Saddles

FrankGrimes

TinyExplosions wrote: »

What this, RTE doing a thing on Boards, and the cycling part doesn't get a shout in? We have our own kit and everything!!!!

Yeh, I've no idea what it's all about - username Des is our football manager and someone got onto him about it. Will say it to them tomorrow to see if there's still an opportunity to get cycling in there somewhere. We do have our fantastic football kits with boards crest to show off though!

monument

blorg wrote: »

(the one hassle with panniers is carrying them off the bike)

You can easy get ones which look/act like normal bags when off the bike.

FrankGrimes

So I got to test out my Swallow there on Saturday. Was in the saddle for about 3.5 hours and though it felt nice and comfy at the outset, I have to say I struggled after the 2 hour mark, was really quite uncomfortable.

I'm hoping this is just the breaking-in period or that I have the saddle positioned incorrectly.

How long does breaking-in usually take? I proofided the night before using it and will do so again before my next ride.

I definitely think I'll need to position the saddle slightly downwards (currently level), the numbness is too worrying to ignore so I'll try balance it so that it's not causing me to slip forward.

What's generally the best way for deciding how far front or back to put the saddle? I'm getting a lot of pressure right at the point where the saddle begins to widen from the narrow bit to spread out to the seat bit. Hard to tell, but I think that when I consciously sat back further it was a little more comfy so I guess I should bring the saddle forward an inch so that the broader bit is carrying more weight?

Not taking this as anything wrong with the saddle - appreciate it can only be judged with proper setup and breaking-in period and I'm quite optimistic it'll work out well.

Does the Swallow come with the maintenance kit and a saddle cover as standard? Just noticed that the package included a saddle cover in addition to the maintenance kit and the manual doesn't list either as standard items included - serious kudos to Chain Reaction Cycles if they threw them both in for free (though probably an indication that I've been spending too much with them!).

beans

My Ti Swallow came with a little tub of proofide, a spanner and a cover

Hopefully your sit-bits aren't too wide for it - mine are a little wider than ideal, and I feel I might be better served with a B17 over the 3-hour mark. The indentations on the saddle will tell you over time, or you can measure them easliy enough if you lie on your back with your knees in the air

TinyExplosions

My swallow came with nothing, I think it depends on the saddle -the Ti one definately comes with the extras, the chrome one is more hit and miss I suspect...

FrankGrimes

Yeh I got the Ti one....think I forgot there were different versions and I just clicked on one and ordered it! Here's hoping I don't have >€200 of saddle that isn't right for me...guess all I can do is get out on it again at the weekend and see if I get used to it.

Harpz

My Brooks saddle has come undone. The leather has in fact torn. To be fair it came off an old bike, and I took no care of it whatsoever ...Going by the bike I took it from I'd say it was at least twenty years old. It was the most comfortable saddle I ever had. The one it replaced made my legs go numb.

Anyway unashamed call out for people who have replaced their decent saddles with better ones and now have a spare saddle they no longer need...I need one!

FrankGrimes

Did my second long ride on the Swallow today. I noticed I actually had the seatpost in a little off centre causing the saddle to point to the right about an inch or so - that wouldn't have helped when I was suffering on it last week.

I tilted the saddle downwards a bit - the fixing is finicky and it ended up point more downwards than I had planned but by that stage I was in danger of judo chopping the hell out of it so I just left it.

Turned out to be reasonably comfortable - was in the saddle for over 3.5 hours and didn't have major troubles. It's probably totally the wrong setup in theory but, hey, it worked for me today so I'll stick with it for a while. And zero numbness down the front can only be a good for my chances of successfully reproducing

The tilt forward probably forced me into leaning more forward than I'm used to but I felt I benefited from the more agressive position. It was at its most comfortable when going uphill and worst when descending but overall worked quite well. I probably was sitting very close to the back edge but glad to finally get reasonably comfortable on the bike. I imagine there'll be more adjusting to be done, but I'm becoming more convinced that this Brooks is gonna work out for me.....like a good date it's just making me work for it!

blorg

Brooks start off a little slippery but this goes after a bit of use. If you have problems with the saddle level I would suspect that your position might be wrong, the saddle might be too high or in the wrong position horizontally. Bear in mind that the Swallow is probably different dimensions to the saddle it replaced so seatpost and fore/aft might need a bit of changing.

alfalad

Well finally got my hands on the toupe team black and red version (which was very hard to get!!) so I'll let you know how i get on tomorrow and thanks for the help and advice as always much appreciated.:D

Home:Ballyhoura

alfalad wrote: »

Well finally got my hands on the toupe team black and red version (which was very hard to get!!) so I'll let you know how i get on tomorrow and thanks for the help and advice as always much appreciated.:D

Where did you manage to get it? I'm having a bit of trouble with my Selle Italia C2 Gel flow. My club manager recommended one of these and that anyone he has ever heard using them swears by them (especially women!). He says that it is just your sit-bones that support your weight, no more no less which is just what you want. Maybe I would get away with one of the cheaper models to start with (I must get a spin off his full carbon one sometime soon).

