Susan's Place Transgender Resources

My two binders came yesterday ,rather quickly, i was surprised how fast i got them because i didnt expect them to come yesterday. I bought the Underworks Tri-top ,one black and one white :) They sure are a b*tch to put on but alot easier to take off ha. My girlfriend loves them also !! It actually works, i have pecks now haha

Good for you!  I remember getting my first binders and how good it made me feel.  In the summer I also put a compression shirt under them to wick away the sweat.

Yeah thats what scares me, how do you wear these in the dead heat?! Like in 90 degree weather ?

Yay for quick delivery!

Quote from: Landen Scott on April 07, 2013, 10:20:48 AM
Yeah thats what scares me, how do you wear these in the dead heat?! Like in 90 degree weather ?

Wondering this too. I didn't bind last summer.

--Jay

Quote from: Landen Scott on April 07, 2013, 10:20:48 AM
Yeah thats what scares me, how do you wear these in the dead heat?! Like in 90 degree weather ?

By grinding teeth and sweating like a pig.
That's how I deal with it, although that kinda temperatures are a bit rare in Finland but few degrees less feels just as bad after a long cold winter.

I just put a wife beater on under a tri-top so it takes in all the sweat. As long as you can sweat, you won't overheat too badly.

These things can get really hot so maybe just wear a light shirt on top (like the formal button up type as it will allow some air in through the gaps between the buttons) Good to wear in the winter to warm up easier but in the summer it probably wouldnt be too fun

I just got my first one today for the sake of trying one, underworks 997. Heard it was really good even for big chests but unfortunately not doing too much for me. Slightly flatter compared to not wearing it but still far from being flat (I know cisguys arent completely flat but Im even far off being that) Guess nothing can really work when you're this bad. All I can do in the meantime before surgery though. Its a slight improvement but not sure the discomfort and restricted movement is really worth it. Its fine on my front, no breathing issues what so ever or any tightness/pain. Its only really tight on my back, seems to be tightening in around my waist at the back. Thats all that hurts but is pretty annoying. Dont know if I'll wear this much or not since its not much of an effect but being this bad I kinda expected that. Worth a try anyway I guess. Might tri-top or a different one work better or is there just no point trying? Got a waist belt too to try make my waist look better, alot of my unwanted weight is around there so this helps shove it down a bit til I can lose it. Came extremely quickly though, ordered it on Tuesday from the US and it arrived here on Thursday (Im in the UK) Didnt expect it could even get here this fast lol

Now i know why everyone hates these things so much

Quote from: Leo. on April 08, 2013, 04:40:08 PM
These things can get really hot so maybe just wear a light shirt on top (like the formal button up type as it will allow some air in through the gaps between the buttons) Good to wear in the winter to warm up easier but in the summer it probably wouldnt be too fun

I just got my first one today for the sake of trying one, underworks 997. Heard it was really good even for big chests but unfortunately not doing too much for me. Slightly flatter compared to not wearing it but still far from being flat (I know cisguys arent completely flat but Im even far off being that) Guess nothing can really work when you're this bad. All I can do in the meantime before surgery though. Its a slight improvement but not sure the discomfort and restricted movement is really worth it. Its fine on my front, no breathing issues what so ever or any tightness/pain. Its only really tight on my back, seems to be tightening in around my waist at the back. Thats all that hurts but is pretty annoying. Dont know if I'll wear this much or not since its not much of an effect but being this bad I kinda expected that. Worth a try anyway I guess. Might tri-top or a different one work better or is there just no point trying? Got a waist belt too to try make my waist look better, alot of my unwanted weight is around there so this helps shove it down a bit til I can lose it. Came extremely quickly though, ordered it on Tuesday from the US and it arrived here on Thursday (Im in the UK) Didnt expect it could even get here this fast lol

I'm fortunate to have a pretty small chest, but even with that positioning is key.  It probably won't sort out your back problems, but playing around with positioning until you find something that works should get you flatter.  Someone (Joey I think?) posted asking about it a week or so ago, and someone else linked to their detailed post about binding larger chests, but I've completely forgotten their name.

Quote from: Landen Scott on April 08, 2013, 06:03:29 PM
Now i know why everyone hates these things so much

I've had several people ask me why my chest is so big if I want to be a guy so bad. All I have to do is look at those things and know I don't want to wear one. I'll probably get one when I'm a lot smaller but that's not for another year at least.

