It is long past time for a new saddle. Currently I have the original saddle on my mountain bike which for mountain biking was ok, but I am now using my bike for commuting, weekend recreational riding and considering doing some extended rides.

I have long been aware of the quality of Brooks and leaning in that direction, until someone locally suggested two others, the Serfas Full Suspension Hybrid Reactive Gel & Bontrager Commuter Gel CRZ. The Brooks and the aforementioned two are on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of price, but because they were suggested and considerably less expensive I figured it would be worth exploring.

I recognize of course comfort is really specific to each individual, so I am really looking for comments on quality of the Serfas and Bontrager I mentioned and please comment on experiences and thoughts between leather of the Brooks and the synthetic covering on the Serfas & Bontrager pros & cons.

Also with regards to the Brooks, I am looking at the Flyer & B17 models. The B17 has a long history, but the Flyer has the benefit, at least in my mind, springs, which I suspect would make it the ride over many of the bumpy roads I ride a bit more comfortable. So I am interested to hear what the collective wisdom on these two models might be. Thanks.

The Brooks Flyer is basically the B-17 with springs. I prefer a leather saddle with springs. It provides comfort with added suspension over rough roads.

And leather unlike plastic, conforms to the anatomy. Brooks is a boutique brand and not often on sale and Gyes of Taiwan is a good alternative at half the cost.

In my opinion the important criterion is the relative height of handlebar and saddle.

If the handlebar is fairly high --higher than the saddle-- you'll want a relatively wide saddle such as a B.17 standard. On such a saddle, springs may make sense. If your handlebar is lower than the saddle, you'll want a narrower saddle (Brooks Pro or B.17 narrow) and the springs will just annoy you.

I don't know anything about synthetic saddles other than that I dislike them.

I got my Brooks Flyer on the 'bay for about half of retail; NIB w/ wrench, cover and a tin of Proofide.

LOVE IT...

Most of my bikes use Terry Butterfly saddles, which are nice firm plastic saddles with leather covers. However, I also have Ideale and Brooks leather saddles, which I like almost as well. I like to buy my leather saddles used, so they are already a bit broken in (and can be less expensive!) My wife has an upright bike, and she uses a Serfas Rx saddle. I have tried it and it is Very comfortable. It's firm but with just a bit of give for those pesky butt bones. I think she also has a sprung seatpost, too, which can take a bit of shock.

I've tried neither of the specific synthetic saddles you mention in your post, but I would be skeptical of any gel or other soft saddle. They typically are comfortable for only a short while. So if you like to ride more than five miles at a stretch, then the firmer saddles would be better.

Not knowing anything about the two gel saddles you reference, just make sure the gel is pretty thin. Thick gel saddles take all the pressure from your bones, and redistribute that pressure to softer tissue that wasn't made to support your weight.

Hey thanks everyone for the helpful responses. After considering my needs and inclination, as well as comments made here, I decided to go with the Brooks Flyer and in fact have one on hold at REI, which I hope to pick-up tomorrow.

My Flyer replaced a Terry Fly that just wasn't cutting it anymore.

I had an Ideale 90 on my first "good" bike and I swear it got harder with every ride. Hated it so much I wouldn't even consider another leather saddle until recently, but having the internet available to do research helped me get over that...

I use a Bontrager commuter gel saddle. It pretty good, but you will notice a little soreness in longer rides. There was a point that I was doing 40-50 mile rides on it regularly, but breaks are nice to rest the rear end. Personally I find it's a little wide, but I still use it as I haven't seriously looked for something better yet.

So far after several rides I am liking the Brooks a lot. Only question is, why did I wait so long?

Excellent!! Have fun molding that saddle to your behind!

Leather is hard.... it keeps your delicate tissues from sinking where they shouldn't and provides support on long rides.

And as you ride over time, wherever you press hardest eventually conforms to your bottom. Leather is not easy to sell but its far more comfortable than plastic or gel.

In the old days, all good bikes had quality leather saddles.

I felt the same way when I switched to Brooks. I'm making the switch over to all of my bikes that aren't mountain bikes, as I don't ride them enough to buy a Cambium, and my gravel grinder....bc oddly enough the saddle that is on there feels like it fits me and my position on that bike perfectly.

Very true.
I use to have leather saddles years ago and liked them. I switched to the synthetic saddles after becoming vegan, but have found they never were quite right for me and so I have made the choice to go back to leather and specifically the Brooks because they make the difference for me. Good luck with your switch over.

Serfas RX is my choice by far. (Brooks didn't ever break in for me - uncomfortable).

I recently had a bike fitting. The biggest change for me was discovering that my stock saddle, which had become much more uncomfortable, especially when I increased mileage, was significantly too small for my sit bones. So my only recommendation is trying to get them measured first.

Thanks! I've got 4 bikes covered so far (one came with the original Professional from 1979, not even broken in!) My commuter has a Cambium, and I don't have to worry about downpours or riding in the wet. Carbon bike has a B17 Narrow and my Raleigh Sports has a big ole B66. The quality is fantastic.

I like a narrow saddle on my road bike - bars lower than the saddle. I actually switched to a narrower one because I was having some chafing issues, and the new one is much better.

On my utility bike which I built up to be an upright cruiser, I tried 4 different saddles I had sitting around in my garage and none of them ever felt good. Then I went on a bike tour where the tour company had Serfas DDMD-200 saddles on their bikes. It felt pretty good, so I got one for my bike, and it's been really nice for tooling around town!

Amazon.com : Serfas E-Gel Dual Density Men's Bicycle Saddle : Bike Saddles And Seats : Sports & Outdoors

I hear that alot!

Next you might want to look into adding laces:

Its a reasonable rule of thumb that the more aggressive the riding position the narrower the saddle, and the more upright the wider and more suspension a saddle needs. Like most folks, I've found thick gel or foam padded saddles to be uncomfortable for more than short rides.

I have a range of saddles going from a SR Contour on my road bike, to a fully sprung Lepper tour mattress saddle on my Dutch bike. Both are perfect for the bikes they're on, and would be terrible if swapped.

Always something to add.

Good point. Springs are not going to do you much good unless you are sitting updright. I tend to ride low and aero, and do best on a narrow saddle.

That said, I've gotten addicted to a cane creek thudbuster seat post. at 20mph, 28mm tires work the best for me, but the thudbuster makes the bike ride like it is on 2 inch mountain bike tires. I love it!!!

Yeah, but this doesn't cost much (or anything if you have some shoe laces sitting around like I did)...