New Bontrager xxx carbon saddle

[Calnago]

@Fijigabe: Here's a couple of closeups of a pic I already posted but with a clearer view of what you are looking for. Keep in mind that I rode this saddle only once, and while it felt solid and comfortable (for awhile), I make no claims as to how it might hold up over time. But I can't help believe that like anything of an ultralightweight nature... to think that it will be as durable as something with more than twice as much of the same materials using the same construction methods is simply wishful thinking. It is 72 grams! Would I sacrifice long term durability and longride comfort to save a hundred grams... No, I wouldn't. But if you were building a show bike where you wanted to showcase how light you could actually build a "rideable" bike, then by all means this would fit the bill. It's sexy, it's light, and you can actually ride it quite comfortably, for a while. It's a very nice saddle for what it is. People will buy it. Maybe they just want a piece of ultralight bling on their bike. Maybe, for some, it really is all day comfort, day after day. Maybe they never ride their bike for more than an hour or two. Their reasons are their own.

[FIJIGabe]

It seems like this design is better than the design of the Affinity Pro's. The part that cracked was the bridge at the front, which extended further than yours does. It seems like the saddle rails here just terminate at the bridge, where the Affinity Pro's bridge extended further into the nose (which probably created enough stress to crack it).

And yeah, I agree with you on the longevity issue, which is one of the reasons why I won't get this saddle.

[TobinHatesYou]

My old one weighed 67g. My warranty replacement weighs 72g. I wonder if they made a decision to reinforce certain joints or the rails...

Here is a close-up of the hairline cracking that developed on my rails. One day I was riding over some poorly repaired section of road and I heard a sing very loud crack. My assumption is the saddle rails were the culprit, but I rode the saddle for weeks in this condition afterward with no issues. Trek still wanted the saddle back anyway.

[spud]

that actually doesn't look like cracking to me, just poor molding/compaction. Still a good reason to warranty it, given the price.

[TobinHatesYou]

that actually doesn't look like cracking to me, just poor molding/compaction. Still a good reason to warranty it, given the price.

"Expansion of planar voids" resulting from poor compaction then.

[Noctiluxx]

I currently ride on the 70 gram Bontrager XXX on my TCR SL, 91 gram Selle Italia SLR Tekno on my Bianchi Oltre XR4, and a Berk Lupina (on order) that will go on my De Rosa SK. All three are hard shell saddles. Between the XXX and SLR Tekno, I would give the comfort edge to the Selle. Both are good for long ride but the Selle is a little bit more comfortable even though its on a more aggressive geometry bike. Really looking forward to the Berk.

[nickf]

I always use that digital level on top of a straight edge that runs across the saddle front to back. It’s the only way to really get a consistent measurement each time when you’ve got a curved saddle. So, while it may be level where I sit, the tilt I use for reference is 1.0 degree nose down, measured on top of the straight edge. Make sense? And of course, anyone else may have something different.

Good tip. I was kinda questioning how I had mine set up. Placed a clip board across the entire saddle. It was pointed way down. Leveled it off then 1 degree down. So much better! No more sliding off the thing. Super comfortable. The sharp edges are not a problem. Bibs have no excessive signed off wear.

[Calnago]

Yes, you're right about the "sharp" edges... except I can confirm, as you can too... that they simply aren't sharp, which was one of my biggest concerns with any saddle that has thin edges around the inner thigh area. Like I noted somewhere, they have put a little "bead" around the edge which makes it very smooth, despite the thinness of the overall shell and I, at least, did not notice the edge one bit at any point, so that was a big plus. The bead is a round cross section and they really did get the edges right on this saddle, at least for me. I tried to put my Vernier calipers on the edge of the saddle to get a gauge for just how thin the shell is, but because of the carbon bead I couldn't do it accurately. Suffice to say it is very thin. By the way, the friend I was installing/testing this for loves it and is keeping it. He's a big guy as well, so we'll see how it holds up. If there's any problems down the road, I will know about it and report back.

