BikingViking793 

I'm looking at getting a Brooks B67 softened saddle for my Raleigh Sports. I am curious if I need to get the care stuff with it. I don't plan to get the bike wet and realistically since I have lots of bikes it's not going to get all that many miles. Does it come with the wrench? Should I buy proofide? Should I buy the maintenance kit? I'm wondering if it needs any of these things since it's going to get light use. It's expensive enough I want to keep it nice, but my head is telling me that stuff is only needed for serious use. Thanks.

3alarmer 

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...the B 67 is a sprung saddle. I don't know what you mean by "softened", but I'd just get the regular one in terms of leather treatment. The springs will take care of the rest. If it's not gonna get wet, or get a lot of use, I doiubt you need anything other than some sort of was based leather polish. Even Sno -Seal ought to work OK. I have no idea about the wrench.

Slowride79

If I recall correctly, you are going to need a b66 instead of 67. The clamps are different with 67 for newer bikes. It comes with a wrench to tighten the saddle but you will not need to do this until many many miles of use sometimes never. It will come with a very small one time use packet of proofhide for 1st application. You should get a small tin unless you don’t plan on keeping it long. You should apply a light coat top and bottom at least every year to replenish , protect , etc. think of this way: would you buy a nice pair of leather shoes and not maintain the leather ? Look at it as protecting your investment. It’s specially formulated for saddles. If you use something else it may allow it stretch because it isn’t designed for this purpose.

SurferRosa

No, you don't need any of that extra junk. I don't ride in the rain nor apply anything to my Brooks saddles. They usually come with that little wrench.

jamesdak 

The only thing I've needed for my Brooks Saddles are the Proofhide. You'll see a lot of advice about other stuff that may work but also may cause problems. Proofhide is the safe bet. Like mentioned above about once a year treatment with normal use. I've never needed to adjust one with the wrench yet over all these years.

BikingViking793 

Well that confuses things more. I was assuming the B67 would work with the same clamp on the saddle I have now:

Only B66 I've seen have been much more expensive.

randyjawa 

In part, I agree, however I do use Proofhide on all of my suspended leather saddles. The treatment is not all that expensive and I feel that an ounce of prevention is more than worth a pound of cure. Saddles, left to the mercies of Mother Nature can loose their suppleness and good looks. As for other products that might do the protection job, I just don't know since I have never used them. That said, this saddle did not get this way through proper maintenance...

thook

the b66 has a double rail. the b67 has a single rail...which'll work fine with the clamp you have. the b66 needs a double rail clamp, and that's what he's thinking of. conversely, there's made what's called a "sandwich" to adapt the b66 to single rails....which you don't need, either

anyway, google the two different saddles. you'll see what i mean

ps. even if used little, if you lived in an arid climate, proofide or some such would be a good idea so it doesn't dry out. but, wisconsin? like you said, rarely used....little outdoor exposure...no real need to protect it much. maybe a rain cover if you plan to ride and think it might rain. those are cheap enough

SurferRosa

As long as you keep the saddle out of the elements and ride it, it'll never look like that. No reason to use scare tactics to sell proofide or anything else.

markk900

I have a B67 on my Humber, but it lived for a while on other bikes. I bought it new; it was not the “presoftened” version. While it was fine from the first ride, there definitely came a point where all of a sudden it was SUPER comfortable- I still remember realizing it had broken in. Like the OP it doesn’t get a lot of use and it never sees rain so I have not bothered with any treatment and it looks great. And if new they all come with the wrench - still haven’t used it on the B67.

randyjawa 

A bit of a harsh retort and accusation. The saddle shown rarely saw the out of doors, merely sitting in a garage for many years. Put more simply, it simply dried out. By the way, I am not trying to sell Proofhide or anything else unless I offer something in the For Sale forum. I am merely trying to share my experience with the hope of benefiting others.

The Golden Boy 

I think Sno-Seal over-softened my B17. Because I was too cheap to buy the Proofide because I knew better...

You just spent $130 on a saddle. Fork out the extra $20 for the Proofide.

jamesdak 

Dang, thought I was on the road forum for a second.

I live in a desert, very dry. Things tend to dry out. A little ol' tin of Proofhide has lasted me for years and is very cheap insurance. Seems like common sense to me is all.

rhm

Brooks sells Proofide because people will buy it; if they didn't offer something like that, people would buy something else, which would do Brooks no good at all. So from a business standpoint, Proofide makes sense.

But don't overdo it. A new saddle does not need much at all. Putting the stuff on the underside of the leather is, in my opinion, a terrible idea.

randyjawa 

I cannot disagree with the makes good business sense comment. After all, Proofhide is the only product that I do use on my Brooks, Ideal, Belt or what ever suspended leather saddles. I might add that a small tin of it showed up in my mail box just a few days ago. Finally used up the plastic container that I bought over a decade ago.

