guarantee. One of the shorts I need to sell is a pair of PI.

[Kiwi Stoker]

Trying them on at the shop will help. Too tight on the legs- don't buy. Chamois hanging out the back- don't buy. Fabric sagging- don't buy. Waist too high or low, don't buy. Fabric too thin- don't buy.

But yes, the main thing is to ride in them- so a bit of a problem there.

[OakLeaf]

It helps if you can even just sit on your saddle and learn how the chamois will behave. But there's still trial and error. And it's expensive.

[malkin]

Use the TE: For Sale/Wanted section.

[kajero]

I keep looking, there never seems to be anything there for me!

[azfiddle]

When I was losing weight and needed to buy smaller shorts, I phoned Team Estrogen and got a lot of good advice from the sales staff. They sent me two pairs, and I had planned to send one back, but liked them both and decided to keep them both.

If you don't know what you like yet, it might be a good way to help you get started. And you can return them if they don't fit, but you won't be able to ride in them and then return them....