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I drank the Kool-Aid myself. My B17 was comfortable right out of the box. It's nice being able to ride without thinking about the fact that you're sitting on a saddle.
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I do not have a Brooks I use a leather saddle from bikeisland and I have had it for about year now and its been great to me =)
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One thing you can count on is commuters love talking about their Brooks saddle. They don't even seem to mind that this question is asked a few times each month and will happily explain how great it is time and time again. After seeing so many references to them, I asked the same thing and got a lot of similar responses. What I didn't twig at first was that you are sitting on a hammock of stretched leather. Once I realized that, I had it ordered within 5 minutes.
http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...dles?highlight= |
Selle Italia bought the company and made it fashionable, added More Colors.
then invested Money in their new property, to ramp up the numbers produced . then Y'all started to talk amongst yourself .. |
I bought into Brooks for its reputed longevity. I got tired of saddles dying after 2-4k miles. My road bike now has a Swift with 15k miles, and the saddle should last a lot longer. It's not the most comfortable saddle I've owned, but certainly not the worst. I just ordered a mandarin Swift for my hybrid. It'll match the mango headset on the black frame. :-) More importantly, that fashionable color must not have been well received as it was on clearance--the main reason I chose it!
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Originally Posted by MNBikeCommuter
(Post 13701079)
I bought into Brooks for its reputed longevity. I got tired of saddles dying after 2-4k miles. My road bike now has a Swift with 15k miles, and the saddle should last a lot longer. It's not the most comfortable saddle I've owned, but certainly not the worst. I just ordered a mandarin Swift for my hybrid. It'll match the mango headset on the black frame. :-) More importantly, that fashionable color must not have been well received as it was on clearance--the main reason I chose it!
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Originally Posted by himespau
(Post 13701148)
ooh ooh, where do you find Brooks saddles on clearance? I've been wanting a brooks saddle, but so far the price has kept me away. My next one will be though.
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I drank the kool-aid and I'm happy I did, after gel/foam saddles it definitely did not feel right at first, but I think that had more to do with the fact I had ridden those first two... after putting 50 miles on my b17 "unbroken" and my ass not hurting, and the only issue I had the entire ride was actually because I was wearing new jeans on a new brooks and sliding a bit. I'm a light guy, so I found that I didn't actually need to break it in surprising and it's very very comfortable at least to me... other then the sliding I can't find any cons with it.. oh except one, I now do not like flipping my bike over on any surface to work on it! But these are just my results.
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Originally Posted by Mithrandir
(Post 13231911)
I had this same issue at first. I had a pro bike fit done a month later, and the numbness went away over the next week, and has yet to reappear, 3 weeks later.
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I saw this post pop up again and thought of something. One of the allure of the Brooks saddle is this: It is leather. Real leather. Leather on the top, leather on the bottom, think leather. Leather says quality and it shouts snob appeal. But more importantly, the Brooks saddle is one of the few leather things (that isn't worn as some sort of clothing) you can buy that is functional because of the leather. It's practical. Since a lot of bicycle riders seem to like the throwback aspect of bicycle riding itself (either by riding vintage bikes, faux vintage like Rivendell, or modern classics like Sury), a functional leather product that can be used on a bike seems only natural. And not only is it functional and practical, it is stylish, but in a subtle way (most non-cyclists wouldn't notice a leather saddle on a bike at all).
I'm kind of an anti-snob about a lot of things. I only started riding Brooks saddles because I bought a Raleigh DL-1 (for $30) that came with the original Brooks B72 saddle. Now all of my bikes have leather saddles except one, and that will probably have one soon. Sure other saddles are functional and work for other people, but the truth is, I honestly enjoy riding more on a leather saddle. |
My main debate is whether to spring for the Brooks when I buy next or get a Gyes for half as much (or less).
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Originally Posted by foxrider71
(Post 13230990)
I would think the rain splatter from the back tire might get under the saddle and could damage it a bit but surely there is a way to treat it?
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yeah, and what about wool shorts, real chamois and down tube shifters!
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Gone thru 3 brooks saddles in 40k miles and glad I am not battling one any more.
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Originally Posted by noisebeam
(Post 13705839)
Gone thru 3 brooks saddles in 40k miles and glad I am not battling one any more.
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Originally Posted by RaleighSport
(Post 13705845)
Mind telling us what issues you had?
