jm88

I posted here a while ago about putting new brakes and shifters on my old Trek 850 and they works great. I tend to mostly ride every once in awhile with my kids when we go camping and that is mostly just around the paved or gravel roads and maybe on some light easy trails. Any additional riding I do is going to mostly be on paved or relatively smooth trails as well, not any difficult off road steep trails or anything like that! Anyways, I would probably ride more around home if my butt didn't hurt so bad after being on the bike for 5 minutes. I have been trying to figure out what type of seat would be best on this bike between one of similar size but with more padding (the one on there is 10.5" x 7") or one that is wider. What do you guys think? I am not a huge guy, weighing about 165 if that helps factor it in. I probably sit more upright too because I am short so the seat is almost all the way down. The only thing I have read is that if it is too wide it can cause rubbing and if it is too narrow it may not be supportive enough. I don't know if this seat hurts because it is narrow or if it is just because it is not padded enough. Any recommendations?

ThermionicScott 

What saddle do you have now? I hate saddles that are padded to any degree.

jm88

Just the original one that came with the bike.

ThermionicScott 

Keep it a secret if you insist, but it's hard to recommend alternatives with no information.

(I'm a B17 Narrow guy, for what that may be worth.)

jm88

Not a secret, I just don't really know what else to tell you . It is the original Trek bike seat that came on the 20 year old bike that measures 10.5 x 7. What particular info are you looking for?

Kovkov

Brooks only. Model depends on the upper body angle. I run b17 narrow, b17, c17, flyer and b66.

TimothyH

Fabric Scoop.

https://fabric.cc/products/saddles/

They come in three profiles - Flat for an aero racing position, Shallow for a more upright position and Radius for a fully upright position.

https://www.outdoorgearlab.com/revie...e/fabric-scoop


-Tim-

le mans

Hybrid bike is it? this saddle is what i use on mine, doesn't hurt at all..makes me want to ride it.

delbiker1 

I have a new saddle on my steel roadie, Selle Italia C2. I have been on it 3 times, longest is 32 miles. I am really liking it. I will have to look to see where I purchased it. I believe the list price was $120, but I bought it on sale for $59 It is a previous years model.

jm88

Thank you for the suggestions. I probably should have been more clear and realized that you guys are much more serious bikers than I am so you are going to recommend the best. The bike I have is pretty basic and 20 years old, probably around $300 new, and if I am lucky, I may go riding 10 miles max at a time with my kids on the occasional weekend so I do not want to spend nearly half of what the bike is worth on a saddle for just occasional use. I just want something relatively inexpensive (probably not more than $30 as I see a bunch of them on Amazon) that has to be more comfortable than the brick of a seat that is on there now! Thank you.

Digger Goreman

My wife saw a Mammoth saddle for a few bucks at a thrift store and it has been just right for my sit bones. If you go that route, you may have to sit on a few frogs before you find your princ(ess).

Lucillle

But then again, if you invest in a really comfortable saddle you might find yourself riding a lot more frequently. I think that both Brooks and Terry saddles are good. You can find good prices on Ebay sometimes.

ThermionicScott 

+1. Spend as much as it takes to make the ride comfortable, and you can always move the saddle to another bike down the road.

Brocephus

My seat bones were killing me early this riding season, but thankfully have settled down. But, I had been hunting around for something a little softer and wider (while not being a full-blown tractor seat!)
I bought an Italian Selle SMP for my road bike, on closeout from a popular operation in the UK, but that's still a bit more $$ than you're looking to spend (and I think that model has sold out since).
I was also looking for a more comfortable saddle for a hybrid project I've been working on, and scored 2 Selle Royal seats on ebay, that I'm really liking. Neither are high-end seats, and I got them barely used for about $15 delivered. One is fairly thick, and it's really comfortable, but it's a little more than I needed, so I yanked it a put it on reserve status.
The other has some comfortable padding, but doesn't look like it, it's still fairly "racy",and I'm currently running that one on this latest project bike.
In your price range, I'd consider one of these Selle Royals before going with a mystery-brand on Amazon (I'm sure someone will tell you they're about the same, and they might well be). There was a grey one at Random Bike Parts (great operation) that I had my eye on, but I just checked, it looks to be gone, but they've got another one here that may be what you have in mind, and the price is right, and shipping is free (also, you can save another 10% with the code "save10", IIRC).
https://www.randombikeparts.com/coll...lle-italia-new

squirtdad

saddles are very personal.....and for me position dependent

Selle italia turbo (way old school has always worked for me....when i look at other saddles I look to see if the shape is similar)

Brooks B17 for upright bike

brooks b17 narrow imperial did not work at all

Brooks swift works for road bike...not too aggressive of a position

Sella Italia Flyte Titaniam works for road bike

YSWV (your saddle will vary )

JohnDThompson 

How old is your Trek? If you have the serial number, you can look it up on the vintage-trek.com web site, find the catalog corresponding to the year it was made, and see what the catalog thinks the bike should have shipped with for a saddle.

Brocephus

Guys, while Brooks and Selle Italias are great saddles, the guy says he's on a $30 budget.

elizilla 

I'm going to make a different suggestion. Try changing what you wear when you ride it. Don't buy anything new, yet. Just try some different clothes, pick some things from what you already own. Try different underwear, and different pants/shorts. Jeans and cotton briefs can be particularly bad; they have seams that can be painful on a bike seat. If you have any boxers try those, or even consider going commando. Look for shorts or pants that slip easily over the seat and do not bunch up. See if that helps. If you can find clothes already in your wardrobe, which help, well, great, you have just fixed the problem for free.

delbiker1 

The Charge spoon is 25 to 30 dollars. On Amazon and Ebay there are saddles from Asia, cheaper on Ebay I think, the is name GUB. A big selection of different styles. I have one that is good for an hour or less on the bike, model 3083. Most ship from China or somewhere in Asia, but there are also some that ship from USA. They are as cheap as $10. It could be a good choice for you. If it comes from Asia the shipping is usually free but takes a few weeks to arrive.

Lucillle

Just did an Ebay search, there are 329 Selle Italia saddles for sale at $30 or less.

jadocs

Selle SMP Dynamic, minimal padding, leather...it’s the shape that makes it comfortable to me.

funbuffalo24

I recently picked up 3 Selle SMP models, 2 'Extras', one 'TRK', and a 'Hybrid', havent sat on the TRK yet, but the others are fairly comfy. With their integated padding I havent even used cycling shorts with them.

400E

I used to be sold on Brooks B17 but over the last 10 years or so I became intolerant of it and many other saddles.

I finally found the "Spongy Wonder" which has 2 very firm pads and no nose. Absolutely love it - no saddle soreness, or numbness, any more.

Last ride 76 

I didn't search but a modicum of patience on eBay turns up lots of cheap ridable saddles. Lots.

jideta

Specialized makes some inexpensive saddles based on the more expensive models.
I got a Toupe style saddle for $40.