"Bob in CT" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news
[email protected]...
> On Tue, 25 Jul 2006 09:15:46 -0400, Bob Dole <[email protected]>
wrote:
>
> >
> > Bob in CT wrote:
> >> For the past three years, I've ridden Brooks saddles. Each year,
the
> >> saddle lasts less than one year. Is it because I ride in the rain?
> >> Because I use proofhide only about once per month? Because I'm
heavy?
> >> Or
> >> for some other reason?
> >>
> > Once a year doesn't match either my experience or the saddle's
> > reputation. How many miles?
> >
> > In what way do they wear out? That might help diagnose it.
> >
> > Some thoughts: Rain doesn't help, but these are English saddles and
> > it's rumored to rain a bit in England. You are using Proofhide above
> > and below the saddle? You are putting it on when the saddle has
dried
> > out, not when it is wet?
> >
> > Proofhide once a month certainly seems like enough. Probably a lot
more
> > often than most of us.
> >
> > Without asking "how heavy are you (or me)", I wouldn't think
anything
> > up to at least 250 pounds would be a problem. Others may want to
weigh
> > in on this, so to speak.
> >
> > Sheldon warns about using the screw on the front of the saddle. Have
> > you been using it?
> >
> > How did you break in the saddle?
> >
>
> I don't really break in the saddle, other than putting proofhide on it
> perhaps at the beginning. I don't reduce the tension then increase
the
> tension, which I think is common. I simply ride the saddle for a
while
> and the adjust the tension using the screw/bolt on the front a bit
higher
> if I see sag. I do use proofhide on both the top and the bottom of
the
> saddle. I do ride in the rain, sometimes a lot, sometimes a little,
> depending on the particular year. Last year, I rode around 2,000
miles
> (or so). I would average around 100 miles per week. I weigh over 200
> pounds.
>
> Basically, what happens to the saddles is that they begin stretching
> downward. The leather begins moving away from the rivets, which then
> begin to dig into my behind (not comfortable for 60+ miles in the
> saddle). I also begin to get saddle sores as the leather develops a
hump
> in between my sit bones.
>
> This perplexes me, as these saddles are supposed to last 20+ years. I
> just ordered my fourth saddle in four years.
>
> --
> Bob in CT
I have 4 Brooks Pros. My favorite is well over 30 years old with 20,000
to 30,000 miles on it. It has the small copper rivets and the leather
doesn't come down over the nose. It's by and far the most comfortable
seat I've ever ridden on. I've tightened it up several times and it
still has it's original shape. I've used maybe 1/2 a tin of Proofide on
it over it's lifetime.
The leather is slightly thicker than my newer Brooks Pros, especially
one with big rivets from the 1980s. I bought a new one the other day and
haven't ridden it yet but it has thicker leather like my original one.
Brooks warns against applying anything but Proofide and not to put it on
to a wet saddle.
I weighed 175 Lbs. with about 4% body fat when I raced 30 years ago. I
now weigh about 225 Lbs. with - lets not go there - and it doesn't seem
to matter on the saddles.
There are a lot of people who recommend using saddle soap on bicycle
seats. Saddle soap is designed to clean leather not preserve it. Here's
several OT sites about using saddle soap on leather products:
http://www.properautocare.com/leatmytofsad.html
http://www.autogeek.net/nosasopl.html
Other folks recommend neat's foot oil or baseball glove oil. Most of the
commercial products contain petroleum or are entirely petroleum based.
True neat's foot oil is a natural fat rendered from leg bones of calves.
It wasn't 'til I did a Google search recently that I found true neat's
foot oil for sale.
As a kid I ruined a great baseball glove with "neat's foot oil". In the
seventies I ruined several Ideale leather saddles with "neat's foot
oil". I found that the pre-treated Ideale saddles sagged after very
little riding and lost their shape easily from tightening the adjustment
nut.
After switching to a Brooks Pro which only had occasional Proofide, I've
never had a problem.
Chas.
