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Suggestions for a good seat?

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Suggestions for a good seat?

Old 06-15-22, 09:41 AM
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tajimirich
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Suggestions for a good seat? (SOLVED)

I've been pretty happy with the seat that came with my old bike, but since I've invested a lot on pretty much every other component on my new bike I want to round things out and get me a seat to tie a ribbon on the whole thing.

I like the look of Selle Italia seats, Fizik and Specialised get a lot of play on review sites.. but I'd rather get my opinion from real people than paid reviewers,!

I'm looking for something firm but padded, with an aggressive camber, if that's even a thing. I'd like it to make a subtle statement, two tone might be a bit too much but as I've said I like the branding on Selle Italia seats.

Maybe there's a seat that was extremely hot sh*t 5 or 7 years ago, TDF standard, that I could get cheaper now?

Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions! <3

Edit: saddle* saddles*

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Old 06-15-22, 09:46 AM
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Oddly price does not equate to comfort. It appears that the fanciest seats are those used in professional competition... But really... Those guys don't sit much... Ha

The search for the good looking comfortable seat goes on. Kinda like the Holly Grail...

Somehow I keep thinking Brooks. Even if it doesn't look super modern anyone who really rides will note... Its a Brooks...

C15?
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Old 06-15-22, 09:49 AM
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Originally Posted by zandoval
Oddly price does not equate to comfort. It appears that the fanciest seats are those used in professional competition... But really... Those guys don't sit much... Ha

The search for the good looking comfortable seat goes on. Kinda like the Holly Grail...
Nobody expects a Spanish cycling saddle!

For real though, my current seat feels quite firm and thin, so I feel that I'll be able to handle these ingeniously uncomfortable boards loll
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Old 06-15-22, 09:59 AM
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So are you just wanting to see us argue what has been argued over and over here?

Ride whatever saddle your butt gets along with.
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Old 06-15-22, 10:14 AM
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Just curious: what is aggressive camber?
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Old 06-15-22, 10:20 AM
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Originally Posted by masi61
Just curious: what is aggressive camber?
I saw something about aggressive position in a review or two, I guess that means it's tilted forward slightly. I know NOT what I'm talking about ^_^v
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Old 06-15-22, 10:21 AM
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Originally Posted by Iride01
So are you just wanting to see us argue what has been argued over and over here?

Ride whatever saddle your butt gets along with.
Not at all, I want people to suggest things to me, not argue with each other about their suggestions. Not everything needs to be toxic

​​​​​
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Old 06-15-22, 10:30 AM
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Originally Posted by tajimirich
I saw something about aggressive position in a review or two, I guess that means it's tilted forward slightly. I know NOT what I'm talking about ^_^v
Go to a couple local shops and ask if they have a saddle fitting board. Sit on it and then look at any that fit your body.
Even better, call around to shops and see if any have demo saddles. You can try narrow down what they offer and then try a few on long rides. Buy the one that you like most.


What people suggest here is of little value. There are like 3,284 saddles on the market right now and many come in varying widths or curves. What works for someone may be terrible for you, or viceversa.
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Old 06-15-22, 10:35 AM
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Originally Posted by mstateglfr
Go to a couple local shops and ask if they have a saddle fitting board. Sit on it and then look at any that fit your body.
Even better, call around to shops and see if any have demo saddles. You can try narrow down what they offer and then try a few on long rides. Buy the one that you like most.


What people suggest here is of little value. There are like 3,284 saddles on the market right now and many come in varying widths or curves. What works for someone may be terrible for you, or viceversa.
That's some great input, thanks!

I'll think about that. There is such a store, though they're a bianchi-aligned chain who refused to look at my old GIANT bike so I'm not too hot on them lol.. can still use them like the tools they are muhaha...
​​​​
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Old 06-15-22, 10:45 AM
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Originally Posted by tajimirich
Not at all, I want people to suggest things to me, not argue with each other about their suggestions. Not everything needs to be toxic

​​​​​
Ok.. aggressive perhaps could mean you want a snub-nosed saddle. You like Selle Italia. I like this saddle but ride the traditional length version. So, here's a suggestion, the Selle Italia SP-01 Boost (comes in a variety of material flavors depending on how much you want to spend). Probably not recommended for heavy-weight riders though.

https://www.probikekit.com/bicycle-s.../13222618.html
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Old 06-15-22, 10:53 AM
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The problem with suggesting a saddle is I know nothing about you, or your riding. I can only tell you what works for me, and that is useless to you unless you're similar to me.

