Touring - the b-15

so my boss just gave me his old, un-broken in, brooks b15 saddle. it definately is as hard as a rock. i don't think he has ever applied proofhide or any other treatment to the saddle. given that this saddle may be older than i am, will proofhide be enough to condition the leather or is something stronger needed? thanks.

- proofhide? possibly...

- you a55 over several thousand kilometers?

- most definitely...

:-)

(user of two B-17s w/several thousand miles and not broken in yet)

Proofide will be fine. Mine have always been fine out of the box, though; if it really hurts, it's probably not positioned correctly.

i haven't tried out the saddle yet. the rails are actually a bit wider than the clamp on my seatpost. only just enough to keep it from going on, and just far enough to try to squeeze the rails together. could this be just a strange size? or did the tight leather pull the rails apart? i haven't found a lot of information on this saddle.

i haven't tried out the saddle yet. the rails are actually a bit wider than the clamp on my seatpost. only just enough to keep it from going on, and just far enough to try to squeeze the rails together. could this be just a strange size? or did the tight leather pull the rails apart? i haven't found a lot of information on this saddle.

Snug down the seatpost clamp a bit then squeeze the rails together and they will snap in place. You may need to use Channel-lock pliers to do the squeezing.

good advice. i work in a woodshop, and borrowed one of our clamps. worked perfectly.

also, i've heard that some people use neatsfoot oil on their saddles. does this work better/work poorer/work instead of proofhide?

Note: There is exactly one 'r' and no 'h' in the word "proofide". Now back to your regularly scheduled thread.

good advice. i work in a woodshop, and borrowed one of our clamps. worked perfectly.

also, i've heard that some people use neatsfoot oil on their saddles. does this work better/work poorer/work instead of proofhide?

I have one Brooks treated with neatsfoot oil and it IS more flexible than any of my other Brooks'. I don't have enough miles on it yet to determine if it's going to end up being too soft, though I think it will be just fine, not worried about it.

I treated that one particular Honey saddle with neatsfoot because I wanted to darken it to match the elk bar hides (see the 'Woody' bike in my sig). The saddle will soak up oil like a sponge, literally, you can watch it change colors. Use sparingly and only use Pure Neatsfoot Oil sold at your local horse tack/feed store if you decide to do it. Some lesser brands may contain motor oil!

My other saddles are treated with Proofide as it works just fine. No need to get fancy unless you're wanting a different shade like I did above.

...I treated that one particular Honey saddle with neatsfoot because I wanted to darken it to match the elk bar hides (see the 'Woody' bike in my sig)....

OMG that is the most beautiful bike I've ever seen.
http://www.buggytexas.com/images/wood2.jpg

OMG that is the most beautiful bike I've ever seen.


Why thank you! I just scored a nice vintage bronze Araya wheelset for it and am going to try to squeeze some 700x32 tires under those fenders. Even better! :D

Nice work, McDave. If you ride that bike alot, I'd be very interested in how well the elk holds up.

Nice work, McDave. If you ride that bike alot, I'd be very interested in how well the elk holds up.
Ha, the hides will outlast me and the bike. If anything the waxed thread may eventually fail, but I don't see that happening anytime soon. There is no movement of the hides, great padding, very durable. Like them so much I will be doing the Chrome Voyageur next week. :D