Do you believe everything you read? Proofide will do nothing to speed up the time the saddle conforms to your body. This is marketing bull****. It is in the same category as the retro cardboard box and old-time lettering. Proofide does not penetrate the top surface at all as it is basically a wax. The advice given to apply Proofide to the bottom of the saddle is recent and was only introduced by the new owners in order to pacify American owners who tend to ride without mudguards.
There is too much rubbish spoken about Brooks saddles and much of it by people with little knowledge of them.

Fact: They are made of LEATHER. Not magical Brooks leather but just leather and all the principles concerning leather apply.
Fact: The leather of the saddle is hard because the natural oils have been leached from the leather by the forming process. This means that the internal fibres are not lubricated enough to allow them to slide over one another and so you have a hard saddle. Brooks tells you not to use any substance in order to soften the leather as they rely on your sit-bones breaking the fibres in order to make the indentations required.
Fact: If you have your saddle long enough what happens is that the leather, lacking oils, will begin to crumble and crack and will eventually end up as dust. This does take a long time (20-30 years but will happen.)
As with all leather, wetting it will allow it to become pliable and take a shape. When dry, it is as hard as it ever was. So, unless you enjoy a certain amount of discomfort, it makes sense to use this fact and make the indentations required for your sit-bones while the saddle is wet (the rear part only). This can be done by riding it for a period until the shape is present, or by creating them by other means (even thumb pressure can do it on the B17 Special which has thinner leather than the Pro. If the saddle is allowed to dry, it then becomes just a hard as before.

I've probably got about 500 miles on my new Brooks. On a ride yesterday, I realized it had arrived at that perfect smooth comfort that has made me treasure leather saddles over the decades. On arriving home, I looked at the saddle. Fact is, it doesn't look very different than it did right out of the box. When I hit it with my knuckles, it sounds and feels like wood. Again, just like new. I have come to the opinion that Brook's saddles are actually quite mysterious. Look at all the different beliefs people have about them on this forum. In the end, maybe it's the springs that get broken in. Or a combination of springs and leather. Hell, I sure don't know. But neither have I seen where anyone else really knows either.

^^^ I gotta agree with the mysterious nature of Brooks saddles.

Let's see...
Soak it in motor oil. Slather it with wax. Wipe on neetsfoot oil. Use Proofide on the underside, the top side or both. Spray it with water. Ride it in the rain. Never ride it in the rain. Whack it with a mallet. Bend it. Pull it. Twist it. Work in canola oil. Let it collect dust for a year or so. Leave it in the sun for a few hours. Sweat on it. Loosen the tensioning bolt. Tighten the tensioning bolt. Don't touch the tensioning bolt. Trim away the center. Trim away the sides. Punch holes in the sides and lace it. Tilt the nose up. Keep the saddle flat. Ride it with cycling shorts. Ride it with jeans. Ride it naked. Don't put anything on it.

I have seen only one report of someone actually damaging a saddle while trying to "break it in". These buggers are tough. These saddles have stood up to a crap load of abuse, over the years and those who ride them obviously love them.

And BTW, I realized Friday that I am well on my way to "breaking in" this saddle. On my 45-mile round-trip commute, I didn't even notice the saddle. I figure that's a pretty good sign.

Don't get so excited!!

I don't know if that's bull or not concerning Proofide, it's is something that Brooks advertises and echoed by many people over many years that have had a lot of experience with either selling Brooks or riding on a Brooks. Like I said in my previous post, I broke in my saddles WITHOUT Proofide, but I know of and heard from many Brooks riders and places on the internet over the course of many years that sell Brooks that Proofide speeds up the breakin process. Unless you know something that thousands of other people are being mislead about or pyschologically believe incorrectly then I suggest following Brooks instructions.

And when you say a Brooks saddle will crumble in 20 to 30 years...SO WHAT?! I've never had a saddle made of any other material come remotely close to that life expectancy! The longest I had a saddle last was 3 years. BUT I have also seen leather saddles on old bikes that sat in storage for over 30 years that were NEVER treated, and though cracked were still rideable. https://www.esande.net/features/newbrooks.html (picture of a saddle over 100 years old still not cracked or crumbling)

And ONE of the reasons leather saddles are hard and not to be softened by applying oils is due to the fact that bike saddles are basically hammocks and the application of any type of oil will cause the leather to stretch and will sag requiring you to tighten, or retensioning of the saddle more often which in turn will stress the leather eventually leading to saddle failure sooner rather then later, and a leather saddle should rarely need retensioning if it was treated properly. Even overuse of Proofide can and will result in over softening the leather and ruin the saddle. I apply Proofide about once every 6 months, let it dry then buff the saddle. https://www.esande.net/features/newbrooks.html

Sheldon Brown has breakin treatment instructions on his web site for the Brooks; I don't necessarily agree with his methods but he does state that if the warranty is important for you then follow Brooks instructions. Doesn't mean the Sheldon is wrong just because I disagree with him, it's just a difference of opinion, and since I'm relatively new (5 years with the Swift) at this leather saddle business I've decided to follow Brooks instructions because I spent quite a bit of money for these saddles, and have not been left sorry for doing so. By the way, after 5 years I still haven't had to retension it. https://www.sheldonbrown.com/leather.html

https://withoutdoors.co.uk/browse.php?node_id=1677

https://reviews.ebay.com/The-Care-And...00000000884272

. sorry I doubled posted

My experience so far w/ the B17 is it felt comfortable after those first very weird 20 minutes. I've ridden it daily for almost 2 years and did one century (my first & only thus far), its still feeling great. In fact, given a chance, I get downright gushy about that saddle.

