Brooks Saddles

[KnottedYet]

I'd be mighty careful with the hood pierce, especially when the leather is still slippery and your position may change. (good lord, that sounded like a line from BLE 20/01!)

If you really needed the cut-out, your ring would've been catching on the edges of the cut-out every time you shifted back or forward, eh?

Depending on the saddle you choose, it might be black leather with silver rivets. (mine has silver) Black leather is always sexy, whatever rivets you end up with.

There are narrower Brooks saddles you could get back on. I'm thinking "Swift", but I'd have to go back to www.wallbike.com to check. Maybe it was "Swallow". (oh, jeez, another ad for Cleis Press...)

Edit: for the price difference, you might just be happier with a B17-Narrow rather than the other two I mentioned. Same dimensions. http://www.wallbike.com/B17.html

[Kitsune06]

Yeah, I was thinking of the B-17 narrow, just for virtue of the price. Weight really isn't a huge concern of mine, but the black and silver look hot.
I tend to like the 'sporty' look with my mtb... the current saddle looks a lot like a roadie uber-slim, huge-cutout Specialized WSD... which isn't specific to this woman, b/c my sit bones almost touch the edge of the cutout on the inside. oO; Very narrow.

I actually *do* have some problems with my pierce and the cut-out, most notable being when the barbell slides out of the normal, 'even' position and one end sticks out more than the other, it gets caught (chamois or not) and yanked (if I'm lucky, torn if I'm not). But the cutout relieves a lot of the pressure, so I'm between a rock and a hard place. The jewelry is at 8g, so it's hard to tear, thankfully.

I'm reluctant to remove it, because when it *does* stay in place... well... the punchline "I know... it's the cobblestones!" says it all... ..and H wonders why I like biking for hours!

Ordinarily I'd be all shy about the topic, but this is TE, and nothing is sacred here. or should I just chalk it up to "We're all ladies here!"?

btw, the pierce was done years ago, now, and not at 8g but believe it or not, the hot'nnumb feeling is worse... think tattoo v. piercing.

[melissam]

Kitsune,

Wow, you're made of stronger stuff than I am. Yanking or tearing ... Well, hopefully the cobblestones make it all worthwhile.

Ahem, anyway, I'd forgotten to mention that mtbr has several reviews of the Brooks saddles, many by mountain bikers, some by roadies on the mtbr site (gasp!).

I have a couple of pics, but unfortunately they're a little too big for the TE site, so I need to do some editing.

-- Melissa

[Kitsune06]

I think you ladies are gonna talk me into it.

If my beautiful bike-fund nazi at home asks, I'll tell her I needed a nice saddle to do the 40mi ride on, and I didn't want to attempt to take my 'expensive' $90 saddle back (it now resides on her bike). She'll never believe it's comfortable.

After getting bored enough (and curious enough) I plunked my butt down on some light notebook paper in one of my squishy office chairs (I'm at work) and took the measurement. 155mm. So the b17 should fit well, where the 'n' would be a little too 'n'.

I'm going to figure this in with my hammer gel and hammer flask out of this paycheck and I'll have met (and exceeded... ugh) my allowance this paycheck, but from what I hear of Brooks, it'll be the last time I ever have to really do business with them!

I think what really sealed the deal was the plethora of reviews from MTBR. I use them religiously to justify and research bike buys, (yes, yes, I'm a sheep with the masses) but if they say it's a go, it's at least worth a try.

Dunno if I want to buy proofhide, since I have my own boot/saddle/leather conditioner that's really never lead me wrong... I guess I'll see.

[melissam]

Just for fun, here are some more pics of the B17S Brooks Saddle on a Trek 5200 WSD road bike. For the detail oriented folks, the bike is 47cm with 650 wheels.

Black leather with silver hardware looks HOT!


Brooks saddle on a carbon bike with carbon seatpost -- an instant classic!

[Kitsune06]

with an outer sit-bone measurement of 155, should I go with the standard or the narrow for my mtb? I suppose I guessed my hips to be quite narrow because I'm pretty thin, but my sitbones must be another matter entirely.

Are the Brooks measurements from the outer edges of the saddle?

...and faced with the prospect of telling H about buying yet another bikey thing, I'm wondering if I should just tinker awhile longer with my current saddle, just trying to tip the nose down a little more or something...

[melissam]

Kitsune,

The measurements on wallbikes.com are taken from the outer edges of the saddles.

Honestly, I think you can get away with the narrow saddle. How wide is your current saddle?

-- Melissa

[Kitsune06]

I'm willing to bet it's 150, actually... but maybe I'm confused. It's the Men's planetbike ARS (though I've since 'given' that one to H and taken an unnamed '03 model WSD Specialized saddle of quite similar width, maybe a hair narrower, and with much less padding.) How could I possibly be comfortable if the 'outsides' of my sitbones are at 155-159, but my seat is so much narrower? I only have sit-bone bruising after about 10 mi, but chafing is forever, unfortunately. =( (and if it matters, it's thighpit/underwear line chafing)

Could my measurements be way inaccurate given that I measured through my thin albeit still existant pants?

[Veronica]

My sit bones measure just under 13 cm and I ride my husband's standard B17 on the trainer. I have a Finesse on my bike. I don't know that I would go narrow. Of course narrow may not actually be about sit bones, but more about thighs. Anyway... talk to them at Wallingford and see what they suggest.

V.

[KnottedYet]

You want your sitbones to be completely ON the saddle, not on the edges over the metal. I would seriously consider the B17 over the B17N. Ask Bill or Diane at wallingford what they recommend. If the bones are just barely perched on the saddle edges you could get some bruising.

The chafing is likely due to the shape of the saddle viewed from above. Pear vs. "T". Sounds like you may be one of the folks who's femur-to-hip-socket angle might require a "T" shape to keep you from chafing at the crease/pantyline/pit.

(compare the top views of the B17N and the B67 for an extreme example of the difference. don't look at width, look at the overall shape)

[Kitsune06]

Given that, then, Knotted, would you suggest the b17S instead?

[dachshund]

Has anyone done this: immerse the saddle in oil over night in order to soften the leather? The guy who manages the LBS is kind of a character, so I take what he says with a grain of salt. But he said to use a product called "neatsfoot", which you get at stores that sell the other type of saddle, the one that goes on a horse...

I'm inclined to just get the proofhide and be done with it.

[KnottedYet]

The magic number: 1-888-731-3537. Bill (or Diane, but most likely Bill) will answer the phone.

When you talk to Bill, tell him what you currently ride and tell him how it looks compared to the B17 and B17S. Tell him your sit bone measurement. Tell him what bugs you about your current saddle. Tell him how you like to ride. He is a huge resource. He (or Diane) would be the best one to help you decide between the B17 and the B17S.

Also be sure to tell him if you like long-nose or short-nose saddles. And don't be afraid to tell him your budget. I told him my budget straight away, and he made absolutely no attempt to sell me something beyond my reach.

With a 6 month trial period, you really can't go wrong!

(for all I know, the B17 has a more abrupt transition than your current saddle, and would solve your chafing problem. Best compare the 3 saddles and discuss it with Bill or Diane. For example: I ride a B67, not a B67S)

[KnottedYet]

Doxie -

I wouldn't do that. On a horse saddle the leather is over a frame and padding. So if you "over" soften the leather it's not a big deal.

On a Brooks the leather is the ONLY thing holding you up. If you oversoften it, it will collapse under you like Mimitabby's husband's did.

Just use the proofhide. Brooks knows what they're doing.

[Kitsune06]

Yep... well... I need to wait until DP okays it... (per the other forum thread!