Winfried

Hello,

Among the four saddles below, #3 — a cheap Rockbros saddle ordered from China — is the one that I find the least painful for touring, even while wearing a bib short.

#1 is the one that came with my 2014 Brompton, #2 is a rather thin Charge, and #4 is a Selle Italia Flx Gelflow that was supposed to be super comfy but is actually the worst :-/

#1 and #2 are 140mm wide; #3 and #4 are 155mm wide.

None of them will let me ride multi-day, ~100 km days without hurting, sometimes well before I reach 50 km.

Do you think I should get a wider saddle?

Thank you.

GeneO 

Seems like the wrong forum. I would get a saddle width that fits my sitbones. No more, no less.

woodcraft

Seems like the wrong question. I would find a saddle that works for daily and training rides,

then when starting a tour, you already have what works.

Iride01 

If by touring, you mean actually pulling a trailer or having loaded to the gills panniers and such then I'd have no idea as that limits speed quite a bit. Upright seating is quite a bit different to me than a road bike endurance or race type seating.

But if you are just a person, road bike, bottles and roadside repair kit on a 100 km (63 mile) or more ride, then here is my 2¢

I don't care for saddles that rise in the back. I find saddle that have a flat profile from nose to tail more comfortable. I used to sit fairly upright, but have found over the years, the more I can lean forward keeping a straight back, the more comfortable on longer rides I am.

Cushioning on a saddle tends to work against me. It seems to offer more points to rub my skin. Gels which seem comfortable for short rides but like too much cushioning add to contact points and even seem to form a ridge at their edge after a while.

blamester

Well you won't know till you try it.
But I had the same problem and I went a smaller frame size and the problem went away. Basically a different position cured it.
Same saddle different bike frame and no issues now. I'm a bit lower at the front now. A bit less stack height.
You have to experiment to find the best fit.
I can wear plain shorts and go a hundred k where as before I might only make twenty and start aching and other times fifty.
It's a bit of a lottery but worth experimenting if you can.

fietsbob

Oooh another 'Which Saddle' thread .

Generally, as published by Brooks, more upright the rider posture the wider the saddle..

dsbrantjr

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/saddles.html
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/leather.html
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/real-man.html

fietsbob

I toured internationally on a Brooks team Pro I had bought in the mid 70's. Since then Gilles Berthoud , one of your French citizens
has produced an even nicer one https://berthoudcycles.fr/en/67-saddles

Spend generously..

Iride01 

If the "real man" saddle had a version with a decent cutout I'd try it! <grin>

Looks a little wide in the nose though.

bwilli88 

Try a good leather saddle. I used a bunch of different cheap and mid-priced saddles, I now have Brooks Flyers, Pros or cambiums on most of my bikes.

Winfried

Thanks for the input.

Using the flour + ziplock method, it looks my sit bones are ~105-110mm apart; Adding 10mm on each side, even a 140mm saddle should be wide enough. And that doesn't explain why the 155mm Selle Italia is so uncomfortable (gel?).

It's black magic :-)

Iride01 

Sit bones aren't just little knobs that poke down from your pelvis. They are a long structure on either side that get closer together as you lean forward. So the width you measure sitting up isn't the width you'd measure leaning far forward. So I'd think anyone having to use a sit bone measure method will need to be in their normal riding position.

As for the uncomfortable saddle, it looks to me that it is much like the others you don't like. Having more rise in the back than the one you thought slight more comfortable. It also has a wider cutout midway that might be letting you lean forward more and be on the better part of your sit bones.

All the Sellle Italia saddles I had were some of the most comfortable. But they had a flat profile nose to tail and very little cushioning. The Specialized Body Geometry Power Comp that came with my new Tarmac is also very comfortable for short rides, but it has gel and what to me is a lot of rise in the tail. It starts to rub and get uncomfortable about mile 40. I haven't been doing many long rides this last few months, but when I do start, it's going to have to go. Probably swap with older bike.

Kokiafan

It also depends on the kind of pain you are experiencing!
You may not have a problem with your sit bones at all--it could be tendon or muscle related, a nerve issue, or even a problem with your riding position.
Getting serious about long distance riding means you really need to get a fit at a good LBS. If, after you go through the fit process and are still experiencing pain, you may need a good sports doc.
Trying multiple saddles and still hurting may mean your saddle is not the problem.