jcm

rhm:
Good question on the thickness issue. There's alot of lore on leather saddles - always has been, I'm told. I can only speculate on why Brooks doesn't publish thickness info. So, my guess would be that splitting hides is a kind of skill that is very dicey, and done by some guy in the back who wears a pointy hat with stars and moons on it. After high school, I worked in my neighbor's leather shop for a couple years making and toolinfg custom gun belts/holsters, saddlebags, and recovering saddles. Thickness is by no means an exact science - more like an art.

One thing I'm pretty sure of is that Brooks buys only the finest blanks available. This also has natural variables within a given grade. The grain, which affects elasticity, and surface clarity are the prime characteristics they might look for. The actual thickness, in my experience, is a given per model. And yes, I'd like to have a bit of info on that, too. But, because of the process, I don't think they can be reliable to extent that people expect.

To the first question on how hard should a given saddle be? Yes, I say that depends on the model, but it's really,"how hard should it remain." The thicker the leather, the longer it will remain firm.

Almost every time I go to the bike shops, I bring my verniers. Plus, there are a couple of shops around here that have used bins of saddles, sometimes there are Brooks' in there. I measure the entire rim with my vernier calipers. They are consistantly equal all the way round, so I've never found a "lop-sided" one yet. Still, they vary as much as .015 to .020 within the same model line. Pros that I have measured are approximately .030" thicker. That's alot of extra leather. Plus, there's the cross section difference.

On saddle treatment: It doesn't matter. There's no difference in how the leather should be either protected or stored. In my opinion: No WaterProofing - No Silicones

On the Brooks website: I can't recall where exactly, but there are a couple of inconsistancies on the site. Mostly in verbage I think. Regarding waterproofing and breathablilty issues. No explanation here. It's been awhile since I was over there.

If I were a Brooks saleman I would start by asking you what type of riding will you be doing, then I'd push a saddle your way that I though would work best. I would definitely explain the things I just wrote, too.

I've never met a Brooks salesman, just some other people with pointy hats like mine, who fuss over minute details...