Brooks Swift or B17 Narrow Imperial saddle ?

DCI Gene Hunt

Man I think both of those saddles look just to die for. Ive had enough saddles over the 10 yrs ive been cycling and plenty of ar$eache to last a lifetime. I recently got the lend of a leather saddle , a san marco rolls titanium from a guy in the club , and I just could not believe the difference in comfort :shock: Ive only ever had what you would call modern type saddles and comparing them to the san marco was truly comparing apples to oranges. I know the brooks weigh more, but an unhappy bum whilst on the bike is pure misery , im not a racer anyway and I just love piling on the miles.Those here who buy into the brooks traditionalism and ethos, what have your experiences been with their saddles ? Before making my mind up completely, the Swift just catches my eye.

styxd

Get a San Marco Rolls Titanium.

DCI Gene Hunt

styxd wrote:

Get a San Marco Rolls Titanium.

I hear you, but those brooks saddles just look amazing and have quite a reputation.

mercia_man

The Rolls is not a leather saddle in the true sense of the word. It has a plastic base, foam padding and a leather cover. It's a classic design but no different in concept to most modern saddles. The main difference is that it's a heavier construction with deeper padding than say an SLR. I think the reason you found the Rolls comfortable was its shape and its thicker padding. Many modern lightweight saddles have a leather cover. The leather or plastic cover on saddles with a plastic or carbon base is just there to protect the padding and doesn't have a structural purpose.

What most people would consider a leather saddle is what you get from Brooks, Spa and Gilles Berthoud. These have a metal frame to which is suspended a solid leather seat which gradually molds itself to the shape of your sit bones and becomes more hammock-like as it stretches. The leather forms part of the saddle structure. You have to treat it with something like Brooks saddle cream and be careful not to get it soaking wet. I use a Brooks B17 titanium (standard width) on my touring bike and it's been great for trips of three weeks, riding five or six hours every day. In fact, even better than the Rolls titanium I used previously. If I bought again, I would get something slightly narrower such as the Brooks Team Pro, which looks great with the large copper rivets, or one of the Gilles Berthoud models, which have a look of real quality.

It's useful to have saddlebag loops if you want to use a saddlebag. Bear in mind that narrow leather saddles like the B17 narrow and Swift may be a bit harder on your backside than a slightly wider one.

Some people just can't get on with a leather saddle. Others love them. Some say it takes hundreds of miles for them to be comfortable. Others find them great straight away (like me). Of course, you could always get a Rolls titanium as you liked it very much. And it won't need any breaking in. Brooks saddles used to be really cheap compared to ones like the Rolls. They have now becomes fashionable thanks to fixies and hipsters and their price has shot up. Worth looking at Spa Cycles website to see their own leather saddles and Gilles Berthoud ones.

cycleclinic

What shape saddle do you like the most. For me it is flat Selle Italia saddles so those brooks would more than likely leave me with a sore bum. Goos to know the Giles Berthoud saddle are sold by Spa was wondering who did them. I need something french for my vitus if one then is flat.

DCI Gene Hunt

Mercia Man


With the Rolls being 143mm wide and the Swift being 151mm wide, would this introduce any inner thigh chafing due to the extra width ? All the brooks saddle seem to kind of start at the 150mm mark in terms of width.

styxd

It doesnt really matter what a saddle looks like when you're sitting on the bike. What matters most is comfort. If you found the Rolls comfortable, then get that.

Another problem with the Brooks saddles (aside from not being able to get them wet) is you might struggle to get a decent amount of setback with one, due to the way the rails are.

mercia_man

To answer DCI Gene Hunt. It's best to go slightly wider with a proper leather saddle as the metal frame at the edge will stop the leather conforming to your sit bones. They need to be inboard of the edge. Otherwise your sit bones will be on or close to the solid edge and you won't get the comfort benefit of the saddle moulding to you. So I reckon a width of 150-160 would be the equivalent of the Rolls. Unless you have really big thighs I don't think chafing will be a problem as the saddle noses are pretty narrow. I've just had a look at Spa Cycles website and I like the appearance of the Gilles Berthoud 157 width saddle with steel or titanium rails. That could also be worth considering for you.

keef66

After unsuccessfully experimenting with several light / modern saddles I went for a Brooks B17 Special in honey. With the copper plated rails and huge hand beaten rivets it is a thing of extreme beauty. OK, it weighs more than the front wheel, but once I'm sitting on it I'm in all-day comfort.

YMMV of course.

mercia_man

As styxd says, the shape and length of the rails can be an issue on some Brooks saddles. I couldn't get a Brooks Colt to sit at the right angle for me on my tourer with a classic alloy Campag seatpost, but the B17 rails give me plenty of adjustment forwards and back and for angle on the same seatpost.

Brooks saddles are not ruined if ridden in the wet. I've ridden many miles day after day in pouring rain with no problems for the saddle. But it's best to cover the saddle if your bike is standing outside in the rain for any length of time to stop the leather getting saturated and stretching when you next ride it.

Whether a saddle is flat or scooped in shape doesn't have so much relevance for a leather saddle as within a few hundred miles it will have subtly changed its profile to match your backside. For me, this means that the centre line of the saddle remains straight and flat but there are two indentations at the back which conform with my sitbones. Long distance audax riders such as marcusjb of this forum are the ones who do the biggest mileages and traditional leather saddles are very popular with them. They know what works.

ptlk66

I have a Brooks Swift with Ti Rails sitting in a drawer. If it is of use feel free to contact me.

Paul

DCI Gene Hunt

ptlk66 wrote:

I have a Brooks Swift with Ti Rails sitting in a drawer. If it is of use feel free to contact me.

Paul

paul ive just pm`ed you my email address , can you send pix from all the angles and what your asking price is please as I may be interested.

DCI Gene Hunt

keef66 wrote:

After unsuccessfully experimenting with several light / modern saddles I went for a Brooks B17 Special in honey. With the copper plated rails and huge hand beaten rivets it is a thing of extreme beauty. OK, it weighs more than the front wheel, but once I'm sitting on it I'm in all-day comfort.

YMMV of course.

Heh, not your mileage may vary , more like your mileage may agree completely !! Your situation sounds positively lush

vs4b

Have a look at the c17 too. Great saddle

ugo.santalucia

I've got one of those Swift in exactly the same colour that I am planning to sell. Near new... drop me a line if you are interested... it was in the classifieds some time ago

mikenetic

Just as a counter point, I've owned both a Swift and a B17 Narrow. Neither were ever particularly comfortable, although the Swift was the better of the two.

Saddles are obviously an incredibly personal thing, but my opinion is Brooks are far from the magic bullet some (not casting aspersions here) people seem to portray them as.

I travelled in the opposite direction to you. I use Fizik Ariones now, way more comfy than the Brooks ever were!

kingrollo

A reason a brooks might succeed where a high tech saddle fails - is that it moulds to your shape. This can help if you don't weight bear evenly for some reason - could be that your pelvis doesn't align or one of your hips sags.

I brought an imperial towards the end of last year - I am surprised how comfortable it is - its not really that hard - and you can feel it 'give' when you hit a bump etc. The downside is it is a little wide .....but its early days - the weather drew in before I could put many miles in.....oh yeah and at £65 it isn't expensive for a sadlle anymore

What I really need is a leather spesh romin !

FatTed

"I could put many males in"
Really?
I have a Swift Ti weighs 200g more than my previous saddle