Brooks Swallow Titanium

p9uma

I have just bought a Brooks Swallow Titanium saddle rather impulsively on the Bay of E, because it was really rather good value for money for a mint "new" boxed one.

I rather like the look of them, and I have read lots of good reviews about them, it will be interesting to see/ feel if there really is any difference and wether they are " the most comfortable saddle you'll ever own"

I will report back if you are interested, even if you are not I will still report back, because, like everyone else on the Internet, I think what I have got to say is of interest to everyone else in the world.

marcusjb

p9uma wrote:

I will report back if you are interested, even if you are not I will still report back, because, like everyone else on the Internet, I think what I have got to say is of interest to everyone else in the world.

I am deeply interested in everything you have to say.....

I ride a Swift Ti - and it's fabulous.

Enjoy it - I hope you have a suitable arse for Brooks - saddles are such a personal thing, which is why you'll find as many people saying it is the comfiest saddle in the world as you will those blaming Brooks for their arse being torn to shreds, the inability to father children etc.

Make sure you get a pot of Brooks Proofide - don't overuse it (good rubbing in top and bottom when you first get it, 2-3 months afterwards and then every 6-12 months after that), and don't read crazy websites saying soak it in neatsfoot oil for a week etc.!

p9uma

marcusjb wrote:

p9uma wrote:

I will report back if you are interested, even if you are not I will still report back, because, like everyone else on the Internet, I think what I have got to say is of interest to everyone else in the world.

I am deeply interested in everything you have to say.....

I ride a Swift Ti - and it's fabulous.

Enjoy it - I hope you have a suitable ars* for Brooks - saddles are such a personal thing, which is why you'll find as many people saying it is the comfiest saddle in the world as you will those blaming Brooks for their ars* being torn to shreds, the inability to father children etc.

Make sure you get a pot of Brooks Proofide - don't overuse it (good rubbing in top and bottom when you first get it, 2-3 months afterwards and then every 6-12 months after that), and don't read crazy websites saying soak it in neatsfoot oil for a week etc.!

Thanks for your feedback and advice. I think that saddle comes with a pot of that Proofide, so I'll give it a good old rub with that. I might use it on the saddle too.

yocto

I’ve got the chrome version. Found for the first week or two I had to have the saddle slightly pointed up, otherwise it felt like I was sliding down the saddle. It didn’t take long for the saddle to fit my bum and I could position the saddle level. I read somewhere that the Swallow is the ‘softest’ saddle Brooks do. There is some give when you push it with your thumb, say compared with my wife’s Team Pro S, which had no give at all and is pretty solid.

Personally I find it very comfortable, like a hammock for my bottom! And it looks gorgeous too (the saddle that is!) Though I have not tried many saddles in the past so I can’t compare it to anything else.

Make sure you buy a waterproof raincover for it, as you are not meant to get it wet (though I did also read that some guy rode around the world with one (rain and shine), never used a cover and had no issues. The cover will also be useful to ‘hide’ it for when you have the bike parked up. Don’t want tealeaves eyeing it up!

marcusjb

I am never sure about the getting it wet thing.

I was very paranoid at first - but have got less so over the years. If it was really hooning it down and I was in a cafe stop, I might chuck a carrier bag over it. But I might not!

My saddle has been through some real drenchings and doesn't seem to have suffered too much.

Now, I weigh about as much as a bag of sugar, and none of my Brooks have the classic hammock shape - so I have stretched the leather less. If I was heavier and the leather was more stretched, that may make the rain have more of an impact on the saddle - I don't know?

As long as it gets some attention from the Proofide, I have never worried about it.

As for the covering it when parked up - makes sense - Brooks are a known target for thieves - and at over £200 for the Swallow Ti, it's easy to see why. My one bike without a Brooks is my commuter that I leave locked up in London for the day - I didn't want to risk temptation with a Brooks!

p9uma

Thanks for info and feedback. I will certainly keep it out of sight of thieving scumbags, the kit I bought comes with the polish, a cloth, a rain cover a spanner all in its original box. I paid ' undred n fifty queens for it, so not a bad deal for an as new Brooks ti saddle. I notice that they are £230 odd on the Brooks website, though I read recently on the classified board that someone got a better deal than that recently.

