Viewing 39 posts - 1 through 39 (of 39 total)
  • Specialized saddles – any good?
  • RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Can’t get comfy on the new drop bar bike.

    It’s got a more relaxed position than my older, lightweight bike, bars just below nose of saddle rather than a bigger drop, bit shorter.

    Happy with the more relaxed position, but saddles that were comfy on the fast bike don’t seem to work:
    B17 Narrow – too narrow. Not enough rearward movement.
    Rolls – too rounded, too soft in the wrong places.
    WTB Deva, borrowed from Mrs S – bit wide and flat.
    Old Velo Titanium thing with cutout – ok, but I can’t find another one and I need it on a different bike.
    Spa Nidd – ok, but I’m not sure I can face breaking another one in.

    Still got a Spoon to try, but quite fancy trying a cheaper Spesh.
    What do you think of yours?

    Found the old Bel-Air comfy on the MTB, could always try one of those if all else fails.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    I’v just gone through this on my road bike: I’ve ended up with the Specialized Toupe, which feels good so far.

    As a result, I have a few for sale: Specialized Romin Evo, Fizik Antares VS, and a Prologo Nago Evo: They are all in good condition, with the latter two only having been used for around 150 miles each.

    If you go Spesh, make sure you get your site bones measured.

    All of the above are 143 or 141 wide. I ended up with a 155 Toupe.

    raisinhat
    Free Member

    I’ve got a toupe on my mtb – the £25 one. It suits me a lot better than my old scoop did – was getting way too much pressure on my perineum before, now I’m much more supported on my sit bones. It is quite flat, and I find that there’s a bit of a sweet spot further back, it’s not quite so comfy if I’m scooted forwards. With the scoop I was having to get out of the saddle on any longish fireroad climb due to discomfort, on the toupe I can just sit down and motor away much more happily. Cut out saddles definitely work much better for me though.

    mikey – if you’ve still for the romin evo for sale I’ll take it off your hands, I could really use one for my new road bike.

    Pawsy_Bear
    Free Member

    Try Fizik and their sizing idea based on your flexibility. Worked for me

    Selled
    Free Member

    Also have specislized toupe. My local bike shop let’s you test them. I started with the smallest and kept increasing until i found the right one. My road bike is one size smaller than my mtb. So I would recommend testing if you can as it depends on body position on the bike.

    Selled
    Free Member

    Forgot to mention, I am very happy with then.

    simondbarnes
    Full Member

    I get on really well with certain Spesh saddles. Have used the Toupe for years on my drop barred bikes but have been trying the newish Power for a few months now and find that works even better for me. Get your sit bones measured at a Specialized dealer so that you can get the correct width saddle and buy one. If you don’t get on with it you can return and try a different shape. If you can’t find one that works for you then I’m sure any reasonable dealer would refund you.
    I should point out that I work in a shop that sells Specialized saddles but there is absolutely no way I would use an uncomfortable saddle so if they didn’t work for me I’d be riding a different brand.

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Cheers folks, sounds like a goer.

    Simon, I’ll try and find a dealer locally that offers the measuring service.
    Is it concept stores only or should someone like Evans be able to do this?

    I’d do it myself but not sure where to measure across the sit bone indentations.

    simondbarnes
    Full Member

    Is it concept stores only or should someone like Evans be able to do this?

    I don’t really go in other bike shops. We’re only tiny though and we offer it.

    flashes
    Free Member

    I had a toupe, great up to 50 miles, then turned into the spawn of Satan, long gone. Now Spoons on the MTBs and various Brooks on the road and Fat bike….

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Ta, I’ll try my lbs’s first.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    I had a toupe, great up to 50 miles, then turned into the spawn of Satan, long gone. Now Spoons on the MTBs and various Brooks on the road and Fat bike….

    I’ve done 54 in one go on mine, so far, and it seemed to get more comfy as I went on.

    mikey – if you’ve still for the romin evo for sale I’ll take it off your hands, I could really use one for my new road bike.

