bleui

so for the last 10 years I've been on numerous saddles,
Fizik Arione, Antares, Specialized Romin, Power, Power Arc, Fabric Scoop, Pro Griffon, with Romin being the least torturous and Power with the most chaffing issues.
Finally found the best saddle for my bum and bike fit position with Pro Stealth saddle, seriously no sores or chaffing which makes me confuse on what to do with the leftover chamois cream circa using Power saddle

the question is do you guys stock on your perfect saddle?
for reasons such as, future replacement, future n+1 bikes or, god forbid, they for no reason discontinued that certain saddle line-up (i.e. Romin)
or you just have faith on the bike industry to bring new design and technology for the comfort of your bum, like the Stealth saddle wasn't exist 5 years ago and if I were to stock on Romin I wouldn't even know about this Stealth saddle

jaxgtr

I've thought about it, but have not done it. I rode the Romin for a long time, fantastic saddle, up until about the 70 mile mark, then it was the saddle from hell, but I still had them on 4 bikes. So when I got my Domane, I started looking for something else, tried some different saddles from Specialized, and others, but then Bontrager released the Verse saddle, so knowing they had a 30 days return policy, I gave it a try. It is so much more comfortable than the Romin, especially beyond the 70 mile mark. When I tried it in the 135 width, which the Romin never had, that is when I knew this was the one. I bought 2 more for my other bikes, and my wife even gave it a whirl and she switch her saddle over to it but in the 145mm.

bleui

​​​​​​​oh man now I'm intrigued by that Verse saddle. I'll be honest the brand Bontrager never came across the mind when searching for a saddle, but seems like I need to explore more.
is the Verse's sideways more curved or flattened (which I prefer)?

jaxgtr

Yea I was never a fan of their saddles, but, I have heard some good stuff about a few of the saddles in the last couple of years. My wife was riding a Bontrager Montrose and liked it a lot, but it was starting to bother her so that is why she wanted to look at something else. The Verse is 3 mm narrower than what she was using in the Montrose that seemed to do the trick.

Forgive the pictures, but I have the bike on the stand and it is raining heavily, so they are somewhat dark and muddled with other crap in the background but I think it will give you a solid idea on shape. To me, they are a more rounded than the Romin, and have a little more cushion without being soft and deadening. It's a firm cushion, but I've been really happy with it. On long ride, I have no discomfort what so ever. However, you know how it goes, your mileage may very as saddles are very personable. I was glad that I tried the narrower version before I gave up on them though as the 145mm just rubbed a little awkwardly reminding me of the Romin on long rides.

datlas 

If you have the spare cash and storage space, it makes sense to have at least ONE “backup” saddle in the closet to cover next bike or crash damage. Luckily most saddles have a very long lifespan so no need to go crazy.

redcon1

Lately I'm thinking I want to switch up my Specialized Phenom Expert to the Power saddle, because of the shorter nose. I find myself getting hung up on the nose of my Phenom while sitting back after a standing effort.
Has anyone done this exact switch?

ARPRINCE

I have a S-WORKS POWER and POWER EXPERT. I don't think I would be going back to a normal nose length saddle. Easy to slide in and out, no hang ups. As a matter of fact, I'm been looking to get new bike (Tern Verge X11) and all I can think that the first thing to go is the saddle.

EDIT: In response to the OPs question, I'd probably would not stock a saddle. There might be a better option after X number of years from the same model/mold. If discontinued, well......that's just too bad.

Maelochs

I believe in stocking up on anything which might wear out and not be replaceable. Unfortunately I bought most of my favorite saddles at closeout sales or as remnants .... not even sure how many of them are still being made, and if they are ... they cost two arms and a leg.

genejockey 

Yes.

My perfect saddle is the later model Avocet O2 Air 40R, with the trough. I discovered, when setting up a new bike in 2007, that the company had gone out of business and what seemed to be the only remaining stock was all at Palo Alto Bicycles. So I went there and bought 3 of the 5 they had left, the other 2 being colors I didn't want. Now, as I have started acquiring 1980s bikes for fun, I wish I'd bought more.

SoSmellyAir

Yeah, but they did not become your favorite saddles until long after the closeout sales, right? Hindsight is 20/20.

I too acquired all three of my saddles (2 Ergon SR3 Pro, one white, one black, and an Astvte Starline Pilarga VT, all in 145 mm width) at closeout sales. Luckily it only took a few rides for my bum to get used to the switch from the Ergon to the Astvte.

Rhondito

I do. I came across my favorite saddle at a really great price and bought a couple. When I bought a new bike I already had a saddle to put on it.