Originally Posted by
PeteHski
That is just nuts! How long do your saddles typically last? How many bikes? Why?
It only takes one or two of your favorite item going out of production to make you think about buying extras while you can.
Most of my bikes are from the 1987-1993 era when 126mm spacing predominated, so they're set up for 7-speed. A couple years ago, you could still get nearly every Shimano cassette option for $22 each, so I bought a handful of my favorites. I'm glad I did because when Shimano stopped making them, the supply chain dried up pretty quickly.
A sensible person might be tempted to ask, "why not stretch to 130mm and convert to 8/9/10/11 speed?" Perhaps I will eventually, but it would involve new derailleurs and shifters, and cassette variety already seems to be drying up for anything below 10 or 11 speed... (11-30 or 11-32 with big gaps aren't my jam.)