I've been riding Brooks since 1964. I never gave a thought as to whether the rails were black, chrome or whatever. You can't see them when you ride. I do miss the original (50+ year old) B17 that came new on my Legnano Roma in 1964. It had the narrow rails (chrome, I think, but not sure), and "Campagnolo" embossed on the rear seating surface. It was cool till it split in half crosswise in a 10 mile rain storm, on a Pasadena vintage ride. I got a modern near new B17, and its all good now. I have C17s on two modern bikes. On the black bike, I like the black rails, but wonder about the molded black composite frame. My silver Roubaix has the silver die cast frame and rails, which look good on that bike, and somehow seem more robust. Anyway, its all about choices. Sad to see a maker eliminate choices, but understandable these days, I guess. Both myself and a friend were chosen as Brooks saddle testers, supposed to receive a new leather saddle to test. The deadline has slipped several months, so we're wondering what happened to that deal. Strange times.