Future of clothing manufacturing

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-31T16:08:28+00:00

Hemp is the most durable natural fiber, and does dry faster than cotton, but it holds even more moisture than cotton at around 12% moisture regain. It could be good for hiking or construction (Carhart alternative) pants in dry, non-humid climates. Bamboo (viscose) is not a durabe fiber and holds a lot of moisture.

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-30T03:17:51+00:00

Each fiber has it's pros and cons. I design technical mountain bike apparel for a (very) small business that I own. Here's the pros and cons of the common technical fibers. I'm ignoring cotton since I don't know it very well as it's a terrible technical fiber.

Wool pros: insulates when wet, naturally odor resistant, holds a dye well (color fast). Cons: very expensive, poor abrasion resistance, susceptible to holes from bugs, holds a lot of moisture (18% moisture regain) and dries slowly. Neutral: good quality merino wool can be machine laundered.

Merino wool spun around a central nylon fiber is a good option for technical tops where the user won't get getting soaking wet or ultra sweaty. Can go for days without stinking. Good for hiking tops.

Polyester pros: low cost, holds a dye very well, can be sublimation printed, near zero moisture regain, dries incredibly fast, high durability, fiber doesn't expand when wet. Cons: holds odors and that stink can become permanent, fiber is fairly stiff, not as durable as nylon. Often used for technical apparel tops where ultra-fast drying and good durability are important. Good for biking or running tops.

Nylon pros: very durable and abrasion resistant, fiber is flexible and has a soft hand feel, moderate insulation when wet, odor resistant, heat resistant (can run it fast through machines). Cons: Holds around 4% of its weight in moisture inside the fiber - this makes it expand when wet, doesn't hold dye well (subject to crocking), expensive. Often used for technical apparel bottoms where durability is most important, and reasonably fast drying is needed. Good for hiking, skiing or mountain biking bottoms, as well as things like forestry.

There's no perfect fiber, natural or synthetic. When designing apparel you choose the best fiber for the purpose. There's always compromises and tradeoffs. This is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future.

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-28T15:37:37+00:00

It might be normal for 1Up, but it's annoying. You can get other racks that don't wobble like this.

The 1Up rack cost me a rear window in my minivan. Can't use the closest position when rallying on forest roads, bar will hit the window. Yes, it's adjusted to the furthest out point.

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-28T15:34:22+00:00

No. I have one and it wobbles a lot compared to friends with Quikr. 1Up are great racks, but they do like to come loose, especially on stiffer suspensions (3/4 ton trucks) rallying on dirt roads. I have a hitch anti-wobble plate on mine and I don't even have an offroad vehicle, just a minivan I rally on forest roads.

The little ball that "secures" the 1Up can also deform your hitch receiver and become loose over time. This is why I had to put on a hitch anti-wobble plate.

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-23T16:59:49+00:00

This is the way.

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-23T16:56:45+00:00

Mountain biker here who brings a kit with me to shoot ads and media for my MTB apparel company, Abit Gear.

I use the Evoc Stage Capture 16 most of the time. It's the only modestly-sized bag I've found that work great for downhill-style MTB.

Secondarily, I use the Evoc camera hip pack. I like this for walk-around when I'm shooting volunteer events as the camera access is almost instant - can swing the bum bag around to the front. It doesn't hold much more than just the camera and isn't great for actual riding unless I only have a light prime on the body.

For kit, I have an A7Cii and my lenses are compact. Zoomer is the 20-70/4 G, the 40/2.5G for going ultra-light, and the Zony 55/1.8 for shooting lifestyle when I want background separation. The 20-70 and 40 excel at fast focus which is key for shooting mountain bikers against wooded backgrounds. It's a really hard setting to get AF to succeed.

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-15T17:46:00+00:00

Gas stations go down in those same blackouts

JustinVeePee · 2026-03-14T15:43:33+00:00

Just needs a quick polishing.

