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2Toms Buttshield

9
£15.00

VERDICT:

9
10
Excellent odour-free, non-greasy, long-lasting anti-chafe lube, if you can get over the roll-on thing
Weight: 
76g
Contact: 

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2Toms Buttshield is a roll-on chamois cream. Hmmmm. Let's think about that shall we? Roll-on. Chamois cream. A roll-on for down there. It, um, doesn't seem quite right, a little... unsavoury and maybe just a bit unhygienic. Or is that just me? You know... roll it about downstairs, put the top back on, leave it to fester for a bit before the next ride. Roll it about the undercarriage again. The possibility of picking up a bit of, um, fluff in passing.

Not that a tub of more standard chamois cream doesn't have the potential to be a nicely maturing pot of germs, even if you don't double-dip, but it just feels a little, ummmm, odd, to have to rub a roll-on around the crotch area. It's certainly a different way of going about things. Readers of a certain vintage may be reminded of the Not The Nine O'Clock News 'Swedish Chemist's Shop' sketch. Or again, is that just me?

On the plus side, I'm pretty sure no one's going to want to borrow your Buttshield if they've forgotten their own chamois cream, so there is that.

Application reservations aside, 2Toms Buttshield is full of nice things to make that bit a bit nicer when cycling: Aloe Vera, Vitamin E, Shea Butter, Green Tea Extract, Calendula Extract and Horestail Plant Extract are all in the mix that contains no animal products.

2Toms Buttshield can be a little awkward to apply (and not just mentally) in this roll-on format (single use wipes are available); because of where you're putting it, the bottle is mostly upright during spreading which means the fluid doesn't naturally flow through the roll-on ball as it would if you were using a roll-on inverted in an armpit. So to get a decent layering of lube you have to turn the bottle upside down, give it a squeeze to pre-load the ball and then roll on, which makes the awkward process a little more fussy than it needs to be. Or you could do a pre-ride prep hand-stand to make things easier.

On the practical side, the small 45ml bottle is a compact size for traveling and the bottom of a race bag. And ButtShield is safe to use on both leather and synthetic chamois. At £15 it might seem a little pricey for such a small bottle but it goes on thin, there's no overspill like you might get with over-excited fingering in a tub of cream, and as it lasts a long time on the skin there's no need for re-application so it actually works out very good value.

A possible bonus compared with other cycling-specific chamois creams is that, should you feel the need to apply a friction-reducing salve elsewhere on your body rather than the more traditional places you might do for a ride, maybe the inner-thigh or somewhere personal that tends to rub on a ride, then the roll-on applicator and thin, non-greasy film of the Buttshield makes this easy and non-messy.

> Read more road.cc reviews of skincare & embrocation products

Administration issues aside, 2Toms Buttshield is a very, very good chamois cream, although it's not really a cream and more of a liquid. It's odourless, goes on without any mess and, thanks to the application method of rolling a thin film on the skin, there's no chance of over lubing. Buttshield is very smooth and silky to the touch and doesn't feel in any way unpleasantly clammy or sticky once it's in place down where it needs to be.

And once Buttshield is there it stays down there, even over the longest rides. Despite not being able to feel it between your legs (a good thing) it does work (also a good thing), preventing rubbing and soreness for whatever length ride you choose to be on. A little discreet checking after rides showed that there was still a useful friction-free layer of Buttshield where it was put on several hours previously. The roll on may be problematic but it doesn't roll off.

Verdict

Excellent odour-free, non-greasy, long-lasting anti-chafe lube, if you can get over the roll-on thing

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road.cc test report

Make and model: 2Toms Buttshield

Size tested: 45ml

Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

2Toms says: "2Toms ButtShield is a revolutionary product, the solution for even the worst butt irritation and saddle sores which is applied to your butt or groin area to create a friction-free, satin-smooth surface that prevents chafing. Applied with an easy to use roll-on applicator ButtShield will not rub off even under the most extreme condition. One application is all you need to guarantee a day of comfort, since the last thing you want to be doing all day is thinking about your butt!"

I'd concur with all of that. Excellent, long lasting, odourless silky butt cream – contentious application method though.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Ingredients: Dimethicone, Dimethiconol, Aloe Vera, Vitamin E, Shea Butter, Green Tea Extract, Calendula Extract, Horestail Plant Extract. Contains no animal products

Rate the product for performance:
 
9/10

Excellent non-greasy, non-tacky, odourless crotch lube.

Rate the product for durability:
 
9/10

Stays put for the longest rides.

Rate the product for comfort (if applicable)
 
9/10

You can't feel it's there at all but it certainly works at keeping things comfy downstairs.

Rate the product for value:
 
8/10

It might seem pricey for such a small bottle, but thin layering of application means no waste or overspill and lengthy on-saddle effectiveness make it very good value.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Very different in many ways to your usual chamois cream but it does its job incredibly well.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Smell and sticky-free, long lasting.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The roll-on application was a little disconcerting.

Did you enjoy using the product? Once it was on, yes.

Would you consider buying the product? Now I'm mostly over the roll-on issues, yes.

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes, they're not borrowing mine.

Use this box to explain your score

It was quite a mental shift to get used to putting Buttshield on, but it's one of the least obtrusive, longest lasting botty lubes I've used.

Overall rating: 9/10

About the tester

Age: 47  Height: 180cm  Weight: 73kg

I usually ride: It varies as to the season.  My best bike is: The one I'm on at the time

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: Most days  I would class myself as: Experienced

I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, cyclo cross, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed, mountain biking, fun

Jo Burt has spent the majority of his life riding bikes, drawing bikes and writing about bikes. When he's not scribbling pictures for the whole gamut of cycling media he writes words about them for road.cc and when he's not doing either of those he's pedaling. Then in whatever spare minutes there are in between he's agonizing over getting his socks, cycling cap and bar-tape to coordinate just so. And is quietly disappointed that yours don't He rides and races road bikes a bit, cyclo-cross bikes a lot and mountainbikes a fair bit too. Would rather be up a mountain.

Add new comment

3 comments

Avatar
JamesE279 | 6 years ago
0 likes

Surely you roll it onto your chammy pad?

Avatar
Yorkshire wallet | 6 years ago
1 like

Just need a Kickstarter version with flashing lights on now.

In all seriousness, what sort of mileage are people doing to start slapping this stuff on? Maybe I've just a lucky combination of arse and saddle.

Avatar
Broady. | 6 years ago
0 likes

Dunno if I'd fancy rolling something around my clay eye. If only for hygiene reasons.

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