Originally Posted by
phughes
The B18 has a shorter nose, which was something they do to make a woman's saddle, though Brooks doesn't specifically say it is a woman's saddle. It is also slightly wider. It is a B72 that has been decorated. I have a B72 on one of my bikes, and it is a very comfortable saddle. I have never heard the B72 called a woman's saddle. More than likely whoever is selling the B18 just called it that because of the decoration.
They make a B17 in a B17 Short, which is their woman's version of the B17. My wife sues the B17 Short.
And the reason women's saddles are shorter has nothing to do with their shape. It's because, in the not so distant past, the shorter nose did not snag on a woman's skirts. There's no real need for that any longer.