dcrowell

I treated myself to a Christmas present yesterday. I bought black Brooks B17 for my hybrid bike. I also replaced the seatpost.

I've ridden with the Brooks for maybe 20 miles so far, but here are my first impressions.

1. It seemed slippery at first. I thought I would slide off. I got used to it after a few miles.
2. Old habits die hard... I have to remember to not lift the rear of the bike by the saddle. I now grab the rear rack.
3. Compared to my old squishy gel saddle, the Brooks is harder. Although the area around my sit-bones is a little more sore, the rest of the "tender bits" are not sore at all.
4. It looks great.
5. It smells good.
6. I caress it every time I walk past my bike.
7. I bought Proofide, and treated the saddle, but the instructions (how much to use?) were unclear.
8. I bought a saddle cover in the unlikely event I need to leave the bike outside in the rain... I could have just used a plastic bag.
9. My cyclings tights have caught on the rivets once while dismounting. If it continues to happen, I'll gently hammer the rivets down a little.

Overall, I really like it, and I got it at a great price from the LBS (after Christmas sale). Most of my riding has been on a recumbent recently, but I think my upright bike (Nermal is his name) will get a few more miles now.

AdamD

Ummm... was this before or after riding on it?

KungPaoSchwinn

Good to know you like the saddle,have a picture?

BarracksSi

1. That slipperiness, IMO, is a good thing -- you'll find that your clothing (even jeans) doesn't bind or grab the saddle surface, which greatly reduces chafing. I'd still recommend at least spandex-like boxer briefs and not tightie whities, though.

3. Yup, that's how it works. The squishy saddles let all their squishy material get pushed into your personal "squishy material", making more of your flesh take the punishment.

7. "Sparingly" is what Brooks says. I don't even have any Proofide yet.

dcrowell

Both!

I quickly adjusted to the slipperiness. Actually I think I had a bad habit of not supporting enough of my weight on the pedals, and this is helping me with that. I do wear padded bike shorts (or tights today). I do that even on my recumbent.

I bought the Proofide with the saddle. I used a tiny bit, but wasn't sure if it was enough. It probably was.

I think the saddle is making creaking noises. I thought it was something else on yesterday's ride, but today I narrowed it down to either the saddle or the new seatpost. I've heard that sometimes the Brooks saddles creak, so not a big deal, but I do want to rule out something loose.

Sure!

dobber

With an upright riding style like that hybrid, you should have gone with a B67.

Just sayin

dcrowell

I didn't want the "sprung saddle". I also ditched my suspension seatpost.

My sit-bones fit perfectly on it, and it is comfortable. I was out again today enjoying the unseasonably warm weather, and I'm happy with the saddle.

If I change my mind, I can exchange it. That's the joy of a LBS.

jcm

Most of the time, the sqeaking comes from the leather flexing against the ends of the frame on each side. You can eliminate this by: 1) cutting a 3/4" square from an old innertube, then: 2) hold the skirts away from the frame ends: 3) insert the rubber squares as far into the space between the leather and frame as possible.

It helps to have an assistant pull the skirts apart, while you use a needle-nose plier to slip the square up into the gap.

Rarely is it the seatpost that sqeaks. Sometimes it may be the adjustment screw up front, but usually it's the frame/leather. TEST: Before going with the above suggestion, just use your hands and gently squeeze the skirts together slightly as you carefully listen to pin-point the sqeak. You should be able to quickly locate it at the widest part of the saddle, at the frame ends.

Lifting the bike by the back of the saddle will do no harm - the frame is there and makes an excellent hand hold.

gnirwin

I bought 2 brooks saddles recently. One was a Brooks Flyer that I put on my KHS commuter bike and the other is a B-17 that I put on my Spec Sequoia. So far I prefer the Flyer over the B17 but I have not ridden the Sequoia but a mile or two since I added the saddle.

bh357

Glad to hear you're enjoying the Brooks. I have a Team Pro on my road bike, and a B17 as a captain saddle on our tandem. The B17 lived for a couple years on my touring bike (converted mtb) prior to buying the tandem. As I use the touring bike on the rollers and trainer, my *** is getting ready to order another B17 for that bike.

Regarding the proofide, the advice I heard was to apply it more frequently (once every couple weeks) when you first get the saddle, then after a couple months you should be ok only applying it very infrequently.