SO - I am pretty much inflexible - can't reach beyond mid-calf when trying to touch my toes. This means that I roll my pelvis forward, and keep a straight back, rather than bending at the waist and curving my back. This means I benefit from a "Wave" saddle, that's lower in the middle than at the ends.

I also run a saddle-to-bar drop of 7.5-11 cm, depending on the bike, and I like to use the drops a fair amount because my usual route sometimes means 6 miles riding into a stiff headwind. This means I need a saddle with a 'relief channel', AND one that's flat across the back, rather than curved, because that curve puts pressure where I don't want it.

I also have Thunder Thighs, but I do best with low Q-factor, meaning my legs don't splay around the saddle. This means I need a saddle with a narrow nose.

For me, the best saddle I've found is the Avocet O2 Air 40R. Unfortunately, these have been out of production for 20 years. Fortunately, I bought a stash. Unfortunately, that stash is depleted. SO I tried some other saddles, based on the above parameters, and found the Fizik Aliante VSX. Not as comfy as my beloved Avocet, but still good for > 50 miles with no pain, chafing, or numbness. Unfortunately, I found out it, too, is out of production.

So, that's my recommendation, if you're like me - two saddles nobody makes anymore. You have to get them NOS or used off of Ebay or similar. But if you're not like me, then you don't want either of them.

There, I imagine this has been perfectly useless.
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Old 06-15-22, 01:37 PM
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Originally Posted by tajimirich
That's some great input, thanks!

I'll think about that. There is such a store, though they're a bianchi-aligned chain who refused to look at my old GIANT bike so I'm not too hot on them lol.. can still use them like the tools they are muhaha...
​​​​
A shop refused to not only work on a bke shop level bike, but also refused to even look at it?
That's insane.
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Old 06-15-22, 01:53 PM
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Originally Posted by mstateglfr
A shop refused to not only work on a bke shop level bike, but also refused to even look at it?
That's insane.
Now I have this vision of the wrenches at the bike shop averting their eyes....
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Old 06-15-22, 02:29 PM
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Figure out what width seat works for you, and decide on shape from there. See if there are any shops that will loan you seats for a ride or a weekend.

I've decided that 132mm is far too narrow for my butt, 142-145mm is just about perfect, and 147 is workable (though bordering on wide).
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Old 06-15-22, 04:26 PM
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Originally Posted by tajimirich
I saw something about aggressive position in a review or two, I guess that means it's tilted forward slightly. I know NOT what I'm talking about ^_^v
The forward tilt is to save your junk, your penis can get numb if pressure is put in the wrong areas. Its not good. I like my fizik saddle, but as long as youre relatively comfortable on your current saddle im tempted to say if it aint broke don't fix it. Or atleast get a saddle similar to one that you currently have

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Old 06-15-22, 04:32 PM
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Originally Posted by LarrySellerz
The forward tilt is to save your junk, your penis can get dumb if pressure is put in the wrong areas. Its not good. I like my fizik saddle, but as long as youre relatively comfortable on your current saddle im tempted to say if it aint broke don't fix it. Or atleast get a saddle similar to one that you currently have
They're all dumb already.

BUT, if you have to tilt your saddle forward to save your junk, you may have a poor bike fit, a lousy saddle, or both.
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Old 06-15-22, 04:58 PM
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Things change. When I was younger, I could ride just about anything, and always went for a "racy" saddle.

Nowadays, at 50+, I am much more picky on the shape. The Selle Italia Flite of yesteryear is now not "flat" enough, and is akin to sitting on a canoe paddle edge up!

Anyway, you can find plenty of racy saddles that will work.
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Old 06-15-22, 05:07 PM
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Originally Posted by Erzulis Boat
Things change. When I was younger, I could ride just about anything, and always went for a "racy" saddle.

Nowadays, at 50+, I am much more picky on the shape. The Selle Italia Flite of yesteryear is now not "flat" enough, and is akin to sitting on a canoe paddle edge up!

Anyway, you can find plenty of racy saddles that will work.
lol - used a Flite on all my bikes back in the day - off road and road

did a number of centuries (metric and regular) - and to the surprise and dismay of some (lol) never had an issue ... never had a sore rear or numbness or any other issues

(and that was on aluminum, steel, and carbon bikes fitted with 20 and 23 mm tires pumped 100+ psi)
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Old 06-15-22, 05:15 PM
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Originally Posted by tajimirich
I've been pretty happy with the seat that came with my old bike, but since I've invested a lot on pretty much every other component on my new bike I want to round things out and get me a seat to tie a ribbon on the whole thing.

I like the look of Selle Italia seats, Fizik and Specialised get a lot of play on review sites.. but I'd rather get my opinion from real people than paid reviewers,!