I know underworks, especially the 997, is considered just about top of the line. However i really eant to go swiming this summer, and dont know if i want to invest in a nice new binder for my first one if im going to be swimming in it. Any suggestions of alternatives?

I wear the binder to swim all the time - I just rinse it out good when I am done

Quote from: Leo. on April 08, 2013, 04:40:08 PM
I just got my first one today for the sake of trying one, underworks 997. Heard it was really good even for big chests but unfortunately not doing too much for me. Slightly flatter compared to not wearing it but still far from being flat (I know cisguys arent completely flat but Im even far off being that) Guess nothing can really work when you're this bad.

You need to try the underworks triptop 983.  One or the other usually works, so it might be the 983 for you. I think ordering a 997 followed by a 983 is a rite of passage for trans guy with bigger chests.

Quote from: Leo. on April 08, 2013, 04:40:08 PM
These things can get really hot so maybe just wear a light shirt on top (like the formal button up type as it will allow some air in through the gaps between the buttons) Good to wear in the winter to warm up easier but in the summer it probably wouldnt be too fun

I just got my first one today for the sake of trying one, underworks 997. Heard it was really good even for big chests but unfortunately not doing too much for me. Slightly flatter compared to not wearing it but still far from being flat (I know cisguys arent completely flat but Im even far off being that) Guess nothing can really work when you're this bad.

I'm a DDD/F (US) and I look like this:

(https://www.susans.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fv386%2Fisnt_anything%2F9D3BB229-5DE2-4B12-9A2D-A3D5434FA8BC-10782-00000895DBDC7F29_zpsb2c3ffeb.jpg&hash=87dfae59ae4c460a51d9c5c0eba922a60c7d8621)

I wear both the 983 (tri-top) XL and the 997 (XXL, which is too big) and pass almost 100%. It is possible, but I would get a tri top because of the triple compression. I pass with just a tri top too.

I think I will try the tri-top then too, thanks for the input. Was considering it for the reasons that it has the extra compression layer that this one doesnt and that its shorter. I got this vest one as I thought tucking it in would be a good idea but I realised the pain in my back was actually being caused by that. It keeps rolling up and digs into my back. The past few days I've been wearing it rolled up so no pain or discomfort what so ever now. Only problem with this is all the extra material bundled up is a bit of a problem. Tri-top should help with this and hopefully help be flatter too than this one is able to do. Sure its great for those with smaller chests but its not quite there for me. I realised today though just how much a difference the binder makes though. I went back to how I normally was before I got this and looked in the mirror. I just looked awful. I couldnt even go out looking like that, put my binder straight back on again. This is pretty much it now, cant see me not wearing one again it makes a big difference to my figure though at the moment its not really flat, more kinda makes it bulky looking but still an improvement. I wasnt even going to try one at all as I heard it can affect the turnout of surgery (if it alters the tissue) but not sure how true that actually is. Im going for it anyway


wow you certainly dont look that size Darrin. Definately works for you then. You look flat to me. Im not actually sure of my size, what I thought I was might not actually be accurate (have a feeling its bigger than that) I have the 997 in XL. Not sure a smaller size is a good idea, probably wont be able to get my arms through it for one thing


I will order the tri-top then and get back here when I have it with how it goes. Hopefully it will work better for me. Getting too impatient for surgery to happen  :P

If the 997 rolling up is an issue then just cut the bottom of it off to the length of a 983.  The material doesn't fray or anything, even after machine washing.  I don't think I'm the only guy who's done this either.

Could, just didnt really want to cut it.. Will try the tri-top anyway cause if it works better I might not even need to wear this one again and shouldnt have that problem with that one

For washing, is 30°C ok to machine wash with? This has a really weird smell and needs washed

Yeah if you're getting the other one anyway it doesn't matter.  Just a thought if you wanted a back up while your other one is in the wash.  And of course, if you've got another then there's nothing to lose by cutting it if you'd not be wearing it otherwise.

I've not had a problem washing it at that temperature, I think it's tumble drying that kills them.  The weird smell does hang around for quite a while though in my experience.

This one got to me in only 2 days from the US so I will put up with it like this til then. Dont have anything else to wear now though while I wash this one but this can be a backup for the other one. True, will consider it

Ok thanks. Certainly wouldnt tumble dry it. I just know it needs to air dry and wash at cold temp just wasnt sure if 30 would be ok. This is going in then. Its not what I expected this to be actually, I didnt realise the material was like this. Though it was hardly going to be normal vest material so dont know what I expected really  ::)

I machine wash mine (loveboat) in cold water. But I would never tumble dry at any temp. I have one of those zipper wash bags. It is handy as you can see, oh there's the binder and pull it out.