Oh, by the way, earlier I said how I couldn't help but think this saddle might not fare very well in a crash, or even if the bike just fell over. Well... last night after a ride, I stopped in at a favorite watering hole for a glass of wine (yes, I drink and ride, or vice versa), and propped the bike up against a tree on the sidewalk that I instincitvely knew was probably not a good idea given all the people around. Why is a propped bicycle like a magnet to the clumsy? Anway... as I was enjoying my libations with a couple friends, we heard the inevitable "crash" and looked over to see the bike laying on the sidewalk, as some chick mouthed "sorry" without even skipping a beat from her conversation on her phone. Anwyay, what can ya do... I just went over, said "no worries", picked up the bike and moved it more out of harms way. Still haven't checked it out completely but I have to think that if this saddle had been mounted, it could very well have been toast at that point. But on the other hand, the girl on the phone might have said... "hey, nice saddle". But she didn't, and my bike fell over. And so goes my life.

[dereksmalls]

Have you ridden a Berk Lupina to compare it to?

[Calnago]

I have not tried the Lupina saddle but isn’t it loosely based off of the Selle Italia SLR’s shape? I tried going on Berk’s website to see a side “profile” shot, you know, like the kind we all demand to see when someone posts a bike pic. I couldn’t find one, or maybe I didn’t look hard enough. I think being able to see that side profile is very important. I know I like a “cradle” in the side profile, and this last go round I actually measured the gap between a straight edge across the entire saddle and the dip. I did that for three saddle shapes that I know work for me... the 2015 Specialized Romin Pro, the Bontrager Serano RXL and this Bontrager XXX being talked about here. For all three saddles I could slide an 8mm hex wrench through the gap, just. That’s a good piece of info to know when shopping for a new saddle. But I can’t seen what that dip looks like on Berk’s website. I think every saddle being sold show the side profile.

[TobinHatesYou]

I made the mistake of trying to lay the bike against a wire fence by the tires and a stiff wind shifted the bike so that the saddle came in contact with metal. It does scuff incredibly easily, though I’m not sure if there is much consequence to that. I briefly wondered if a tiny surface abrasion would do anything to my bib shorts, but I doubt it.

[Delorre]

I have not tried the Lupina saddle but isn’t it loosely based off of the Selle Italia SLR’s shape? I tried going on Berk’s website to see a side “profile” shot, you know, like the kind we all demand to see when someone posts a bike pic. I couldn’t find one, or maybe I didn’t look hard enough. I think being able to see that side profile is very important. I know I like a “cradle” in the side profile, and this last go round I actually measured the gap between a straight edge across the entire saddle and the dip. I did that for three saddle shapes that I know work for me... the 2015 Specialized Romin Pro, the Bontrager Serano RXL and this Bontrager XXX being talked about here. For all three saddles I could slide an 8mm hex wrench through the gap, just. That’s a good piece of info to know when shopping for a new saddle. But I can’t seen what that dip looks like on Berk’s website. I think every saddle being sold show the side profile.

Here you go My leather covered Lupina







If you want shots from other angles, let me know...

[Calnago]

Well that looks pretty nice, I think I could get along with that, thanks for the pics. I’m not in the market for a new saddle but good to see how the Berk stacks up. Could you maybe measure the “dip”, by placing a clipboard or something across the entire length of the saddle then see what the largest size Allan/hex wrench is that you could slide through the largest part of the gap. It’s looking like it would be a flatter saddle than the ones I just referred to with an 8mm dip. Looks like the dip may only be about half that on the Berk.

[Delorre]

Well that looks pretty nice, I think I could get along with that, thanks for the pics. I’m not in the market for a new saddle but good to see how the Berk stacks up. Could you maybe measure the “dip”, by placing a clipboard or something across the entire length of the saddle then see what the largest size Allan/hex wrench is that you could slide through the largest part of the gap. It’s looking like it would be a flatter saddle than the ones I just referred to with an 8mm dip. Looks like the dip may only be about half that on the Berk.

7mm with a little gap, 8mm won't fit

[Calnago]

Thanks, that’s close enough for my ass but I still like a bit of padding.