Anyway, if you could let me know where you got the Red/Black Toupé Team it would be great (and how much you paid). I've heard excellent reviews about this saddle also and I think I would prefer to risk around €100 before splashing out €400 on just a saddle!

AstraMonti

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

Where did you manage to get it? I'm having a bit of trouble with my Selle Italia C2 Gel flow. My club manager recommended one of these and that anyone he has ever heard using them swears by them (especially women!). He says that it is just your sit-bones that support your weight, no more no less which is just what you want. Maybe I would get away with one of the cheaper models to start with (I must get a spin off his full carbon one sometime soon).

Anyway, if you could let me know where you got the Red/Black Toupé Team it would be great (and how much you paid). I've heard excellent reviews about this saddle also and I think I would prefer to risk around €100 before splashing out €400 on just a saddle!

Check this and this. I think (the guys here can say to you for sure) Edge is a reputable brand and in good price as well!

Home:Ballyhoura

AstraMonti wrote: »

Check this and this. I think (the guys here can say to you for sure) Edge is a reputable brand and in good price as well!

Thanks for that but it's not just a carbon fiber saddle that I'm after! It's all about the design & shape of the Selle SMP that we are interested in. I'm not worried about looks or weight here, just practicality. Also, I've never heard of or seen "Edge" saddles, but maybe other people on here have? Well guys...what do ye think!

zzzzzzzz

Home:Ballyhoura wrote: »

Thanks for that but it's not just a carbon fiber saddle that I'm after! It's all about the design & shape of the Selle SMP that we are interested in. I'm not worried about looks or weight here, just practicality. Also, I've never heard of or seen "Edge" saddles, but maybe other people on here have? Well guys...what do ye think!

Is it not going to be really uncomfortable riding around on a carbon saddle every day?

Or is there a version of it that isn't carbon?

alfalad

Got the saddle in Dales Cycles in Glasgow but they won't post to outside the UK or accept a credit card from outside the UK so had to get a mate from the North to get it for me and have it posted to there. Was the only place i could find the saddle but only really checked on line, didn't ring to many shop outside of Dublin.

Happy hunting as they have stopped making them in that color!

alfalad

Well tried the saddle today and was impressed has to be said, very good design and suits me very well! So happy days and no more numbness!:D

henboy

victorcarrera wrote: »

Following good reports here and impressive cycling magazine reviews I bought this http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/Cycle/7/Charge_Spoon_Cromo_Rail_Saddle/5360029530/

Tested it for 300Km or so and very happy so I bought another for my other bike. Nice price and selection of colours.

Hi victorcarrea, I'm thinking of getting this saddle. Do you stil find it comfortable

Aquos76

Henboy I got this one fitted to my new bike this week, by all accounts its a decent saddle

http://www.fizik.it/catalog.aspx?subid=Arione_Wing_Flex_Black

Chainreaction have it on offer at the moment aswell, the white and red one would really suit your bike.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=36227

Home:Ballyhoura

Aquos76 wrote: »

Chainreaction have it on offer at the moment aswell, the white and red one would really suit your bike.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=36227

I was thinking of getting this saddle for my bike too! I'm having serious trouble with my selle italia c2 gel flow. Colours would suit my red/white trek 1.5. Other options were the Specialized Toupe Team or Selle SMP Composite/Carbon!

henboy

Aquos76 wrote: »

Henboy I got this one fitted to my new bike this week, by all accounts its a decent saddle

http://www.fizik.it/catalog.aspx?subid=Arione_Wing_Flex_Black

Chainreaction have it on offer at the moment aswell, the white and red one would really suit your bike.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=36227

Thanks, it does look nice. But I wonder about the comfort factor, at the moment my sit bone on my left side bothers me. After a few miles its very uncomfortable. I need to sort this out before the next 100k other then that it would be torture.