ive always wanted to try one but

A. dont know anyone who has one i can borrow
B. dont want to fork out the $$ to try one

How can one know if it is the right saddle for them? Ive heard good things....not to mention they tend to look much better on older road bikes than the newer saddles out there.

I here they are extremely comfy

I think Wallingford Bicycle Parts allows you to trade your Brooks you buy from them if you don't like it. Can't beat that.

https://www.wallbike.com

Where are you? If you're near NYC you can come over and sit on my bikes.

Problem is, you will need to ride one that's been broken in to really feel the benefit of a Brooks leather saddle. I never owned one, but I suspect breaking into a person's particular backside shape is essential, so you might just have to trust the word of the millions of satisfied Brooks saddle owners and buy one to mould into your shape. I still wonder and dread though how long it will take to soften it up from the super hard, stiff, wood-like consistency the saddle comes in brand new to something comfortable. My racer friends used to tell me that the initial pain was definitely worth the final results after they break their Brooks saddle in.

Chombi

The problem with brooks and your quick test ride is that they take like weeks of riding to break in and conform to your buttocks. If you rode on sailor's bike it might not feel comfortable at all because it was formed on his posterior and new ones would just feel hard. I'm not sure how you'll really test them without weeks of riding unfortunately.

ps: dang chombi posted while I was writing

+1

I put about 700 miles on a new B17 before I finally gave up and sold it. It never did break in, or at least get decently comfortable. Maybe it's my butt, or maybe the saddle is meant for a more upright riding position - I don't know. But it just wasn't all that and a bag of chips, like the Brooks aficionado's led me to believe.

Plus, it weighs a ton.

Yeah, its tough to get them broken in and some love 'em, some hate 'em. My newest one is typical, I think.

1) At first it was rock hard but I could feel right away that the shape was nice.

2) Then it seemed like it would never break in and I was sliding all over the place.

3) Then it felt like it was broken in.

4) Then I started sliding again so I adjusted the angle.

5) Then I adjusted the angle again.

6) Then I got saddle sores.

7) Then it felt like it was FINALLY broken in.

8) Then I got saddle sores again.

9) 2 years and several thousand miles later it feels fantastic. I love it.

I was only willing to go through all of this because I knew that eventually it would get comfortable as can be. This isn't my first. Plus I've had plenty of plastic saddles that just stayed uncomfortable and never changing.......

It's true that it may not feel good until it's broken in. I have one, but I wouldn't buy another, at least not new. Some cheap saddles feel fine to me.

Whether a Brooks fits you depends on picking one that suits the kind of riding you do, and the shape of your butt. i must have a BSB, ( British Standard Butt ) I bought a B17 Special the week before a 225km weekend charity ride, I already had an Imperial with 3,000+ km on it, I planned on taking that along. In the end, i forgot to pack the Imperial, but it was no problem. yes, I was glad to get off at the end of the weekend, but mostly because everything was tired, I certainly wasn't cursing the saddle like I heard many people doing during the ride. From what I see on this forum, I would guess about 80% can get on with a B17, some need a few hundred miles for it adjust, some, like me, are more fortunate.

Don't expect to get on and think, "that's nice!" I still get on and think, "Man! This things still hard!" Doesn't matter, it fits me!

Yeah - if you want that, buy a Regal.

I cannot ride a B.17, unless it is on a bike that is slightly too big for me, or a mountain
bike. There's nothing quite as cool as a B.17 on an old lugged mountain bike, either.
Or an old C'Dale Mountain bike for that matter. I recently got a stellar condition Professional, and it's pretty comfy even though it's not broken in.,,,,BD

I love my B.15's too, but they stopped making them a while back, like 30 years?

I've got two B15's, and two B17's. I think the B15's must be made of a little thicker leather because they never seem to break in like the B17's but they are comfortable to me all the same. I've been lending my most broken in B17 out to friends who complain about saddle problems. So far 2 of the 3 have bought new Brooks saddles. They both say they'll never go back to anything else. The other wasn't so impressed. I guess it depends on personal anatomy.

Brooks should be paying me commission or at least give me credit toward that B17 Imperial that I want to try....

I took the brand new Blue Professional for its first ride Saturday and I'd say it felt just like the 30 year old Professional it replaced. I guess you might call this my "Trophy Brooks" (did that come out of a pastor's mouth?).

This was only my third ride since November, so my bike booty has not yet broken in for the season. My impression is, you either have a butt for a Brooks or you don't.

If you are in NH I'd loan you one to try out. What can you leave as collateral?

I have a B-17 that I purchased early last summer on a commuter bike. It felt hard at first but within a couple of months, and I don't ride that many miles (30 miles a week) it softened up. It is definitely my most comfortable saddle. I think the new ones break in a lot easier than the old ones did. To each their own but I can't imagine someone not finding that saddle comfortable.

+1, but nearer south of Princeton NJ.

I'm not really sure what to make of this whole "breaking in" thing. I mean yes, they do change over time; to some degree they get softer, or at least they get softer in some places; but this does not necessarily make them more comfortable. I prefer them fresh out of the box. If anyone wants to trade a nicely broken in B17 or Flyer for a new one, I'd be all over that.

