Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Question about Breaking in a Brooks

So I just received a Brooks Team Professional in the mail that I ordered online. My problem is that it didn't come with Proofide, which according to Brooks is the only conditioner to use with their saddles. I was looking on Sheldon's website and he said that you can use baseball glove oil to break a saddle in but this directly contradicts the Brooks manual. The Glove oil would obviously be easier right now but... What should I do?

Get the proofide. Just don't use too much. I hear you can OVER break in a brooks

proofide is worthwhile, because it will last forever, and you can use it to treat all kinds of leather stuff that you might have.

sure get what they recommend if that's what it calls for. There are other options that most definatly won't hurt your saddle too. As I recall they are still made of leather aren't they? Leather is nothing new and you don't need anything fancy if it costs too much. When I was learning taxidermy techniques I was taaught by an old pro that used properly plain old lanolin will keep it beautiful and supple for a long, long time. If it's good enough for a 60 year old stuffed spider monkey it's good enough for your saddle.

Check out this thread:
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=80876&highlight=brooks

If it's good enough for a 60 year old stuffed spider monkey it's good enough for your saddle.


Whoa...

I guess the real question is what's a 60 y/o spider monkey doing with this stuff. <It rubs the lotion on....>

I've seen and felt Brooks saddles as supple as baseball gloves by using improper methods...

I've seen and felt Brooks saddles as supple as baseball gloves by using improper methods...

So Have I , I saw one that looked like a hammock between two trees.

Super-supple is often TOO supple: it's gotta be at least halfway firm. I'm a proofide purist, though I've used linseed oil once, when it got rained and baked and just needed *something* before it cracked and died, bless. Mostly it's warm arse-sweat that conditions a Brooks :)

i broke my brooks (also a team pro) in by proofhiding the underside only, and then by simply riding the heck out of it... i think applying a treatment to the top would have expedited things, but that stuff's ill when it gets on/into your clothes.

i chopped the skirts and laced my saddle for a more modern, clean look. the process is pretty straight-forward and can be done with simple house-hold tools. hit me with a PM if you need/want more info...

[hpv] [BOB] ProofHide/Mad Cow Disease Linked!

MasiGC3V@aol.com MasiGC3V@aol.com
Sun, 1 Apr 2001 01:57:09 EST


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4/01/01 Reuters Wire Services: British Home Undersecretary Dr. U. Benjamin
Haad announced today in special session with Her Majesty's Government that
recent epidemiological studies indicate that the Mad Cow epidemic is being
spread by a commonly used bicycle saddle treatment.

The product, Proofhide, used to preserve archaic leather bicycle saddles, is
believed to have been adulterated during a production shut down last
September when the company went into wind-up. ProofHides former owners, The
Derby Hat Company, of Chester, Connecticut brought in their own chemist who
made several changes to the original formula which may have caused the
present epidemic.

Former Derby Chemist, Tyler Durden, Ph.D., is believed to have introduced the
virus during a fat rendering process and is being sought for questioning by
Interpol. Durden is suspected in several burglaries of medical facilities in
Wilmington, Delaware.

Communication of the disease is suspected to have occurred when unsuspecting
cyclists riding through dairy districts came into contact with cattle after
applying the Proofhide with their hands. It is unclear how the product was
being used, but at least one cyclist has been ostracized by his peers for
other similar indiscretions.

All cyclists, bike mechanics and those in related occupations may be banned
from international travel over the summer.

In a related matter the Federation Francais Bicyclete International (FFBI)
has announced a new investigation into US Postal star Lance Armstrong.
Armstrong may be banned from this years Tour de France over Federation
Francais allegations that he illegally benefited from banned genetic
engineering.

Sources within FFBI claim that the US National Aeronautic and Space
Administration (NASA) instigated the plot to gain the unfair advantage for
Armstrong. NASA is believed to have devised the scheme in 1969 when it
exposed Armstrongs father, Neal, to "gamma rays and man in the moon
marigolds" during a space flight in June of that year. Armstrong claims to
be baffled by the allegation, but acknowledges that "it would clear up a lot
of questions".


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Been using Saddle Soap for months now. It's great. However, I did go a bit slower with the applications at first.

the thing about leather is that oils fill and block the pores and penetrates deeper than saddle soap, which is usually lanolin, which as it turns out is what proofhide is with some beeswax and tallow. You want to try to soften and waterproof the top of the saddle without penetrating through the leather thereby allowing it to retain its shape as it (slowly) molds to fit your behind. Same applies to mounting a skin, protect it while allowing it to keep the form you place it in. Then once it's set just worry about keeping it waterproof and pretty.
I had to check out what that stuff was, since it's been around some 100 years and it's touted as the only thing to use. It's the only thing to use so hey can tell you it's the only thing to use so they know it's all you know your supposed to use so you won't try something that on the surface seems to make sense, like oil of some kind, but that will actually harm the saddle. They don't seem to be making a buck off it, though it is a bit more than saddle soap that would work as well, it ain't much more. Lanolin is sheep oil thats been rendered, combined with wax or tallow it makes excellent leather treatment or used alone if you're careful.

you've already been given plenty of info (too much?) about products
so I won't go there.
That said I used Proofide on my Brooks Pro(came with it), a good tip is to apply it
and then gently heat the saddle top to allow it to flow/soak moe easily
into the pores. A heavy application to the bottom of the saddle (and left there)
helps with waterproofing the saddle.

Marty