Originally Posted by
europa
Spot on. There is a lot of rubbish posted about Brooks saddles on the internet. Yes, they can be hard out of the box but have you felt any of the modern saddles? All four Brooks that I've owned, 3x B17 and 1 B52, were comfortable out of the box and just kept getting better, just like a good quality pair of shoes. If you ride your bike more than 2km to the coffee shop, you won't even notice the break in period.
I don't like the profile/ cut of the brooks saddle. Even took the turbo off because the profile and cut didn't sit well with me. I'm more comfortable on a narrower saddle like the selle italia flite.
The top three of my list is likely going to be a bit different from the rest.
1: Geometry/fit
2: Intended use
3: Ease of maintenance
4: Wheels
5: Headset
6: Saddle
7: Drivetrain
8: Crankset
9: Bottle Cages
I wouldn't consider tires to be in the running. Tires are easily replaceable outside of tubular. Outside of the custom build/highend track, they really won't come with a competent set of tires.