I pulled the trigger on a Brooks saddle.
 

ok i am thinking of pulling the trigger on a Brooks saddle. i have not been unhappy with the Specialized BG saddle that came on my Sequoia Elite. but after around 40-50 miles i start getting sore a$$. I am sure it is not all the saddles fault but i would like to try a Brooks. with that comes the next question, which one???

searching the forums the touring people seem to like the B17 and the Champion Flyer (B.17 top with a single-rail sprung frame) problem is how many tourers weigh in at 315lbs? im not interested in what brand is better or worse than a Brooks i would like to hear what Brooks you ride, how far you ride and how long have you been riding your Brooks

it would be great to see a picture of your bike with a Brooks with your story good or bad.

Quit thinking about it and go buy it. I will get pics of mine later, but for now I will just say I have a B-17 probably have 1500 miles on it. Dont beleive the breaking period stories. I put mine on and loved it ever since. The only down side is it squeaks occassionally. But then again, so do I.

I ride with 2 riders that have Brooks. There butts still get sore on long rides.
40-50 Miles normal for sore butt to kick in.
Try standing to increase blood circulation to you legs, butt, back. areas.

Wanna stop that squeeking? Turn the bike upside down, and put a single drop of oil on every metal to metal interface. Turn it back right side up, and take a clean rag to wipe off every bit you can get at without turning it upside down again.

Ride, and enjoy......

p.s. I lovwe my B-17 (at 200#), but,,,,,,, it did take more than 1,000 miles for us to grow together...

thanks for the tip.

While I'm not in a market for a saddle, Velo-Orange has some similar designs: http://www.velo-orange.com/brookssaddles.html

I just received my B17 Champion and installing now. Planning on doing some break in on the trainer to prepare for spring in Michigan.
I am looking foward to this saddle and will advise as I continue to use it.

Note:
I did have to buy a new saddle post, because the B17 has much shorter rails and my Thompson with no set back did not allow proper position.

I was curious about the seat post having enough adjustment after reading about others

If not, then get a Thomson set back, or a Velo-Orange Grand Cru layback post.

I have B-17s on two of my bikes, and a B-17 Imperial on my brevet bike.

I've been using the same Brooks Professional for 37 years.

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...seatpost-1.jpg

I can go for many hundreds of miles without a sore butt and I know many other people who can as well. One should never settle for a sore but, especially after only 40-50 miles... That makes me wonder about your completing 4200miles across the US if your butt was sore after only 40-50 miles? ? Did you stand the whole way? :) ;) :)

That saddle looks pretty darned good for 37yrs! bet it's pretty comfy by now. :)

It came off this, a 1972 Paramount;

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...t/IMG_1414.jpg

It looks like wallbike has thr b17 for just under 100 and the team pro on sale for just under 140 I have 160 to spend but was worried I may have to change the seat post. The bg seat I have now is almost center of the rail.
What would you do?

Great looking saddle

I have the Brooks Flyer pre-aged so I put other. I think I bought mine from ChainReaction cycles when they were on sale or something (I don't remember paying anywhere near the prices i'm seeing). I beleive Brooks recommends saddles with springs when your handlebars are above your saddle (and without springs when your saddle is above your handlebars). Probably check the Brooks website for more information.

I am 250 and ride a Champion Flyer Special on my Cross-Check. When I got it I was 295 and when my cadence got over 120 or so (not that often) I got lots of unintended motion. Love the saddle

I'm riding a Selle An-atomica with construction similar to brooks and I find I no longer need to use chamois cream, at least on rides in the 50 mile range.

Been using B17's Champion Specials and now have 2 swifts on my more race oriented bikes.. B17 very comfortable right out of the box, Swifts took a little more time to break in for comfort..

+1 on using a setback Thomson, needed to use this on a couple of my bikes for proper fit..

6'3" 250lbs - B-17 Champion Special. i love it and did from the first ride. I suspect that whole "break-in period" thing applies more to those freakishly normal sized people, or maybe I just have more natural padding. Check the Touring forums for info on Brooks, been a few good discussions on the subject there lately. Be prepared to tip the nose up a bit more than your used to, and to get a lot of "You like riding on that thing?" comments. Check some British sites like ChainReaction and SJSCycles, you will probably save some cash. When I ordered mine last spring I paid about half of what I would have here in the states.

My B17 required no break in at all. I was a happy camper the minute I put it on my bike.

After lusting in my heart for decades, I finally got one last month. I could not be happier.

I didn't need a "break-in" period, but took a couple rides to get the angle adjusted correctly -- I kept sliding forward, putting too much weight on my hands. Now I don't even notice that it's under my butt.

Nashbar usually has them for about $110, often on 'sale' for about $95. Then they had one of their "20% off any item" sales, so I got it for about $75.

6'3" 265lbs, I've put about 600 miles on my B17. I will never ride another saddle. Out of the box, I felt no difference from my old saddle-which was nothing special...but it was on a week-long ride that I noticed the advantages. 8hrs/day on the saddle for a week and no soreness when I got off the bike, I'm sold! The B17 started to get really comfortable at the end of the week...and it continued to get better.

I guess I can't say for sure whether it was really comfortable out of the box, or if I was just too excited to notice haha :) BUT, I did get it from Nashbar, 20% off so about $75, I couldn't pass that up, and it's beautiful! One concern I have, though, is doing the tension adjustment...I've done it twice, but they were very minor adjustments. Oh well, it I vote for the B17 :)
http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=131023http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=131024
-Jordan

I currently have a Thompson zero setback and all Thompson makes is 16mm setback. For me it is not enough for proper postion.
I am getting a Nitto post with 35MM set back. I beleive FSA makes one too in carbon.

Velo-Orange makes a 30.2mm setback, 2 bolt post for only $48.00