Brooks Saddle too soft?

davehor

Hi,
Well I took the leap and bought a Brooks saddle about two years ago, as it was on a pretty steep sale at the time. Well just now I've gotten around to building a bike for it.
Anyway I sat on the saddle and it felt good for a few minutes, then I started getting pretty intense perineal? pain. Never had that on any other saddle, NEVER!
My question: When I push down on the saddle with the palm of my hand I can very easily (no real weight) get the saddle to sag quite far. Is this how new Brooks saddles are? It's been around in the apartment for two years and who knows how long at the store. Could it be that it needs tensioning? It seems to sag far too easily. I'm thinking that's where the pain is coming from. By the way I've tried several positions and angles, all with essentially the same result.
I just can't believe that a saddle should be that soft/easily hang through.

Thanks in advance,
David

gethinceri

Which model is it?

davehor

B17 Standard

orraloon

I have a B17 on my tourer. No sag. Tighten it up. You will get some minor discomfort as it moulds to your shape over the initial period of riding.

davehor

I guess it stretched over the years in storage, wasn't properly tensioned or the nut cam loose.
How can you tell what the the correct tension is?

ugo.santalucia

I'd be weary of tightening it... it's a slippery slope where you increase the tension by making the leather thinner... as a result it will stretch and sag even more.
Brooks are great, but they don't like being soaked... did you ever ride in very wet conditions?

davehor

It's brand new

ugo.santalucia

davehor said:

It's brand new

not for you then, maybe you are a bit too heavy for it. Return it if you can, sell it if you can't.. they sell well

webboo

It’s not new it’s two years old and possibly older than that.

oxoman

It's possible that the tension has just relaxed a bit, try training a bit and go from there. Nothing to lose either way as you can't return it. Brooks customer service can be very helpful as well.

ugo.santalucia

I've used many Brooks saddles and I don't think they suit heavy riders. The thing is, when saddles were made of leather, people used to weigh 10 stone wet... seeing riders of 15 or even 20 stone on a bicycle (or off a bicycle for what that matters) is a recent thing and one Brooks has not addressed yet, with some kind of fat boy version of their standard saddles. If an unused Brooks is too soft, try something like a Charge Spoon or similar. That said, the B17 has a bit of give, it's not a racing saddle, it's a touring one

the_cyclist_of_catan

Mine was sagging a bit before I punched a couple of holes in each side and laced it.

ugo.santalucia

the_cyclist_of_catan said:

Mine was sagging a bit before I punched a couple of holes in each side and laced it.

I did the same