Failing Brooks Saddles.

TomB said:

I was a happy user of a Brooks Professional saddle up to now, but now I
have to reassess the situation. After a few years of quite moderate
touring use (and I mean use and not abuse) the leather is in great
shape, but metal components started to break! It is apparently a stress
related failure, in two places, and third in the making, simply due to
normal use (there was no impact).
Local rep (in Canada) gave me a rough ride (and called me his friend a
few times), Brooks from UK doesn't respond to my messages.
Wondering if anybody had this sort of problem? Is it possible, that the
"Brooks legend" is simply just another baloney?

Hope not. I just bought my 3rd Brooks yesterday. A springed saddle
I'm going to run on one of my MTBs.

I've certainly never heard of stress fractures in the seat frame metal.

I think Brooks is now owned by Selle Italia (???). Hope they're not
trying to be more profitable by skimping on build quality. Surely the
design itself is tried and true over quite a long time period.

SMH

"TomB" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I was a happy user of a Brooks Professional saddle up to now, but now I
have to reassess the situation. After a few years of quite moderate
touring use (and I mean use and not abuse) the leather is in great
shape, but metal components started to break! It is apparently a stress
related failure, in two places, and third in the making, simply due to
normal use (there was no impact).
Local rep (in Canada) gave me a rough ride (and called me his friend a
few times), Brooks from UK doesn't respond to my messages.
Wondering if anybody had this sort of problem? Is it possible, that the
"Brooks legend" is simply just another baloney?

Only other metal failures I'd heard of were heavy folks using the titanium
railed Brooks variants.

FWIW, I sent an email to Brooks some time ago - just asking some basic
question - and haven't heard back. I don't think it's just you.

You can get replacement metal parts for your Brooks - basically anything
except the leather.
http://www.wallbike.com/brooks/partsandaccessories.html

Recently bought a B67. Lovin' it.
BTW: u in Ottawa too? (I used to have a Freenet account 😉

Chris

TomB said:

After a few years of quite moderate
touring use (and I mean use and not abuse) the leather is in great
shape, but metal components started to break! It is apparently a stress
related failure, in two places, and third in the making, simply due to
normal use (there was no impact).
Local rep (in Canada) gave me a rough ride (and called me his friend a
few times), Brooks from UK doesn't respond to my messages.
Wondering if anybody had this sort of problem?

Sounds pretty unusual. Before buying a Brooks saddle recently (a
Conquest) , I devoured much of the Google archive.

There were plenty of reports of problems with the leather, usually due
to overenthusiastic use of the tensioner nut, too much Proofide, or
riding immediately after the saddle was soaked in a downpour, but I
cannot recall one single report of mechanical failure of the frame.

Andrew Price said:

Quoted message said:

After a few years of quite moderate touring use (and I mean use and
not abuse) the leather is in great shape, but metal components
started to break! It is apparently a stress related failure, in two
places, and third in the making, simply due to normal use (there
was no impact). Local rep (in Canada) gave me a rough ride (and
called me his friend a few times), Brooks from UK doesn't respond
to my messages. Wondering if anybody had this sort of problem?

Quoted message said:

Sounds pretty unusual. Before buying a Brooks saddle recently (a
Conquest), I devoured much of the Google archive.

Quoted message said:

There were plenty of reports of problems with the leather, usually
due to over-enthusiastic use of the tensioner nut, too much Proofide,
or riding immediately after the saddle was soaked in a downpour, but
I cannot recall one single report of mechanical failure of the
frame.

So what is a rider to do when he is underway on a long ride and
encounters a downpour? The way that was stated, these saddles cannot
be ridden in rain or the day after. I thin that might be true from my
experience with Brooks saddles.

Jobst Brandt

<[email hidden]> wrote

Quoted message said:

So what is a rider to do when he is underway on a long ride and
encounters a downpour? The way that was stated, these saddles cannot
be ridden in rain or the day after. I thin that might be true from my
experience with Brooks saddles.

