Best saddle for touring

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
Ruta78
Posts: 11
Joined: 12 Mar 2015, 7:44pm

Best saddle for touring

Post by Ruta78 »

Hi all,

I just got my first touring bike, Ridgeback Voyage, and the saddle is a real pain. I definitely need to upgrade it, and was wondering what would be the best saddle from your experience for touring? I know Brooks are very popular, but is it worth the price tag?

What saddles you are using for touring and why?
ndmbike
Posts: 78
Joined: 1 Oct 2011, 12:45pm

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by ndmbike »

My best saddle is...
The one that fits my bum!

OK I know I'm being a bit flip but I seem to have acquired 11 saddles and am only prepared to sit on one of them for 5hr plus a day.
There are two others which are tolerable but there is only one to rule them all.
Heaven/Mordor knows what I'll do when my precious wears out (I got it second hand on this forum and it is old).

My LBS have a funny seat that shows pressure points when you sit on it and then hopefully you can find a saddle that matches your sit bones (Ischial tuberosities) without it playing havoc with your other bits. Try to match your pelvis bones to the wide part of the saddle (is the best advice I can suggest).

I guess - when you find a saddle that is right - you will know it is the one. Buy several if you can!
Best of luck!

I must get round to putting those surplus saddles up for sale on the forum!
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TrevA
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Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by TrevA »

Saddles are very personal but a Brooks B17 does the job for me. I used it on my Jogle and never got a single saddle sore. Supremely comfortable for 70 miles a day everyday.

I use a Charge Spoon on my road bike and winter bikes, but for long all day rides it has to be the Brooks.
Sherwood CC and Notts CTC.
A cart horse trapped in the body of a man.
http://www.jogler2009.blogspot.com
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Heltor Chasca
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Location: Near Bath & The Mendips in Somerset

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by Heltor Chasca »

I was lucky too as my LBS has a demo bucket of saddles. The one for me was a C17. It's a stunning saddle. But as the wise wizards on here say it's the one that fits you...b
largeallan
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Joined: 10 Jan 2010, 2:31pm
Location: Isle of Arran

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by largeallan »

...if leather floats your erm ...boat, then you could try spa cycles 'nidd'....similar in shape to the B17, just as comfy and half the price.
bikerwaser
Posts: 359
Joined: 26 Aug 2012, 9:50am

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by bikerwaser »

been using the Serfas E gel saddle for years.

really comfortable.

http://www.amazon.com/Serfas-E-Gel-Mens ... gel+saddle

i tried a Brooks B17 but found it really uncomfortable.
also didn't like the idea of having to look after it/cover it up if it rains.
pete75
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Joined: 24 Jul 2007, 2:37pm

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by pete75 »

largeallan wrote:...if leather floats your erm ...boat, then you could try spa cycles 'nidd'....similar in shape to the B17, just as comfy and half the price.


If you go for one of those remove the lacing for the break in period - it'll be a lot easier on your backside.
'Give me my bike, a bit of sunshine - and a stop-off for a lunchtime pint - and I'm a happy man.' - Reg Baker
pwa
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Joined: 2 Oct 2011, 8:55pm

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by pwa »

Good luck finding your ideal saddle. It is such an individual thing that no-one can reliably point you in the right direction.

For me the best saddle type has turned out to be the all-leather Brooks type saddle. These days there are quite a few brands out there. Some people still swear by Brooks, but I have heard experienced Brooks customers saying that they don't keep their shape as well as they used to. Spa make some very similar looking saddles that reputedly take longer to soften, but hold their shape better. They are also cheaper than Brooks without any obvious drop in quality. My own (expensive) favourites are made by Gilles Berthoud in France, and they are like a Brooks brought into the 21st Century, with the ability to replace individual components (including the leather) if necessary. Like Spa saddles they take hundreds of miles to soften, but when they do they are great for long distance rides. I did 120 miles on one on Saturday and only afterwards did I realise that I had not thought about my rear at all during the ride.

If you choose a padded saddle I would warn against anything that claims to have "Gel" in it. I've had a few saddles with gel, and none felt good after 10 miles. A good shape (individual to you) and a bit of flex are the things to aim for. And don't even begin worrying about weight. This is not an area to save grams.
theDaveB
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Location: Cheshire, UK
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Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by theDaveB »

As others have said no one can recommend you a saddle, they can just say what works for them.

I have had my bike for 2 years and bought 5 different saddles including a brooks b17 and a charge spoon. At the moment am using a £10 saddle from decathlon and it's been the best so far.

Am still not 100% happy.

Dave
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foxyrider
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Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by foxyrider »

In my limited experience (only riding for a little over 35 years) i've found two things to be important when saddling up, a firm base with fairly minimal padding and nothing too wide. Each of my bikes has a different saddle but they are all similar in shape and padding. Probably the best saddle i've ever owned is the San Marco Concor that'll be back on my old sklool road bike in a week or two. But thats me, as others have said, trial and error is pretty much your only recourse :?
Convention? what's that then?
Airnimal Chameleon touring, Orbit Pro hack, Orbit Photon audax, Focus Mares AX tour, Peugeot Carbon sportive, Owen Blower vintage race - all running Tulio's finest!
mercalia
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Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by mercalia »

the best saddle for touring is the one you have already done a lot of miles on ( over some time, maybe many short journies ), never a new one.
whoof
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Joined: 29 Apr 2014, 2:13pm

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by whoof »

I get on well with Specialized saddles. I tour on an Alias which they either don't make any more or have changed it's name. I use it because have this and a couple of Toupes (the stupidest name for a saddle) on my other bikes that I ride when I'm not touring.
You need to visit a shop and get measured to ensure you have the correct width.
Not recommending this site it just shows them all.
http://www.evanscycles.com/categories/c ... ;sort=asc;
22camels
Posts: 302
Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 8:15pm

Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by 22camels »

One thing I've only just realised is that the saddle I'm currently using (Brooks Flyer Imperial) at 860g, is a whole 500g heavier than some other saddles I could try (like the San Marco Rolls Classic which I might try next). I've become quite weight conscious and if it was super comfortable I wouldn't mind so much but now I've done perhaps 2000km on it and though it's certainly better than most saddles, I am still not entirely convinced by my Brooks (also the springs creak which doesn't help)…
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al_yrpal
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Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by al_yrpal »

My Salsa Vayas no name saddle that came fitted to the bike is the best I have ever had, and I have had 9 in the last 9 years. Its plastic, quite slim and firm but the part where the sit bones sit has a bit of give. I have tried a couple of leather saddles including a Brooks but these have an unforgiving leather covered metal part at the back that transmits shocks and vibrations very directly without any damping and the side parts really chafed badly on my thighs.
Dont spend too much, try lots, and dispose of the failures in the For Sale section here.

Al
Reuse, recycle, thus do your bit to save the planet.... Get stuff at auctions, Dump, Charity Shops, Facebook Marketplace, Ebay, Car Boots. Choose an Old House, and a Banger ..... And cycle as often as you can......
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Farawayvisions
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Re: Best saddle for touring

Post by Farawayvisions »

Brooks 17 for me - lady version. Love it and I took it on a 500km tour straight out of the box.
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