I've got 600+ miles on my Brooks B-17. It's only softened a bit from the day I pulled it out of the box and applied proofhide. I'm about to put more proofhide on it and see if it softens anymore over the next 600+ miles. I never experienced any breakin hardships on my butt however. In fact it felt much more comfortable than my previous saddles from the very first mile. But over the last 100+ miles or so, I've developed a soreness on my left sit bone area. I keep hoping that the saddle will ease enough in elasticity to give my left sit bone a break. So far, hasn't happened. Still, I like this saddle more than any other I've ever owned, and that's quite a few.