Jobst Brandt

Put a plastic bag over the saddle and keep riding. What's the big deal?
--
mark

Mark who? said:

Quoted message said:

So what is a rider to do when he is underway on a long ride and
encounters a downpour? The way that was stated, these saddles
cannot be ridden in rain or the day after. I thin that might be
true from my experience with Brooks saddles.

Quoted message said:

Put a plastic bag over the saddle and keep riding. What's the big
deal?

If you're going to sit on plastic, why ride a Brooks saddle? Why
doesn't Brooks make them with a plastic skin in the first place?

Jobst Brandt

As far as customer service is concerned, I can't help ypu, as I've never
had to contact them on a breakage issue because I've never had a Brooks
break. Wear out after a few 10's of thousands of miles, sure. But that's
the leather that finally stretches beyond the capacity of the tightining
screws. I have never had any problem with the "hardwear". Except perhaps
the recurring creak from the springs on my Champion Flyer, but a little
grease usualluy shuts them up for a while...

- -

"May you have the winds at your back,
And a really low gear for the hills!"

Chris Zacho ~ "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"

Chris'Z Corner
http://www.geocities.com/czcorner

Unbelievably, [email hidden] asked:

Quoted message said:

So what is a rider to do when he is
underway on a long ride and encounters
a downpour? The way that was stated,
these saddles cannot be ridden in rain or
the day after. I thin that might be true
from my experience with Brooks saddles.

Quoted message said:

Jobst Brandt

While it is true that riding a wet leather saddle (any brand) is
Not-A-Good-Thing, there is a simple solution: Carry a rolled up plastic
bag with you if you think it might, by some bizarre chance rain. It
weighs nothing, but can easilly "waterproof" any saddle.

- -

"May you have the winds at your back,
And a really low gear for the hills!"

Chris Zacho ~ "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"

Chris'Z Corner
http://www.geocities.com/czcorner

[email hidden] argues:

Quoted message said:

If you're going to sit on plastic, why ride
a Brooks saddle? Why doesn't Brooks
make them with a plastic skin in the first
place?

Quoted message said:

Jobst Brandt

The only advantage of leather that is negated by the plastic bag is
breathability, which is not really an issue any more when you're soaked
anyway, is it? :-3)

- -

"May you have the winds at your back,
And a really low gear for the hills!"

Chris Zacho ~ "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"

Chris'Z Corner
http://www.geocities.com/czcorner

Chris Zacho The Wheelman said:

Unbelievably, [email hidden] asked:

Quoted message said:

So what is a rider to do when he is
underway on a long ride and encounters
a downpour? The way that was stated,
these saddles cannot be ridden in rain or
the day after. I thin that might be true

Quoted message said:

from my experience with Brooks saddles.

Quoted message said:

Jobst Brandt

While it is true that riding a wet leather saddle (any brand) is
Not-A-Good-Thing, there is a simple solution: Carry a rolled up plastic
bag with you if you think it might, by some bizarre chance rain. It
weighs nothing, but can easilly "waterproof" any saddle.

- -

"May you have the winds at your back,
And a really low gear for the hills!"

Chris Zacho ~ "Your Friendly Neighborhood Wheelman"

Chris'Z Corner
http://www.geocities.com/czcorner

You can buy plastic lid covers at your grocery store -- they look like
shower caps. They fold up really small, take only a moment to slip on
when it rains, and do not move as you pedal.

As far as why one might want to ride a leather saddle, I'll tell you a
story about a bump in the road which I and a companion took
simultaneously -- we were riding side by side, talking, and neither saw
it. My Brooks saddle absorbed the bounce. He had to stop for a bit to
recover because of the hard bump in the wrong place from his unyielding
plastic saddle.

--
Bob Wheeler --- http://www.bobwheeler.com/
ECHIP, Inc. ---
Randomness comes in bunches.

<[email hidden]> wrote in message

Quoted message said:

If you're going to sit on plastic, why ride a Brooks saddle? Why
doesn't Brooks make them with a plastic skin in the first place?

Jobst Brandt

There are certainly many reasons to not ride a Brooks, sensitivity to
rain/moisture, weight, image, etc... but all are moot if nothing else fits
your butt the way a Brooks does. The leather cover is what give the
support, where a nylon saddle with padding does not - all a very subjective
thing. There are not many saddles out there with the width plus the
firmness that many find so comfortable.

