Longevity test 2

I switched from wearing loose boxers to higher quality pouch underwear about a year and a half ago. This has given me enough time to observe the actual longevity of these products. The following is some observations on some items of the first few brands from which I purchased. (You can assume that I’ve washed these on a gentle laundry cycle an average of about twice per month since I purchased them, and have air dried them each time [unless otherwise specified]. Of course, more use means more wear.)

Obviously AnatoMAX Brief, first pair purchased February 2016: In the previous post, I mentioned an Obviously product. This one did even better. The waistband is still in very good condition, and it wears nearly identically to when I first acquired it. There is some minor pilling, but I suspect this item will last a long time to come.

 
Ergowear EW0119 MAX Light Boxer, purchased May 2016: The viscose in this item has the softness and stretchiness of modal fabrics, but has pilled much faster. It’s still highly wearable, but the fit is a little looser.

Cocksox Sports Brief CX76N, purchased September 2016: This is my first Cocksox item, and it has impressed me a great deal with its longevity. It is the only underwear item in regular usage that seems to be indistinguishable from when I first purchased it.

Saxx Ultra Long John Fly Bottom, purchased October 2016: Unlike the Saxx item I mentioned previously, this has very rapidly deteriorated over a single winter of usage. The internal pouch is rapidly coming undone, and the outside surface has more pilling than any other underwear item I own, resulting in an inferior, less even fit. I am quite surprised by how much this has deteriorated in one season. 

Ergowear EW0334 X3D Suave Bikini

 
Ergowear is a Chilean underwear and swimwear company that utilizes innovative, unique designs. Since their products have some of the biggest pouches available on the market, they’re of keen interest to this blog. I’ve reviewed them before and was impressed with what I experienced. The EW0334 is the first bikini brief I’ve tried from the brand, and I was generally pleased with what it had to offer overall. 

Materials and construction: The “SuaveMicrofiber” is listed as 95% polyester and 5% spandex. It’s a thin artificial material, which is moderately stretchy and dries fast, but is a little warmer than other fabrics found in high-end men’s underwear, such as modal fabric. The pouch, which is fairly large, is effectively smaller than the pouch on the MAX Light Boxer due to the less stretchy material, and it lies comfortably downwards. The narrow strips of material on the sides of this item are well-stitched and stay more secure and flat against the body that I had originally suspected they would. This garment has kept its shape after washing it numerous times, although the material has gained a bit of a fuzzy texture, which indicates that it will not last forever. 7/10 

 
Comfort and usability: I have only tried wearing bikini briefs recently, looking for something to help keep me cool during the hot weather. Despite my initial reservations, I managed to enjoy the fit after a little adjustment. The lack of waistband and very low cut results in a few differences from other briefs: First, that the pouch, which is a little smaller than ideal, could fit simply by wearing the item lower on the hips; second, that this vertical narrowness means the item can be quite cool if you need to wear warm clothes (such as a business suit) outside on a summer day, and third, the drawback that the lack of waistband will mean that the waistband of your pants will rub against your skin, which might be uncomfortable, depending on the pants in question. As leisurewear and with light exercise like walking, it stays in place most of the time, although when it does get out of place, it gets quite uncomfortable and will have to be fixed. For that reason, I can’t recommend these for intense exercise. The downward position of the pouch will give you a less conspicuous bulge than you’d find in a Cocksox bikini brief or even an Obviously Anatomax item. 6/10

Aesthetics: The lines, especially the horizontal line across the top, are a little more tastefully subdued than many bikini briefs. In person, the color is a pale purple, not far from white, and although it has a mild shine to it, it’s not too gaudy looking. 5/10

Overall rating: 6/10

Big enough? It’s a variable fit. I’d prefer it to be bigger, but it can be worn in such a way that it is comfortable.

Ergowear EW0119 MAX Light Boxer

Ergowear is a Chilean underwear and swimwear company that utilizes in innovative, unique designs. Like many of the companies I mention in this blog, the company is fairly new (according to their website, they started in 2002). The EW0119 MAX Light Boxer is my first experience with their offerings, and I am quite impressed. If this item is representative of what the company has to offer, then Ergowear deserves to be mentioned alongside brands like Obviously and Andrew Christian as one of the companies that provides the largest and most comfortable pouches, and I’m looking forward to trying more Ergowear products in the future. 

Materials and construction: The materials are listed as 90% viscose and 10% elastan (spandex). This blend works well in the garment: It’s about as stretchy as modal fabrics, but with a softer, rather than a slicker, feel on the skin, and is also less prone to accumulating wrinkles. The term “boxer,” as it applies to this garment, is slightly misleading: The design looks like a pair of trunks from the back, but cuts away significantly towards the front. This does create the problem of the material sliding up in the back, as I mention below, but is in line with Ergowear’s efforts to minimize size while maximizing comfort. There is a pouch present, which is substantially bigger than most. The garment is low rise, which usually isn’t something I like, but the fit works quite well in this case. I’ve washed this pair of underwear a handful of times and have not noticed any major signs of deterioration. 9/10

Comfort and usability: The first thing I noticed I noticed when I tried these on for the first time is that I didn’t need to adjust the pouch at all: When I slid these up my legs and onto my hips, everything fell immediately and comfortably in place without adjustments, which is something that normally doesn’t happen with even the best designs in pouch underwear. The MAX Light Boxer sits closer to the skin than most underwear. The stretchy material makes the pouch big enough and very comfortable, but not particularly supportive, so I would not recommend this item for athletics. Between the thin material and minimalist design, the MAX Light Boxer is very comfortable in warm weather. There is little traction in the leg holes, so the garment does slide up a great deal in the back and a little on the front of the legs, but the pouch stays comfortable while this happens. 8/10

Aesthetics: The ERGO WEAR label, split up into two lines arranged diagonally across the waistband, looks unique and cool. The way the design cuts away in the front looks slick and modern. The looks of Ergowear underwear are as unique as the company’s functional innovations. 8/10

Overall rating: 8/10

Big enough? Yes.