Commuting - Anybody use a Brooks Professional saddle?

I'm thinking about buying one. Doe anybody here use one? I'd like to hear what you everybody thinks about it. Thanks!

After doing quite a bit of research I just ordered a Brooks Swift saddle which is due to arrive tomorrow. I like the shape of the Professional, but I was scared off by some of the Brooks professional break-in stories I heard (e.g. "After 2,000 miles it feels like it is starting to break in...").

If you order from Wallingford you have 6 months to make up your mind, and if you decide you don't like it you can return it. Just get one and try it. If it doesn't work out return it and try another Brooks, or get your money back and try another saddle.

The other saddle I was eying was a Selle San Marco Regal Ti which has a very similar shape as the Brooks Professional and is also made of leather, although it also has a synthetic backing.

good saddle, used them on rides of 1 mile to 200 miles. very comfortable.

Is it just me, or is "Brooks Professional" an oxymoron?

AFAIK, there are no "professional" cyclists who race on a Briicks.

Brooks Professional is a good saddle. I use it on my utility/backup commuter. The break in period is long because of the thick leather, but hopefully the saddle will last longer.

I think it was a good buy.

Is it just me, or is "Brooks Professional" an oxymoron?

AFAIK, there are no "professional" cyclists who race on a Briicks.Maybe it is named for professionals like doctors, dentist, engineers, physicist, etc. that cycle commute to work!:thumb:

I commute on a Brooks Professional.

Purchased new in 1982. Has thousands of miles on it. Still going strong. It's been on 5 or 6 different bikes...am moving it to another commuter soon. When I got it I did a bunch of extreme things to break it in; I don't know whether any of it did any good.

FYI, I also own a Brooks Swift...it is currently in limbo but is going on a vintage racing bike. I don't think I'd choose it to commute on every day.

And...I have a B17. In fact, if I were buying a Brooks for commuting only, I'd get the B17.

for commuting I would recommend the B17, I use my B17 as my all around saddle and i love it.
The saddle can really be the most intimate part of a bike, and you want to make sure you love it.

Just curious BengeBoy, what precautions do you take considering you're in the PNW. I've thought about getting a Brooks, but living on the coast, as you know, we get a lot of rain.

Yeah just buy one from The Randonnee Shop (http://www.therandonneeshop.com) or Wall Bikes and try it for six months. I bought one from the first shop a few months ago and it was nice knowing if it just didn't feel right I could return it.

Just curious BengeBoy, what precautions do you take considering you're in the PNW. I've thought about getting a Brooks, but living on the coast, as you know, we get a lot of rain.

I ride it rain or shine.

I try not to leave it out in a pouring rain. If I have to leave my bike out, I cover the saddle a plastic bag -- I have found that the dog-poop bags that you can get at a public park are just the right size to cover up my saddle, and they're easy to tuck away into my tool bag.

If the saddle gets soaked I will put some Brooks Proofhide or leather car stuff on it, but I don't know if that really helps much. However, it's made of leather, not sugar - it won't melt.

I have Brooks Pros on each of my 4 bikes. Indeed, it seems to take a couple of thousand miles for YOUR BACKSIDE to break it in.
First question to ask: does the width of the saddle fit the width of your ischial tuberosities?

I have a Brooks Pro (black w/wide copper rivets). It gives support for my clyde size that I did not get from a lighter leather saddle. It was free anyway. I am not going back to plastic saddles.

I ride it rain or shine.

Good to know, as I do the same. Thanks.

I have a Brooks Professional I got from another forum member in trade for a B-17 Imperial narrow. I couldn't deal with the Imperial but the Professional while not as wide as my B-17 standards is wider than the Imperial. This saddle looks as if its never been ridden and while I haven't ridden it more than 50 mile so far it is far more comfy than the Imperial it replaced. I think its gonna be fine once it gets some road time.

I use a Brooks Pro on my Univega, which I commute on more than any other bike. It is noticeably narrower and harder than the B-17s I own, but it works well for me on this bike. I doubt I even have 400 miles on it yet, but there are already two very visible indentations where my sit bones rest. I don't think it's completely broken in yet, but it's still pretty comfortable for the way I've been using it (haven't got to try it on a ride much over 20 miles yet)

Have one. It's a very robust saddle. Takes a good thousand miles to break in. I'm mostly switched to the San Marco Regal as it's nearly as comfy right out of the box.

not sure about the professional but i love my b-17 champion special...i loved it the 1st day i rode it and it gets better all the time...i treated it once after soaking it in the rain...as someone else noted good for commuting and longer rides also

My Pro is over 30 years old, once it fits its wonderful. I concur with the how big is your butt comment about the Pro. I'm over 6'4'' slim, but large boned, my sit bones are desinged for it. Have a fixie I ride in bad weather with B5N which is narrower doesn't fit quite as well but is still head & shoulders more comfortable than any of the standard seats my bikes came with. They do sell a pre-broken in model, never tried one of those.

