Editor’s Choice 2020

Far from the usual crinkly, tissue paper fabric found on most waterproof trousers, the Fox Ranger 3L Water is soft and supple against the skin. There’s a four-way stretch to the fabric to ensure it doesn’t restrict movement, and the fully taped seams and quality Durable Water Repellent coating keeps you cool and dry. With the Ranger 3L, Fox gives you form and function.

Read more: The best mountain bike trousers – regular and waterproof

The face fabric of the Fox Ranger 3L Water Pant contains a high percentage of Spandex, which means it has a four-way stretch ability, is less noisy and, in our opinion, way more comfortable. But don’t let that imply this trouser is less effective at keeping you dry because it’s actually really good. It’s uses Truseal, a three-layer fabric that features a membrane middle layer to boost wicking and waterproofness. We don’t have any figures but during tests we’ve found it breathes as good as the Endura MT500 pant and is close in terms of waterproofness.

To stop water ingress, all the seams a fully taped, there’s a high quality DWR (Durable Water Repellent) finish on the surface layer to sheds moisture and dirt and the fly has a sort of internal baffle to stop water getting in. There’s not a wide range of adjustment with the moto-inspired Race Ratchet Closure System but this pant is tighter fitting at the waist than the Flexair pants we tested previously.

One of the best features of the Fox Ranger 3L is the tapered leg. This is featured on all Fox pants and not only does it keep any flapping material out of the chain it also stops it sagging down at the bottom, which is not a good look.

Compared to similar pants from Endura and Gore, the Fox Ranger 3L is not quite as waterproof but it was the preferred choice with testers. Some of this was definitely due to the styling but on-the-bike comfort was way higher and we didn’t feel like we were riding around in a pair of hiking trousers. Combine performance, comfort, fit and the price and you have the best on test – totally recommended.