kcblair

My first SA saddle , surprised me a first. Previously, all my saddles were installed in a level position, with a level. First ride, I slammed on the brakes , and almost slide off the bike. When straight home, and started, slightly, tipping the front of the SA up, until I stayed seated. Problem solved . Of course, lowering the rear of the SA, I needed to raise the entire seat post, as that altered the saddle height, slightly. KB

GerryinHouston

This is a general leather saddle question, I have two Brooks B17s.

It seems that both Brooks and SA recommend waterproofing the bottom of the saddles (Brooks recommends using very little Proofide to polish the top of the saddle).

Why is that?

Is it to protect the bottom of the saddle when riding in wet weather and water is cast by the tires under the saddle? (I have fenders, so this is not an issue with me.)

Or is it to maintain the rough bottom of the saddle pliable to achieve the 'hammock' effect?

mcgeggy

I finally found an H2 in B stock for $139.99 and grabbed it. I've put about 100 miles on it so far, and after a few tweaks with the tension setting and tilt, I finally have a saddle that is comfortable! For some reason I did not find it to be all that slippery, and so I have it more or less level and find that to be the most comfortable position.

Patriot1

GerryinHouston

I carry a shower cap to protect my saddle when not riding on it (when I ride in the rain, my derriere provides the rain protection and I use the shower cap on the helmet. I can see waterproofing the edges, but the bottom doesn't have a chance to get wet if you use fenders.

@Patriot1: Thank you for the quote, the directions of what to do if you get the leather wet are good to know.

Patriot1

davlafont

Ride report:
My original intent for this saddle was to mount it on a future modern bike. I wanted to start getting used to the SA right away so that it would be dialed in and familiar before service on the new bike, so here it is on my '73 Raleigh replacing a Wrights W3N.
I now have about 120 miles on the SA and I might be done with tweaking the tension. The bolt has about 1/3 threads remaining (sorry, no pics). On about three occasions so far I've looked at the slot and noticed the gap was no longer a quarter inch wide. I'll keep an eye on it, but I think the leather has settled in (I weigh 175 lbs.).
It certainly is more comfy than the vintage saddles I'm used to. This bike had a Wrights and my touring Trek 720 has a Brooks Pro. Those are mostly broken in but they remain stiff. The SA is straight up springy. I've stuck my finger underneath while riding just to make sure I wasn't bottoming out (I'm not). A new sensation for me is what I'll call cheek smoosh. I'm used to each butt cheek choosing its side of the saddle. The SA feels flat laterally; it does not divide left cheek from right. So far that's not an issue per se, it's just new for me.
I might consider trying an NSX-2 model (in black) after I migrate this saddle to its new steed. Time will tell.

speedevil 

Hey @davlafont - where did you get that awesome BF sticker? Your Raleigh looks great. The lined lugs and the leather wraps on the bottle cages are nice touches.

I'm also quite pleased with my SA saddles. I'll be needing another one soon for another build. I have two now, one on a carbon Eddy Merckx, and the second on my Cannondale ST600.

davlafont

Funny you should ask! Head on over to the Classic & Vintage forum and check out the BF "stickers" thread. The awesome folks in C&V crowdsourced the concept and an awesome forumite (who shall remain nameless) made it all happen. I only hope there are still some remaining in case a deluge of requests come pouring in after this shameless plug. "Act now, quantities are limited" as the saying goes...
https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-v...-stickers.html

jfoobar

Just out of curiosity, is the general concept of these saddles that they are supposed to fit everyone (or virtually everyone) regardless of the distance between their sit bones?

mcgeggy

Yes, that is the theory behind the design. From their website:

lhill 

DrIsotope

Then you never set it up properly.

Source:
11,000+ miles on an X1
1,800 miles on an H2
800 miles on a C Series

All still in service.

davlafont

Patriot1

davlafont

This weekend I did my first SA-equipped charity ride, a 35-miler. Fully comfortable including post-ride walking around. I know that's not a super long distance, but for me it's long enough for discomfort to set in. The saddle was about 150 miles old. I rode without padded shorts, same as I have since I mounted it. I think I'm done with padded shorts for ever.

