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Recommend me a cutout saddle!

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Recommend me a cutout saddle!

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Old 05-01-17, 05:48 PM
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shafter
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Recommend me a cutout saddle!

Because after adjusting my fit for hand comfort, those saddles with groin cutouts are starting to look REAL nice! Are there any under $50 y'all recommend?
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Old 05-01-17, 05:52 PM
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Definitely one of the better cheapo's, but there are others too.

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Old 05-01-17, 05:53 PM
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The Terry Falcon Y is about $80. The Terry Fly is also super comfy and comes in various rail types and weights. The carbon is expensive and weighs less than 200 g. I highly recommend them both.
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Old 05-01-17, 05:56 PM
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in my experience, you need to use the one with a huge cutout to notice the benefit, i.e. Specialized Power or Selle Italia SLR
but I don't think you could find them below $50 for a new one
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Old 05-01-17, 05:58 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Because after adjusting my fit for hand comfort, those saddles with groin cutouts are starting to look REAL nice! Are there any under $50 y'all recommend?
$50 is going to be a problem.

J.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:00 PM
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Specialized Toupe: https://www.specialized.com/us/en/toup-sport/117360

The one that came on my bike is comfortable to me. I'm thinking about saving and getting a more expensive one to put on my TCR.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:14 PM
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Originally Posted by JohnJ80
$50 is going to be a problem.

J.
Ok, nix the 50.

Basically lowering my handlebars made my hands feel WAY better, but rotated my softer parts forward. Now they hurt.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:15 PM
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I've been happy so far with a Selle San Marco Open Aspide saddle, which I found for somewhere in the mid $60s, but can't seem to find anything close to that price at the moment. ymmv
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Old 05-01-17, 06:18 PM
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Specialized Power Pro. More than $50 though. The Comp version can be had for almost half the price as the Pro but not nearly as supportive.

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Old 05-01-17, 06:20 PM
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Looking good so far.. I have open tabs with all your suggestions... any thoughts on the humble Bontrager Sport?
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Old 05-01-17, 06:21 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Ok, nix the 50.

Basically lowering my handlebars made my hands feel WAY better, but rotated my softer parts forward. Now they hurt.
Make sure you saddle is level and not too high.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:23 PM
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Originally Posted by SkepticalOne
Specialized Power Pro. More than $50 though. The Comp version can be had for almost half the price as the Pro but not nearly as supportive.

I want to test ride that.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:29 PM
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Originally Posted by rpenmanparker
Make sure you saddle is level and not too high.
This is what I have now:
20170501_192357_zps89mwh4ie.jpg Photo by Fake62 | Photobucket
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Old 05-01-17, 06:33 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Looking good so far.. I have open tabs with all your suggestions... any thoughts on the humble Bontrager Sport?
I'd recommend the Bontrager Montrose Elite for a try.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:39 PM
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Originally Posted by SkepticalOne
I'd recommend the Bontrager Montrose Elite for a try.

Another ebay tab opened!
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Old 05-01-17, 06:49 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Another ebay tab opened!

Make sure it's the road version - not MTB version.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:53 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Ok, nix the 50.

Basically lowering my handlebars made my hands feel WAY better, but rotated my softer parts forward. Now they hurt.
For that kind of issue, I agree with @bleui that you'll want a saddle with a substantial cutout (and/or an abbreviated nose like the Specialized Power) to get any relief.

One exception may be the Fizik VS series, which a channel rather than a cutout.

Back on the cutout designs, ISM Adamo, Cobb, SMP and the Selle Italia Superflows are all benchmark designs, but mostly cost 3x or 4x your opening budget.

Unfortunately, I'm not aware of any lower cost designs which mimick the characteristics of the best cutout saddles.
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Old 05-01-17, 06:56 PM
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Originally Posted by chaadster
For that kind of issue, I agree with @bleui that you'll want a saddle with a substantial cutout (and/or an abbreviated nose like the Specialized Power) to get any relief.

One exception may be the Fizik VS series, which a channel rather than a cutout.

Back on the cutout designs, ISM Adamo, Cobb, SMP and the Selle Italia Superflows are all benchmark designs, but mostly cost 3x or 4x your opening budget.

Unfortunately, I'm not aware of any lower cost designs which mimick the characteristics of the best cutout saddles.
Glad to get a 2nd opinion on my issue. Thanks for the links!

Yeah, the budget was not set in stone- like many of my bike purchases, it is just me trying desperately to limit how much I'm spending.
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Old 05-01-17, 07:05 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Glad to get a 2nd opinion on my issue. Thanks for the links!

Yeah, the budget was not set in stone- like many of my bike purchases, it is just me trying desperately to limit how much I'm spending.
I hear you.

You could grab one of SMP's TRK line saddles-- which are heavily padded, comfort type saddles-- for like $50 just to try the long channel cutout design to see if it works, and then dial in the model from there.

Some shops have demo programs, too, for saddles, so you might be able to find Fizik or SI Superflow to test ride that way.
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Old 05-01-17, 07:07 PM
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Originally Posted by chaadster
I hear you.

You could grab one of SMP's TRK line saddles-- which are heavily padded, comfort type saddles-- for like $50 just to try the long channel cutout design to see if it works, and then dial in the model from there.

Some shops have demo programs, too, for saddles, so you might be able to find Fizik or SI Superflow to test ride that way.
Yeah, last time I was in my shop I saw a row of various saddles marked "Test" so I may start there.
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Old 05-01-17, 07:16 PM
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I have no experience with any of these, but I made a mental note of the thread because there seemed to be a couple of decent budget saddles recommended - https://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...ese-years.html

As for myself, I'm happy with a Specialize Toupe, which can be had for $100 and up, depending upon construction. If it makes your ass happy, $100 is chump change. You go through three or four saddles and $200-$300 seems like a bargain.
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Old 05-01-17, 07:35 PM
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Last year I replaced my saddle with a Fabric Line shallow and have been happy with a more comfortable ride ever since.
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Old 05-01-17, 07:42 PM
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I like my Selle Italia Superflow. As noted that's way above budget, but if you go in that direction, be sure to check the UK and Euro vendors. I paid ~$125 and didn't see the same thing stateside for less than $240. And they do have some SLR models closer to your stated price point if you buy from the other side of the pond.
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Old 05-01-17, 09:04 PM
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Nashbar PFR1. $35, but with coupon I've bought 2 of them just over $20. Weighs about 230g which is not much heavier than the higher end padded saddles.

Nashbar PFR1 Saddle
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Old 05-01-17, 09:28 PM
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Originally Posted by shafter
Ok, nix the 50.

Basically lowering my handlebars made my hands feel WAY better, but rotated my softer parts forward. Now they hurt.
I've done the cut-out saddles for years for exactly the problem you describe. This is the one of those that worked for me. The Selle Italia SLR line up seems to be the best fit for me. That said, it's not nearly as good as the Reprieve saddle.

However, I'm a big fan of the Reprieve Saddle - it's been awesome and I'd highly recommend it. It's build to fit your shape not to just have a cut out so some of our parts just don't have a saddle with which to compress them.

J.
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