Your Favourite Saddle

General cycling advice ( NOT technical ! )
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Cugel
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by Cugel »

The utility cyclist wrote:Now, Fizik ti railed job on my daily, good for 100mile rides no problem, have about 28,000 miles on it. Also use a Brooks Swift on my winter/audax/tourer, that's pretty good, I can ride either in undercrackers and walking shorts no problem whatsoever. My fave racing saddle is an Arione though use a selle Italia carbon rail job which for me is just ok and is going to get replaced..

In the past and my favourite saddle ever was a Selle San Marco, not quite sure of precise model type but it was in the la vie claire team colours, rode it to destruction of the material over 10 years and still moved it on to someone else when it was crusted on the rails and sad in the garage.

I prefer saddles that warp to fit the whole nether and flex with one's thrusts rather than those that have padding and other softeners. The Fizik Kurves and similar models of theirs have a thin flexy shell & flexy rails; the Brookes mould to one's person over time and also flex in use.

The padded saddles have never worked for me. They seem always to end up with pressure points anyway, that become very tedious as the miles increase.

Cugel
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simonhill
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by simonhill »

Brooks Conquest, a sprung B17 type thing on my most used touring bike This is well worn in and maybe a bit saggy, but ideal for long distance touring. More armchair than saddle. However, it's very heavy - I think it is newly ½kg more than a B17.

Newish B17 on my other full size bike, not yet worn in.

Brompton standard on my Brompton.
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Spinners
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by Spinners »

Standard width B17 although, curiously, I don't have one at the moment.

Back in the 1990's I really liked the standard Rolls saddle. Not too heavy, not too pricey and it looked OK on a classic steel road bike.
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amediasatex
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by amediasatex »

for touring/upright position bikes - Gilles Berthoud Aspin/Aravis
Image

for long distance fast/aggressive position bikes - Gilles Berthoud Galbier/Soulor
Image

I have used other leather saddles too, Brooks B17 narrow, Swift and Swallow and the Spa Aire but definitely prefer the Gilles Berthouds now I've used them for a while.

for short/medium distance fast/aggressive position bikes - Velo Senso Miles Vex (was also branded by Planet X at some point and I have a couple of their versions)
Image

I actually find this one fine for long distance too but it's not quite as comfy as the GB once you go beyond about 250-300k, and it has to be on a bike with a fairly racy position, it simply does not work for anything upright.

for MTB - Bioflex Carbon/Ti
Image

As you noted though saddles are very personal, and also can be quite specific to use so just cos it works for bum X on bike Y doesn't mean it'll work for the same bum on a different kind of bike, or a different bum on the same kind of bike. It's taken years and a lot of testing for me to be happy with my choices, and I've stockpiled spares for the future as there's nothing worse than needing a replacement and finding your favourite saddle is no longer made!
steady eddy
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by steady eddy »

Selle SMP - These may look an odd shape but they are unbelievably comfortable and much more "man friendly" than the Brooks B17 which I have discarded.
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mjr
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by mjr »

foxyrider wrote:My go to saddle for many years was a Selle San Marco Concor - I still find it very comfortable when I ride one.

My road bike has a Brev.M Sellino which I think is meant to be close to a classic Concor, launched in the period between San Marco adding changing the shape of its Concor and launching the retro Concor Supercorsa.

The roadsters have a Dawes GT and a Lycett-clone mattress. The folder has some fairly wide Selle Royal with rubber ball shock absorbers (reupholstered and I forget the model marking it had - not a famous one). The winter bike has a (Selle Royal?) Maya Moderate on it, which I thought was fine until I tried riding consecutive days on it.

The discard shelf currently contains contains a Martens mattress (sweaty), some sort of Specialized BG (hard corners), some sort of Madison Anatomica (snapped rail) all of which I ought to throw out; plus I think a Selle Italia (too narrow) and a couple of Brooks (I couldn't stand the creaking) which I ought to sell.
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
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pedalsheep
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by pedalsheep »

Brooks B17 Special, I even polish the rivets! :roll:
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Mick F
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by Mick F »

Brooks Team Pro on both my regular bikes.
Rock hard, and they are fantastically comfortable.
Mick F. Cornwall
landellais
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by landellais »

Selle San Marco Rolls on all my bikes. Trusted by cyclists for many, many years, at all levels. I have never used a more comfortable saddle over the many years I have been riding.
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Audax67
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by Audax67 »

My left leg is 11 mm shorter than the right, so plastic-armature saddles and hard leather ones are utter hell on my left sit-bone. The supple leather Selle Anatomica works, though:

Image

The two sides move pretty well independently. The creases are there because I hadn't put enough tension on it before doing 300k.

This is their 2015 Titanico X model. I think it's just called the X now, and the armature is prettier. Not cheap, but every Christmas they have a sale, and you can usually pick up serviceable seconds at good prices. I have one of those too, and it's fine.
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PJ520
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by PJ520 »

B17 until the tension bolt broke while I was on a tour.
Last edited by PJ520 on 15 Nov 2018, 10:22pm, edited 1 time in total.
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pjclinch
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by pjclinch »

avalonian wrote:Brooks B17,I have three.


I have 2, but also a Brooks Brompton which is pretty much a B17 with a different name stamp. And a B66 (B17 with springs at the back).

I love 'em... though there again for a countering view my missus can't get on with them at all (preferring Specialized BG stuff, which I wouldn't give shed space to).

Pete.
Often seen riding a bike around Dundee...
gregoryoftours
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by gregoryoftours »

SDG Bel Air seem to have the most in common with my rear end.
gxaustin
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by gxaustin »

Wrights W3N
Brooks B17
Charge Scoop
markyp
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Re: Your Favourite Saddle

Post by markyp »

San Marco Rolls!
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