First B17 front rivet popped out (before any adjustment to tension). Got new rivet sent to me under warrantee, but could never get it back to 'like new' Different fit when bone dry vs. humid vs. wet. Saddle would sag in middle and get more uncomfortable. Replaced B17 with Team Pro. A better fit, but still same sagging issues. Even just my sweat would change fit. Rail broke on Team Pro after 10k miles or so. Replaced under warranty. Now using a Fizik Aliante and it is more comfortable and consistently so with never a concern for the weather. |
Originally Posted by noisebeam
(Post 13705927)
Sits too far forward on standard seatpost
First B17 front rivet popped out (before any adjustment to tension). Got new rivet sent to me under warrantee, but could never get it back to 'like new' Different fit when bone dry vs. humid vs. wet. Saddle would sag in middle and get more uncomfortable. Replaced B17 with Team Pro. A better fit, but still same sagging issues. Even just my sweat would change fit. Rail broke on Team Pro after 10k miles or so. Replaced under warranty. Now using a Fizik Aliante and it is more comfortable and consistently so with never a concern for the weather. |
I found a B-72 at a bike shop and picked it up for $40 with a seatpost. It was dirty from sitting under the counter for a couple of years, the owner had traded something for it.I thought it was used. I took it home, wiped it off and found it to be new and had never been mounted to anything. I treated it and mounted it. It was comfortable from the moment I installed it.
My B-17 mounted on my LHT is a Special model with the brass rivets in honey. It has thicker leather than the B-72 and it was mildly uncomfortable on 35+ mile rides as it was breaking in. Now, 800+ miles later, it simply disappears underneath me. I had to get an infinitely adjustable seatpost to get the angle just right but now it is seat nirvana. 50+ mile days feel fine. I get off and it doesn't feel like I have been riding and can get back on an go. The saddle breathes and the original slickness goes away soon. If you are having issues with the nether regions, it is a fit issue or your shorts. I had some problems and found it was the padding in the shorts that caused the problems. I was wearing a pair of Endura mountain bike shorts and the pad just didn't work. I bought a pair of Bontranger shorts and they feel great. Usually though I just wear shorts without the pad and it feels fine. No other saddle lets me ride so far without padded shorts without discomfort. |
Originally Posted by bluefoxicy
(Post 13235179)
It's like a ****in' Porsche for your ass, man. Like when you stop flying Delta and go with Korean Air, and you suddenly realize you're surrounded by sexy Asian women, and the hostess sees you looking but she just smiles--sure you're not getting anywhere, but she didn't wear that sheer skirt to keep men from checking out her perfect, toned-out legs. And then they bring you out some Gogi-Gui and 7-Up, and the in flight movie isn't even a rerun of Biodome, and you look around and you're like, wow man, life is perfect. But then you get off the plane in Europe, and you take a tour all over the god damn continent, and you find out that it's far superior to drive there than in the US, and at the same time far superior for cycling, and even for walking! And you look back, and you wonder what your life was like, and you immediately move your entire family to Europe--somewhere near East Europe, so you can bike a century and get a peek at some of those Asian girls once in a while--and swear you're never coming back.
That's what it's like. |
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Originally Posted by olly708
(Post 13698052)
I put a brand new honey Brooks Professional on a bike at the start of a year long bicycle tour. Some comedian at Brooks had stamped "Pre-softened" into the leather. What a joker - the thing was like iron. For two weeks it was as painful as a painful thing. Riding down the west coast of the S. Island of New Zealand I came across a bushman's store that sold lots of furry items made from possum skin - including a possum skin bicycle seat cover. Before anyone gets all sniffy about wildlife conservation - I should add that possums in NZ are a real menace and are widely considered a real environmental pest. They have no natural predators and breed worse than rabbits, chomping their way through thousands of tons of forest every night. The government pays people to control them. So, I bought a two inch thick possum skin seat cover and used it for the next few weeks. On occasion I would ride into a town, stop outside a cafe where there were attractive young ladies eating, get off my bike and say "Sshhh" and then point at the saddle and whisper "he's sleeping". Great icebreaker and always got a laugh.
The dead possum was a wonderful cushion and within a few hundred miles the Brooks was as comfortable as an old sofa. Now that it's properly softened up I wouldn't trade it for the world and it will easily outlast me. I wax the top surface with tan boot polish and feed the underside with boiled linseed oil from time to time. Very few products in this world are still made in exactly the same way as they were 100 years ago. Persevere with a Brooks and you'll never want another saddle. The darn things do wear out after about 25 or 30 years... then you'll want a new one. |
Originally Posted by LeeG
(Post 13705644)
yeah, and what about wool shorts, real chamois and down tube shifters!
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