Is it just me, or is "Brooks Professional" an oxymoron?

AFAIK, there are no "professional" cyclists who race on a Briicks.

According to Brooks' lore, the 'professional' was created for those who rode all day every day, as a part of their regular work. A mail carrier on a rural route (too far to walk between the houses) is a good example of this.

According to Brooks' lore, the 'professional' was created for those who rode all day every day, as a part of their regular work. A mail carrier on a rural route (too far to walk between the houses) is a good example of this.

With a reputed 1000 mile+ break-in period, I guess being a "professional" rider helps. :roflmao2:

In all honesty, I do not understand how people ride Brooks saddles. Every one of 'em I've seen are hard as rocks. Can someone help me understand the appeal?

In all honesty, I do not understand how people ride Brooks saddles. Every one of 'em I've seen are hard as rocks. Can someone help me understand the appeal?

Hard is not necessarily a bad thing...saddle fit is much more important. I'm particular to Selle Italia SLR's myself, which are pretty darned "minimalist" and hard. And I sometimes ride a carbon fiber saddle in crits (with the smooth top, it's easy getting off and on the saddle, plus it has a certain intimidation factor :D).

As for Brooks - they're too heavy and archaic looking for my tastes. But, if you have a fetish for leather and big copper rivets, well they're just the thing. Whatever floats your butt.


Edit: on my Surly LHT commuter/errand bike, I'm currently using a stock Bontrager saddle that I swapped off of my Trek Madone. It has a bit more padding than the SLR, but it's a bit less comfortable because of the fit. But I'm generally not riding the Surly for more than an hour or so at a time.

I have had mixed experiences with mine. It has a tiny sweet spot...when you're in it, it's easily the most comfortable saddle I have tried. The problem is, I can't stay in that position on either bike I have used it on. Both of these bikes have the bars several inches below the saddle. It seems hellbent on throwing me off the front of the saddle. If I have it level or slightly nose-up, I fall forward unless I consciously push back all the time. This causes saddle sores and is very tiring and annoying. Also, the saddle narrows down fast at the front, and it's very round, great for causing numbness. I have to point it up to a ridiculous angle to get around this, and then the front is so high I go numb even on short commutes. It seems suited for people who ride in the sit-up-and-beg riding position.

The other problem is the rails. They are short and biased to the back. This means your effective seat tube angle is steeper than other saddles, making it hard for me to get it far back enough. On my road bike with 72.5 deg STA, I was able to get it back far enough with a setback post and shoving the saddle all the way back. On my MTB with 73.5 STA, no dice. It has given me knee problems to the point where this morning I took it off and put a Specialized BG saddle on I had kicking around.

If you have short femurs, indestructible knees, like to ride with da boyz numb, never let it get wet, don't mind the extra weight, and ride with your bars way up high, it's a good bet you'll love it.

It does look good in an old-school retro sort of way and if were shaped for a more aggresive riding position, would be sweet for me. Since the seating surface doesn't compress, but the whole saddle has give, it rides incredibly smooth and seems less likely to cause saddle sores if you can get it positioned right. I can't understand how people get so easily fooled by the hard surface...dude, it's fine leather, not formed steel!

Good luck!

Interesting, on both posts. I ride with a light weight, but gel enhanced, man-bits friendly velo performance/comfort seat. 75 miles on Sat, no problem. My only issue was when I put the seat on my new bike but didn't adjust the angle, like an idiot, and the boys weren't happy campers.

My bike came with a hard seat, and one ride for 5 minutes I knew it had to go. Just something hard pushing on my taint ain't good, even with my riding shorts on. Add what appears to be a "smoothness" of a Brooks saddle and I'd be sliding all over the place.

A hard saddle that fits you will be more comfortable than a squishy one, because it supports your sit bones and therefore suspends your soft parts away from the saddle. Remember, it's a saddle, not a seat, so it's not meant to support all your weight.

