An angry buttonhole makes for a lousy ride, and if it (or its neighbors) aren’t happy, you won’t be either.
Enzo’s Cycling Products knows this, and they want your button to be a happy, chafe-free button. We’re happy to say, their wish came true, and we’re a bunch of happy button riding fools after using their new chamois cream.
ButtonHole is far and away our new favorite pad grease: It smells nice, it prevents chafe and irritation and it washes away cleanly. On top of that, the ingredients list is paraben, petrolatum and PPG/PEG free, so you can feel good inside and out.
Overall the ingredients lists reads fairly clean with a lot of natural oils, Cacao Seed Butter, organic silicone and some fancy herbs to keep everything smooth, lubed and infection, friction and inflammation free down there.
An 8oz tub retails for $19.95, which is a pretty good deal considering what’s in it and how well it works, and they just released a 4oz “trial size” that’s $10.95.
Check the full ingredients list and our reviewer comments after the break…
INGREDIENTS:
Water, Cetearyl Alcohol, Glycine Soja Oil, Dimethicone, Glyceryl Stearate Se, Cyclomethicone, Dimethiconol, Polysorbate 80, Theobromoa Cacao Seed Butter, Helianthus Annuus Seed Oil, Phenoxyethanol, Capryly glycol, Potassium Sorbate, Hexylene Glycol, Sodium Borate, Acrylates/C10-30 Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Fragrance, Mentha Piperita Oil, Menthol, Melaleuca Alternifolia Leaf Oil, Xanthan Gum, Epilobium Angustifolium Extract, Hamamelis Virginiana, Tocopheryl Acetate, Retinyl Palmitate, Bisabolol, Edta Disodium
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Glycine Soya– In place of mineral oil: Aids the skin to retain moisture and restore barrier functions.
- Melaeuca Oil– A topical Antibacterial and Antifungal
- Hamamelis Virginiana– An Antiseptic that has soothing properties.
- Peppermint Oil– Contains Menthol, which is good for skin. It also gives a cooling effect.
- Menthol– A topical Analgesic that relieves minor aches and pains
- Sunflower Seed Oil– With a high Vitamin E content, this oil increases the lubricating properties of the formula.
- Cocoa Seed Butter– Excellent emollient properties adding moisture to very dry and dehydrated skin.
Most of the others can be looked up on Wikipedia or any search engine, and more often than not, even the really chemically-sounding ones are naturally derived or synthetics of natural ingredients that are generally used as moisturizers, humectants and/or emulsifiers and thickeners. In our searching around, nothing jumped out as pernicious.
REVIEWER COMMENTS:
TYLER: With any chamois cream, the first thing you notice is the smell, and ButtonHole smells great…like a combination of vanilla and peppermint. I wish I had a candle that smelled like this for our office. The texture is just right, not to thick, not too thin, and it spreads easily on the chamois. Since it’s a tub and note a tube, I usually don’t apply directly to the skin in case I need to double dip. ButtonHole is the only chamois cream I used for the duration of the Breck Epic, a six day stage race put on by Mike McCormack to test the sanity of the average mountain biker. I spent somewhere between 3 and 6+ hours in the saddle each day, usually on the high end of that range, and at the end of the week had no chafing or irritation to speak of. There were days when it was hot, sections that were wet, and at 13,000+ feet, plenty of times that were darn near freezing, so I’d say it was a solid test of the product’s “staying power”. I’d highly recommend it.
EVAN: A multitude of uses later, I find myself fond of a new chamois cream, ButtonHole. ButtonHole has a good texture/consistency and a pleasant smell. It endures the varying conditions and circumstances of cycling with fortitude and succeeds in accomplishing the task for which it was designed. I personally have applied it for short rides, long rides, mountain bike rides, road rides, rides in the rain, and rides when I’ve been sweating profusely or almost freezing my you know what off. In all situations though, I have experienced virtually zero chafing and minimal product deterioration. Without hesitation I will say that Enzo has a high quality product, one that will find its home on my balls for many of rides to come.
…and Matt wrote a long (but good!) one, so we put it last.
MATT: Enzo’s ButtonHole is manufactured in the good ole’ US of A. So that begs the question… Can it actually work if this is true? Let’s find out. Call me old fashioned or just weird but the first thing I do when presented with a new product like Button Hole is stick my nose in it and give it a whiff and I was surprised to find a cross between Bengay and a minty toothpaste. I like it already!
One of the primary goals when designing Button Hole as to make a product that, yes reduces friction, making riding more comfortable long term, but also to have the ability to reduce inflammation and promote healing and a quick recovery for riding back to back long days.
How does ButtonHole back up this claim? They use Melaleuca Oil for the Antibacterial/Anti-fungal to keep you clean as a whistle. Hamamelis to help soothe the soul from the bottom up and and Organic Silicone Compound to help keep it where you put it, which is always a plus when there’s a cooling/tingling sensation downstairs.
The makers of Enzo designed ButtonHole to provide “ultimate button protection during those gruelling cycling rides”. I have ridden ButtonHole on road rides ranging from 20 miles to 70+ in wet and dry conditions as well as mountain bike rides upwards of 3hours and ButtonHole has done as claimed all the while providing a cool tingle within seconds of application. ButtonHole performed and lasted, the tingle goes away, but it does not. I have yet to experience any chaffing, saddle sores or any other pain or discomfort aside from seat contact points.
I recently had an evening of events to attend, thanks to my lovely wife, that involved a wine tasting and dinner. This interfered with my planning evening of riding so I showed up at the wine tasting dressed to the nines, as always, with my bibs proudly on under my clothes. I stayed for a very few short minutes and went on my ride and showed up late for dinner, partially in the dog house but I got my ride in so I felt it was worth it. At this point you are probably wondering why this has any relevance to ButtonHole? Here’s how it’s relevant. I toiled as I got dressed for this evening because I had to really contemplate whether or not to apply ButtonHole before or after I went to the wine tasting, I like this stuff that much, so I figured two applications would definitely out perform one. Social situations aren’t my favourite so I didn’t want to have to explain the sly grin on my face to a bunch of strangers so reluctantly I refrained from a pre-ride wine tasting application, but probably won’t next time.
Two other testers agree that ButtonHole, on the whole does a great job. A recent 30 mile mountain bike ride by 4 of us, 3 sporting the ButtonHole helped to cement my opinion on this product. The one of us that was not using ButtonHole experienced a great deal of chaffing and to my knowledge none of the 3 of us did.
Our Recommendation: Whether you are nearing the end of your current Chamois Creme supply or new to Chamois Cremes, ButtonHole will open your eyes to a totally new experience. ButtonHole is available from a number of retailers or directly from their website.
MSRP: $19.95 for an 8oz Container (10% of all profits at the end of the year are donated to children’s charities!)
Having never smoked I can only assume that it’s like your down under taking a drag on a Menthol for the first time after some sweet, sweet loving.