Side note: On that century, out of a couple hundred riders, I seemed to be the only one who was riding a Brooks. Lots of riders admired & complimented the saddle. But it left me wondering if those numbers say anything besides "marketing forces"?

It is wrong to use oil to soften leather saddles as this leads to over-softening and stretching. As I remember the advice given on Sheldon's site advocates using Neats-foot oil. While I've used this on saddles in the past I'm aware that as it is organic it does encourage mould. It's also an old-fashioned remedy but that said I have a B17 that is thirty years old and I conditioned it with Neats-foot.

<
I don't know if that's bull or not concerning Proofide, it's is something that Brooks advertises and echoed by many people over many years that have had a lot of experience with either selling Brooks or riding on a Brooks. >

Well I'm one of those people that have been riding Brooks for years and have conditioned around sixty or seventy in that time. If you want to waterproof your saddle then I suggest "Hydrophane". This product is used by saddlers and one coat will provide waterproofing without causing the leather to soften too much.
Over this side of the pond we have used these saddles for many, many years and we don't see them as such a big deal.

Is this what you are talking about: https://www.mmtackshop.com/hyleca.html

Not conditioning your leather would be like not washing your asch, using a lotion, or ever combing your hair

If you wet the leather, you will shorten its life. As for it turning to dust in about 20-30 years, I have never seen this phenomenon before. I still have my grandads brooks, ridden miles every day, for 50 plus years and is still very comfy and no dust in sight.

Proofhide should be treated in the same way shoe polish is. I have a very expensive pair of hand made shoes and they get polished every week and will last longer for it.

Marc.

This is what i have been using, very conservatively....



The saddle is still hard, and not really softened at all, even though this is a leather softener.
Seems to work for me.

Nonsense. Show me the evidence for this claim. How exactly do you think that Brooks form the leather to the shape of the frame????

Unlike you I have been given saddles that had started to crumble and crack, just as your expensive hide chair will, if you neglect to nourish it with applications of Lanoline.

You do realise that Proofide applied to the top of a saddle doesn't actually penetrate, don't you? If you doubt this then just scratch the top of your saddle and you can see the dry leather. The result is that most of the Proofide is rubbed off when you buff it and even more when you ride it.

no, as shoe polish it does 'sink in' to the leather, just not very far.

And as for evidence of how water can damage leather, i don't need to provide proof it's common fact! water will help to leach the natural oils from the leather and make it hard and brittle after time. Maybe thats how your saddles have turned to dust.

Marc.

Here's what I'm using to treat my Brooks:
Aussie Leather Conditioner
It is basically beeswax and petrolatum.

I called around to several leather stores, here in TX and this one was highly recommended by all of them. (When I spoke to one of them, I said, "I'm not going to drive down there to purchase this. I'm just looking for an impartial opinion.")

All this is "picking the fly s**t out of the pepper."

Leather saddles don't really need to be conditioned until they need to be conditioned. That can be out there a decade or more, depending upon local weather and riding environment. All this stuff is good to use - up to a point of excess. Just don't over do it, and you won't go wrong.

About waterproofing: Why waterproof a saddle that earns it's fame from the fact that it is supposed to wick away moisture from the rider, into itself, then evaporate it out later? Some added water-resistance makes sense, but waterproofing is somewhat counterintuitive.

The amount of Proofide that goes onto a saddle is about the same as you would use to shine your shoes. It has minimal effect upon the leather if used according to Brooks' instructions.

Cold forming with water is a millenia old method of shaping thick hide blanks so they retain their form. The Romans and others did this to form the leather breastplate cuirass armor we see on classic statues of Julius Ceasar. I don't know if Brooks uses this method, but it wouldn't surprise me at all. Getting a saddle soaked will not cause it to fail early. Riding a soaked saddle may very well accomplish that.

I don't know anything about long term care of leather saddles other then what Brooks instructions say. My Swift is 5 years old and my B17 is 5 months old and neither show signs of drying. I still go by what Brooks says, their the experts, they've been making saddles for over 100 years so I can only assume they know how to treat their saddles the best.

I keep my saddles covered in the rain even though I use Proofide and the leather may be somewhat tolerant of rain; I've have a little over $600 total invested in these two saddles (both have ti rails) so I'm going to keep them covered in rain and use Brooks method to treat them. If I get 20 years plus life out of them I'll be thrilled!!

Good. They will likely outlast the owner.

Well I hope to last a bit longer then 75...but I don't have any control over that.

Looks like your coming around to be a believer, no? It only took me about one week. Go wallbike parts, your not getting my saddle back.


Bill

Well, you can always put on a reflective vest. That'll help even the odds.

I'm getting there. Not a Brooks evangelist yet, but I may be heading that way. I don't even notice the saddle anymore, so I think that's a good sign.

That's the point at which most of us become evangelists. After all isn't that sort of what you're after?

I think it is but I may have over stated the "I don't even notice the saddle anymore..."

I do notice that I am still sliding around on it a bit and if I drop onto my aero bars, I notice the pressure on my... um... uh... sack. I expect most of this will be alleviated once I can lower the nose a bit without sliding forward.

That's the one. Use this sparingly but more around the rivets as this is where the cracking usually starts. One coat should provide waterproofing.

Face it. You can't provide proof as using water to shape leather is a technique as old as time.

In fact Brooks use it to form your saddle and it does leach out the natural oils, that's why the saddle feels like wood when new.