chinese carbon saddles

[tkehler]

Hi

New owner of Chiner bike.

Would like to know if there are Chinese "copies" of reasonably well known carbon ultra lightweight saddles, say those by Smud, Berk, or Ax?

I am just curious. I ride a Cobb saddle, but would like to try something like a Smud, Ax or Berk without the price tag. Thanks

[carbonazza]

I switched to a $35 full carbon saddle that looks like an SMP from aliexpress.

Despite its austere look and after a few months of riding, I'm very happy.
Much more comfortable( it has more flex ) than my previous heavier padded saddle.

I see some mercy in people's eyes when they ask me how it feels
But at that price, the test is quite cheap.

[tkehler]

Glad you like it. I have owned 2-3 SMP saddles, but they don't work well for me. I find them sharp in the wrong places, except when I'm fairly aero.

Thanks

[JohnnyNT]

I'm surprised you know Smud will have my bike complete on Thursday with the cheap carbon saddle so more input will be available

[tkehler]

Cool, congrats Johnny! Yeah, please put up some posts about the bike and the saddle ;-)

[blee_2009]

Subbed. There's some saddles on Ebay for ~$20 shipped. At that price, I figure it's worth a shot before I spend $100+ at the LBS for something else that may or may not work. My concern is that I also ride my road bike in regular clothes.

[blee_2009]

I ordered one on ebay after my last post. So far I like it on my road bike, though I haven't spent much time on it. It didn't fit my bontrager seat post due to the oval rails. I'm temporarily using a set back post, which puts me too far back. I can say that I don't like it on my rigid mountain bike though. It has a similar shape as the specialized romin, which I was looking at before.

[margo1000]

I do like Chinese carbon saddle!

[Patrick C.]

Any reviews on the SD1 or SD2 saddles from Peter or other vendors?  I'd like to try one, but would like feedback and actual measurements if anyone has them.

[JohnnyNT]

I have one of the saddles from Peter, not wide enough for me unfortunately (125mm) but the finish is nice.

[Patrick C.]

Thanks Johnny- my current saddle is also 125 mm wide, so I may try it.

[Patrick C.]

I went with this one, $21 off of Amazon and free shipping if you have Prime.  You can choose glossy or matte finish.  Mine was right at 100 g.

http://www.amazon.com/Feifan-Carbon-Bicycle-Cycling-Saddle/dp/B014H9C55C?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00

I haven't done any long rides, but for a one hour ride it feels as good as any saddle I've used.  It felt fine riding around the neighborhood in regular shorts, but I wouldn't go for a real ride without padded shorts.  It is 125 mm wide and seems to fit my ass OK.  It has carbon rails, which are taller than normal saddle rails but fit fine on my EC-70 post. 

I am concerned about how long it will last, as I weigh 205 lbs/93 kg and seem to be pretty heavy on the saddle- all of my saddles creak eventually, and I have had one break (the rail).   Maybe my fear of the carbon rails snapping will convince me to stay out of the saddle on any rough terrain.  

[RS VR6]

I ordered on of these for $35. http://www.ebay.com/itm/3K-Full-carbon-Leather-Road-Bike-Soft-Saddle-MTB-Seat-Bicycle-Cushion-Newest-/281901788381?var=&hash=item41a2a7ecdd:m:mMoJtIE2WfOYHgFx09O_CLw

It actually has some padding.

I also got a SMP copy. That has got to be the hardest saddle I've ever used. My ass bones were a hurtin. 

[blee_2009]

It's probably not surprising, but these saddles don't hold up well in crashes. I went over the bars in a crit; the back corner of the saddle had an impact with the pavement snapping one of the rails at the back and cracking the front. It wasn't really a "catastrophic" failure, as I've been pushing my luck riding it this last week. It's a decent saddle, but I'm not sure if I'll get another.

[carbonazza]

If you are unlucky, and hit carbon well on any part of our bikes, it will break.

@RS_VR6, did you try it with a very good chamois?
If you do not like the saddle, resell it, some people here like them

Mine is quite beaten up but still holds fine.
But I would be heartbroken if I paid the $500 for an original.
I just ordered a new version, this time it has a leather cover with a skinny padding.