2020 Brooks saddles, a question on hide quality.

[randynewmanscat]

I own three Brooks professional bought in the 70's and maybe 1981. They are all to my liking and I need another this year to build another bike. I took a look around the net today and my eyes are almost bleeding from the ill and uninformed bo**ox I have found, mainly Brooks vs Selle Italia fanboy wars and various misinformation on care and most importantly the question of hide quality.
I can't walk into a shop and look one over, I live in the country, there is one bike shop in a 40km radius, they don't stock Brooks.
So for anyone who has actually owned Brooks saddles over many decades and recently added to their stable, how do the current offerings stack up hide quality wise?

 

[dishbag]

I started cycling more than once a month when lockdown started last March and by July I had done enough distance to cycle from Land's End to John O'Groats (slowly, 50 miles a day) and then back to Barnet down the east coast and had a Brooks B67 on my hybrid which saddle I bought in April. It was supremely comfortable throughout. The leather seems to be good quality.

 

[Cycleops]

Can’t see many italian going crazy for a traditional British leather saddle so not surprising you can’t find any locally. No idea about the quality of the hide but I should order online from a shop that offers a good returns policy.
I bought a Swift down here for three quid recently and I’m very happy with it. Maybe secondhand is the way to go?

 

[I like Skol]

If you were buying Brooks saddles in the late 70s I don't think you need to be worrying about if your new saddle will last 40yrs

 

[randynewmanscat]

If you were buying Brooks saddles in the late 70s I don't think you need to be worrying about if your new saddle will last 40yrs

I'm only 60!

 

[All uphill]

Being thrifty (cheapskate) I bought a Spa Nidd recently, rather than a Brooks. I suspect it will just about be broken in in time for my centenary. I'm 66 now!

 

[welsh dragon]

I bought my Brooks B67s about 4 years ago. Still looks brand new. Hasn't sagged or discoloured at all. Wouldn't buy anything else. Really well made. I don't think you will be disappointed with the quality.

 

[Moodyman]

A cow today is unlikely to produce massively different hide to a cow from 40 years ago. I wouldn't worry too much about internet fanboys.

If the saddle size fits your bum, then it'll be alright.

Some alternatives to Brooks are Gilles Berthoud, Sella Italia, Spa Cycles and Gyes. The latter are Taiwanese and rumoured to make saddles for some Western brands.

I've got a Sella Italia on one bike and Brooks on two. Can't tell the difference when riding. They're all comfy.

 

[randynewmanscat]

A cow today is unlikely to produce massively different hide to a cow from 40 years ago.

This was my thought on reading through the crud my eyeballs suffered this morning, if the hide is shaved to the correct thickness and blemished/barbed wire snagged area rejected then its just hide.
I have just been looking at the hipsterfied Brooks website and they quote the Team Professional hide at being 5mm, its the thickest that they ever used, checked mine, 5mm.
Internet forums are a mixed bag, CC is one of the saner ones hence my asking here.

 

[randynewmanscat]

Some alternatives to Brooks are Gilles Berthoud, Sella Italia, Spa Cycles and Gyes.

I thought about buying a Berthoud saddle a few years back when I first resolved to build just one more good bike. I like the look of them and the quality is apparent but I have sat on a Team Pro' for 44 years and they just work for me, touring, whatever.

 

[Hover Fly]

The Swift I bought a couple of years ago is shaping up just as nicely as the B17 I bought in the 70s, which is just like the B17 my father had from 1936, but which started to split near the nose after only about 50 years.

 

[Gunk]

I’ve got a modern Swift on my Brompton and I don’t the quality is inferior to an older Brooks. They just look and feel better after about 25 years of use.

 

[randynewmanscat]

I think the fact that you haven't managed to find any discussions full of well informed old gits bemoaning the decline in Brooks hide quality suggests that it's not a problem.

Yes, old gits is what I was looking for but I think I stumbled on threads chock with young gits probably not born when I first bought a saddle. Always difficult to know whose knowledge you are reading (if any) on forums unless you have spent some time there or look through the other posts of someone with something to say.
That of course is difficult with some sites, as I mentioned my brain hurt and eyes bled trawling through cr+p today. Some days you strike gold on the internet, some not. I am going to be very diplomatic and not name any of the forums, some of them have very angry members that much is certain.
I'll order one just as soon as my other, other bike is completed

 

[geocycle]

My 2004 B17 standard is noticeably thicker than my 2019 B17 Ti. The latter has been very quick to break in and is very comfortable After 2000 miles. The 16 year old saddle took 1000 miles to really break in but has performed well in the last 49000!

 

[Old jon]

Four bikes, four Brooks B17N saddles. The oldest is only six years old, newest bought last September. They all feel the same, work the same. And are just used. Just like the saddles I used in my young days.