Originally Posted by nlerner
I sure have seen a lot of those Brooks vinyl mattress saddles w/ springs on 60s and 70s Raleigh 3-speeds, including a 1970s lady's Superbe I bought last year. I don't know if they were stock on some imports or a cheaper option or what; they're not bad saddles in terms of comfort, but they aren't exactly attractive.
I'm not sure which variants you've had in recently, Neal, but my '69 Robin Hood has the same mattress saddle as your all-chrome DL22...and it ain't comfortable - that thing has been ridden on to the point where the springs sag in back, creating a big round lump in the middle of the saddle, right where the family jewels are supposed to take their place on the saddle.
Ain't comfortable, to say the least, yet I've been tolerating that saddle up till the day that my 23" '80 Sports came to replace the Robin Hood as my daily driver. Even though the B.72 on my '80 is practically brand new (never been broken in), it still feels a worlds different from the S-series Brooks mattress on the Robin Hood.
Take care,
-Kurt