ZippyThePinhead

I'm guessing you're aware of it but for the benefit of other readers on the thread, they have upgraded their rails over the years. I've not followed the story very closely, but about five years ago I broke the rails on my vintage 2011 Selle Anatomica (a "Titanico") and briefly corresponded with them regarding this. Apparently early SA saddles had a mild steel rail, which was later revised to a more durable carbon steel. Since the leather on mine looked pretty decent, they had me send it to Monarch McLaren (the actual manufacturer) in Wisconsin to get new rails. Still going strong now, five years later.

Saddles are highly personal. I ride with someone who does the kind of miles that @DrIsotope rides annually, and they tried an SA for a while and found it uncomfortable. What works great for me, maybe not for thee.

DrIsotope

I went through a box of saddles-- never got one to last more than about 4,000 miles. I 'd lose weight, or my on-bike position would change, and whatever saddle I was running spontaneously would go from "okay" to "I'm now going to murder your undercarriage." Also broke a few. Got my first SA on a color closeout sale, and it was a keeper from the very first ride. Even the C-Series can be used without padded shorts.

I wish so much I could be comfortable on a typical saddle. They're cheaper, lighter, and don't look as weird. But here we are.

ZippyThePinhead

They just emailed a 10% off promo code: SUMMER10. Applies to everything not on sale.

El Fug

I have an X1 and it's fantastic for comfort. I can ride for 50 miles easy without padded shorts and my backside is no worse for the wear. That said, there are a couple things that bother me about it -- it makes a lot of noise and it also feels quite squishy when I pedal at a high-ish cadence. Due to these issues I've been thinking about purchasing an H2, despite my weighing only about 150. I would really like to feel more support when I'm pedaling hard and fast. The noise is a known issue, but is there a fix for it? I think it might be the actual leather, so I kind of doubt it. Has anybody else gone to the thicker leather even though their weight is appropriate for the X model?

davlafont

I'm considering it. I weigh 175 lbs. so I bought the X2. I'm approaching 200 miles on my saddle since April and I'm still adding more tension. I'm following the instructions: only tighten enough for the slot to be 1/4" wide. I'm probably 3/4 or more through the bolt and I'm worried that it will tap out before the end of the summer.

I'm also considering going to the NSX to get a more traditional feel of support.

Trocadile

I think the instructions here are misguided. After the first ride or two, I'd stop using the bolt to maintain that 1/4" width. Only tighten if you feel the saddle is sagging too much. If the two sides of the slot are getting too close, but the saddle is otherwise fine, I'd sand the edges of the slot to maintain the proper width.

dksix

I know this thread is long going but since I ordered an H1 today much of the decision was based on posts here in this thread I thought I'd give it a bumb.

Sy Reene

I kinda wonder if i have the same thing going on with you, witnessing different wear characteristics on the left vs right side of saddle. No idea if appropriate, but thought a saddle design along the lines of the below, with a split at the rear, would allow more left/right independence of movement and height?

dksix

What stemmed this realization was a YouTube video from SQlabs about their "Active-Saddle Technology". I was going through their process to determine which of their saddles would be best for me. Thinking about the saddle tilting had me thinking about my pelvious tilting when I was trying to measure my sit-bones. Without rocking back and forth I couldn't get 2 impressions. Using my weight bench lat pull down attachment to keep my crotch plumb with my nose and pushing down while sitting on a piece of foil covered styrofoam insulation board I found that my left sit bone left an impression about 2mm deeper than the right.

I've never had a professional fit, I don't know what level of technology either one of the shops in driving distance of me has. Maybe this could have been discovered years ago had I gone to one of those shops, maybe not and maybe they would have known how to address the issue. I've read and watched a lot on bike fitting and fitting issues, I've never seen anything documented on this issue specifically.

I have a Terry saddle that's split all the way through like the one you pictured. It's a Terry FLX demo that's 133-135mm wide x 280mm long. It's too narrow for me, if you want to give it a try PM me your info and I'll send it to you. I went out to the shop and took some pictures of it. I'll not load down this Selle Anatomica thread with pictures of another saddle but here's a link to the gallery where the pictures are uploaded. It looks bent in the upside down picture but that's just the angle, it's undamaged in near perfect condition except where the rails have been clamped.
https://postimg.cc/gallery/1yks86czi/