Jay, In my experience saddle positioning relative to the BB has everything to do with upper body relative comfort. I don't know your exact sizes and years of the Roadini and Fargo, but as you already know, the Fargo has a steeper seat tube angle than the Roadini. Since you have the same saddle, the amount the saddle is back from the center-BB is easy enough to roughly measure using a string and a something heavy like a socket that you can tie the string around. Pinch the end of the string against the front edge tip of the saddle while the bike is vertical(set against a wall), steady the string 'till it stops rocking, and measure the distance from the sting to the center of the crank bolt. It won't be precise, but close enough that it'll give you a visual perspective not otherwise seen as to the saddle fore-aft relative to the center-BB.
You mentioned your saddle is all the way forward on the Roadini(0 offset saddle ?), but no mention of the post itself. I've never used the term "zero offset saddle" so I'm not sure if you're just referring to it being positioned all the way forward on a standard setback seatpost or all the way forward on a zero setback seatpost. If you using a standard setback post the obvious thing to do is go to a zero setback post. Do that before entertaining the idea of another saddle, since the C-17 is working for you on the Fargo. From the C-17 photos though, I don't think you're going to find any saddle that allows much more forward postioning than it. It has relatively short rails that are placed more towards the back of the saddle, much like what WTB does and Avocet did back in the day. A zero setback post is the way to go forward. I have a Ritchey Classic Zero and a Kally Uno SP-368 2-bolt Zero on my two bikes with 72.5d and 72d STA's. What this does is allow me to sit all the way back on the saddles, where I'm supposed to be, while at the same time being closer the BB.(Saddles I have and used : Ritchey Classic, Ergon SM Comp, WTB Volt, Cobb San Remo, Ritchey Skyline). This is notably more efficient for me to pedal. I threw out all the old "ways and means" of how I thought/read a bike was to be fitted as I found none of it really applied to what I was experiencing. Over the last few years I've moved my saddles forward at least 30-40mm on these bikes I have. That's because they both have relatively shallow STA's, whereas "back in the day" all my bikes had 73-74d STA's. With the saddle where it needs to be, any upper body issues I had are nowhere to be found. These are drop bar bikes too, with bars some 35-40mm below the saddle height. With saddle position dial in, the upper body can be in lots of positions comfortably, from high to low. In regards to saddle and rail and forward positioning, of the saddles I have, the Ergon SM and WTB Volt inherently are the most forward positioned, combining rails with the shape of the saddle itself. The WTB being a little more so via the width of the rear extends a little more forward than the Ergon. Viewing the two saddles on top of each other. I'm not set on any one shape-type of saddle either, now that I can get them far enough forward it's only a matter of find a given saddles sweet spot to settle in. On Thursday, August 7, 2025 at 8:53:16 PM UTC-4 Jay wrote: > I'll probably get into too much detail, but maybe some of the minutia will > prove helpful. > > *Two bikes*: Roadini with drop bars, Brooks C17. Haven't adjusted > anything for 6-12 months. Salsa Fargo with swept-back bars (VO Granola) > that I installed around 3-4 months ago, also a Brooks C17. Had drops > previously, were never comfortable on that bike. > > *Pre-existing issues*: right glute/hip and pelvis tilt to right; I have a > spacer under my SPD cleat. Had two bike fits a year ago to get this > dialled in. It alleviated some problems and got comfort from 5/10 to 8/10 > on a good day. These issues pre-date both current bikes. Also some neck > issues, which after a few years of chiro plus good stretching and > strengthening, improved substantially (but still lingers). Been doing off > the bike work for a couple years, after not doing any for like 10-20 years. > > *Fargo* - after getting the Granola bars and grips dialled in, upper body > comfort has been excellent. I ride this bike very differently than the > Roadini though; on trails with lots of ups/downs and turns and I'm not > stationary on the saddle. However, recent trip to Montreal was mainly road > riding, up to 2.5 hours, and I was still quite comfortable (8/10). I can't > say for sure that my issues wouldn't creep in if riding this bike 5x a week > including 2-3 hours rides more consistently. > > *Roadini* - felt pretty good last few months, then all of a sudden I'm > sore at end of rides and up to 2 days after. I did a longer ride than > usual a few weeks ago, felt great. The following week a long ride (less > than longest), had all sorts of pain. Went to chiro 2 days later and he > said my hip was worst it has been. Cause??? Past few rides on it I'm a > 6/10 comfort (down from like 8/10). > > *Other info*: > - brown saddle on the Roadini, on a hot day, can see my sit bone marks; > they're skewed so left is more forward and on top of the saddle, right is > further back and right side of saddle (pelvis twist); has been like this > for a long time, before both bikes but this saddle alleviates the > discomfort, where previous saddles actually highlighted this issue > - on the Fargo my right leg tracks well, with my foot fairly straight at > the bottom of the stroke. BB is 73. I think this saddle is a bit more > forward to the BB (less set back) > - on the Roadini, right toes pointing out a bit, saddle a bit farther back > from BB and the saddle is pushed all the way forward on the rails (0 offset > saddle). I think this is a problem for me, maybe a different saddle with > more rail towards back of the saddle can get me a bit more forward (for me, > just a few mm makes a huge difference). > - saddle position/hip is one thing; upper body comfort another, though > likely somewhat related > > If this issue persists, I may try a different saddle on the Roadini (one I > can push forward a bit along the rails while having my sit bones where they > should be). More extreme is trying some swept-back bars on the Roadini. > Would require an investment but thankfully I have downtime shifters, so > just bars/grips/brake levers and a longer stem (all of which I could > borrow from the Fargo). Thing is, I like drop bars too, they're great for > longer road rides and there is the ego thing with showing up on swept back > bars with 1-2 friends on their 15 pound carbon road bikes (I know, I know, > silly thinking; but it's true for me; don't judge haha). > > Thoughts? Thanks :-) > > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/4062ff7c-9af6-45ef-a3ff-b6141fac1d9en%40googlegroups.com.
