Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - Top of saddle: To Proofide or not?

Just got a B-17 Brooks saddle for my new Cannondale 29 Caffeine... The sheet that Wallingford sent along said "Apply Proofide underneath on pre-aged saddles, never on top."
Huh?
I thought I was to lather up both sides.
The little booklet attached to the saddle from Brooks says "Apply a little Prtoofide to the finished side of the leather."
Which is it?
On another bike I equipped with a B-17, I did both sides, rubbing off the top after it dried. Seemed just fine.
Meanwhile, a bike shop mechanic told me the other day to really lather up both sides, put a plastic bag around the saddle and ride it a few days before removing the saddle and rubbing off the Proofide.
So just what is the best way to condition a new Brooks leather saddle?

All over. It's nice to have the water bead up if you leave it parked in a shower (sprinkler, etc). Opinions on this will vary widely and passionately. The 'pre-aged' leather gives me pause, though.

Is it one of the pre-aged ones? That might be why, if it's one of the (super expensive) pre-aged ones, maybe they don't react well to proofhide?

Anyway, my B17 just arrived, and I lathered the top and bottom with proofhide. Waited until it dried and polished. I'm going on my first ride on it tonight, a quick spin up the street to get it adjusted correctly felt great.. I'm hoping the 15-ish miles I'm about to embark on feel just as great.. :)

I'm also curious as to when I need to re-apply. I'm an uber, so yeah :).

Mine is just your regular black B-17.... I'm not sure what pre-aged means either.
I do know the finished side is the side I sit on. And the booklet attached to the saddle was the one that said to proofide it...
The part about the "never on top" for pre-aged was in a letter from Wallingford (where I bought the saddle).
I'm thinking the pre-aged ones are the super fancy saddles... not the standard B-17.
So mine is drying now, waiting to get buffed and installed.
Pouring rain and cold here in Michigan... might have to wait till the weekend.
Just did a video on my four bikes hanging in the garage... wondering how many others cant bear to part with a bike. If you want to see it its at clydesdalefitness.com

Grant Petersen (founder of Rivendell, and a longtime advocate of Brooks saddles) seems to think it doesn't make much difference--the leather is porous and the Proofhide eventually permates the whole thing. I have three B-17s and a Brooks Pro, the oldest nearly 20, and they're all still in very good condition even after a lot of pounding from my 230-to-270 pound butt. I Proofhide the tops once or twice a year (no more often than that--they DO NOT need it every other week or anything), and I've probably done the bottoms about every third or fourth application.
Note that you'll still need to protect it from water--I carry a heavy-duty plastic bag in my seat pack to put over the saddle if I get caught in the rain.
"Pre-aged," by the way, is Brooks' term for an alleged softening process that supposedly makes break-in quicker. I've owned them both ways, and I can't tell a difference. The difficulty of breaking in a leather saddle has been exaggerated anyway, IMO. Mine were fine right out of the box once I got the tilt right, though they do get better with age.
One more note, from Grant: There's a persistent story that Brookses should be treated with "used motor oil," and a lot of people apparently have tried it. It makes no sense--the stuff's harsh, plus used oil is contaminated with heavy metals and all kinds of crap. Grant tried to track it down, and he thinks it came from a story about Lon Haldeman, an ultra-distance cyclist who's ridden across the country like 50 times. Somebody asked him what he put on his saddles, and in the course of describing the various treatments, he said something like, "...I've used motor oil." Somehow that got modified so that people believed he was recommending treating your saddle with dirty oil. Don't do it.

I know some here seem to swear by Proofhide, but there are other things that you can use to put on these saddles. I use a Leather Conditioner called BICK 4 by Bickmore. I have it around to condition my Leather Boots and it's always worked well for that.

http://www.bickmore.com/bickmore/leather_care/

I have also seen folks use Neat's Foot Oil and soak the saddle in that for a day. Make a little mold of the saddle in Tinfoil, turn the saddle so it's resting on the top and then pour the Oil in the saddle and let it soak. It's messy and does soak in but I'm not so sure it helped mine at all.

I perfer the Bicks 4 myself

I Proofide-ed the new B-17 top and bottom and did the first ride today... I agtrr... right out of thje box this saddle just feels better.. a little slippery... but it sure feels good. I'm using it on a brand new Cannondale Lefty Caffeine 29... my Bianchi Axis has a Brooks that I used all last year and it does indeed get better... but the saddle feels good right from the start....
Now... next question...
WHen should I tighten the spring? Once a year by a half turn as suggested or... more or less?