Hmm.... thanks!

I've got a nice specialized saddle I can try again. Right now I've got this:

http://www.bikeman.com/store/graphics/00000001/product_images/SA/SA4246.jpg

which is been great!

Yes, Brooks saddles are hard; they're supposed to be. Our cushy-minded modern society tells us that things have to be soft and squishy to be comfortable, which just isn't always true. For a few years I used a modern, cushy computer chair and could never get comfortable in it. Now I use an old wooden chair with no padding at all, and it's easily the most comfortable chair I've used. Likewise, for years I used various bike seats which would always become uncomfortable after twenty or so miles, some sooner. But the Brooks saddles I've used feel the same after four or five hours as they did ten minutes into the ride. No, they don't work for everyone, but for the rest of us they work amazingly well. (Plus, IMO, they make "modern" saddles look terribly cheap)

Wah! My couch has no cushions! I sleep on a pile of two-by-fours! I walk with 2 bricks strapped to my feet! Wah! Back in my day, we knew what was good for us! We ate our fiber straight out of the field! Waaaaah!

Sorry, but the "cushy-minded modern society" comment sounded pretty lame and brought up that Daily Show Dick Cheney impersonation... lol.

But yeah, it sounds like with saddles it's a "too each his own" thing, a find-what-works for your physiology situation. I didn't understand how anyone can use them, but apparently, for some of you a hard saddle, with the "brooks shape", works for some of your asses and not for others. I guess I got lucky on my first decent saddle purchase, that a $35 saddle worked perfect for my squatting needs...

Though it sounds like you are making it represent a whole hell of a lot more than it needs to be.... My saddle is not a "statement", it's something to sit on while I ride, so I can ride as long as possible.

Thanks for your help guys, I honestly just didn't get it....

I may have come off wrong, but it's just that everyone who sees my Brooks saddles says "How on earth can that be comfortable? It's not soft!" But if they actually ride one of my bikes, they never even mention the seat. In fact, they usually seem to completely forget about the seat altogether.

The "cushy modern society" comment was simply something I've observed. Your average American is almost always sitting in a cushy car seat, or a cushy office chair, or sleeping on a bed that has an 18 inch thick mattress with pillow tops and extra pads, etc. So naturally we tend to think that more padding is always going to be better. For some maybe it is, but for the most part that's not always the case. For me, it's almost never the case. I'm gradually discovering that old things usually work better than new things, and I know that many here will think that's completely absurd, but for me it's the plain and simple truth. My Brooks seats are new, but they are designed and constructed the same way that bike seats were for many, many decades before padded foam, and for me they work better. The same goes for my "old" wooden chair. It simply works better than the modern ones I've tried.

I agree with Lamplight's comment about how simple seems to work the best. Cushy isn't comfortable for me, either.

I just bought a Brooks Professional for 20 bucks who said he felt like the thing was sawing him in half. He took it off after only 30 miles. Now, he was giving me a friendly price because he's known me for years, but his experience on this saddle differs entirely from mine. It's great. I recommend one highly if you have the inclination.

I may have come off wrong, but it's just that everyone who sees my Brooks saddles says "How on earth can that be comfortable? It's not soft!" But if they actually ride one of my bikes, they never even mention the seat. In fact, they usually seem to completely forget about the seat altogether.

The "cushy modern society" comment was simply something I've observed. Your average American is almost always sitting in a cushy car seat, or a cushy office chair, or sleeping on a bed that has an 18 inch thick mattress with pillow tops and extra pads, etc. So naturally we tend to think that more padding is always going to be better. For some maybe it is, but for the most part that's not always the case. For me, it's almost never the case.

Most serious cyclists know that soft, cushy saddles suck.


If you want to try a lighter, more modern-looking saddle that's definitely not too "cushy", check out this carbon/titanium bad boy:

http://www.aspirevelotech.com/ebayimages/CarbSaddle/SeatSide.jpg (http://www.aspirevelotech.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=PC_SDL_1233&Category_Code=PC_Saddles)


It's probably not the best for commuting, but unlike the Briiks, at least you won't have to worry about it if it rains. :roflmao2:

It's probably not the best for commuting, but unlike the Briiks, at least you won't have to worry about it if it rains. :roflmao2:

Having a Brooks on your bike doesn't mean you have to worry about rain. ;)

I may have come off wrong, but it's just that everyone who sees my Brooks saddles says "How on earth can that be comfortable? . It simply works better than the modern ones I've tried.



