OUGrad05

I'm 6'6 and have been fairly hard to fit from a saddle perspective. I've tried a variety of saddles to find something that didn't have prostate pain, pain in the perineum and on the testicles. I could alleviate one and one or both of the others would get worse. Then I found the Selle SMP stuff and bought a "dynamic" from them. Honestly it's been pretty good overall, if not excellent. No pain.

HOWEVER! On longer rides 45, 55, 65+ miles my chamois is hitting right at the edge of the saddle and what happens over the course of a long ride is it actually rubs my skin raw. The degree of the issue varies a bit by gear. For example, my cheaper Pearl Izumi stuff is ok, but still an issue, their more expensive stuff with the sewn in chamois is by far the worst, I think it's the thread/seam used to stitch the chamois to the bibs. My Sugoi stuff is decent but definitely still an issue. I've been "fitted" and my position on the bike/saddle is quite good, no pain in the feet, knees, back etc, all is good there as are the personal bits. But on a long ride it's not uncommon to quite literally be bleeding from being rubbed raw.

I'm trying a saddle on the trainer from the bike shop right now, it's a Fabric Scoop, I don't think this one is going to work so I'm going to try their saddle with the cutout and slightly narrower to see if I can get comfy on that.

I'm not sure really what to do, I have some body glide which only helps marginally, probably because on a long ride I sweat it off. On shorter rides I don't have as much of a problem and the body glide works fine for say a quick 25 mile stint.

I would love to get some feedback/suggestions on how to possibly fix this.

canklecat

I know of a few folks who switched to TT/tri bike type saddles, like the ISM models with generous cutouts and no "nose" to speak of. I might consider one but I'd want a reasonable trial period. I tend to scoot onto the nose for some riding so I'd want to be sure I could adapt to an ISM saddle.

I recently tried a friend's Cobb saddle, popular with some tri-bikes. It's a more conventional design with a large cutout and more padding. I didn't notice anything special about it so I returned to my usual saddles. I mostly prefer the current Selle Italia designs (not the older Turbo).

In shorts or bibs, if you don't mind risking $15-$30 on some off-brand kit, trying Przewalski or Spotti shorts and bibs. Both use Dupont CoolMax 3D and 4D pads, which are comfortable -- thicker than most, dense, resilient and excellent at wicking sweat away from the skin. The 3D pad is thicker overall, usually orange in color. The 4D pad is more "sculpted", thick only around the sit bones, usually a two-tone fade color. Both are very good, much more comfortable than my Pearl Izumi and other shorts/bibs.

DaveSSS 

I've had a similar problem with my smp stratos saddle, but only with one pair of PI bibs. If I don't pull the legs up high enough and really cram the pad into my crotch, it bunches up or something and causes a hot spot on one side.

Maybe some brands have a wider pad, but you'd have to buy and measure before using. Some swear by high buck bibs like assos, but they are very expensive. I have some demarchi and castelli bibs that work fine. Castelli sizing can run very small. At 5-6 and 140lbs, even my large knickers are tight.

frankenmike 

Always the same spot? Would a barrier stay in place?(band-aid or nu-skin)

OUGrad05

Yup same spot.

Sojodave

As we all know, saddles are a personal thing, sometimes they work for some, some times they don't. I'm 6'4" and I have 130 sit bones. I have been through 15 saddles. The two saddles that have been the most comfortable on long rides is the Specialized Power Expert Saddle 155 and the Prologo Dimension CPC Tirox 143. I rode at least 4,000 miles on the Power saddle and it's super comfy and I never got saddle sores on it. The Dimension CPC has a flexy base and the CPC has sections on the top of the saddle that make it cooler, and more shock absorbent. I'm a sucker for saddle marketing tactics, but the CPC sections of the saddle make it super comfy on long rides. The Prologo Dimension CPC is great on the trainer. The Power saddle, not so much.

As far as chamois' are concerned, invest in good bibs and you'll never regret the money you spent.

Image of the Prologo Dimension CPC Tirox 143

berner

I had a new pair of shorts that never worked. they always caused chaffing even with extra lube. Eventually they got thrown out.

My butt seems to be sensitive to saddle width. I like the saddle wide at the sit bones, 155mm, but narrowing down quickly. Like many here, I went through a good number of saddles before finding what worked for me. The link to to the current one, cheap too, and is totally comfortable. You can see how narrow it is forward of the sit bones. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Ergon-SMC...CABEgLGSvD_BwE

OUGrad05

I've spent quite a lot of money on "good" shorts and bibs. There comes a point when you're having the issue with all of them that it's the width of the chamois or something with the saddle fit.

woodcraft

You might consider your diet. If you eat spicy foods, try easing up; add some yogurt, probiotic supplements.

Sometimes the skin culture gets off- clean with witch hazel a few times.

Check your laundry practices. Many detergents have a bunch of stuff including fragrances that don't help. Try something different.
Fabric softeners/dryer sheets are bad- avoid. Make sure your shorts get really clean- hand wash sometimes doesn't cut it after a while.

fried bake

I know that you were fitted but I had the same problem cured by a fitter who adjusted my leg length discrepancy with shims. As it turned out my shorter leg was causing a dip in the hips which was source of rubbing.