    I’ve still got it. I’m going to wait until my ride this weekend before I confirm I’m sticking with the Toupe, so I’ll let you know after that. I’ll give you first dibs, if you want.

    greentricky
    Free Member

    Got a new bike and thought I would try a spoon, gave me numb nuts without fail what ever I tried, took the toupe off my other bike and it has been perfect, so will be ordering another toupe

    eshershore
    Free Member

    S-WORKS power on my Road bike and MTB.

    Fantastic saddles…the old cliche ‘game changer’ not wrong.

    Setup is not simple, you need an accurate fit and alterations to your existing fit to get the real benefits, be aware it only offers 1 position which may not suit all riders.

    I found it allows me an aggressive forward position on the road bike with no soft tissue contact. Takes some conditioning as ischial tuberosities (sit bones) take all load. Increased cadence from legs being free to spin away with incredible pelvic support.

    On the MTB I’ve found it best for climbing, on the flat it can feel weird unless you have a champion XC setup pulling your body forward.

    MTB and road setups different angle of nose flat relative ground- road -1, MTB +1.

    Thinner shorts with minimal padding feel best. Anything with endurance or gel does not allow proper contact for the sit bones and causes instability.

    I’ve had loads of saddles including Specialized Toupe, romin, romin Evo, the power is well worth checking out if you like pedalling fast!

    fatmax
    Full Member

    Specialized Toupe ti on the road bike, and the Phenom on the cross and mtb…143mm width (after being sized up). Wouldn’t use anything else, love them.

    raisinhat
    Free Member

    I’ve still got it. I’m going to wait until my ride this weekend before I confirm I’m sticking with the Toupe, so I’ll let you know after that. I’ll give you first dibs, if you want.

    That would be excellent if you could.

    Rusty, I know my local Evans had the specialized butt-o-meter, but it is a relatively large one, not sure if all of them have it.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    I suspect any Specialized dealer will have one: My LBS (In Gear in Forest Row) has one.

    Malvern Rider
    Free Member

    …my local Evans had the specialized butt-o-meter, but it is a relatively large one…

    😯

    I’ve always returned to Specialized BG. As a newbie MTber I mashed my perineum when in 20s by touring with a 70l rucksack on a saddle with no cut-out/relief channel (not sure they existed, except for cutout Brooks of which I wasn’t aware). The resultant pain and loss of sensation in nethers forced me to look elsewhere and I tried the early Body Geometry MTB saddle (the ultra-padded one with grey fins at the back!) – it was a revelation and I wore it out.

    Have since learned it’s at least as much about fit. I don’t get on with Brooks B17 standard (143) even though am measured for one. Currently getting by with the older style Spesh Sonoma (175!) but it’s too wide for anything other than my bolt-upright Dutch bike where it works wonders. Tried the new style Sonoma and it was appalling (wide and flat at the front)

    Specialized do seem to have an annoying habit of constant updates/total redesigns of their saddles.

    Most comfortable saddles for me hands down have been the (now discontinued) Specialized Indy XC and (for some reason) the Fizik Gobi Wingflex.

    Now I have a new Monstercross bike with a too-wide Sonoma fitted it’s time to try another, not sure which maybe a Toupe?

    Kuco
    Full Member

    The Henge comp 143mm that came on my Camber surprised me at how comfy it is.

    Malvern Rider
    Free Member

    ^ See I tried a Henge and again the flattish and curiously wide nose of it played havoc with my thighs. Built, as they are, from thunder and granite – ymmv.

    Don’t Spesh dealers loan saddles for trial? I hope so

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    I’ve got a pimp Phenom on my gnarmac bike. It’s bloody lovely. Surprisingly so.

    rumbledethumps
    Free Member

    I’ve got a Romin. Its been on my road bike nearly 3 years and very comfy.

    forgotmename
    Free Member

    Hello, i have got the ladies ariel 143 saddle on 3 bikes, for me it is a good comfy perch, they are all about 12 years old, and one of them has recently developed a squeak. Il be on to specialized warranty dept on monday.

    n0b0dy0ftheg0at
    Free Member

    I found the default saddle on the 2010 Tricross Singlecross to be quite comfy, the Toupe on my Felt F5C (in my personal garage museum) always took a bit of time to adjust to if I had a break from riding the racer.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    I’ve just got home from a 114km/70 mile ride and I think the Toupe is a keeper.