I'm looking for something firm but padded, with an aggressive camber, if that's even a thing. I'd like it to make a subtle statement, two tone might be a bit too much but as I've said I like the branding on Selle Italia seats.

Maybe there's a seat that was extremely hot sh*t 5 or 7 years ago, TDF standard, that I could get cheaper now?

Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions! <3

Edit: saddle* saddles*
A few of a zillion options to consider :

Charge Knife
Charge Spoon
Fabric Scoop
Fizik Aliante
WTB Silverado
WTB Volt
.
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Old 06-15-22, 05:27 PM
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Originally Posted by genejockey
For me, the best saddle I've found is the Avocet O2 Air 40R. Unfortunately, these have been out of production for 20 years.
At one time back in the day - I looked for for an Air 40R in yellow for a Litespeed - but did not find one

We have the wider version - Air 50R - (in black) on one of my wife's bikes and she liked it (and I did also when I rode her bike)
.
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Old 06-15-22, 08:24 PM
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Originally Posted by LarrySellerz
The forward tilt is to save your junk, your penis can get numb if pressure is put in the wrong areas. Its not good. I like my fizik saddle, but as long as youre relatively comfortable on your current saddle im tempted to say if it aint broke don't fix it. Or atleast get a saddle similar to one that you currently have

My current saddle. Came included with a Giant Contend about a year and a half ago. It was very comfortable on that contend but in the new (slightly longer) bike it can be a bit of a prostate crusher if I am down "in the drops", which gives me the *****, e'heh.. But in general it's a pretty slimline offering with a pretty huge cutout, and I think it's a perfectly comfortable seat so I'm keen to stay with this .. genre
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Old 06-15-22, 08:27 PM
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Originally Posted by mstateglfr
A shop refused to not only work on a bke shop level bike, but also refused to even look at it?
That's insane.
Oh they looked at it...

... Once, on the kerb outside their shop. Long enough to say "yeah, definitely something wrong there, but we can't help you" lol... The chain is "Y's Road" a very big one here in Japan

To be fair, there's a fair chance Bianchi run campagnolo groupsets or something, which might explain their inability to service my Shimano bike... THAT SAID they had plenty of Shimano componentry on their shelves so maybe not.
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Old 06-15-22, 08:29 PM
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Originally Posted by genejockey
The problem with suggesting a saddle is I know nothing about you, or your riding. I can only tell you what works for me, and that is useless to you unless you're similar to me.

SO - I am pretty much inflexible - can't reach beyond mid-calf when trying to touch my toes. This means that I roll my pelvis forward, and keep a straight back, rather than bending at the waist and curving my back. This means I benefit from a "Wave" saddle, that's lower in the middle than at the ends.

I also run a saddle-to-bar drop of 7.5-11 cm, depending on the bike, and I like to use the drops a fair amount because my usual route sometimes means 6 miles riding into a stiff headwind. This means I need a saddle with a 'relief channel', AND one that's flat across the back, rather than curved, because that curve puts pressure where I don't want it.

I also have Thunder Thighs, but I do best with low Q-factor, meaning my legs don't splay around the saddle. This means I need a saddle with a narrow nose.

For me, the best saddle I've found is the Avocet O2 Air 40R. Unfortunately, these have been out of production for 20 years. Fortunately, I bought a stash. Unfortunately, that stash is depleted. SO I tried some other saddles, based on the above parameters, and found the Fizik Aliante VSX. Not as comfy as my beloved Avocet, but still good for > 50 miles with no pain, chafing, or numbness. Unfortunately, I found out it, too, is out of production.

So, that's my recommendation, if you're like me - two saddles nobody makes anymore. You have to get them NOS or used off of Ebay or similar. But if you're not like me, then you don't want either of them.

There, I imagine this has been perfectly useless.
Nah nah, entirely fascinating and useful. I'm not quite as inflexible as you but my toes are definitely out of reach at the moment.. rugby thighs too lol.. I only hope I find a seat I can really appreciate myself, going forward.

I'll look up that Fizik, there's a pretty robust second hand market for parts here
Thanks!
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Old 06-15-22, 09:16 PM
  #24  
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Nothing on a bike is more personal than the saddle. It doesn't matter how much it costs if your body doesn't like it. People rant about Brooks saddles but I hate them and others I know hate them, too.
I like a Selle Italia wide with a cut-out but I also loved those old Avocets and once had a $25 Performance saddle that I liked until it fell apart.
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Old 06-15-22, 09:58 PM
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I got myself a well priced SLR Boost TM Superflow from Selle Italia. Wish me luck
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