Let me be clear, I have said I can accept adjustments. Many saddles need adjustments to have a correct position for that saddle. If that were all someone was talking about there would be no difference. If the saddle was reasonably comfortable in the first place and it simply needed tweaking we still have no philosophical difference. If however someone indicates the problem is the rider has to break in the equipment before they will receive the expected results then there is a difference. A bike adjustment doesn’t involve breaking in it involves adjusting. We tell people to try before they buy and to not accept the sales man telling them that the bike fits and they will get used to it. We might even suggest getting a professional fit before you pick a frame. As BD said here we have a philosophical difference. I consider the very idea that I might buy a saddle and determine it wasn’t comfortable right out of the box and the sales man tells me I just have to break it in as pure sales speak. I totally believe in the try before you buy idea and if I have a Brooks, SMP or Specialized mounted on my bike and ride it for the weekend and it isn’t comfortable I will be returning it the next day.

If it is comfortable however I can accept that it could get more comfortable after a while. But we have no reason to accept the discomfort some have expressed as part of the break in period of some leather saddles. If it is a simple adjustment that is one thing. If it has to be, “broken in” that is something else. Can you imagine someone selling you a pair of Bike shoes that hurt your feet and when you complained they said, they take a while to break in? That is doubly true if there are other shoes that don’t hurt your feet.

I am not attacking Brooks I am saying they are simply another saddle that doesn’t work for everyone. And no amount of special treatment will change that for people that don’t have a Brooks bottom.