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Thanks for the replies folks.

    Trip up to Blazing Saddles new place off Cragg road.
    Great service from Pete, who had just read this thread before I walked in. 😯
    How odd is that?

    Tried a few for size – Avatar a bit flat, only seemed to support sit bones and nothing else.
    Henge much better, possibly a bit too much padding.
    Phenom pretty much fine, so I bought one.

    30 days to try it, they’ll swap it for something else if it doesn’t work.

    Excellent service from Blazing Saddles – delighted that they’ve survived the floods and seem to be back stronger than ever.

    simondbarnes
    Full Member

    Excellent 🙂

    Sundayjumper
    Full Member

    Another happy Toupe user here. People on rides often comment that it looks uncomfortable, but I spent my formative years (the eighties 😳 ) sitting on a Turbo so I’d assumed I just have a very hard butt.

    Glad I’m not the only one !

    mudfish
    Full Member

    +1 on the Specialized Power.
    Took a ride or two to get used to it (on my mtb) but its been in 4 months now and I love it. Its the only saddle that’s not “attracted my attention” on and off during rides. I’ve tried lots from Spesh and quite liked them but almost always found the sit bones felt a bit tender after a long sitty ride.
    Chromag is nice, well padded but not soft – however, none are anywhere near as good as the Power. I thought I’d miss the ability to move around but I dont at all. No need to fidget one youre comfy it seems.
    Climbing, level, singletrack, descending all good, although a lot of the time the seat is droppped of course.

    mrblobby
    Free Member

    Some of their dealers can be a pain if you can’t find a saddle you’re happy with in their range. Deal is you can swap it for another but no refund. My local spesh shop wouldn’t refund but did give me store credit. I’d be keen to try the Power but lack of refund or test saddle puts me off.

    Found most of their saddles to be too hard for me (most likely not the right shape for my arse rather than a lack of padding.) Went back to an SLR.

    Everyone’s arse is different though and some seem to love them.

    njee20
    Free Member

    I found Toupes much flexier than SLRs, but only the nicer ones – cheaper Toupe Gel etc were horrible.

    Done 300 miles on a Toupe without complaint.

    mikey74
    Free Member

    Raisinhat: Below is the ad for the saddle. There’s also a link to some photos.

    http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/fs-road-saddles-and-mtb-chainset

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Just back from a bit of a test ride.
    Good first impressions.

    Not that long, but easy to move around on.
    Very low friction cover, which is nice.
    The flexible edge thing was pretty noticeable at first – not that mucch lateral support. Didn’t notice it after a while.
    Excellent cut-out, really works.
    Only did 20 miles but very comfy, supportive but not intrusive.
    Quite flexible, like a nice hammocky leather saddle, without the intrusive frame.
    Not too much padding.

    Only thing I’m not that keen on is the square nose.

    Bigger ride later in the week before the final verdict, lots of saddles are fine over 20 miles, but happy so far.

    mudfish
    Full Member

    Rusty
    On which saddle?

    marc
    Free Member

    I’ve about ten rides on a Phenom now; not 100% convinced.

    My old SDG Bel Air was more comfortable, as was my even older Flight before that.

    I’ll give it a bit longer to see if my arse can MTFU

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    It’s a Phenom, mudfish.

    Are you going to try a different Spesh marc or go back to the Bel Air?
    I liked the shape of the old ones, but not the stitching.

    njee20
    Free Member

    I liked the Phenom on the MTB. Prefer the Bontrager Evoke RXL though. Less prone to breaking too.

    marc
    Free Member

    I was going to do the same as you rusty – nip up to Blazing Saddles

    allyharp
    Full Member

    In the last month and a bit I’ve tried a Romin Evo for 30 days before exchanging for a Phenom, which after 5 rides and up to 75 miles I’m not so convinced on either. The Phenom definitely suits me better than the Romin, but after 30 miles or so it just feels far too hard. I’ve ordered a Selle Italia SLR for comparison.

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