Friday, March 24, 2017

Sukrew Full Brief

 
Sukrew is a British underwear company founded in 2013. Their offerings are divided into “Full Styles” and “U Styles,” and the big pouches in the former made me curious to test them out. Sukrew obviously puts a lot of effort into engineering unique, high-quality items. While I think there were some fit issues with the Full Brief, I still was impressed by what it had to offer, and suspect that the longer varieties of Sukrew’s items (the Full Trunk and Full Sprint) might be even better.


Materials and construction: The Full Brief I tried is listed as 80% polyamide and 20% elastane (spandex). This fabric blend dries fast and is stretchier than the typical blend of cotton and spandex. The cut is a fairly sleek one, but not quite shaped ideally for staying in place (more on that below). The pouch is one of the biggest pouches on the market, but positioned more downward and less to the front than a comparably sized pouch, such as the Obviously AnatoMAX. Overall quality is good: After numerous washings, I’ve seen no signs of deterioration. 8/10


Comfort and usability: My biggest complaint about the Full Brief is that its proportions aren’t quite right: If you pull the waistband up to where it should be, the material in the back will ride up, since the material in the back isn’t tall enough. The large pouch is quite comfortable. It’s positioned further down than most pouches. I found it to be perhaps the most comfortable pouch I’ve worn while sitting down, and the most comfortable pouch for my testicles overall. The downward position of the pouch will make this less conspicuous under pants than other large pouches, but might make exercises like sprinting less practical due to the pouch’s proximity to the thighs (depending on personal body shape, of course). The waistband is comfortable and firm. 6/10

Aesthetics: Above the pouch, there’s a white stripe that reaches up to the waistband, which creates the visual impression of increasing the pouch’s height. It’s just one of a few unique touches that makes the Sukrew Full Brief look great. 8/10

Overall rating: 7/10

Big enough? Yes, this is one of the biggest pouches available.

Wednesday, March 15, 2017

Too Tight to Review 8: Jack Adams Relay Brief

 
The “Too Tight To Review” series covers the pairs of underwear I’ve tried on that I couldn’t wear long enough to give a fair review. If I can’t keep a pair on for at least the length of the day, I’ll leave a few brief thoughts rather than a full review.

 
Jack Adams is an underwear company that I have heard mentioned a few times in terms of comfortable underwear, so I decided to give them a try. The first thing I noticed is how small the overall garment is; even though I followed the size chart on their website and ordered a size up from what I usually get, it still felt extremely small, the backside was too short (a complaint I rarely have), and what little extra fabric it had where a pouch should have been would be far better as an actual pouch. I had to take it off after a few hours. The Jack Adams Relay Brief is not an outrageously bad item, but I certainly can’t recommend it as a comfortable one.

Friday, March 10, 2017

Obviously AnatoMAX Boxer Brief with 3-inch leg

 
Obviously is an Australian underwear company that makes high quality underwear and undershirts for men. I’ve reviewed a number of their products before, and I am usually quite impressed with their offerings. The design of the AnatoMAX Boxer Brief with 3-inch leg, taking a place between the Hipster Trunk and the Boxer Brief with 9-inch leg, is a good way to wear one of the largest pouches on the market for those who don't like briefs.
 
Materials and construction: The Obviously AnatoMAX Boxer Brief with 3-inch leg is made out of a micro modal/lycra fabric blend. This fabric blend is soft and flexible, but dries quite slowly. The pouch, while significantly larger than the AnatoFREE varieties, still has the same horseshoe-shaped pouch design seen on the other Obviously Boxer Briefs and Trunks. This means the pouch is deeper but more constrained horizontally when compared to Obviously briefs. The design is high quality, as is usually the case with Obviously products. I have washed these numerous times with no obvious signs of deterioration. The design is tagless, with the relevant information printed inside the waistband. 8/10

Comfort and usability: The AnatoMAX Boxer Brief with 3-inch leg is among the most comfortable pairs of underwear I’ve worn. The legs stay in place much better than in the trunks that Obviously offers, although they do ride up. The pouch is imperfectly shaped, and slightly less comfortable than the more flexible pouch in the AnatoMAX Brief. This rigidity, however, makes it more appropriate for light exercise, although I wouldn’t recommend doing anything intense. The fabric on the AnatoMAX items absorbs odors a little less than on Obviously’s Core items. The AnatoMAX Boxer Briefs stay in place with a tucked-in shirt a little better than the AnatoMAX Brief. 8/10 

Aesthetics: No complaints here. I think the waistband’s logo looks sharp, and the overall look nails the sharp-but-simple aesthetic that Obviously does well. (It does look better in the flesh than these photos indicate.) 6/10

Overall rating: 7/10

Big enough? Yes. This is one of the biggest pouches available.