DrKJM

If it's like the rain cover that came with my Team Pro it says Brooks on it. Great for keeping the rain off. Not so good for keeping the thieves away. A carrier bag does both.

godders1

p9uma wrote:

I ride a Swift Ti - and it's fabulous.

Ditto and ditto.

p9uma

Well, it's arrived. It looks like its never been used and certainly seems to be a quality piece of kit. I shall fit it on the bike later and if it ever stops raining in the country Ill take it out for a ride. I bought it yesterday on eBay, it arrived today special delivery. Pretty good service, though it was me what paid for it.

p9uma

Update:

Yesterday, I put the Proofide on the top and underside of the saddle and left it over night at room temp. Today I polished the top of the saddle and put it on the bike, see below.

Then I went for a 30 mile ride. The saddle felt different, like a new pair of shoes and a bit slippery but after a few miles I seemed to settle into it. It was neither more comfortable or uncomfortable, just different. I did notice however, that it seemed more springy on the smoother bumps in the road, it has a bit more bounce I think. Once home I didn't have a sore or achy bum, so thats a good thing.

Anyway I think it looks prett good on the bike and on Monday I am going to attempt my first 50 miles for me, the bike and the saddle. I'll let you know how I get on.

richh

I've got a standard B17 and I was doing 50 miles per day for 4 months last year then a 1400 mile JOGLE and I've got to say it was excellent. I'm sure the swallow will equally as good.

Some comments from me. The odd shower isn't a problem if it's proofided but if you are out in a torrential downpour without mudguards the saddle will get extremely wet which then causes the leather to go really soft and stretch even if it has been proofided. By the end of one 25 mile commute home day I was effectively only sitting on the frame of the saddle rather than on the leather! When it dried out and I'd tightened it up again it's been fine ever since but I can assure you that that very evening I was on the internet and ordering a saddle cover. The covers themselves are pretty cheap (£5 I think) but they do the job and pack away into a tiny ball. Mine was from brooks themselves and doesn't have their logo on it (I think the older version did) so the problem if them attracting attention form thieves isn't as bad now as it perhaps used to be.

The tension in the saddle I find is key to the comfort of it. You hear a lot of people saying that they are always rock hard to start with and that they need to be broken in. Yes there is an element of that just like there is with shoes but you can make things a lot easier for yourself by just slackening off the tension a touch. Not so that it's all saggy which will end up stretching and ruining the leather, but just a touch. I really does make a huge difference. A bit of trial and error and you'll soon get it set up correctly.

Rich

p9uma

richh wrote:

I've got a standard B17 and I was doing 50 miles per day for 4 months last year then a 1400 mile JOGLE and I've got to say it was excellent. I'm sure the swallow will equally as good.

Some comments from me. The odd shower isn't a problem if it's proofided but if you are out in a torrential downpour without mudguards the saddle will get extremely wet which then causes the leather to go really soft and stretch even if it has been proofided. By the end of one 25 mile commute home day I was effectively only sitting on the frame of the saddle rather than on the leather! When it dried out and I'd tightened it up again it's been fine ever since but I can assure you that that very evening I was on the internet and ordering a saddle cover. The covers themselves are pretty cheap (£5 I think) but they do the job and pack away into a tiny ball. Mine was from brooks themselves and doesn't have their logo on it (I think the older version did) so the problem if them attracting attention form thieves isn't as bad now as it perhaps used to be.

The tension in the saddle I find is key to the comfort of it. You hear a lot of people saying that they are always rock hard to start with and that they need to be broken in. Yes there is an element of that just like there is with shoes but you can make things a lot easier for yourself by just slackening off the tension a touch. Not so that it's all saggy which will end up stretching and ruining the leather, but just a touch. I really does make a huge difference. A bit of trial and error and you'll soon get it set up correctly.

Rich

Thanks Rich for the feedback. I am interested in your JOGLE, so I'll have a read of your blog in a minute. I have literally just been reading Vin Cox's website, he cycled over 18,000 miles round the world using the same same saddle as mine. If a Brooks is good enough for you and him, it'll be too good for me.

