LoRoK

I have a pista, it's new. I like how people will have bikes that look totally new and fast with the clunky looking brooks on it that doesn't match anything. I like how people have the super ergo/super fast looking new style seats too. I have it pretty much narrowed down to a choice of 3. The brooks b-17, a forté pro SLX (because it's cheap and new schoolish) and a selle italia prolink gelflow (because I can get it in yellow and looks comfy and new schoolish). I know that neither of the second 2 choices will last me long, while a brooks will last forever. I just don't know if I want the clash look or the fast look, you dig? What would you do?

kitten_sandwich

yellow sounds like it would be the most comfortable.

PDXJeff

Have it all! Google "butchering" or "cutting" Brooks Saddles. It's an old style that was used in the early days of racing, when it was Brooks or nothing, and it gives the appearance of their much more expensive Swift or Swallow models. I cut mine and get compliments all the time. I used some electrical tape to make a guide line and then made several controlled passes with a new utility knife. After the first few passes it gets easier and the anxiety of ruining a brand new Brooks saddle becomes less. Use the first cut piece as a template for the second side. I use the Honey colored saddle, but black matches any bike. Use MANY coats of Brooks Proofide with a thorough drying/curing between each (put somewhere warm). It wont wear out and will never go out of style.

I also have a Selle Italia gelflow (not prolink). It's nice, and reasonably comfortable, but I'm always worried that it's going to get ruined, and it cost much more than my Brooks. It's red and matches my Mt. bike, but next time I'll go function over form and butcher a black B-17.

In Absentia

Get the one that doesn't make your ass hurt. If you like both styles, it doesn't matter which you go with and your ass doesn't care what the saddle looks like.

marqueemoon

It really depends on your riding style and how your bike is set up, both aesthetically and in terms of comfort.

iamarapgod

New school...or somewhere inbetween and go with a plastic bmx saddle...middle school?

blickblocks

Sorry I say this all the time...but choose the saddle that doesn't involve killing a cow. There's really no need for using leather for a saddle when such high quality synthetics have been developed.

Also years of ergonomic development in new racing saddles amount to a far more comfortable saddle for most people. As far as looks are concerned, I can understand if you prefer the Broooks.

chevy42083

Just curious, is there a weight difference? I too have been debating the brooks vs other, and have wondered if brooks weigh a ton, or are comparable.

dutret

this is a joke right?

Aeroplane

Like any other brand, it depends on the model. The Swift and Swallow are a lot lighter than the B17. The sprung ones are even heavier.

nateintokyo

it's tough to wonder sometimes. but then again, what the world be without wonder?

dutret

the unsprung ones are in general more then twice as heavy as a comparable modern saddle.

chevy42083

hey, sorry... never even seen a brooks, much less picked one up.
My seat knowledge is limited to the one that came on my '83 Bianchi, and my 80's Fuji. The Fuji is now fixed, and needs a new saddle, so I'm trying to decide which one gets the Bianchi seat, and which one gets the new seat. Not a weight weeny, but still don't want a brick for a seat. If the brooks is comparable to the 80's seats I have, then that's fine with me.

666pack

the brooks is probably very similar to the saddle on your fuji. fuji used to put "belt" saddles on their bikes which are (in my experience riding one) just as comfortable as a brooks.

ersatz radio

No one can really see your saddle that well if you're riding the bike. Get the comfy one.

radical_edward

It is a little bit unfair to compare Brooks to lightweight road saddles. They are as durable in construction and finish as mountain bike saddles. So let us say that a modern saddle is 2/3* the weight of a comparable Brooks.

So you are looking at around half a pound of difference. A pound at the extreme end of things. Probably no worse for your bikes performance off the mark than a set of deep V rims.

*(Brooks Ti/CroMo 395g/550g vs SDG Bel Air 260g/325g. I wouldn't recommend the titanium railed Brooks to those that weigh too much over 200 pounds though.)

sp00ki

i'm always a proponent for new technology. saddles, like anything else, can be improved on. i've noticed that some riders have the "don't make it like they used to" mentality. this makes sense when referring to the mass produced low/"mid" range bikes of today, comparing the high end of then to the high end of now seems to nod in the direction of newer/more advanced. that said, a high end saddle of then is going to be better than a low end one of today, so a better idea might be "quality" vs. "cost".
myself, i use non-animal product selle san marco saddles myself. they tend to be light, break in rather quickly, and look kinda sex.


nevermind, you're just talking about colors. i thought this was a real thread.

Az B

Sometimes it's not about looks, it's about your ass.

Az

Az B

Which one? All the ones I've seen are leather.

Selle are about the only other saddle that works for me besides Brooks. And the Brooks is still better for longer rides. (100+ miles)

Az

Nakedjim

I was going to go with an a brooks b-17 and chop it, for my Pista. Then I got a great deal on a Selle Italia SLK so I went with that. I love it. Don't go with a saddle just for what color it comes in. Get something that fits your a** well.

radical_edward

Don't get me wrong. Brooks are not for everybody, or even every bike. You have to 'feed' Brooks saddles by smearing on a tallow based lotion for god's sake.

They are heavy, comfortable, high maintenance, and beautiful.

Get one if your bike needs it.

sp00ki

i currently ride the rever; my girl rides the glamour aspide. both are relatively comfy (ONCE broken in) and light (both sub 190g).

I haven't done more than ~65 at a time on the rever yet, but i will be soon. I actually want to get a new saddle for the ms 150 in september, start breaking it in late august.

disconnec

+1, except brooks = ugly.

x37

I'm no fan of killing animals, but overall, using petroleum-based synthetics is not necessarily better for the environment than using a natural, long-lasting material such as leather.

The best option, enviro-wise, is to find a used saddle of any material.

jayrooney

huh? cows don't die to make leather!
cows die to make meat. The leather is a bonus byproduct.