No, you didn't come off wrong at all. Some people will never get it no matter what you say, like the poster who spelled out "briicks" in his post. Brooks has, and has always had, a worldwide 'cult' following unrivaled by anyone except for maybe campagnolo. It was the saddle of choice for many of the RAAM racers (Race across America) and we're talking about some serious road miles these guys do too (like 3000 miles in nine days).

For me, the Brooks is a beautiful saddle (any of 'em), and have about 8000 miles on my Brooks 'Pro' to date. The original honey color has darkened considerably since, but IMO makes it look great. I have it on my Tommasini, which is an old school race bike with a saddle to bar drop of a good three inches, and is effectively the most comfortable saddle I've ever owned. The Selle Italias, and the Selle San Marcos saddles I've had were good too, but for anything over say 30 miles, the 'Pro' has 'em all beat.

He forgot....Well make sure the bag isn't used! :roflmao2:

My Brooks "Professional" is OK now that it's broken in. When I rode other people's bike, I notice how comfortable their saddles are (usually a gel with cuttout)


I ride it rain or shine.

I try not to leave it out in a pouring rain. If I have to leave my bike out, I cover the saddle a plastic bag -- I have found that the dog-poop bags that you can get at a public park are just the right size to cover up my saddle, and they're easy to tuck away into my tool bag.

If the saddle gets soaked I will put some Brooks Proofhide or leather car stuff on it, but I don't know if that really helps much. However, it's made of leather, not sugar - it won't melt.

No, you didn't come off wrong at all. Some people will never get it no matter what you say, like the poster who spelled out "briicks" in his post. Brooks has, and has always had, a worldwide 'cult' following unrivaled by anyone except for maybe campagnolo. It was the saddle of choice for many of the RAAM racers (Race across America) and we're talking about some serious road miles these guys do too (like 3000 miles in nine days).

Hmmmm....sounds like urban myth to me. I just finished looking through a bunch of photos from RAAM 2008, and did not see a single Brooks saddle.

I did see quite a bit of modern lightweight gear, including aero wheels and aero helmets.

[QUOTE=SSP;7320758]Hmmmm....sounds like urban myth to me. I just finished looking through a bunch of photos from RAAM 2008, and did not see a single Brooks saddle.QUOTE]


:( Sigh.......its unfortunate because thats all its ever going to be with you. But for the rest of us, we'll just keep on enjoying our Brooks. I know I do.


~ sorry man

Dunno about RAAM, but it's certainly a fact that people have done hundreds of thousands of miles on Brooks saddles.

A Brooks is a lot like centerpull brakes, lugged frames and friction shifters. These things (not necessarily the Brooks brand - every saddle used to be like that, just that Brooks is the only one left) were all standard-issue for decades. Now people try to say that they were all bad ideas that never did work. Uh-huh. Sure. :rolleyes:

[QUOTE=GV27;7325344]Dunno about RAAM, but it's certainly a fact that people have done hundreds of thousands of miles on Brooks saddles.QUOTE]



Well that quote I made about RAAM was from an article I read about Lon Haldeman back in 2004, when I was compiling research on Brooks. I found it very interesting to say the least. Believe me, I was not a blind follower of the Brooks religeon, especially since I knew it would add at least another lb or so to my bike's weight. What I was interested in was ending my chronic agony every time I went for a long ride. The Selle Italia 'turbomatic 3' saddle I was using was absolutely killing me on rides longer than 20 miles. Really upset me too because it was a beautiful fancy saddle that a lot of the pros used in the mid 90's. I did not want to give it up, but my arse was in sheer agony just riding to my mom's house 32 miles away.

It was on that ride that I got the saddle sore from hell. My son was with me too on his bike, and on the way back (65 miles total) I know we had to stop a dozen times just to give me a break. My whole arse was on fire, which was like sitting on a lit cigarette from the chaffed and broken skin. My bike shorts were soaked with blood and I was in complete misery. (Remember, this is an open wound that I was grinding into the saddle.)

So, after doing a lot of research and reviewing people's testimony about Brooks, I decided to buy one, which was the Brooks 'Pro' in the honey color with chrome rails. The materials and workmanship of the 'Pro' was superb right out of the box. There's nothing (I mean nothing) about it thats cheap and the day I bolted it on my saddle sores came to an end. For me, it was great right out of the box, so there really wasnt much breaking-in per se. I will never use any other saddle.