The shower caps they give you in hotels work very nicely as saddle covers

bhop

Why? I grab my B17 to move the back of the bike around often, I don't see the big deal.

Markcuz

Looks good and um...im glad it smells nice

J B Bell

Glad to know I'm not the only one who likes to give the saddle a little caress on the way by. Really, being what it is, it rather calls out to be touched.

Robert Foster

Good luck on your new saddle. Looks nice on that bike. I have thought a time or two about looking into a Brooks. But even if forums where there are Brooks fans the statement that I may have to ride several hundred miles to,"break" it in worries me. Will, after you have ridden the saddle long enough to break it in, the LBS take it back?

Having returned ot cycling in July it took most of three months to break my bottom in for my stock saddle. Now that I have the base miles down I would not want to have to spend much time breaking in a new saddle only to discover I am one of the few that didn't have a Brooks compatible bottom. But they must be good saddles or Selle wouldn't have bought the company, or so I understand.

dcrowell

Just and update... I've ridden about 150 miles on the Brooks. I really like it. My recumbent is lonely.

I don't know why I don't want to pick the rear of the bike up from the saddle. It just feels wrong. Granted, the bike is heavy with full commuting gear, but it probably is harmless.

I don't have much to compare the Brooks to. My previous saddle was a lycra-covered gel seat that came with the bike. It wasn't comfortable on anything more than a quick trip, and the lycra cover was peeling away on one side.

jcm

Truly, you can lift the bike using the saddle from the back. They are undoubtably the strongest saddle made in that regard.

Proofide and for that matter, all other unquents that contain oils and conditioners: Use it sparingly. The old adage that; If some is good, alot must be gooder can ruin your brooks in a hurry. I hjave used Proofide a couple times a year, and it was fine. In fact I couldn't tell if it did anything. Normally, I use SnoSeal on a new Brooks. Actually, under it - after heating the saddle in the oven. On one saddle, I've done nothing. Minimal treatment is key to long saddle life. Just bring along a plastic bag for parking in the rain. The shower cap thing is good, too.

Over all, the break-in period is not uncomfortable. It just get's better with miles, that's all. Go get your Brooks.

gnirwin

The directions are vague as to how much proofide to apply to the new saddle and how often. It does say to use it a few times at first. I have proofided my B-17 once and my Flyer 3 times (2 weeks old). I think I will do them both 4 times and then once every 6 months or so afterwards.

JPMacG

Regarding the squeak the OP mentioned earlier....

My B17 developed a squeak after a few hundred miles. At the suggestion of someone here on BF I applied a few drops of light machine oil to the tensioning screw at its front and rear contact points. Then I worked the screw back and forth 1/16 turn or so to work in the lube. Squeak gone. I have had to do this twice in about 3000 miles.

Regarding Proofhide....
I think Proofhide is really not necessary, however, Brooks will be happy to sell you a small tin of magic snake oil to help out their bottom line.

jcm

You did the right thing: Light machine oil. For those who similarly locate a sqeak at the adjustmant bolt, don't bother with WD-40. A light oil is the way to go, like sewing machine oil. WD-40 and other "penetrants" will only last a little while.

dcrowell

I will certainly look into that for mine. I haven't been hearing the squeak, but I've been commuting, and can't hear much along side of the 4-lane highway.

I'm planning a ride today, but I was intending to ride the recumbent. Maybe I'll change my plans.

Big_e

That's a really nice saddle dcrowell! I like the simple yet sporty looks of it. Ya'll are gonna make me buy a Brooks saddle, are ya?
Ernest

Siu Blue Wind

Can't wait till they come out with the women's version of this baby.

SlimAgainSoon

Looks sharp on your ride -- like it belongs.

I ride a B-17, also black. Break-in wasn't needed -- felt good, right from the start.

The slippery quality is a good thing -- I used to wax my previous saddle to get the same result. I like to move around on the saddle every now and then, and that's easy to do with a B-17.

Have had mine a year -- still looks brand new. Those must have been tough cows!

Pocko

What's Proofide?

I'm guessing it's a brand of some sort of leather conditioner? Is it synthetic based?

Is that the same stuff used for horse saddles from equine suppliers?

.

GP

I found this in the BF archives after entering "proofide ingredients" into google.

Tallow, Cod oil, Vegetable oil, Paraffin wax, Beeswax, Citronella oil