coopman

...on your beach cruiser for something that you found more comfortable? I can ride for about 6 miles and that's my rear end's limit due to the pain that I am experiencing. My legs could go on for a longer distance if I could overcome this. Thanks for any suggestions.
Clay

alloo

On my Raleigh Retroglide, I have replaced the stock seat which was hard, with what I thought would be a softer seat from the Electra Townie. My butt doesn't hurt as much but it's not making that much of a difference. Next step is a suspension seat post.

SHOFINE

When I had my Electra a Brooks B-67 was most comfy!
A Flyer works great on my Sawyer.
Usually a soft saddle is not good for rides over 5 miles.

Philphine

since about every bike i ride (cruiser anyway) is a stretch cruiser i put a seat with a backrest on it. either one i made/converted, or catch a deal on ebay and buy one (or a few if the deal is good enough. for future projects).

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Black-Bicyc...oAAOSw7G1c~bEj

FiftySix

I like padded saddles, but they need to be firm. If a saddle is too soft you basically compress the saddle all the way like a down filled pillow would do. Feels good to the hand, doesn't feel good to the bum after a while.

Also, riding position has a lot to do with it. On my cruiser I did change the saddle to something more firm, but I also raised that saddle, changed the handlebar, and lowered the stem. It allows me to put some weight on my hands and it's easier to stand on the pedals when needed. Which all takes some weight off the saddle.

It doesn't look cruiser cool, or roadie proper, but it works better for pedaling 10 to 15 mph. Honestly, it feels akin to riding a BMX bike, just a lot heavier. I took it for another spin this morning, by the way.

JimR56

Hi Clay, I'm wondering if you're referring to tailbone (or more specifically, coccyx) pain. I guess everybody may have different problems and different stories, but I can offer some experience with that.

First of all, I have owned a 1994 Schwinn Cruiser Deluxe for 25 years. It still has the stock seat on it, which is padded but fairly firm. My favorite route for many years has been on our local creek trail, and my round trip ranged from 15 to 20 miles. I did get off the bike here and there, but I don't recall ever having any pain in the rear relating to those 20 mile rides, and I was no spring chicken when I was riding that route (started when I was in my 40's, and was in my mid-50's the last time I rode that route circa 2012). On the other hand, I have had episodes of coccyx pain several times over the years, and I know how annoying it can be (sometimes lasts up to a week). For me, the (coccyx) problem is caused by sitting too long on soft surfaces. My issues related directly to long car rides without sufficient stops, or too much sitting on a couch or soft chair seats while watching tv and/or sitting at my computer. I use a hard chair at my computer now, and it's clear that this has helped me to avoid coccyx pain, even when I sit longer than I probably should. Your mileage may vary, as they say.

Nice looking ride, FiftySix!

coopman

It's not my tailbone, but my hips, both sides (I think that I've seen them referred to as the sits-bones).

beach_cycle

... a couple times. First was a Cloud-9 Cruiser saddle because the OEM broke a spring; the C-9 saddle was extremely comfortable. Second was replacing the stock Meridian saddle with one from an old bike; it was uncomfortable like you said just short of 10 miles, but school commutes were over 30 miles, so the wider softer cruiser saddle did the trick and saved money because it was a spare.

taz777

I would check your bike fit if you haven’t done so already, just in case something isn’t quite right. On my Electra Townie I’ve replaced the stock saddle with a Brooks B67. Very comfy and I don’t need to wear padded shorts with it.

Small adjustments to saddle tilt and fore-and-aft may also make a difference to comfort.

FiftySix

Coopman, I forgot that your Electra has the cranks and pedals further forward than my Schwinn shown a few posts above. Due to that, I'm not sure my suggestion of a handlebar that gets you leaning farther forward is possible. You might be folding yourself in half to reach it.

coopman

Plus, I replaced the stock cruiser type handlebars with some ape style handlebars that would enable me to ride even more vertically with little or no tendency to want to lean forward. I have a bad lower back so leaning forward is not good for it. Also, my left hand falls asleep if I put any pressure/weight on it (probably need carpal tunnel surgery to fix this).

GTBruiser

I saw this and wondered if in some way how
this was more comfortable for the owner of this bicycle.

Lucillle

Obviously two people were having a heart to heart discussion. she was in the basket, he sat on the saddle.

FiftySix

They are short and use it like a noseless saddle???

coopman

HA!: For sale: Defective Bicycle.

SquidPuppet

B17 all day long. :-)

JehD

I want to get one of these for my next bike.

OldCruiser

I was going to start a new thread on saddles and found this one to add to .
After being asked on this forum , if I had tried the stock saddle on my Electra Fat Tire bike , I gave it a try yesterday. This morning I took the Fat Tire out for a morning spin before getting ready for church.
After a few more adjustments, the stock saddle , for the three mile trip , felt better than the Brooks I had on it .
This afternoon , I replaced the Brooks B17 Imperials on my Electra Cruiser 1’s with their factory saddles .
For the distances I ride my Cruisers , I think the stock Electra saddles are going to be fine , maybe even better , meaning more comfortable than the Brooks .
I’ll still keep the Imperials on my Roll and my Hardrock , because it seems to me , the Cruiser saddles are more comfortable in the short run , and the Imperials do better on the longer trips .
Riding on the Brooks , it always seemed to take around three miles before I started feeling comfortable and still would ride “light” when coasting downhill .
The Cruiser saddles are comfortable from the start , but start to make me squirm a little after about four or five miles .
I think the Cruiser saddles look better on the Cruisers too . And with Cruisers it’s all about looking cool as you cruise the neighborhood.

GlennR

My wife just bought a new bike (Specialized Roll) and the stock saddle was too hard. After trying a few different ones, she liked the C9 best. When we got home I looked at her old bike (my daughter's 20 year old) and it had a C9 saddle on it.

I guess that an call that "butt memory".

Speedway2

The OEM seat on my Felt cruiser is surprisingly comfortable. But then again I don't often ride more than 20kms.....and at a slow pace. I think the 2 rear springs help too.

coopman

I want to be comfortable and not in pain when I ride. I don't care about looking cool.

OldCruiser

I have tried so many bike seats it’s ridiculous.
I’ve decided everybody’s rear end is different and not one saddle is going to work on every bike one owns .
It’s trial and error to find that one that fits you on whatever bike you’re outfitting.
Even stock seats will surprise you sometimes.
I use to automatically change out the stock seat but just recently discovered the Electra Cruiser saddles with a little adjustment can be quite comfortable.

FiftySix

Some factory saddles are surprisingly good.

I almost always have to change the saddle for any bike I've ever bought. Yet, the 7 year old saddle that came with my Schwinn I got a month or two back was noticeably nice on the first ride, and follow up rides have proven it fits me well.

Sure it's a cruiser type saddle, which means it has some width to it. But the padding is firm enough not to sack out while riding and the smooth surface doesn't create friction with my legs while pedaling. I'm probably going to use this saddle until it gets big gaping holes in it.

coopman

FiftySix,
I just bought a saddle very much like that one & have been using it for a few days now. It seems to feel a little bit better that the ones that I have tried before it, but it's not the huge improvement that I was hoping for. My seat was made by Mesinger.

OldCruiser

Well , the stock cruiser saddle experiment lasted less than a week . It seems the nose on the Cruiser saddles is too wide causing chafing .
So it’s back to mountain bike saddles for me .
Would like to find a MTB saddle with springs . I know Brooks makes one , but the Imperial version would be the only one I’d want and they’re expensive and take awhile to break in .
I’ve owned a B67 for several years with hundreds of miles on it and it’s still not broken in .
Would like to see a B67 Imperial.