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Old 03-09-13 | 03:17 PM
  #11  
sstorkel
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Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 5,428
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Bikes: Cervelo RS, Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Pro, Schwinn Typhoon, Nashbar touring, custom steel MTB

Originally Posted by loneviking61
I'd suggest finding a LBS that can measure how wide your sit bones are.
That will give you an idea of the saddle shape you need.
Not really.

The only company I know which makes a measuring device is Specialized. Their Ass-o-meter is calibrated to their saddles. Unless you can find another saddle company that measures and sizes saddles exactly the same as Specialized, knowing what the Ass-o-meter recommends isn't going to help much. Even with Specialized saddles, it's hit-and-miss in my experience. I got measured, tried a bunch of saddles in the recommended size and none of them were comfortable. The only Specialized saddle that came close was a size smaller than the Ass-o-meter recommended!

In addition, knowing the width of your sit bones won't tell you a thing about what shape saddle you need. Does your saddle need a long nose, short nose, or no nose? Sit bone width doesn't help with that. Do you need a dead flat saddle, slightly curved, or radically curved? Again, sit bone width has no correlation as far as I can tell. Do you need a cut-out or not? Again, sit bone width doesn't help predict your preference.

The best way to buy a new saddle is to decide what you don't like about your current saddle, then look for something that's eliminates or minimizes that problem.
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