rallbritain said:
I just got my first bike this week. I put it together, got it fitted based on most of the specs i found on the internet, and got the derailers adjusted. I took it around the block and almost immeaditly i noticed the seat was not comfortable at all. I played with fore/aft positioning and angle to to end. Went to a bike shop and bought a new saddle, it felt almost exactly the same. It seemed like the pressure as being place on the inside of me sit bones instead of the bottom, like it wasn't wide enough. the only thing wider that any local bike shop had was a comfort saddle, something more like you would see on a mountain or cruiser bike. I sit good on this but i think it encumbers pedaling and put alot of pressure on the pernium when my leg is extendend downwards.
I have seen some odd looking wide road saddles on the internet but I hate buying something being complete unsure if it will help or not.
the one i ride now is about 150 mm, do any other roade bikers need bigger saddles that this?
I am a big guy, 6'3" about 240lbs.
any suggestions.
A
BROOKS B17 "standard" width is about 150mm wide ... as low as $60+
plus shipping on eBay for a new saddle.
Some people will tell you a leather saddle is more comfortable because it molds to your butt, but the truth of the matter is that they CAN BE more comfortable than other saddles because they are wider ...
The
B17 "narrow" is about 140mm wide.
The
Professional is about 145mm wide.
I have found that a wider saddle is as comfortable as a "regular" saddle ... my regular "plastic" saddle is a San Marco Concor (vintage "standard" & Lite versions), BTW.
The drawback is that a traditional leather saddle is PORKY ... figure ~550grams for a B17 ... but, what price comfort AND style (the
cognoscenti will tell you a good leather saddle is ALWAYS fashionable)?
SOME PEOPLE HATE LEATHER SADDLES. I think that is because they don't set them up properly ...
Initially, the saddle should be set up with the rails PARALLEL to the ground ... this will leave the rear of the saddle a bit higher than the nose (or, it should in 99% of the instances). You want to sit on the BACK of the saddle ... with your sit bones ON (i.e., directly above) the yoke ... you will see that a lot of people sit just in front of the yoke ... to each his own. Regardless, look at the attachment and try to sit on the part in
green rather than the part in
red (that is, you DON'T want to sit on the portion that is below the
red line ... on ANY saddle, IMO).
Another alternative is a so-called WOMANS saddle ... they are wider. I recommend he
Fizik saddles in this group because, AFAIK, their women's saddles are the
same as the "regular" variants, but wider. Other brands of "woman's" saddles may be more to your liking ... I
tested several woman's saddles before putting them on my wife's bike.
The
Selle Italia FLITE series seems wide when compared to the Concor saddles that I have ... so, that may be a saddle for you to consider.
FWIW. After OVER 20 years of using the Concor saddles, I have recently been using leather saddles ... obviously, I'm not a weight weenie.