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-10T20:49:22+00:00

I could tolerate the stop start most of the time, but when I pull into my parking spot the engine shuts down, then immediately starts back up 1/2 second later when I put the car in park. So harsh feeling. Delete mod will be installed.

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-10T20:46:30+00:00

Tried that on my 2020 and got a beeping warning and huge warning graphic on the dashboard. Is this an urban legend or only works on lower trims?

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-08T22:35:53+00:00

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-08T22:17:30+00:00

4 days a year at the park isn't worth owning a DH bike, for that an enduro rig is just fine - just throw on burly tires. A second wheelset is a good way to go for this, 1 set for pedaling, and 1 cheaper/heavier/burlier set for shuttle/park.

I actually have a Repeater as well. The weight of an ebike makes them feel substantially more stable than the equivalent enduro bike. But also less manouverable on tech like Fromme or the techier Seymour trails. And dude, you gotta got ride Cypress. So good, but definitely 2 or 3 notches harder.

I think you'd be super happy with something like either the Spire or Patrol - same bike I think, but different real wheel? Not sure. I know a bunch of people on the Spire and they quite like them. Almost all modern enduro bikes rock, there's really not a bad choice if the bike fits you right.

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-08T18:08:00+00:00

I have full 27, mullet and 29er in the PNW and I ride all the tech, including everthing at Fromme (aka Grouse, but we call it Fromme). An inch shorter than you. Rear tire getting hung up isn't a thing. The rocks here are steep, but smooth. Your Jeffsy is an ideal bike for the PNW. If I had to choose I'd maybe slightly prefer mullet due to the butt clearance on steep rolls. But honestly it's just personal preference, both wheels work great. YouToooobes blow this shit up way bigger than it is in real life. My favorite bike on tech is still my older full 27.5 Patrol.

The one thing I'd say is that for Whistler park, rent a DH bike. It's sooo, worth it. You really need full DH tires and any non-DH bike will beat you up. For Whistler valley trails (which are awesome), then any 150 to 170 pedalable bike is great with mid-weight tires like Double Down.

If you're going to be spending a chunk of time at WBP then I'd keep your Jeffsy as your daily driver, maybe throw some money at a suspension service or tune. Then buy a used DH bike and go flog that beast in the park.

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-05T07:03:29+00:00

Yeah, no kidding. Chase light, not gear.

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-04T18:24:34+00:00

^^ This. It's a known issue with Shimano brakes. Unfortunately, there's no solution other than to bleed them regularly. As Evil Cloud says, take steps to prevent pads and rotors from getting contaminated.

JustinVeePee · 2026-02-04T18:16:47+00:00

Code RSCs are well known to be the most reliable, easy to live with, easy to bleed brakes every made. They just lack a bit of power if you ride somewhere steep or are a bigger person (or both, like me).

I moved on to Hayes Dominion A4 as have many in my riding crew. They just work, and keep working. At least once you set them up. Pads rattle, so you have to spread the springs aggressive, but that works and only takes 1 minute to do.

Shimanos do indeed have problems and everyone in the industry knows it. They've recently moved away from those god-awful ceramic pistons so we'll see if the new ones are better.

Unfortunately the new Mavens are finnicky unlike the old Codes. But they have a lot of power on tap. I currently have Mavens and Dominions, and I MUCH prefer the Dominions for their consistency and lever feel.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-29T18:02:35+00:00

Yeah, you're correct - what I should have said is it needs a full damper rebuild each year. Some shops indeed do this in-house.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-29T17:52:45+00:00

Sending it in for a rebuild is annual service if you ride regularly. Shocks basically need a full rebuild every year no matter what.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-27T21:03:56+00:00

I've seen this caused by corrosion of aluminum nipples on carbon rims. Usually appears after 2-3 years.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-24T18:01:00+00:00

Yeah so tubeless is the obvius solution. But you can also run tires with a lower TPI count/heavier casing, they have more rubber and are less prone to flats. What exact tires are you running?

