More "Comfortable" Saddle for long rides ???

[postman]

I will also say a Charge Spoon to kick off with.I have one on my Spesh Secteur Elite.And a Brooks B17 on my mountain bike.

 

[Manonabike]

Comfortable saddle for audax?
One word answer?

Brooks

But before you do - go to a Specialized dealer and get them to measure your sit bones... If they say you need a 130 mm Specialized you probably want a Brooks Team Pro or B17N or maybe a Swift. If Spesh say you need a 143 (or wider) have a look at a regular B17

It may just be that your contours and Brooks don't get on, in which case you can sell it again straight away on Ebay for a very high proportion of it's purchase cost. Don't bother trying to "break it in", just cut your losses and sell it on, and try something else.

I tried loads of supposedly comfortable saddles from Specialized, Fizik et al, before finding, almost by accident, that my posterior was made for a Brooks Swift (not the other way round - old as I am - Brooks have been making those for longer than I've been around !)

Actually, if it is your size then there is a good chance you need to brake it in....... My Team pro was rather difficult to get used to for a long time..... it took a long time to brake in but now, when I look back I'm glad I didn't get rid of it.

I'm thinking to add my 6th brooks now and the B17N could be the next one

 

[Klaus]

With the modern saddles, they have the rails type fastening, I am assuming I have to get a seatpost for those, my current one is with a holder which is tightened with a bolt around the seatpost. I will do the tin foil measurement - but purely going on price the Charge Spoon will be my first option.

 

[Poacher]

+1 for San Marco Rolls - I have them on three bikes, including the Brompton; this slightly tatty one I bought second-hand for the princely sum of £1 from a mechanic at one of my best LBSs! (Freewheel)

 

[goody]

I spent 10 days at an average of just over 100 miles per day on a charge spoon. Before trying it I thought there's no way it would live up to the hype, but it does. Can't fault it for the money.

 

[cyberknight]

Charge Spoon is well worth the money IMO. Also a big fan of the Arione saddle myself.

I have a charge and the only bit i didn't like was i could feel the stitching , otherwise it is very comfortable.

Both bikes now run the boardman /velo clones of the fizik as i found them the best for my bones.

 

[Klaus]

After all the discussions and a bit of measuring I have now opted for a Charge Spoon, at £22. Fitted this morning and had a quick test ride, about a mile only
First impression: hard as a piece of wood. But after a while it actually felt comfortable. Took a spanner to adjust as necessary, not yet sure about the front. Will do a 30 miler tomorrow so should know better after that. My old saddle was a Selle Super Soft Comfort(!). No wonder I couldn't get comfortable, far too soft.....

 

[Klaus]

Today done about 27 miles, with added hills. The Spoon is much more comfortable than the old one - because I can now adjust my seating position very easily and stay in it til I change again. Whilst I can feel my bottom, however, it is not that I want to stop to get off like with the old one.


BTW I only just noticed there is a scale on the side of the rail - I can understand the minimum and maximum forward position but not sure what the markings in-between mean. I don't want to take it off to find out. I think I have got the right position.

 

[cyberknight]

the scales allow you to set the fore/aft position , all you need to do is note down where the scales meet the front or back of your saddle rail clamp .

What i did was mark it with a pen so i did not lose my old settings before i played with it,all you need to do is loosen the saddle retaining bolt(s) and slide it forward and backwards making sure your tilt is kept where you like it.

My tilt is set level with a spirit level then i set my fore / aft by the good old knee over pedal spindle ...

This is a starting point , some people prefer to be either forward or further back than this as it is a starting point.

 

[Gabrial Little]

I think I can be of help to all here. My sister in-law and brother were nearly crippled from completing a cross European cycle for charity last year, rendering them unwilling to cycle again. A friend then put them in contact with these guys (www.unifiedsport.com) and they cannot comprehend the difference it has made to them. Check it out! The 3D model on the website really brings it to life!

AVB

 

[Manonabike]

+1 to PpPete re. measuring your sit-bones.

An alternative to a shop fitting is as follows:
- fold some tin foil a couple of times (so it doesn't tear under your weight)
- find some carpeted stairs and place on the 3/4/5/6 stair (depending on your height; try to match your riding position)
- sit down
- measure the impression your bones make.

Also +1 to Brooks. San Marco Rolls are also highly rated: the design has been in use by pro riders for a couple of decades now...

The alternative to the shop fitting did not work for me, although I tried it several times and with the foil on different surfaces, not just carpet.

I had my sit bones measured by a specialized gel device and I was advised a 143 mm seat. My sit bones are 130mm wide so I can fit in a large range of Brooks. I currently use a Team Pro (very comfortable but it takes a long time to brake in) a B17, Flyer and even a B67. I'm sure I could fir on the B15 (Swallow) too.
Saddles are a very personal thing and what for someone can be an armchair for another person can be a torturing machine.

I bought a charge spoon last year and while the saddle is OK for up to 20 miles for me, the same saddle gave me the most uncomfortable / painful ride I ever had when I went for a 60+ miles ride.

I'd like to try a Fizikat at some point just to see whether I can ride a non brooks saddle for over 40, 50 miles.

 

[172traindriver]

Saddles are the holy grail for cyclists aren't they. I have 3 bikes and they have all got Fizik Aliante saddles on them. The best Felt AR4 has the top of the range carbon rail version, but I find the saddle so comfortable which ever version you have. The first one I got came with my Bianchi so when I bought a cheap winter bike the saddle was uncomfortable, so I bought a new one for the Bianchi and recycled the old one onto the winter bike.
A good LBS will probably participate in the Fizik saddle trial programe, where you can try before you buy. This is a good idea as you don't want to spend money to find you can't get on with the saddle. A prime example is when I was in Mallorca and hired a bike from Procyclehire that came with the cut out type of saddle. These are supposed to be great for relieving pressure, but it crippled me, putting so much pressure on my sit bones instead. I got them to change it to a Van Nicolas saddle that they said was very similar to a Fizik Arione saddle and it was so comfortable.

 

[Klaus]

I am still with the Charge Spoon! Best purchase in a long time. When I set of I don't even think about the saddle any more.
Gabrial Little - what was the actual problem - I can't believe you could get crippled from a badly fitting saddle. I may be wrong. How much cycling did they do before they set off for the cross Europe ride?

 

[Manonabike]

I am still with the Charge Spoon! Best purchase in a long time. When I set of I don't even think about the saddle any more.
Gabrial Little - what was the actual problem - I can't believe you could get crippled from a badly fitting saddle. I may be wrong. How much cycling did they do before they set off for the cross Europe ride?

Not thinking about the saddle is a good sign..... hope this is the right saddle for you.

As far as Gabrial Little post I think that sounds very much like spam. Anybody embarking on a cycling trip across Europe would have done plenty of training and any serious training would reveal any saddle concerns.