I bought my saddle as used on eBay this week, but it has never been used as far as I can tell, it came in Brooks box with the seat cover ( branded) a tin of Proofide, booklet, cotton cloth and spanner.

I'll experiment with the tensioning on Monday, that might be a good call, though I didn't feel any discomfort today on the bike.

slowondefy2

Personally I know nothing about leather saddles, but Sheldon Brown advises to leave the tension adjustment alone Linky (bottom of the page).

Although SB isn't right about everything...

p9uma

slowondefy2 wrote:

Personally I know nothing about leather saddles, but Sheldon Brown advises to leave the tension adjustment alone Linky (bottom of the page).

Although SB isn't right about everything...

Thanks for the link, an interesting read. So much diverse informtation and differing opinions!

Hoopdriver

I've used Brooks saddles for thirty years and love them. I've never tinkered with the adjustment wrench at all. I've just broken in the saddles naturally and frankly, never found it to be that big a deal. I would definitely get one of the rain covers. I have them for all my saddles and use them whenever it's wet. I keep them in the saddlebags - they crumple up very small and weigh nothing - just in case I am caught in a shower.

I do the Proofhide business every so often, buff the saddle up afterwards and all of mine look pretty much like new even after many years and many thousands of miles, and ride as comfortably as an armchair. So comfortable in fact that I seldom give my saddles a thought. Can't say better about a saddle than that.

p9uma

Another update:

This saddle is starting to get really comfortable now. I have ridden about 500 miles on it, including two 60+ plus bike rides, one of them more or less non stop. Yesterday's bike ride, a sportive, I'd more or less forgotten I had changed the saddle, and this morning my butt is not showing any signs of feeling like its been on a long ride.

So far I'm very pleased I bought this saddle.

richh

slowondefy2 wrote:

Personally I know nothing about leather saddles, but Sheldon Brown advises to leave the tension adjustment alone Linky (bottom of the page).

There's a big difference between subtly changing the tension to add a bit more comfort, and slackening it off so much that the leather acts like a loose hammock! that would definitely be a bad thing as it would stress where the leather attaches to the frame too much, but a bit of trial and error adjustment should casue any problems whatsoever.

slowondefy2 wrote:

Although SB isn't right about everything...

It's rare that he's not though! However in this instance, when his advise is directly contrary to the manufacturers advice (see the comments on soaking in oils) I'd take Brooks' advice instead.

ugo.santalucia

I had a swallow titanium, which was the most amazing and comfortable saddle I have ever had. Sold it ahead of my move to London to avoid making it into somebody else's best saddle

p9uma

ugo.santalucia wrote:

I had a swallow titanium, which was the most amazing and comfortable saddle I have ever had. Sold it ahead of my move to London to avoid making it into somebody else's best saddle

Ah yes. I saw your saddle for sale and was most vexed that I missed out at the time.

rrsodl

The Swallow Ti is a great saddle, I love them. I have 2 Swallow, one is Titanium. Definitely my favourites. The other Brooks saddles I have are 1 Team Pro, 1 B17, 1 B67, 1 B17 Special, 1 Flyer.
My wife thinks my daughter got me another Brooks Swallow Ti for Christmas I mentioned that I needed a new saddle for my new bike. obviously nobody told her I bought a Swallow Ti already - I will have to see if this is true or my wife is wrong.

I try to never use tensioning. There's nothing one can do with the Swallows but use the tensioning method, however, make sure you don't over do it. 1/4 turn once in a blue moon is enough. The tensioning bolt on the Swallow is shorter than other brooks saddles, hence the life is shorter. With other one can lase the saddle to adjust the leather tension.

I don't tend to use mudguards so I use a plastic bag under the saddle which protects the leather from getting wet.
Also, a plastic bag to cover the saddle is better that anything that might attract thieves.

The mistake most people make is to use too much proofide (too often) and to tighten the adjusting nut too much.

mikebikemike

I've a 20 year old Brooks which has out lasted maybe 4 bikes. It's very comfortable and is currently used with a saddle bag on my commuter. I leave a plastic bag on it to reduce stealability and is more comfortable in the rain.