Just got a B-17 Brooks saddle for my new Cannondale 29 Caffeine... The sheet that Wallingford sent along said "Apply Proofide underneath on pre-aged saddles, never on top."
Huh?

I think you overlooked the fine print in the statement. It says "pre-aged" saddles. I think Wallingford must be referring to the Brooks line of saddles that have "aged" in the model. For example, your saddle would have clearly been labled "B-17 aged" on the box in which it came. This means a saddle that has been treated at the factory to be nearly broken in when you buy it. Their catalogue says "soft from day 1".

All other Brooks saddles can have proofride applied to both sides.

Bob

If you are talking about the tensioner, do not tighten that until you see a noticable sag. You can over tension and ruin the saddle.

I used proofide quite liberally and worked it in hard in the areas where my a$$ was obvisously shaping the saddle. I used more during the break in process and now just treat it once or twice a year, whenever I think about it. I also carry a shower cap in my seat bag for if I get caught in a rain (which doesn't happen often around here!).

Mark

Maybe a silly question, but I sweat like a Tsunami. Do I need to worry about my saddle due to bottom sweat?

Maybe a silly question, but I sweat like a Tsunami. Do I need to worry about my saddle due to bottom sweat? No, not unless you ride nekkid!:eek:

Mark

Maybe a silly question, but I sweat like a Tsunami. Do I need to worry about my saddle due to bottom sweat?

It'll speed up the break-in process by a fair margin. If you have white stains you can simply run warm water over it and dry it slowly in a warm garage. Or not. It'll take it.

You don't really need any more advice on this, but I have some and you're getting it whether you like it or not (I claim privilege since one of my Brookses turns 35 next month).
Based on my experience and the recommendations of Grant Petersen at Rivendell, you can Proofhide both sides, but only occasionally--certainly not every week, and Grant says only once or twice a year. I live in arid Nevada, and my bikes sit out most of the year (under cover, but open to the low-humidity air). I coat them LIGHTLY usually in April and October, when i think of it.
FWIW, I haven't found that Proofhide has any effect on the break-in, but YMMV. I've heard plenty of people say it does. I don't mind the saddles (I have three B-17s and a Pro) right out of the box, though they do get better in a few hundred miles.
Water's death to Brooks, as you know. If you get it wet, let it dry naturally, without riding it. The Proofhide does help repel water (and putting it underneath keeps tire spray from soaking into the underside) but I carry a plastic bag to slip over it if I get caught in a downpour anyway.
People seem to differ on the topic of sweat. Grant says it's bad, and recommends protection if you perspire heavily. I don't bother, but if water hurts the leather, I don't see how sweat could NOT hurt it.

I sweat pretty hard, too, but I think the padding in the shorts catches most of it. I rode double centuries on my Brooks, which means it was subjected to considerable perspiration. No problems except for some natural darkening of the leather (mine is honey colored).

Mark

i inherited mine from my dad who passed away. the bike was a 1976 and,he last rode it in around 1982 as far as my mom can remember. i just took the bikes out of their attic like 1 1/2 months ago and,the brooks leather seat was as hard as concrete. in the handlebar bag were some tools,tube and,a can of - neatsfoot oil -.

so i read the can and,put some on the seat and,it soaked it right up.
i just rubbed some in their everyday,for like 3 days in a row.
now the seat is just as soft as butter.
i am frankly amazed that a thick piece of leather like this,that was that hard,can now be so soft and,cushy.

i was gonna get a padded cushy job,but this now feels great and,it just looks cool.much better than the other plain looking seats.

so i guess after reading this thread,i will do the neatsfoot thing, 2 or 3 times a year.

Beware of overtreating a leather saddle. If you soften it up too much, you'll ruin it.

The instructions you posted referred to a "pre-aged" saddle. Yours isn't. So apply the proofide to both sides. More on the bottom.

I'm not an expert but I don't think a Brooks saddle is supposed to feel soft. I've got a couple thousand miles on one of mine and it still feels like a brick wrapped in leather. It is, nevertheless, a very comfortable saddle. I use only Proofide on all my Brooks saddles as a leather conditioner. Proofide has little if anything to do with breaking-in a Brooks saddle. I agree with Tom Stormcrowe, you can and probably will ruin a Brooks saddle by 'softening' it.

Lots of people have reported doing lots of different things to their Brooks saddles with lots of different results. I don't see any reason to do anything other than follow the manufacturers instructions. To answer the OP's question, yes.

YMMV, Skipper