Endura Jagged Sock

The Endura Jagged Socks are lovely in many ways – comfortable, cool on hot rides, secure and good looking. They don't quite have the quality I've come to expect of Endura, though, which puts durability in some doubt.

These socks have a reasonably soft fabric with a fairly firm stretch – I find them comfortable, completely secure and slightly compressive. A mid-sole elasticated band keeps them closely shaped to your arches, too, which feels good.

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The fabric is fairly thick beneath your foot and up around your toes, which provides warmth on cooler days and decent cushioning for rough roads, yet doesn't make them sweaty when temperatures rise.

Instead they cool well thanks to the thin, perforated upper foot, and I never felt sweaty in them even on 26°C rides and hard climbs. They wash easily afterwards too, though don't demand it every ride – they resist smells pretty well.

If you don't like the colours, this design comes in four other combinations.

At £12.99 the price is reasonable – it puts them in the lower half of the market – though value is undercut by concerns over longevity.

While the seams along that jagged design look perfect externally, inside they're a mess of threads. Many have been cut and are no problem, but plenty are still loops. It's easy to catch and pull them as you put these on. Quite a few of the horizontal bands of elastic are pulling up and looping out on this pair, too (again, it's only visible on the inside – for now).

Also, the thick fabric of the footbed seems oddly fragile. You can pull loops of threads out with just a gentle pinch, and they're already going hazy and scruffy from friction in my shoes. If the fabric continues to lose its composure at this rate, it could easily lose its cushioning properties in the longterm.

In response to this issue, Endura says: "The slightly looser-looking knit on the sole is a result of the terry/loop knit on the inside."

> Buyer’s Guide: 23 of the best summer cycling socks

After four to five weeks of use, they look just as good on the bike as on day one – none of the affected areas are visible, as they're either inside the cuffs or inside your shoes. They also still feel really good and secure. How much longer that will remain true, and whether the seams, elastic or footbed will deteriorate enough to affect performance, remains to be seen.

Given the sheer quantity of socks you can choose from, it's hard to recommend these despite their generally impressive comfort. They may last you just fine; but then again, they may not.

Verdict

Comfortable, breathable secure and stylish – but durability is a concern