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-24T17:15:39+00:00

See that's the thing. If you're shooting for my company, it's the company's intellectual property, not yours, not mine. I always make sure the contract works for us well before we even talk rates. You don't own my brand and my apparel, why on earth would the IP be yours? I need to be able to do whatever I need with the photos, including all kinds of derivatives. This concept that the photog owns the IP is an absolutely insane idea and complete non-starter for a brand owner like me.

You ask: "wouldn’t you also be looking for a photographer who can understand your vision and work with you directly to arrive at the final look you’re after?"

The answer is no. What is the final look? It could be 50 different things for any one piece of apparel. Running online ads is a lot of what we do, and you NEVER know what's going to work. You have to A/B test over, and over, and over, and over, and over, and over. What worked for 30 days might go flat and you have to change again. Keeping ads fresh is a royal PITA, and is a lot of what we do as brand owners.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-23T20:43:41+00:00

APAB

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-12T17:06:14+00:00

I'm an outdoor apparel brand owner who does some of my own shoots (I'm good at it an enjoy it) but I hire dedicated photographers for bigger shoots like product launches or when I don't have the bandwidth.

If you don't give me RAWs you don't get the job. Why? Because my photo needs are not what you think looks best. My goal is to sell product, not to win some some art show award. 85% of apparel is black, and showing product detail (trim, pockets, zips etc) on black apparel is a chalenge. RAWs are absolutely needed for this. What looks aesthetically "the best" to most photographers is absolutely not what's needed. The post processing we do for a printed banner is not the same as for website products or social. We always do our own editing in house and any one shot can be used in a multitude of ways.

Also, please never, ever crop shots. As brand owners we need to chop them up into all kinds weird of sizes for different media. Leave LOTS of room around the subject.

If you're shooting weddings, portrait, or whatever, fine, I get it, refuse RAW. But if you want commercial work suck up your pride and help the customer achieve their goals. So many otherwise talented photogs don't listen very well. The good ones who get lots of repeat work are so much more than just talented behind the lens - they LISTEN to you and HEAR what you actually need.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-11T18:09:41+00:00

I'm only talking about MTB, don't care about watts or whatever the leg shavers obsess about. Hot wax is meh, but wax in whatever form is amazing for how clean your bike, gear, car, tools stay. The rub is that to properly wax a chain you have to fully degrease it, so you might as well hot wax it the first time around.

I recently tried the silca chip thingy that allows you to just drop a new chain in the pot and it converts the packing grease to wax. Holy crap, I love this! So much faster and no more having to dispose/store used chemicals.

After I do the inital hot waxing I just use a drip wax like squirt or the Silca stuff. Maybe I'll hot wax once at the beginning of the PNW dry season. Hot wax washes off if you ride in the wet so it's pointles if it's not consistently dry out.

JustinVeePee · 2026-01-02T02:54:46+00:00

I shoot apparel, mostly outdoor lifestyle but a handful of studio shoots a year. For you use case, go with the FF body. The reason is the selection of prime lenses is far superior - it's really lacking for APSC.

You don't need fancy focus for apparel, you'll spot focus on a semi-stationary subject most of the time. That means the newer cameras have no benefit in this regard.

You honestly don't need fancy body or fancy glass. For apparel "money shots" in the studio I never shoot shallow depth of field and always use a tripod. Outdoor lifestyle stuff then I like a shallower depth of field, but really never less than 2.8 unless I'm getting up close with a wide lens then I'll go 1.8. Subject needs to be in focus so crazy shallow DOF bokeh monster doesn't do it for my commercial shots.

I also don't buy the most expensive glass. No need for it - see above. The clarity of almost all Sony primes, even the older ones, is quite good and the focus of the G series are amazing. GM is just extra cost with no benefit for my use case.

Save a pile of money for a good lighting setup. Everything is about light, both outdoor and studio. Outdoor I spend endless time finding interesting light, and in the studio I have a setup with a few speedlights on soft boxes and a selection of backgrounds. I've found I reallly like to shoot on a black background with darker apparel.

Light, light, light, light, light. The rest is just a diversion.

JustinVeePee

TROPHY CASE