Have not used the Berthoud but my fears about it are two-fold. Would the frame handle my weight (220 to 230)? At least metal is known to be able to handle that girth and not fail.
Also, how would it handle a Minnesota winter? Althought am not sure it would be the saddle that would end up on my winter bike. (Which is currently a choice between a Terry and a VO.) Am starting to feel my B-17 saddles are slowly dying. Although having to put up with my heft for the past few years would probably make any material fail. Eric Platt St. Paul, MN On Jan 8, 5:46 pm, JoelMatthews <joelmatth...@mac.com> wrote: > > My question is, put delicately, how many, if any. like the Berthoud because > > it is French, and, how many dislike it because it is French. Anyone? > > > JimP > > Jim: > > Berthoud is definitely a company very much in the French tradition - > small, family run, not necessarily concerned about being the biggest > or fastest to market. at least in my opinion anyway, they make nice > stuff. > > The Berthoud saddle does not look all that much like Ideale the > classic French saddle I and some other posters mention. It is a > unique design whether that means it is uniquely French, I could not > say. > > On Jan 7, 12:24 pm, jim phillips <thefamil...@hotmail.com> wrote: > > > > > My question is, put delicately, how many, if any. like the Berthoud because > > it is French, and, how many dislike it because it is French. Anyone? > > > JimP > > > > Date: Fri, 7 Jan 2011 10:10:11 -0800 > > > Subject: [RBW] Re: Saddle comparison - Brooks B17 vs. Berthoud Touring > > > From: leec...@gmail.com > > > To: rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com > > > > Joel and Clayton: > > > > I noticed that the rails appear a bit narrower on the Berthoud Aspin > > > than on a B-17. Did you have to force the rails out a little to get it > > > to fit your seatpost clamp? What seatposts have you tried with the > > > Apsin? > > > > Thanks, > > > Lee > > > San Francisco, CA > > > > On Jan 7, 9:42 am, Clayton Scott <clayton...@gmail.com> wrote: > > > > I have been using b.17s for while, but got frustrated when I burnt > > > > through > > > > my last one in 7 months and went ahead and purchased a Berthoud touring > > > > saddle. > > > > I have only been using it for 2 months now but so far so good. It is a > > > > little narrower than a b.17 but not in a bad way. Still has enough > > > > room accommodate my sitbones. The shape seems perfect for me. > > > > The craftsmanship is stunning compared to Brooks. > > > > Compared to the now incredibly saggy brooks it does feel a lot firmer. > > > > I did > > > > ride a 200k permanent within a few weeks of owning it and toward the > > > > end I > > > > did have to ride out of the saddle occasionally to give my slightly > > > > protesting sitbones some relief. It was not agonizing and only started > > > > setting in during the last few miles but was noticeable and distracting > > > > nevertheless. (Still significantly better than having the metal frame > > > > of the > > > > b.17 dig into me though.). So far the Berthoud is perfect for up to a > > > > 100 > > > > miles and I expect it to get even more comfortable as the saddle and I > > > > get > > > > more used to eachother. > > > > I purchased mine from Rene Herse Bicycles who lets you try the saddle > > > > for 60 > > > > days and return it if you don't like it. I suggest you give it try. > > > > > Best, > > > > Clayton Scott > > > > SF, CA > > > > > On Fri, Jan 7, 2011 at 9:29 AM, JoelMatthews <joelmatth...@mac.com> > > > > wrote: > > > > > > I had an Ideale when it was new and it wasn't as comfortable and > > > > > > didn't > > > > > > work as well as a B.17. It was one of those with the integral wide > > > > > > aluminum rails and the built-in micro-adjusting clamp. > > > > > > My favorite Ideales are the 4 and 6 (the lightly sprung city > > > > > saddles). I think the aluminum frame Ideale used made for a more > > > > > comfortable spring base than the heavier Brooks. > > > > > > Unfortunately, the leather is somewhat thin on them and they tend to > > > > > need frequent tightening. Wonder if Berthoud will ever try and copy > > > > > that model? > > > > > > On Jan 7, 10:29 am, Steve Palincsar <palin...@his.com> wrote: > > > > > > On Fri, 2011-01-07 at 08:12 -0800, JoelMatthews wrote: > > > > > > > Unless you have an Ideale that has been well maintained - or > > > > > > > stored in > > > > > > > optimal conditions - it is not going to be as comfortable, work as > > > > > > > well, or last as long as a modern Brooks or Berthoud. > > > > > > > I had an Ideale when it was new and it wasn't as comfortable and > > > > > > didn't > > > > > > work as well as a B.17. It was one of those with the integral wide > > > > > > aluminum rails and the built-in micro-adjusting clamp. > > > > > > -- > > > > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google > > > > > Groups > > > > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > > > > To post to this group, send email to > > > > > rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > > > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > > > > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com<rbw-owners-bunch%2Bunsubscrib > > > > > e...@googlegroups.com> > > > > > . > > > > > For more options, visit this group at > > > > >http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > > > -- > > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > > > For more options, visit this group > > > athttp://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.- Hide quoted > > > text - > > - Show quoted text - -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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