since the saddle that came with my new Masi Speciale was tiny (130mm or so) - too tiny for me, anyway - i swapped it for a Brooks B17 Narrow (155mm), which is about 10mm wider than i'm used to.

two observations:

(1) the Masi is amazing. such a nice smooth ride on a steel road bike. my before-work ride today was on a carbon bike with Rival; the Masi is steel with 105. like night and day...but both are awesome.

(2) the Brooks leather is so insanely hard and slippery that it was very weird to ride initially. once i found my spot, though, i was well supported. the saddly is heavy as hell, though. i can understand why i don't see them more often.

(1) Much love for steel. Never had the pleasure of riding a Masi, but I've been told that my Serotta's geometry resembles a Masi quite closely and I do love it's ride.

(2) My regular B-17 is the same way with the sliding bit. I need to tip the nose up just a hair more to take a bit more pressure off the hands, and then just get enough saddle time on that bike to wear in the leather a little so it's not quite so slick. I test rode a friend's B-17 before buying mine that had several thousand miles on it. I didn't notice the sliding issue on that one and the leather had much more of a matte finish/feel it it.

the slippery texture will probably be a positive for me for now - i'm trying out riding in a suit (slow, just to get outside), and so i think slippery is better for preventing damage to the pants

Masi steel + Brooks leather = a winning combination.

I've wanted a Speciale for a long time. Great bike, congratulations.

I've also been meaning to put a Brooks on my commuter. The one's at my LBS are exceptionally stiff leather, to the point where it seems like it would be uncomfortable. How was it? Was the shape right to prevent any undue pressure?

well, here's where i'm coming from:
i got a felt; stock saddle was about 130mm. way too narrow, gave me numbness (eek)
replaced that with a Selle.it Prolink, which is 145mm with a cutout. works well so far.
this one is 155mm without a cutout. with my sit-bones on the widest part of the seat, the tight leather keeps me supported enough that i had no problems with undue pressure. for me, that's a good shape.

as for comfort - it has no padding at all and it's brand new. so it wasn't painful, but it wasn't a soft ride either.

re: Brooks leather stiffness - if you can't bend it with your fingers then it's probably just about right for your body weight + sit bones. It took a couple rides for me to be sold on mine, now considering coughing up the $$$ for a more sporty model for my other Gazelle.

You'll get used to the smooth texture and in a short time plastic saddles will feel grabby and hot. I find the best position for me by laying a level across the saddle from nose to back. I prefer the shape of the Team Pros, but they have really thick leather. My B17 felt comfortable after a handful of rides, but my first Team Pro took about a 1000 miles to break in. To get around the long break-in I started sending my saddles to Selle Anatomica to have them put cutouts in them. While still stiffer than a well broken-in saddle, my latest Team Pro was good to go for centuries right out of the box after a short trip to SA.

I couldn't get over the slipperiness. A real deal-breaker for me. I stuck my B17 on my mtb, where it languishes in unridden obscurity.

Yup. Watch most people browsing saddles in a shop and they're squeezing the padding with their thumbs (I used to do it, too). Unless they have the grip strength of a gorilla, they're not going to duplicate the force that their body weight will put into the saddle.

jediphobic, f you get a chance and see a Brooks in person, and especially if it's on a bike, put your elbow on its middle and lean into it with most of your weight (or, more likely, ask its owner to show you). Thanks to its minimal frame, you'll see it bow downwards like a hammock.

That hammock effect is what gives tensioned leather saddles, and a few plastic saddles like a Toupe, their comfort.

Most Brooks riders have the nose of the saddle tilted up a bit ... I know I do.

Slipperiness ... that's a plus for me, not a negative.

Sure like the look of that Masi.

Don't give up on the B17N. Yup insanely thick hard leather. I have owned several Brooks and they have all required 500 to 700 miles to start softening up, although the B17N's seem to require a bit longer. Lp

how soft/hard has little to do with comfort, of course brooks' felt much harder to the hand because it's leather under tension vs foam padded plastic/fiber panel.

brook felt great once it's broke it(according to a friend), it just not for my sit bone width.

I put a Brooks on my Surly LHT as well - when putting it on, I was amazed by how frigging hard it was but it actually felt very good to ride even without any break in. I ride a 131-132mm saddle (Selle Italia SLC) and I was also very pleasantly surprised by how well that wide saddle (whatever the width of the normal B17 is) fit.

V.

I have a honey B17 on my Surly Steamroller and I'm loving it. I didn't need any break-in time on mine but I have noticed it's softer than when I first bought it. I've put about 600 miles on it so far. I have the Brooks leather treatment kit too. I've used that twice. Once when I first bought it and once about four months later.