Customer Reviews

Brooks Saddles B68 Bicycle Saddle (Men's, Black Steel Rails, Black)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I usually prefer Brooks Flyers to Brooks B17s because of the coil springs and the additional comfort they give. I figured I'd give unsprung saddles one more chance and I purchased the B68. Mounted it today and went for a ten mile ride. Once I dialed in the settings (nose very slightly north of level...), it became clear this one's a keeper. The leather was very hard to the touch like all Brooks saddles but maybe because of the wider frame, it seemed much more supportive and comfortable right out of the box than any B17 I've ever had. Pebbled texture looks beautiful. It even weighs less than the Flyer it replaced. Awesome addition to the Brooks lineup.

The B68 has been the solution to all of my bicycle seat problems. I've gone through countless numbers of seats, trying to alleviate my crotch numbness issues, as well as problems with pimples and ingrown hairs on my rear end. This seat is like magic. All of the numbness issues instantly disappeared. I attribute this to the wide nature of the B68, helping to support my unusually wide sit bones. And thanks to the very slippery nature of the seat, all of the ingrown hairs, caused by the friction of the rubbing of my cycling shorts against the plastic seats, also went away completely.

This is a hard seat in comparison to most seats out there, which you would think would be quite uncomfortable. The very opposite seams to be true. Once the seat breaks in a bit, and your sit bones toughen up a bit, the leather molds itself to your shape, and becomes a part of you.

There is one thing that you do need to know. This is a VERY slippery seat. It takes some getting used to. You feel like your going to slip right off of the bike at first. The key is to tilt the nose of the seat slightly upward. Once this is done, control of your body on the seat becomes quite simple, and your sit bones naturally fall to the spot where they belong.

Overall, I'm blown away by the Brooks B68. It's on an entirely different level than the boxes of cheap plastic seats I've used in the past.

The honey color pictured is much lighter than the redish brown saddle I received but it happens to match my frame color better anyway. It is a bit annoying that they don't just include a tin of Proofide with this pricey saddle since it is required to break it in properly. Order a tin if you buy this saddle or research the alternatives. New leather saddles are very stiff and require treatment to supple them up for the break-in period. I recommend Sheldon Brown's website for lots of good general cycling advice.

The aged leather was easy to start using without oiling, break-in, etc. I also like the look of the aged leather.

The smooth and slightly flexible seat is comfortable for longer rides. It seems most comfortable for a slightly forward riding position; sitting straight upright puts my butt bones on the hard steel rear frame. Very comfortable in combination with a Thudbuster seatpost.