Fifty Plus (50+) - Brooks question, yet again.

Here's my Brooks B17, about 14 months old, over 6000 miles. What concerns me are the frame bumps just ahead of the rivets. Might be hard to see because of my camera. Did I mess something up? Over-Proofide? I swear the bumps are killing my backside, but maybe I just need a better fore/aft adjustment. I have a Velo Orange Grand Cru post.

271304271305

Looks to me like you are sitting too far back on the saddle. One of two things occurs to me, more set back or you need a wider seat.

But I freely admit these are guesses

Also from the looks of things, how much have you stretched out that saddle? it may be an artifact of the photo, but it looks awful long to me.

Looks to me like you are sitting too far back on the saddle. One of two things occurs to me, more set back or you need a wider seat.

But I freely admit these are guesses

Also from the looks of things, how much have you stretched out that saddle? it may be an artifact of the photo, but it looks awful long to me.
hard to tell from the pic, but I'm not seeing any real sag.. just a little. I assume the nose adjuster has been played with? and pictures of the actual saddle angle may help.

Here's another pic, from the side. Thanks for the responses. I have the angle set so a level between the second and third holes from the front will register about a quarter bead towards the front.

I could be completely wrong here, but from my own comfort for riding the angle looks wrong! I've been told the nose pointed up a bit so your basically sitting in the cup is right.. and the wear looks like you're sitting to far back to me. Is that because you feel like you'd slide forward otherwise?

I'd lower the nose 2 or 3mm, and see how it feels.

Your sitting on the frame of the saddle, because the rails are too short. You'll probably have to get a seat post with more set back .

The pictures simply aren't going to enable an accurate assessment. You need to post one of the bike taken from the side so we can see the actual angle of the seat. Also, how far below the seat are the handlebars (although the sifde-on picture will help answer that)?

From the little that I can see, for a B17 that has been ridden for 14 months and 6000 miles, the butt dimples don't seem very pronounced, suggesting as other have said you are sitting back on the frame. But then, you don't say how and where the bumps are killing your backside.

The Velo Orange has a 30 mm setback and I have it all the way back. I've always sat pretty far back on my saddles, so maybe that's the problem. Handlebars are about an inch and a half lower than the saddle nose. I'll try to get a pic later.

30mm is quite a way back already. Handlebars that distance below the seat may be on the threshhold for the B17 which really should have bars level with or above. The issue with lower bars is that you tilt forward and then start rubbing your perineum on the centre of the saddle unless you tilt the nose down, which then in turn means you might be slipping forward.

I almost get a feeling, from what you say about always sitting far back in the saddle, that your frame is too small for you, or that you stem is not long enough.

The guide generally is for bars lower than the saddle, the Brooks Pro or Swallow, and for bars level and above, the B17.

I just fitted a B17 to my bike and needed a new post to get the saddle back far enough for proper KOP.

Not sure about your B17, but the Brooks Swallow on my tandem carries what appears to be a pronounced 'nose-up' attitude and is set way back. It is one of the most comfortable saddles I've ever ridden.

1. KOP is a red herring.
2. You shouldn't have to move your saddle back to sit on it properly. If you have to do so, you likely have the wrong saddle for you. You should be able to position it fore-aft to suit your riding style/goals, without adversely affecting comfort. Of course the angle may need tweaking based on both the fore-aft position and the amount of bar-drop you have.

You may well be sitting too far back on your saddle; however, a large number of recent B.17 Ch. Narrow frames, and the similar (but not identical, these days) chrome-plated Swallow frames, have been produced with the ends of their rails standing proud (by a couple of mms. approx.) of the cantleplate. After a relatively short period of time, bumps are appearing in the leather of saddles made with these frames, and I suspect that your's may be one of those.

Removing the leather, grinding the rail ends flush with the cantle and re-fitting the leather will solve that problem, but you might think it's a warranty matter that you should take up with your supplier, rather than a D-I-Y fix?

may be a Selle Anatomica candidate.. they have longer rails adjustment.

Another Seatpost, Rivendale-Nitto lugged, Chromoly, has an even longer setback..