rob214

anyone use a kontact saddle? or any other butt friendly seat? wondering the difference in seats for comfort. i do ok on rides under 35 miles but still working up to longer rides and was wondering about these seats. still a noob but trying to learn.
i ride a giant defy with stock seat
rob

Wildrat

I like my ISM Adamo seat. Once adjusted and a few miles, I don't even think about my rearend.
You will get lots of opinions on seats!

rpenmanparker 

Completely personal. You have to try them all out to find the one that is best for you. And it is not just brand and model, but also width that matters. Fortunately good shops and even internet sites facilitate that process at no cost to you.

TimothyH

It is a saddle, not a seat. Saddles carry some of your weight. Seats carry all of your weight. Recumbent bikes have seats.

@rpenmanparker in post 3 is 100% correct.


-Tim-

philbob57

That saddle definition is significant, but it's installed on a seat post that's inserted into a seat tube. And ISM Adamo's website is ismseat.com. Just sayin'....

If you (OP) are doing fine with the stock seat, why change? Believe me, finding a new perch is a real pain in the ass.

Garfield Cat

How about a car seat and a toilet seat? A seat on the Board of directors.

TimothyH

I see what you did there.


-Tim-

stasher1

The Charge Spoon seems to receive more than its share of praise, and it's very reasonably priced. Wish I could give you my $.02 on its comfort, but mine is still in transit.

rob214

anyone use this saddle? Shop ? Infinity Bike Seat

rob

Machka 

Brooks saddles are good.

gsa103

What do you dislike about your current saddle? Numbness? Saddle sores/sit bone pain?
How heavy are you and how upright? Do you wear bike shorts? Chamois cream?

Numbness generally means you want/need a cutout saddle. Heavier riders generally benefit from a wider and more padded saddle, since they have more weight on the saddle.

If you have a local Specialized dealer, I would talk to them. Specialized makes a range of excellent saddles, and have a whole fitting/trial process.

Looking at that Infinity saddle, I would hate it. The problem is they're transferring weight from your sit bones, to other softer tissue. This spreads things around, but also results in more pressure on softer bits, which is generally not good. Personally, I use a Selle SMP, which have a giant channel, completely reliving any numbness issues.

rmfnla

And they carry all of one's weight; go figure...

dabac

Any time you see any of the rare saddle designs available, ask yourself - if they're that good, how come they're still rare?
Can't be that 99% of riders are gluttons for punishment.
So either they're a rare fix for a rare problem. Or they're simply not that good.
IMO there has to be a basic level of anatomical compatibility, but most is down to acclimatization, expectations and fitness.

zandoval 

I have found that its not the padding or the springs that make a comfortable seat... Its the width... The best being a wide Brooks saddle.

Best for the money though is a Classic Origin 8, almost as wide as a Brooks B-17 and at 20$ defiantly worth a try...

Machka 

Saddles shouldn't carry all of your weight ... something's wrong with your setup or posture or riding style if they do.

howheels

When you start experiencing "the numbness" (and search the forums, you'll find it is not an uncommon problem), you will go to any length to make it stop. For me the solution was one of those "rare designs", a Selle SMP. "Good" is not even a question. According to my wife, it's great!

bykemike 

Sella SMP did the trick for me

However , despite years of riding with seat pain, this particular SMP was the first seat I had that was wide enough. First ride on it was miraculous, second ride was a century. I went out and bought another, exactly like it, on eBay.

Many things may hurt me as I ride but not my seat anymore.

inspclouseau

My shop highly recommends these. Most of the employees/owners race and use them too. They fitted my wife with one and it resolved her lady bits issues.

Unfortunately, it exacerbated her hand issues as to get the seat comfortable it had to be tilted down.

She finally went for a new fit and ended up with a specialized something saddle. She's finally comfortable when riding. Apparently, as comfortable as the Selle SMPs are they lock you into a single position, and that position may work for you or it may not. Or if you like to move around, which I think one would want to on sprints climbs, cruising, etc it may not be the best.

Of course I haven't tried one, am not opposed to trying one, and YMMV.

rmfnla

So you never just sit back on your seat?

400 watts all the time, I suppose...

Machka 

Rarely ... and I doubt I've ever hit 400 watts.


A good portion of my weight, when cycling, is on my feet. I don't know what kind of percentage, but I'd guess at something like ...

10% hands
30-40% feet
50-60% butt



I will add this ... I gained some weight between about 2011 and 2014. When I was heavier, I had to sit in a more upright position in order to be able to breathe so we raised my handlebars and I did put more of my weight on the saddle.

Then in 2015, I started losing weight, and as I did, I noticed I was having all sorts of sitbone and tailbone pain. It took a little while for it to click ... I no longer had the extra padding which made sitting upright more comfortable ... but I also no longer needed to sit upright because I could breathe in a more aero position. So we lowered my handlebars again. They aren't really low, they are about even with my saddle ... but so much more comfortable than sitting bolt upright.

johnu

I'm with you. I use a Brooks B67 on an Electra Townie in an upright riding position with the front of the seat angled up.

rmfnla

Enough reach is an important part of the fit equation as well.

As previously stated, my bike is flat-bar but the bars are slightly below the saddle.

Yes, when pedaling some of my weight is on my feet, but when just coasting I frequently just sit back and enjoy the ride, so almost all of my weight is on the saddle...