Also, saddles in the Professional family don't seem to break in as fast, or as much, as saddles in the B17 family. I have a couple Pro's from the 80's and earlier that are nearly as hard now as they were when they were new, and that suits me fine. I wish my B17 and Flyer --relatively recent purchases-- had stayed that hard!

There's been an inconsistancy with Brooks over the years...I have a B17 that I bought used 15 yars ago and it's still rock hard. My late 90's pre-softened pro is mush and has been stretched out to the limit. My early pro from a 70's Motobecane is fairly firm.

I'm with you in that I like them firm out of the box. Except the Swift...man that took a lot of riding before I got used to it. Now it's getting a split at the front rivet. Ouch.

There's 2 vintage Brooks in my bike stash "treasures"...an NOS mid 60's Pro with small copper rivets and "nose" (what's that round metal piece at the front called?) and an NOS B-15 Swallow with small steel rivets from the same period, maybe earlier. I need the right frames for those puppies.

Thanks for that confirmation! I have long suspected the new "Brooks" saddles are low quality knockoffs of the classic saddles on which the Brooks reputation was based.

By the way, I have a 1950 B67, excellent condition, that I'd love to trade for a B17 of similar vintage.

hmmmmm I wouldn't say one persons observation or oppinion should be considered a "confirmation". It's how those unfounded rumors regarding componants and such start.

For me, and I own 7 brooks saddles of different styles and years, I see NO inconsistancy in value or craftsmanship.

Speaking of unfounded rumors, I feel the whole "it takes many miles and years to break in a Brooks" is completely exaggerated. i have not needed more than 200-300 miles for any of my Brooks saddles to break in. Buy the Brooks Proofide with your new saddle, and follow the reccomendations. No, it's not "just like mink oil, but more expensive" it works better and protects the saddle without soaking it in oil that stains your shorts.

Anyways, just buy the damn saddle & try it. Online experience is not all it's cracked up to be. Take it out in the real world, throw your real ass on it and try it for yourself. If you don't like it, keep the original box and toss it on eBay. You'll get 80-100% of your investment back.

+1 to Wallingford bicycle parts. Excellent customer service, and a six-month return window on all Brooks saddles.

I just received a Champion Flyer from them for my touring bike. Only have 20 miles on it currently, but I believe once my skinny butt breaks it in a bit it'll be damned comfy.

I dissent from the dogma that Brooks saddles are uncomfortable until broken in. This may be true in many cases; but I think there's at least a sizable minority of people who find them comfortable from the start, or who do so after making positional adjustments. I have a B17 on my commuter that felt great out of the box, and a Swift on my racing bike that didn't. I assumed, in accordance with dogma, that the latter would remain uncomfortable until breaking in, but then I came to suspect that I was resting my sit bones too far forward of the saddle's broad end. I moved the saddle forward, and hey presto: from medieval torture device to Barcalounger. (At any rate, from distinctly unpleasant to distinctly pleasant.)

And as for weight penalties: sheesh. I can't say I agonize over the seconds I've added to the climbs.

If you find a new Brooks to be extremely uncomfortable, it might get better, but it might not, and I'd recommend not keeping it.

I purchased 2 brooks a B-17 special and a Flyer Special. They were the most comfortable saddles for long distance I had tried but i still had problems between 85 and 100 miles. Then I got a Selle An-atomica (without the slot). Now i am replacing both of my Brooks. The Selle has its issues (around the edges specifically) but it fit my sit bones better than the brooks does.

I think a brooks should be comfortable out of the box. It should get better with age. But if it still doesn't work after a season of riding I would look for something else.

I have considered this question many times and actually started sort of testing suspended leather saddles. I find absolutely no consistency with the Brooks butt perch. But I do like the saddles A LOT!

The most comfortable was a brand new (four or five years ago) Brooks B17 Special in Honey leather. Comfortable right out of the box and stayed that way to this day. Another time I tried a Brooks B15 from the mid seventies. The saddle was near mint and had seen very little use. And I was quick to understand why. It was horribly, painfully uncomfortable. I removed that saddle and never mounted it on another bike. Keep in mind that the Brooks B15 is wider than the B17 or Pro models.

And that brings up the Pro. I have bought two brand new one and had a few vintage units from the seventies (still have one or two left). In total, I have ridden four Brooks Professional saddles and I had to go through the discomfort of breaking each one in to the shape of my butt.

You cannot fairly test another person's Brooks, in my opinion. To discover if the myth is a myth, or a reasonably accurate evaluation of the product, you will have to try one out and be prepared to do the break in yourself.

Also, an old already broken is saddle just might reshape to your butt and it might not. Again, you have to give it a try. That said, a sagged or worn out looking saddle, is rarely a good place to start looking for comfort.

Much of the above is my opinion and based on my personal experiences with the Brooks product.

I got a B66 with the springs, new last year. Instant comfort. I weigh 110 kg / about 240 lbs.

I just got a bike in UK with a 55 year old B83 (3 springs) on it. Again, comfy. It's a bit saggy - awaiting package with Proffide and tensioning spanner, then all should be good

Get one!!

Seems to me that leather, being a natural material, and the ONLY material in the saddle, would naturally have inconsistencies from saddle to saddle, year to year. Right?

That said I'd love to try one of the knock-offs but I'm not springing for a real Brooks I don't think.