My old thermal tights did not have a pad. I chose them that way so they could be removed mid ride if it got too warm. But I found that if it was cold enough to use the tights in the first place, I never took them off mid ride, and they were too bulky to carry in a jersey pocket, anyway. The Assos have a very nice pad, and I like the minimalist shoulder straps that help keep the pad in place. Tight compression in the legs, but more compliant material at the front waist panel for easy bathroom access. Warm but not too warm when used in low 50 degree weather. But I am a wimp in cold weather, so others may find them too warm as it gets into the 60's.
I've only used them on two consecutive cold days so far. My one complaint is that my knees felt bruised afterward, which could only have been a result of constriction or rubbing of the top of my patella (knee cap) from the tights during the rides. I don't have knee issues otherwise, and it all cleared up the next day. This may become less of a problem as the material stretches with use. My old tights have a more stretchable articulated knee area.
I am 6'2", 165 lbs, 34" waist. I tried the fit of the large, but preferred and kept the size medium.
I've tested these over the course of about 400 miles and I am extremely pleased with them. The bib is one of the best I have ever used whether in winter or summer bibs. The material is extremely warm and nice feeling. I put these bibs squarely in the 'winter bib' category. They seem very durable so far and if you can get these on sales, these are easily worth the money you pay. Assos isn't cheap, but as is usually the case, you get what you pay for.
This is a new and confusingly named product; Habu is the name reserved for Assos' early Winter line up but this tight is for deep winter, as evidenced by the double layer of their heaviest RX over the knees. This is very similar to the design of the old LL.MIlle tights, which were a very warm and comfortable set of tights which lacked wind proofing and and had a fairly simple pad. I cut the pad out of those and wore a wind proof bib underneath as my main winter tights. These new tights make that unnecessary, providing that critical wind proofing front panel and a very good pad; they are the LL.Mille tights perfected! They still lack protection against the wet, so they're for cold, dry weather. They also lack the sweaty geoprene leg openings, which makes them more comfortable and quite a bit cheaper than the Equipe RS.
Fantastic winter bib. Warm in all the right places, extremely durable fabric, really excellent feel. High quality garment.
