Spoke to Jim at biketouringnews.com. He is trying to talk me into a leather saddle such as a brooks or a gilles berthoud. I just am not seeing it. Maybe, just maybe, I would think about the kind with the cutout, but it is a lot of dough for an experiment on a seat I have never found comfortable. I did find a period correct selle italia touring saddle that I could try, and I would not feel bad about buying, based on price. Looks nearly identical to the mens Avocet touring of the same period.