Saddles I have used.

	Saddle	measured weight (claimed)	price paid (msrp)
	Selle Italia SLR T1	235g (205)	$120	Great on the sit bones, bad on the t'aint. Just too much pressure. I returned this one after 30 miles.
	Fi'zi:k Aliante, carbon rails.	200g (199)	$220 (274)	Great on the sit bones, bad on the pineal. I wanted to like this one because EVERYBODY told me it was the best. I even got the top of the line. No luck. For over 5x more money than the Furano, it felt the same to me. I returned this one after 30 miles.
	Serfas Furano	210g (200)	$40 (120)	OK on the sit bones, not so OK on the t'aint. When I first sit on it, I'm amazed at how comfortable it is. Then 20 minutes into the ride, I'm dancing all around trying to relieve the t'ain't pressure. I still own this saddle as it is light, was cheap, and I can almost enjoy it for <1 hour rides.
	Performance Forte Pro SLX	205g (197)	$40 (90)	For the price, this is a fantastic saddle! But it fall short in both important areas for me. It is about like the Specialized Toupe in survivability. I could ride it if I had to. I returned this one after 100 miles.
	WTB Speed V Ti	210g (195)	$80 (120)	Great saddle for the price. I use this on my MTB with great success. I don't like it nearly as much on the road bike, however.T'ain't pressure is the problem again. I still own it and use it when I don't have anything better. Shorter than all the others, perfect amount of padding.
	Selle Italia SLR Gelflow	225g (215)	$120 (175)	This is basically a name-brand, more expensive Forte Pro SLX. Felt the same to me. Weighs more and costs more. Returned after 50 miles.
	Selle Italia SLR XP	190g (185)	came with bike	Came with my Scott CR1 Pro. Worked OK for what it was. Very light saddle, and I liked the covering. I just couldn't get comfortable on it. Sold it after about 200 miles.
	Specialized Body Geometry Toupe 135mm	190g	$120	The best at t'aint relief - very hard on the sit bones. And this was the "gel" version. Very light, and I could probably survive riding it if I had to. But why suffer?
	Selle An-Atomica Titanico	460 (no claim)	$156	This is the one I'm keeping. Fantastic feel all the way around. Except for weight and sharp leather edges this one can't be beat. If this were offered with titanium frame and rails, the maker would take over the world. I'm willing to go an extra $100 to take half the weight off. This thing is right there at one pound. There is simply no better saddle available right now, as far as I'm aware. Some subtle improvements would make it damn-near impossible to beat. Great review

Written to Tom in June, 2007 regarding the Titanico -

1. I still want it lighter (would cost more, yet would be more desirable to the performance crowd). Tough to spend many thousands of dollars on a 15 pound bike, and then add another full pound to it with the saddle.

2. The leather edges need to be more rounded. I catch my shorts on them, and some of the seams are fraying due to rubbing on the sharp edges. I've run a knife around mine, and followed up with sandpaper and leather oil. It helps. This ties in with the next point.

3. Should be narrower where the thigh contacts the sides. The ONLY soreness I get from these saddles is on the inside of my thigh where I rub along that lower edge of the leather. If I reach under and pinch the two sides together by half an inch, the fit is perfect. The way it is, I rub along that relatively sharp edge of leather with my thighs during every pedal stroke. If those sides can be formed more down (more like a Brooks saddle) this situation would be much improved! Of all my suggestions for improvement, this is the most important.

4. Squeak! I read on your site that you've not experienced the squeak, and have only heard it reported from others. Well, I have three saddles, and EVERY one of them began to squeak after 20-50 miles. I sound like 30-year-old ranch pickup on rusty springs. A puff of graphite powder solved the problem.. Might have something to do with humidity???

5. Nose rotation. Would like to see some registration of the stretch bolt so that the nose can't rotate around it. When I stand on the pedals to stretch my legs, I often lean against the nose, and tend to roll the nose over one way or the other. And when I sit back down, have to reach down and rotate the nose flat again. Some folks wonder what I'm doing. ;)

6. Better web site so it is easier to figure out what is offered, and what it all means. You explained it very well when I called, and that should be more obvious on the site so you don't have to be bothered with phone calls. The Titanico/LD slot should be featured as THE premier saddle. Everything else is secondary/specialty, IMO. The under-saddle video of the saddle in action is what really sold me. Make that easy to find next to the Titanico sales area, and you're golden.

End.

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