Sudden Change in the Shape of my Brooks.

[thecaptn]

Hi All,
I've had a Brooks Swift on my road bike which is less than 6 months old, the saddle has done maybe 3,000km. It took quite a while to break in and I would say that it's only just become comfortable lately. I originally treated the saddle with some Brooks goo and some boot goo which didn't seem to change the stiffness of the leather and a few times I've cleaned the outside with Nugget. Today after a wet 40km ride to Jindavick I noticed that the saddle had moulded markedly over this ride, the saddle is still perfectly confortable but I'm perplexed by the sudden stretch of the leather. This is my first Brooks and so I'm not sure of what to expect from it.
Can anyone please advise me of if this is normal?
I should probably add that I'm 100kg in case this would effect the saddle.

[TimW]

My swift got slightly wet once and has changed shape dramatically as well. It is still comfortable now, just the sit bone dents are much more pronounced. A whiff of rain now and the cover goes straight on

[DavidS]

I can understand putting the cover on when parked but they do get a bit wet riding, at least the riding I do where I have to stop at traffic lights. You don't ride with the cover on do you?

DS

[TimW]

I can understand putting the cover on when parked but they do get a bit wet riding, at least the riding I do where I have to stop at traffic lights. You don't ride with the cover on do you?

DS

Yes, it's a brooks cover that came with the saddle, specifically for riding in the wet. Each of my 3 brooks have a cover that packs away neatly under the seat.

[Baldy]

Yep if you have mudguards and the cover the saddle is well protected. I've forgotten to put it on and come back to a wet bike a few times but just brush it off and ride, keeping a bit of proofride on teh top helps.

I also use the cover when leaving the bike out overnight to stop the dew settling on it.

[thecaptn]

I 'spose the best thing to do is just let it dry out and put a little bit of proof hide on it?
There's no need to tighten it?

[TimW]

i would let it dry out don't stretch it, well thats what i did with mine and it is still very comfortable, just looks a little odd:)

[Mulger bill]

I 'spose the best thing to do is just let it dry out and put a little bit of proof hide on it?
There's no need to tighten it?

Never ride on wet leather. I haven't taken the cover off my commuter for almost a week now

Don't touch the tension bolt unless the saddle is perfectly dry and the leather is actually sagging. If your bum is happy on its reshaped perch, say a silent prayer to Sheldon and ride off into the sunset

[thecaptn]

I 'spose the best thing to do is just let it dry out and put a little bit of proof hide on it?
There's no need to tighten it?

Never ride on wet leather. I haven't taken the cover off my commuter for almost a week now

Don't touch the tension bolt unless the saddle is perfectly dry and the leather is actually sagging. If your bum is happy on its reshaped perch, say a silent prayer to Sheldon and ride off into the sunset

Thanks Mulger Bill, no riding til it's dry
Oh well, looks like I'll have to get 'round to finnishing off the mods on the tourer. I do think the saddle will be quite comfy though.
Thanks everyone,
Pete

[DavidS]

Hmm, must find that cover which came with the saddle. I put a bit of Proofide on and I haven't had problems and it rarely gets wet and never soaked.

DS

[rifraf]

Personally I've found the Brooks covers little better than useless.
I've found regularly replaced supermarket shopping bags to work fine.
If its wet and I "have" to ride for some reason, then the bag stays on.
I take it off at the end of the ride when the bikes under cover indoors.
For dodgy days I keep one stuffed up inside the rails "just in case".
Brooks and wet is not a good combo IMHO

[thecaptn]

Personally I've found the Brooks covers little better than useless.
I've found regularly replaced supermarket shopping bags to work fine.
If its wet and I "have" to ride for some reason, then the bag stays on.
I take it off at the end of the ride when the bikes under cover indoors.
For dodgy days I keep one stuffed up inside the rails "just in case".
Brooks and wet is not a good combo IMHO

I use plastic shopping bags when on tour but never left one on when riding. I'll give it a go though.

[thecaptn]

I've ridden on the saddle twice since it dried and found it to be quite uncomfortable so tonight I tightened the nut, drilled some holes in the sides and pulled them in with a shoe lace. I think it looks right and feels better.

[rifraf]

Be very cautious with how much tension you add to that saddle via the nose bolt.
I've read of plenty of horror stories so I suggest a little rather than a lot.
Did you read of my Swift issues?
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=58231&hilit=swift&start=25" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Perhaps you might add a few pics to your thread so everyone is on the same page as to the levels of saddle distortion were talking about.
Good luck.

[thecaptn]

Thanks for the links Rifraf, very usefull info in my case. I wish I'd taken some photo's of the saddle before I worked on it because the changes were quite pronounced. I'm sure that I must have done something incorectly during the braking in period as I've never seen a saddle stretch so much so quickly. I'm very happy with the way it's performing now and fingers crossed it remains as confortable as it has been for the last few hundred km's.

As for posting photo's, since I went from a PC to an Ipad it's been too difficult to do. If I find time take some and I'll borow someones computer to post them.

Pete

[DavidS]

Mine seemed to go through a stage of stretching and I had to tighten the tension bolt quite a bit but has calmed down again. No idea why but you do need to be careful with not over tensioning the saddle.

DS