Jay, I also didn't like the roughness of the C17 when I first got one. Then one day I was shellacking my bar tape and I looked at the saddle and thought, "Hmm..." I decided to apply several coats of shellac and see what would happen. I consider it a great success; it made the saddle both much more comfortable and (in my opinion) nicer-looking. Here are photos from when I first did that back in 2020: https://photos.app.goo.gl/MkzYAG8S7W6yS7419
I actually just did another C17 with this treatment, a black one this time. It looked gray and faded before shellac, and was back to black afterwards. Both saddles were treated with pre-mixed Zinsser Bullseye shellac. I would definitely recommend trying out this technique if you like the Cambium but want a smoother texture. Josiah Anderson Tacoma, WA Le dim. 8 juin 2025 à 5:51 PM, Jay <[email protected]> a écrit : > A thread dedicated to complaining about saddles! Plus other related > topics such as cycling shorts, chamois cream, improper bike fit, and > weather. Enjoy :-) > > I'll start. And I'm going to go with, weather. Hot. Humid. > Leave-you-dripping-in-sweat. Weather. > > I've had Brooks C17 on my two bikes for the last 15 months. After > initially installing the saddle and sitting upon it as I went 20 feet from > my driveway I was like "this fits me well, it's supportive, yet I can still > sink into it a bit, feels good when I'm pedalling". And it really has been > great, with only a few hiccups since then. One thing I don't like about > it, the surface is rough. The brown is rougher than the black, to me at > least. The black is on my Salsa Fargo. I don't think I have one complaint > about that saddle on that bike, but then I only ride that bike up to 1.5hrs > at a time, on trails, where I'm off the saddle a lot (similar to mtb). I > have the brown on my Roadini and it looks good. I even have a back-up for > when it wears out. Enough about that, on to my complaint! > > The last time I rode in heat, like where I'm wearing s/s shirt, shorts, > helmet and gloves and no extra layers, was October 2024. I put the year > after October as it was so long ago it's now strange writing or saying > October, without qualifying - 2024. Riding in cool weather so often means > I'm really acclimated to it, plus I'm generally not a fan of doing anything > outdoors when it's hot. > > Yesterday I had the day to myself as the family was working. I usually > ride within an hour of waking up and I wake up early, but yesterday I > waited for my daughter to leave for work so we can have breakfast > together. This was going to be a long ride, adventurous with a new route, > connecting two rail trails, lots of gravel paths and roads, and very little > traffic. Stopping a lot to smell the flowers. And it would have been > great, if not for some discomfort. Oh, and I had legs, and felt great. > > I headed out around 9:30 and it was actually quite pleasant, and wasn't > really getting very hot, but to me, hot enough. I have three brands of bib > shorts. I opted for the one yesterday that fits me the best (I mean it > really stays in place, doesn't ride up or anything, including the chamois, > with the outer layer apparently taking any friction as it moves and the bib > doesn't). Sounds good, good marketing, but I learned that when you're hot, > have been pedalling for over 3 hours on gravel roads, trails; lots of > pedalling in the saddle, having to remember to stand up every so often; > that a bib glued to your butt so-to-speak, getting all hot and sweaty > (sorry, TMI), isn't all that good. About 2.5hr into the ride I can feel > the friction on the sit bones. Stopped a lot, but could never maneuver > myself or the chamois, like on long descents, I couldn't get any air in > there. Long story short, got home and had a couple of saddle sores. > Nothing awful, but it did have me questioning the saddle, shorts, and > riding in the heat. I mean these shorts are great under winter rights when > the temp is -10C, but now I've learned, not so good for hot days. This > morning I went for a short trail ride, different shorts, and that riding > style on that bike meant lots of out-of-the-saddle time, plus it was cool. > Was a fantastic ride, albeit short. > > What have *you* got!? > > -- > 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/89b58923-30ee-4403-aed5-88a2f36435e5n%40googlegroups.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/89b58923-30ee-4403-aed5-88a2f36435e5n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- 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/CADqZWjOLXaTut0Hygby04UiQQgBQ6hCKpMLVCtK9-zVAbWUVqA%40mail.gmail.com.