--Jay

Ok I got my tri-top binder today but I have a new unexpected problem in that I think its too big to be doing much good. I ordered the same equivalent size of my 997. The 997 sizing is classed as XL but the equivalent in this is 2X so I ordered that. Maybe I should have got XL instead. It feels bigger than the 997 though is the same size. No more having to roll up though which is good. Still slightly long so turn it up once but its not a problem. The effects of it also look pretty much the same so its not doing any extra use to me. Would a smaller size be more effective? I would assume the compression effects wont be much use if its a bit too big

Though I could try layering them. Darrin if you see this - you said you wear both the tri-top and 997, do you wear the 997 underneath and the tri-top on the top or the other way around? From the sounds of it Im probably about the same as you and if you say you can get pretty much flat with the same things I have then it must be possible. Just wondering what the best thing to do is. Wouldnt mind trying this in the size down but its yet more money to spend.. Not that I mind if its worth it, just if its not and turns out to make no difference from this currently

Hello,

My 997 is slightly too big actually. My Tri-top is an XL and my 997 is XXL, but should've gotten an XL in that too. I can get pretty much flat this way. I put the tri-top on first and the 997 on top. Underworks does have a return policy so you can exchange sizes if need be.

Hey guys. I don't have a large chest, so I can't weigh in on that part of the conversation, but I will say that I like my binder a lot more now that I've worn it for a couple of weeks. When I first received mine, which is an Underworks 998, I thought I was going to die in the thing I was so trapped while putting it on. There were limbs akimbo and lots of difficulty breathing. Then, I got it on properly but still felt like it didn't fit right. It was uncomfortable around my ribs, and down the sides at the seams. But, I think it's stretched out some after some use, because now I can wear it to work for a full shift and I have no trouble breathing and very little discomfort at the end of the night. I prefer the experience to that of wearing a bra. I also think that it binds better than it did those first couple days. Part of that might just be that I've gotten better at positioning myself in it, I don't know.

The 997 (large, true to size recommendation) was a mistake for me. It does the job... however, it is at the cost of severe discomfort and inability to breathe for just enough oxygen to not feel a bit loopy after more than maybe 20 minutes. Though I notice much of the increased reduction comes from the flesh being smashed out to the overlarge armholes rather than the partial double layer on the front, honestly. Straps dig into my traps/shoulders excessively (very painfully, also affecting my neck), felt like my windpipe was even being depressed somehow. And the armholes pinch and dig in A LOT as well. And back pain, back pain, back pain... persisting for quite a time after a very brief wear of it. I don't even think if I were a really skinny/small-built guy that it would work for me either. And I'm really not that fat, I'm a mixture of overweight and above-average muscular right now but I also have a large frame to begin with, built exactly like my dad (normal male broad shoulder type too).

It's just absolutely not worth it (there's maybe 1-2" difference between a large 997 and a small 974 on me, really). I should have went with another 974 straight off, like I'd initially thought. I only wanted to try the 997 because I thought it might get me a little longer use before stretching as they're all wont to do eventually but yeah, no. Nobody can tell I have boobs in the 974 (and I am a D/DD) - even though this one I'm using is four years old now - (small is what works for me and WITHOUT any of the problems of the 997 in large; go figure), they all say they just look like pecs, that they wouldn't know if they didn't know etc. So I can live with that.

If I really need that extra little bit of compression at some point, then I'll take my old 974 and remove the cotton layer off of it and wear it with another one and probably still not have any of those deal-breaker issues of the 997. I think the problem is with the actual cut/shape of it than anything else... it's just not dialed in right. How cisguys can even stand to wear these ones is beyond me.

Anyway. Your mileage may vary, but 997's are a definite no-go for me. Will be returning for a refund and ordering the 974 (want to get two, just less confusing than exchanging and adding another on top etc lol).

Nothing against Underworks, but the 997 needs some serious improvement. I'd wager if they made the double-front into the same kind of sleevless-T cut as the 974, it would work and without a majority of those problems as the A-shirt kind of cut they for some reason made the 997 into.

Just my $0.02


Edit: actually, I think perhaps I'll give a 998 a go. Hear it is a sort of middle-ground option.