UKC

HI all, I am looking for a recomendation for a new road bike saddle, I have come to the conclusion that my currently uncomfortable saddle is one of the reasons that I am not able to put in the milage that I would like to. To be fair my current saddle is a pretty entry level San Marco that came with the bike but it obviously doesn't suit my anatomy. I am fairly skiny with not much 'padding' on my rear end and my style of riding is very much more touring than racing so am only rarely down on the drops.

Anyone care to recommend a saddle that is built for for comfort rather than speed and still looks good i'm not really into the retro thing and wouldn't want something too heavy (a compromise, I know).

ta!

In reply to GravitySucks:

Measure your sit bones and use that as your guide when selecting a saddle.

In reply to GravitySucks:

I just have ridden my first few thousand km on a Brooks Cambium saddle, which is made from rubber and cotton rather than leather. I like it a lot, it has a very comfortable internal springiness without feeling soft, and is very comfortable for riding long distances touring style. There are several widths available, so you will haveto try or measure.

CB

In reply to GravitySucks:

A decent bike shop will often have demo saddles you can try out.

Having said that, one of my most comfortable saddles was an impulse buy from a bargain bin in a bike shop.

My best bike has a Fizik saddle - they are worth looking at and start at reasonable prices.

Also, I take it you're wearing decent quality shorts?

In reply to GravitySucks:

Charge Spoon. Cheap, looks fine, dead comfy, not too heavy, doesn't have a stupid hole in the middle.

In reply to GravitySucks:

I'll second the charge spoon, if you've got the cash the leather and titanium version is nice
Alternatively the standard model is fine.

Initially you should set your saddle parallel to the ground (use a spirit level) and even more importantly set your saddle height right, if your hips rock side to side when pedalling and you feel you're having to stretch to reach the pedals its too high.

In reply to victim of mathematics:

A few people in my club have these and rave about them as the comfiest saddle they've had.

Cheers

Toby

In reply to GravitySucks:
I went through a goodly number ( San Marco Rolls / Selle Italia Gelflow / Selle Italia SLS) before finding this suited my bum. http://road.cc/content/review/144746-essax-singel-saddle. After trying a test model ( my mate is the main importer) I've now got one on both my winter and summer bikes - and I've done a good number of 100 mile plus rides on them.

PS you can find them cheaper online that the review would suggest.

I've recently acquired a TT bike that's got a Fizik Arione on it, and so far that seems to be pretty comfy - however I've not ridden more than about 35 miles on that one in a single session.

In reply to GravitySucks:

I went through the whole rigmarole of getting a new saddle this time last year. I tried (and spent money on) several different ones before finding a solution.

The first thing you must realise is that everybody's bum is different and thus every recommendation you receive on this thread and elsewhere may not apply to you. I learned this the hard (and very, very painful) way.

The second thing you do is go to a decent bike shop and get your sit bones measured, they do it with a very simple memory-gel thingybob which you sit on. You can bodge it at home but the results I got at home were different to the undoubtedly more accurate results with the profesional gel thingybob.

The bike shop should then recommend you a saddle, even offer to order you one in if they don't have it in stock. You may be able to buy your chosen saddle cheaper online but then your bike shop will go bust and won't offer the saddle-measuring service; go figure.

The third thing you do, if you haven't already, is invest in a proper bike fitting. I used to be snooty about bike-fitting but I was getting all sorts of aches and pains (riding 100-200km per week) so I bit the bullet and did it (with my properly sized new saddle). The results completely changed the geometry of my setup, and since then I have ridden several thousand km without a single squeek of pain, it's magic.

Good luck!

In reply to GravitySucks:

Fabric (formerly Charge) Scoop.

Available in three configurations of shape (from flat back racer to sit up) The middle one is pretty much the same as a Fizik Arione but a bit comfier. They're £40. My 'good' saddles are being discarded in favour of these (the middle curve one for me), including the new bike that is being built with lots of shiny stuff. Only the bar tape costs less on my new dream machine, and the saddle is the one component that was non-negotiable.

In reply to GravitySucks:

I went from the stock cheapo San Marco on my bike to a Fizik - huge improvement.
Most good bike shops will have a range that you can take out, and not just round the block. Go out for a couple of hours with a demo saddle, or demo it for a few days to find the one you like.

In reply to GravitySucks:

Another vote for Charge Spoon or its slimmed-down brother, Charge Knife. Nice looking and good for 100 miles.

In reply to GravitySucks:

I talked to the guys at my local shop about this issue. Their advice - forget the saddle- get a really good and well fitted bib. As they pointed out you could try alot of different saddles before settling on the right one.

In reply to neilh:

Both are important. There comes a point where the saddle has diminishing returns but one that vaguely fits your arse is essential.

ps. For the OP I like the specialised ones.

In reply to all: Finally got back to the keyboard to find lots of helpful suggestions, for which I am very grateful. Obviously everyone is built differently so it is a personal choice as to what each of us find comfortable, I probably need to get down to my LBS to get some advise and see if they have any demo saddles available.

As a quick fix, I am tempted to buy a Charge Spoon, it is very well reviewed and very inexpensive, on the basis that it cant be any worse than what I have at the moment and at that price it can be replaced with something better if required

Thanks again.

In reply to GravitySucks:

Good choice - that's what I meant on my post - spoon, not scoop. Just goes to show that I am not good at multi-tasking - I wonder how I manage to ride a bike some times. The white ones do tend to hang on to splodges of chain oil and red is a very orangey red.

In reply to all: does anyone else find saddles make virtually no difference to them? I've got some fancy Fizik one on my CX currently. It was stock on my rich brother-in-law's fancy bike. He hated it so bought a different one and gave it to me. It is absolutely fine but really doesn't feel any different from the basic Boardman branded one that I had worn out. I've got a totally different style saddle on my road bike and that's comfy too. I've just always used whatever came with my bikes.

Obviously this would be the moment to note yes, I probably do just have a really fat bum.

In reply to GravitySucks:

Another vote for charge spoon.

Rode Paris-Brest-Paris on mine last august. 1200km in 88 hours. Bum was fine

I'm 62kg and 5'7... So also not so much padding.

Shorts make a massive difference too. The wiggle top of the line (£65) jobbies are great.

In reply to LittleJoe:





Did you qualify for the Adrian Hands society with your time?

In reply to neilh:


Obviously a shop that doesn't have test saddles!

In reply to TobyA:

I think I've been lucky too it seems to be more critical for women though

In reply to The New NickB:

He did offer test saddles as well!

In reply to GravitySucks:

I have a Brooks (leather) and it suits me fine, but I would say its more for touring than racing.