When an old but salvageable saddle comes my way, I Proofhide both sides and was wondering why you think it a poor idea to not apply to the underside of a saddle? I am not disagreeing with your comment, simply hoping to learn something new, if I can.




,,,I Proofhide both sides, then put the saddle in a plastic shopping bag, then let it all sit in the sunlight for a day or so. The Proofhide appears to sink into the leather, which in my mind, it a good way to rejuvenate the material. And, I don't do it a lot. Too much of a good thing is not a good thing.

SurferRosa

I thought your photo was preposterous considering the op's question.

There's a lot of wholly unnecessary hand wringing way too often here for so many different things.

smurfy

I collect Brooks leather saddles however all my saddles are inside my living quarters whether they are mounted on bikes or not. I Proofide my saddles on my bikes underside once only and then once a year on the top of them. The saddles I have on display (yes, my wife thinks I'm kooky) are not treated at all since they don't see much sunlight. According to the Brooks website you should leave the Proofide on for about an hour and then wipe off the excess.

rhm

Well okay, fair enough.

What treatment a saddle needs, or what will do it the most good, is obviously going to depend on the condition of the saddle. If it has completely dried out from sitting in dry conditions, I doubt Proofide will do much harm, but I also doubt it will do much good. I have a couple saddles in that condition; an Ideale 45 (early 70's?), and a Brooks B72 (1968) that I saturate with neatsfoot oil from time to time to see if the leather ever softens. Spoiler alert: so far, neither one has softened at all.

I have had saddles sent to me for new leather, on which the old leather has been coated with so much Proofide that I had to scrape it off before I could work on the thing at all. Sometimes, after I knock out the old rivets and discard the ruined leather, there is still Proofide coating the frame on both sides. There is absolutely no point in using that much of the stuff. Of course I don't know what condition the leather was in when the proofide was put on, so I don't know if that was what ruined the leather, but in at least a couple cases I'm pretty sure the Proofide softened the leather too much, allowing it to stretch way too much.

Somewhere along the line, between when a saddle is new (and Proofide is not needed) and when it is old (and Proofide will do no good) there must be a time when proofide is a good idea. I never see saddles in that condition, but I assume it must exist.

What OP is talking about is a new saddle. It doesn't need to be softened. In a few years it may have dried out a bit and look a bit dull on top; at that point maybe a little Proofide or some other polish would be fine, but not too much.

rhm

Once upon a time I started a thread on Proofide:

https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...-proofide.html

dedhed

PM sent

Road Fan

If your saddle is a current model, you should be able to find the care information on the Brooks saddle website. If you're buying it new, sealed in original packaging, the package should contain the correct instructions.

I'm not trying to be snide, it's just I've never had a current-model softened Brooks, so I don't have direct experience, and they have not been discussed much here on BF, in my recollection. But I have used the Brooks site to find care information on their more traditional models.

So that's what I would do.

sd5782 

An old can of worms but……. Many people have old seemingly worn or dead or verging on dead leather saddles. In that case, it does seem that experiments aren’t costly. I bought a used Trek that had an old cracked Brooks flyer sprung saddle on it that looked like the seller put the proofhide on with a putty knife. Never thought it to be usable. 3 years later and it looks usable, playable, and kinda cool . So, maybe experiments are in order. I recently bought the Obendauf’s that is recommended often. Seems like Proofhide but 5X as much for the price.

I’m trying to revive a dry and cracked old Italian “Invincible” saddle on my old Frejus, so why not. I also recently purchased a seemingly NOS Brooks B72 that looked to be at least 10-20 years old, and very dry underneath. So, I have come to a personal conclusion that I want the underside somewhat supple as those B72s are noted for tearing at the front rivet. Now, on a new saddle you takes your chances. As for me I like that Obenauf’s even on new, and especially underneath where I feel it does the most good. My 2 cents for what it’s worth.

BikingViking793 

Thanks for the responses. Sounds like I wouldn't need anything right away, but should proofide it once a year or so. Didn't think about drying out which probably wouldn't be too bad here in WI, but Brooks seem to hold value well so better safe than sorry.

smurfy

Pre-softened = pre-worn out. Just my opinion.

Kabuki12

I bought an early seventies Brooks Pro from a friend and although not abused it was neglected for many years. It was hard and not playable at all. I set it in the sun until it was warm to the touch and rubbed Dr. Marten’s boot salve on both sides of the saddle like SurferRosa said and after about three or four treatments it was much better. I only do my saddles a couple of times a year and don’t let them get wet. I only have one newer one , the rest were all gotten used and are from the seventies and still going strong. Remember it takes some miles for them to acclimate to your Fanny. I have never had to adjust the tensioner but I have the wrench in my tool box.