My 2015 EVO Street Has Arrived!

[stevenast]

So far my bike has never been left anywhere. I've ridden it then come directly home. I'd be inclined to remove the seatpost with the seat attached if I did need to leave my bike anywhere for more than a few minutes because I'm also using a suspension seatpost and I don't want that stolen either.

Me too! If my bike is outside, I am with it, or somebody I trust is with it if I have to leave for a minute.

 

[PowerMe]

Well I made a decision to try the Thudbuster ST seat post, which has been reported to work well with the Brooks B17S seat. If this combo is comfortable for me then I'll sell my Suntour NCX SP-12 seatpost. I really do love that Suntour seatpost; it has been a fabulous addition to my ebike.

 

[Ravi Kempaiah]

Well I made a decision to try the Thudbuster ST seat post, which has been reported to work well with the Brooks B17S seat. If this combo is comfortable for me then I'll sell my Suntour NCX SP-12 seatpost. I really do love that Suntour seatpost; it has been a fabulous addition to my ebike.

consider the vertical height offset thudbuster is going to bring in!
Have you thought of B67 saddle? you don't need any suspension with that. Super comfy.

 

[PowerMe]

Yes I'm ok with the 98mm minimum extension (3.85") offset of the ST version. As it is now I raise my seat up about 1 or 2 inches over the the NCX SP-12 seat post I'm using, and that has an offset of at least 3 inches.

I did research on various Brooks saddles, but I just don't want the large and wide sprung saddle type.

 

[Mike Smith]

I have the same saddle and love it. I never thought that I would enjoy a leather saddle, but this one is the bomb. It fits great with the BodyFloat seat post, and I intentionally didn't order the Suntour suspension seat post due to reviews about fit and wear on the seatpost mount itself. I would personally keep the Brooks saddle and replace the seatpost and asked Suntour for a refund since it doesn't fit with one of the top saddle producers in the world. Next thing, and not to cause any concern, is that Brooks specifically states not to treat the top side of the pre-aged saddles with Proofide. You have to read deep into the literature to find the one sentence statement about this. I have not yet found an answer online as to why, but I think it has something to do with the conditioning to make it pre-aged saddles softer. Others have done it and I'm sure you will be fine, I just wouldn't do it consistently lest you void the warranty. So my final conclusion, keep the saddle and get a new suspension seatpost, the BF while expensive is great.

 

[PowerMe]

Thanks Mike!

My B17 is not pre-aged, mine is the standard B17 women's version. Therefore it's supposed to be proofided top and bottom.

I see you are enjoying your Bodyfloat. I hope I enjoy the Thudbuster.

As for the Suntour, I purchased it from XXCycle in France, and I've had it for almost 2 months, so I can't return it, my only choices are keep it or sell it.

 

[J.R.]

Thanks Mike!

My B17 is not pre-aged, mine is the standard B17 women's version. Therefore it's supposed to be proofided top and bottom.

I see you are enjoying your Bodyfloat. I hope I enjoy the Thudbuster.

As for the Suntour, I purchased it from XXCycle in France, and I've had it for almost 2 months, so I can't return it, my only choices are keep it or sell it.

Keep it for your backup bike

 

[pxpaulx]

So are you just trying out the thud buster because the Brooks didn't fit? I have the sun tour coming from Germany right now, hope I don't regret it! Had to give it a try for the price over the other more expensive options, paid only $77 shipped for it.

 

[PowerMe]

Yes, if the Brooks saddle had fit then I would stay with the Suntour. Love that Suntour and am sad it doesn't work with my B17S.

 

[PowerMe]

Along with the Thudbuster seat post order, I also ordered a waterproof seat cover since it's a leather saddle. This is a plain black cover, no logos.

 

[PowerMe]

Got the Brooks seat & Thudbuster ST mounted. Won't be able to test out the ride until tomorrow though. Love the look of this seat on the EVO Street. Waterproof seat cover (in plain black) will arrive next week. Armed guards will stand by the bike and look menacing if I stop for even 5 minutes.

 

[Ann M.]

Nice! Very classy setup; I see you riding many miles on this PowerMe!

 

[PowerMe]

First 20 mile ride on the new saddle + Thudbuster. And 2 thumbs up! It was pretty comfy from the get-go. I just had to get used to the slipperiness of the saddle at first, but soon did. It's nice when I'm sliding back into place on mounting the bike, not to have my shorts get caught on the nose of this new and shorter saddle, as they sometimes did on the old gel saddle. I wore chamois bike shorts, so not sure how the saddle would feel without them, but with them it's very nice.

I think the Thudbuster was doing a good job with the bumps. Nothing I could feel in terms of any bouncing or compression. I'm running the medium (#5) elastomer insert.

 

[PowerMe]

Just back from my longest ride ever 26 miles!

My sit bones and legs are feeling it today for sure. Some of the roads were craptastic and riddled with pot holes.

 

[stevenast]

Average speed increasing too, nice!

 

[J.R.]

With the big 46 mile weekend in the new saddle, what do you think of the B17?

How do you feel today?

 

[PowerMe]

My arse is sore. Specifically my sit bones are sore today. Not surprising, I suppose, since I know it can take upwards of 300 mi to break in a new B17 Standard saddle. I'm debating going for a ride after work. I think if I do it will be a shorter one (like 10 miles).

 

[J.R.]

My arse is sore. Specifically my sit bones are sore today. Not surprising, I suppose, since I know it can take upwards of 300 mi to break in a new B17 Standard saddle. I'm debating going for a ride after work. I think if I do it will be a shorter one (like 10 miles).

I ask because I may pull the trigger on one myself this week. Been some time since I rode a Brooks.

Just a thought; what if you left your old saddle setup with the old post? That way you will have a backup for bad weather.

 

[PowerMe]

I've done just that. Old saddle is still attached to the NCX SP-12 post right now, and hanging up in my garden shed, where I store my bike.

Can't say whether you should or should not pull the trigger on a Brooks. This is my first one so I don't have any experience to compare it to. It was initially comfortable but that was before the 2nd (and longer) ride where my bones definitely were complaining. Since it's only my sit bones that are sore I'm taking it as a sign that this is perfectly normal and expected and once broken in it won't feel too hard in those spots.

 

[PowerMe]

My butt is still a bit tender today from yesterday's 21 mi ride on my new Brooks saddle. Never realized I was so tender-arsed. So, I've decided to try out Lon Haldeman's sworn technique to help break in a Brooks saddle much faster and without damage.

He claims to have done this hundreds of times with all his own Brooks saddles and others' Brooks saddles with no ill effects. I'm actually going to do a modified version of this and do a short soak then slather the sit bone areas as he suggests, then let the saddle sit out in the hot sun to help everything soak in. Then reapply the conditioning paste as suggested. I may or may not get a ride in on that saddle today, but it will at least be moisturized and massaged.