CASTELLI UPF 50 + Light Arm 2 Sleeves, UPF 50 Breathable Sleeve for Cycling, Road Biking & Gravel Riding, Men & Women

As an avid cyclist, I am very familiar with Castelli products, and I own a number of their pieces, ranging from jerseys to bib shorts to jackets and base layers. Which is to say, I'm generally family with their sizing, which tends to run very small compared to US sizing. Now, don't get me wrong--I'm a typical cyclist build, 5'10", 145-150 lbs, 32" waist with most of my mass in my lower half; my wrists are 6.5" in circumference; my biceps are about 11.25" in circumference, relaxed. And I like my cycling kit pretty much painted on.Given the lack of sizing guidance (which really is unforgiveable), I ordered a size medium, which is what I wear in Castelli jerseys. Unfortunately, while I think medium probably is the right size for me, it ends up being loose at the wrist and for the first 6" or so of the arm and being very tight on my biceps. I'm hoping that the bicep gripper/band will stretch out over time because as it is, it's a bit uncomfortable. Given the grippiness of the inside of the bicep band, I really don't understand why Castelli made it so tight--it's definitely not at risk of slipping down once your jersey cuff is placed over the bicep portion of the sun sleeve.Other than the fit--which can always be a difficult thing I've found with Castelli products--I like these sun sleeves. The fabric is very thin, soft and stretchy, and I have no doubt it will wick sweat well. The stitching is consistent. And I really appreciate that the label inside the sleeve is stitched on separately with a standard stitch so that you can remove the label entirely without affecting the integrity of the rest of the sleeves' stitching.

The arm sleeves are okay. They do block the sun well and feel light on the skin. But they slip down sometimes when I’m biking, which is a bit annoying. The material is good, just wish they stayed in place better. Not bad, but could be improved.

I've got a lot of sun sleeves for cycling ranging from cycling-specific brands like Pearl Izumi and Sugoi to various non-cycling brands like Missing Link, Franklin, etc.These Castelli sleeves (my first Castelli product ever) are among the best fitting that I've tried, i.e. they don't bind, yet they stay in position and they're long enough. The Sugoi that I have are a little short, but that was because I got M rather than L. Their length is fine for short-sleeved jerseys with the current trend of sleeves going closer to the elbow. The Pearl Izumi are a bit long, with the M being too long while the S fits me just right. But the PI's fabric (albeit first-gen sun sleeves--they're current products use different material) is a bit warm-feeling in summer heat/humidity. With these Castelli and their reputation for tighter fitting clothes, I jumped straight to L on a total guess. Why a guess? Because Castelli provides ZERO helpful guidance on sizing of their sleeves products, whether sun sleeves or warmers.I lucked out because the length on the L are just right for me, and my ~14" middling biceps are at the limit. The upper arm gripper is wide with a grippy but thin material so they don't show through your jersey with as big/obvious a seam as some others, e.g. the MIssing Link and their thick silicone band.The material felt fine on a ~90F, full sun, low humidity road bike ride.I was slightly concerned that the logos are black--I was thinking they'd block UV more than the white fabric all around the lettering and I'd end up having a sun tan tattoo of "Castelli" on my arms, but that didn't turn out to be an issue at all. It would've been kind of cool though if instead of the name they had their scorpion logo there and you get a sun tan tattoo of a scorpion on your forearms.Miscellaneous: These sleeves have a distinct left and right, with the Castelli name printed in opposite directions so they are right side up when worn on the expected side. I don't think there's a significant difference in the structure, cut or seams between left and right as you see on some arm sleeve/warmer products though.The things adding up to a full star deduction from me are total lack of sizing guidance and the slight difficulty in getting the upper arm gripper to lay flat. The latter might be easier if your biceps aren't at the limit for the sleeve's fit. Once you get it to lay flat though, it stays that way.The list price is a bit high for my blood, but I think you do get better cycling-specific product design and quality in exchange. A lot of other non-cycling sun sleeves are just way too short, or if they're long enough, they also expect you to have bigger biceps, which just isn't going to be the case for most road cyclists :-).

I used it on an abnormally warm ride during this spring, and it works great and cooling my arms off.Great fit, stretches well enough but you need to get the right size.Functionally, I just want to keep my arms from burning up during the summer and also warm them up in the winter. It works well.

Let's start with why it got stars. The quality is good, soft, does not run hot, and is very breathable. It fits well, it protects from the sun, and some bugs (more if you soak it in some permethrin). And these look good, very stylish.Now let's talk about why they only got THREE stars. Poorly stitched together, ripped as soon as I went outside. I took a look, they cheaped out on the type of stitching they used. These will not last long. Also, why on earth did they put a giant, itchy, inconvenient tag on the inside of skin tight clothing? Why? Who thought that was a good idea. And due to the cheap stitching they used, you can even take out the tag. I do not recommend this product. 5/10