After 15 years of riding on Selle, Vetta, Specialized, Terry, etc... I
suffered thru 2 years of Prostate inflamations, eventually resorting to a
recumbent, before finally deciding to spend the $75 for a Brooks to find out
if it would be a solution to getting back on a regular bike.

It worked and I now have 5 on my assorted road and mt. bikes. The recumbent
resides on my wind trainer. I accept the rain issues, carrying a rain cover
in the saddle bag(s). I think I've used them 3 times in 4 years. The
saddles survived.

SB

:
: You can buy plastic lid covers at your grocery store -- they look like
: shower caps. They fold up really small, take only a moment to slip on
: when it rains, and do not move as you pedal.

Sadly, you cannot. I have tried 3 different stores before I got the idea to
send an email to Saran Wrap asking where I could purchase their "Quick
Covers". The product has been taken off of the market and is no longer in
production. But, I found out there is a product women use to give permanent
waves called "professional processing caps". They come in a bag, two for
$.49 at the local beauty supply store. They are made much better than shower
caps and come in a clear plastic--probably not as good as the Quick Covers,
but beggars can't be choosers, right?

Pat in TX

Quoted message said:

So what is a rider to do when he is underway on a long ride and
encounters a downpour? The way that was stated, these saddles cannot
be ridden in rain or the day after. I thin that might be true from my
experience with Brooks saddles.

I've ridden my Brooks on tours lasting as long as a month and a
half, with plenty of rain nearly every day for as long as a
couple weeks.

No problems yet, even after close to 10 years.

I think claims I occasionally hear of leather seats (or at least
Brooks leather seats) being destroyed by rain are very much
over-stated.

SMH

Chris Zacho The Wheelman said:

screws. I have never had any problem with the "hardwear". Except perhaps
the recurring creak from the springs on my Champion Flyer, but a little
grease usualluy shuts them up for a while...

Me too!

And only with my Champion Flyer. My standard B17 has never creaked.

A spray of WD-40 on the rail/seatpost connection makes it quiet for
close to a month.

SMH

FWIW, I heated my Brooks in the sun and rubbed Proofide into the top and
bottom until it was absorbed.

The saddle now repels water as if it's been waxed, as tested with a garden
hose.

- Chris

"Chris Zacho "The Wheelman"" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

if you think it might, by some bizarre chance rain.

You do not live in the PNW.

--
Warm Regards,

Claire Petersky
Personal page: http://www.geocities.com/cpetersky/
See the books I've set free at:
http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky

Stephen Harding said:

A spray of WD-40 on the rail/seatpost connection makes it quiet for
close to a month.

Hi Stephen,

Think of the lasting results if you were to use a lubricant
instead of WD-40. <g>

(I am serious about my suggestion BTW)

All the best,
--
Kenneth

If you email... Please remove the "SPAMLESS."

Quoted message said:

Sadly, you cannot. I have tried 3 different stores before I got the idea

to

Quoted message said:

send an email to Saran Wrap asking where I could purchase their "Quick
Covers". The product has been taken off of the market and is no longer in
production. But, I found out there is a product women use to give

permanent

Quoted message said:

waves called "professional processing caps". They come in a bag, two for
$.49 at the local beauty supply store. They are made much better than

shower

Quoted message said:

caps and come in a clear plastic--probably not as good as the Quick

Covers,

Quoted message said:

but beggars can't be choosers, right?

Pat in TX

Selle Italia makes a water proof saddle cover.
http://www.cambriabike.com/shopexd.asp?id=10852

It fits over a Team Pro and a Swift that I have.

Oddly though I couldn't get any Brooks saddle to work for me and found
saddle nirvana in a Selle Italia SLR.

Go figure.

I forgott to tell, but I am ~200lb, nothing out of norm here. Mine is a
typical metal stress failure, typical for poor material and/or poor
design (still plan to have another Brooks, though).
Yes, I am in Ottawa, ON, Canada!
Cheers,
TomB