Saddle replacement - Brooks

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pete75
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by pete75 »

greyingbeard wrote:very like how a brooks is made, which one would expect given the similar nature of the product. Brooks use more people that automation though, I see that as a good thing


Of course Brooks will use more people. The average French worker is 20 - 25% more productive than the average British. :wink:
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mjr
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by mjr »

blackbike wrote:Technology has provided us with cheaper, better quality saddles which last for ages and don't need breaking in.

Such as...?

Brooks are expensive, GB too, but I think there's still a place for hammock saddles.
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greyingbeard
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by greyingbeard »

pete75 wrote:
greyingbeard wrote:very like how a brooks is made, which one would expect given the similar nature of the product. Brooks use more people that automation though, I see that as a good thing


Of course Brooks will use more people. The average French worker is 20 - 25% more productive than the average British. :wink:



he would be, there are fewer of them as machines have replaced them. Gone are the days when the factory hooter went, to be followed by the clanging of all the trap doors and rustlings of the Sun. Of course, the French have their vin rouge, the spanish their siesta....
MikeDee
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by MikeDee »

Brooks saddles cause me perineum pain.
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fausto copy
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by fausto copy »

Having watched the Berthoud video, I'm a bit mystified as to what and why was the black stuff sprayed onto the upper surface before being soaked prior to shaping? Whatever it was, most of it was removed in the process and it soon disappeared altogether.

fausto.
MikeDee
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by MikeDee »

blackbike wrote:I can't see the point of Brooks saddles.

They are expensive and need breaking in.

Technology has provided us with cheaper, better quality saddles which last for ages and don't need breaking in.

Saddles have not been left behind in the vast improvement in quality of cycling gear over the last few decades.

To me Brooks saddles are a retro nostalgia item. I'm pleased they are still going but they are not for me.


A lot of folk claim that, once broken in, they are the most comfortable saddles. In my case, not.
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CREPELLO
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by CREPELLO »

MikeDee wrote:
blackbike wrote:I can't see the point of Brooks saddles.

They are expensive and need breaking in.

Technology has provided us with cheaper, better quality saddles which last for ages and don't need breaking in.

Saddles have not been left behind in the vast improvement in quality of cycling gear over the last few decades.

To me Brooks saddles are a retro nostalgia item. I'm pleased they are still going but they are not for me.


A lot of folk claim that, once broken in, they are the most comfortable saddles. In my case, not.
I will in part depend on what Brooks model you used and for what application.

The Swift is very much a racing saddle and is better suited to a lower stretched out position. The B17 standard is much better for more upright riding; the Pro is somewhere in between. The Swallow is more like a B17 Narrow than a Swift - it has a much flatter top, which can reduce perineum pressure.

For those who get perineum trouble, the Imperial with a central cutout seems to help many.

I've used Brooks extensively. I've found the B17 a very comfy all rounder with a good wide flat area to sit on; the Swift is ok, but has only one sweet spot (it's tricky to set up) and is prone to stretching due to less leather; the Pro is a dog to break in, but is now as comfy as the B17.
greyingbeard
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by greyingbeard »

Look carefully at the width, some people prefer narrower, others wider. The B17 is relatively wide at 17cm aprox. especially so when compared to the tiny offerings a shop bike usually comes with. This width is also apparant in the nose. I prefer wider. or rather, my bottom does. : :roll:
And yes they do take time to break in. Im sure theres lots of opinions on how to speed the process up, but avoid long rides until you know it will be ok.
TonyR
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by TonyR »

pete75 wrote:]Of course Brooks will use more people. The average French worker is 20 - 25% more productive than the average British. :wink:


And be grateful we aren't. When the crash happened in 2008, most British companies kept people on rather than laying them off, even though there was not necessarily as much for them to do. Result: we had a drop in productivity rather than an increase in unemployment. Which is why we now have an unemployment rate half that of France.
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pedalsheep
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by pedalsheep »

Breaking in a Brooks saddle is not necessarily a long and painful process. I fitted a B17 special on Thursday as a replacement for a standard B17 which was a bit past its best. I've done 165 miles on it since Thursday (not all in one go!) and its been absolutely fine, a bit hard maybe, but no problem at all. Comfortable straight out of the box.
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MikeDee
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by MikeDee »

I just completed a 6 day tour with lots of climbing. I have a Selle-An-Atomica NSX saddle, broken in. There are nice divots where my sitbones are. It was fine on normal rides, but I got sitbone pain on the third day. I had my WTB Pure V saddle with me and switched it out. It proved more comfortable for the rest of the tour, but the damage was done. I was using Udderly Smooth as a chamois cream and good shorts. I think the problem was that leather saddles are hard and have no padding. I think I'm done with leather saddles. What's point if they are no more comfortable, weigh twice as much, get ruined in wet weather, and cost a lot more. I realize that everyone is different and YMMV, but I really wanted it to work, and it didn't. Maybe the one with the slot cut in it would have been worked better. Looking to try Lanaseptic as a chamois creme on the next long ride.
Bmblbzzz
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by Bmblbzzz »

I was just going to mention Selle Anatomica! I've no personal experience of them but a friend swears by them, describing them as a Brooks reverse engineered and improved. He likes the ones with the cut out. Unfortunately, I think they have to be ordered from the USA.
pwa
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by pwa »

Brooks are just one of several manufacturers / brands producing that sort of saddle. They do (in my experience) benefit from breaking in, but that is their strength, not their weakness. Modern hi-tech saddles sound like a good thing, and I've had a few, but I've yet to find one that feels as unnoticeable after 100 miles as a broken in Brooks type saddle. If short rails are a problem, spend a bit more on a Gilles Berthoud.
tatanab
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by tatanab »

MikeDee wrote:I just completed a 6 day tour with lots of climbing. I have a Selle-An-Atomica NSX saddle, broken in. --- I had my WTB Pure V saddle with me and switched it out. It proved more comfortable for the rest of the tour.
By contrast, in June I toured over 1000 miles on a Gilles Berthoud Aspin. My shorts are Corinne Dennis with a terry cotton patch over the seams, and I used Planet X undies with not a hint of a pad. No cream of any sort or flavour was applied. In all that time I never once had cause to notice the saddle. In the past I found Brooks comfortable in general, it was just reliability and short life span that turned me off.

Have said all this, I accept that we are all different and at least MikeDee has tried something different - I've never tried or even seen a Selle-An-Atomica.
bikepacker
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Re: Saddle replacement - Brooks

Post by bikepacker »

I tried a Selle Anatomica purchased from a forum member. Didn't like it at all. It felt like I was sitting on a steel frame with no support as the leather sagged and any adjustment just seemed to stretch the leather. I got on to the company for advice and all I got back was very curt replies virtually telling me to get lost.
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