# Best seat for big guys?



## 6foot4 (Jul 9, 2017)

My ass hurts. I ride a WTB Volt. It came stock with the bike. Is there a better seat option out there? Should I go wider?

240 lbs kitted up. You can probably guess my height.


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## Slyham (Jun 24, 2015)

I'm about the same size and the volt has always been fine for me. Do you ride with a padded liner?

Some shops will do a saddle fitting and let you borrow different saddles. Maybe worth looking into.


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## scottzg (Sep 27, 2006)

I'm using a chromag mood DT. It was 60% off and came with a Durable Top (and chromoly rails). I like it a lot; it seems durable and it's blue which fits the bike's theme.

...I'm not very fussy though. Aside from a couple fizik and wtb saddles i've gotten along with just about everything i've perched myself on. Usually if i'm uncomfortable it's cuz my saddle angle/height needs adjustment.


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## astom22 (Aug 4, 2016)

Measure your sit bones and get a proper width saddle. I finally did and it made all the difference in the world. I'm using a volt that is harder than the stock saddle, but about 3cm wider, all day riding comfort. Never would have believed that lining up my sit bones on a saddle could make such a huge difference.

There are different videos that show how to measure, I just sat on a piece of paper and marked with a pencil, then took measurements. Good luck. 

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## R_Pierce (May 31, 2017)

I have a WTB Volt Team Titanium saddle in 150mm and it works just fine for me.


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## Mr Pig (Jun 25, 2008)

How often do you ride?


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

How long have you been riding? How often do you ride? Do you wear padded shorts? Is the saddle the correct width? All these can be factors. 

And of course...the saddle could possibly just not be the right one for you. I've really never found any saddle to be particularly uncomfortable as long as the width is ok and I've been riding at least a few weeks on a regular basis. But after the first 3-5 rides of the season my arse adjusts and I'm good to go. 

That said, I'm currently on a WTB Volt Pro on my Release, unsure the width, it came stock on my bike. I'm also riding a Bontrager Affinity Elite 148mm on my Private Jake, and a WTB Rocket Comp 142mm on my Big Unit. All these saddles have been perfectly comfortable.


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## Joe Handlebar (Apr 12, 2016)

For the most part, it really doesn't matter if you're 120lbs or 220lbs, it's the width of your Ischium (sit bones), pelvic rotation, etc... Saddles are ridiculously personal and recommendations are, only in my opinion, pretty useless from an online source as far as fit goes. There are a number of saddles I can ride with no issues. What IS useful is, as mentioned above, measuring your sit bones is the right place to start. This will get you the correct target saddle width. After that, shape and density for your riding position (more padding is definitely NOT always better). Finally, also as mentioned, just getting some saddle time in (if that's actually an issue at this point, IDK, you could have a lot of painful miles in already). There are lot's of ways to measure sit bone width. I think Ergon has a downloadable template(?). Google and YouTube are also your friends. FWIW, just to exemplify, all my favorite saddles range from about 140 to 143mm in width, have little padding and generally have a very flat (not rounded) profile and cover various manufacturers. If you have a good, trusted LBS, get them in the loop too. Hope that helps!


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

To add...a some shops will allow you to try a saddle and return it if it doesn't work. Ask around and see if you LBS's do this.


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## MountainLife (Aug 7, 2017)

Joe Handlebar said:


> For the most part, it really doesn't matter if you're 120lbs or 220lbs, it's the width of your Ischium (sit bones), pelvic rotation, etc... Saddles are ridiculously personal and recommendations are, only in my opinion, pretty useless from an online source as far as fit goes. There are a number of saddles I can ride with no issues. What IS useful is, as mentioned above, measuring your sit bones is the right place to start. This will get you the correct target saddle width. After that, shape and density for your riding position (more padding is definitely NOT always better). Finally, also as mentioned, just getting some saddle time in (if that's actually an issue at this point, IDK, you could have a lot of painful miles in already). There are lot's of ways to measure sit bone width. I think Ergon has a downloadable template(?). Google and YouTube are also your friends. FWIW, just to exemplify, all my favorite saddles range from about 140 to 143mm in width, have little padding and generally have a very flat (not rounded) profile and cover various manufacturers. If you have a good, trusted LBS, get them in the loop too. Hope that helps!


This is right. Your saddle width is incredibly personal because it depends on your anatomy. More padding DOES NOT mean more comfort. Once your sit bones firm up (think knuckle strength in karate) you'll have a lot less pain. More padding will irritate the soft tissue around your sit bones in your pelvis.

Also go with a saddle with Chromoly rails. The nominal weight penalty is worth it. The WTB Rocket works for me.


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## Tjaard (Aug 17, 2007)

6foot4 said:


> My ass hurts. I ride a WTB Volt. It came stock with the bike. Is there a better seat option out there? Should I go wider?
> 240 lbs kitted up.


Height doesn't matter for saddle selection. Neither does weight, except as it relates to durability. I would advise sticking with chromoly rails rather than Ti, since they are a bit stronger.

"MyAss hurts" is not really a usefull description. Do you mean Ischial Tuberosities (sit bones)? Or perineal pressure? Or chafing somewhere? All those Different complaints will point to a different saddle to improve the situation.


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## Mr Pig (Jun 25, 2008)

Tjaard said:


> "MyAss hurts" is not really a usefull description. Do you mean Ischial Tuberosities? Or perineal pressure? Or chafing somewhere?


Or what some may consider an alternative lifestyle?


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## JStrube (Aug 25, 2011)

I love the saddle on my Specialized Epic. It is a Phenom, with not a lot of padding. It is pretty rounded off. My road bike has a very flat saddle, I do not like it nearly as much and am changing to a rounded style that matches my sit bone width.


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## Battery (May 7, 2016)

I like my ass pad when I ride.


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## scottzg (Sep 27, 2006)

Battery said:


> ass pad


I googled that, this is the only product to come  up.









I'm not judging.


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## JCWages (Jan 26, 2015)

Get your sit bones measured and go from there. Contrary to what some might think, heavy folks may have narrower sit bones than someone much thinner because the extra weight above the waist can tilt your hips outward which tilts the sit bones inward. It was cool watching demonstrations at the SQLabs booth at Sea Otter. Those guys really know their stuff! I'm waiting for a new saddle to show up at my door so I can test it out.


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## 6foot4 (Jul 9, 2017)

JCWages said:


> Get your sit bones measured and go from there. Contrary to what some might think, heavy folks may have narrower sit bones than someone much thinner because the extra weight above the waist can tilt your hips outward which tilts the sit bones inward. It was cool watching demonstrations at the SQLabs booth at Sea Otter. Those guys really know their stuff! I'm waiting for a new saddle to show up at my door so I can test it out.


where do you measure?


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## LargeMan (May 20, 2017)

6foot4 said:


> where do you measure?


Sit on some memory foam and measure to the center of where your sit bones leave 2 dimples in the foam. This is not an exact way to go for saddle width, but a starting point. Mine measure about 145mm, 6'1" 250lbs kitted, but cannot find a comfortable saddle at that width, I prefer 135mm wide or less.


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## protsi (Dec 21, 2010)

LargeMan said:


> Sit on some memory foam and measure to the center of where your sit bones leave 2 dimples in the foam. This is not an exact way to go for saddle width, but a starting point. Mine measure about 145mm, 6'1" 250lbs kitted, but cannot find a comfortable saddle at that width, I prefer 135mm wide or less.


This is what you need. Believe I when to the same route you are right now







. I put this on my mtb and road and is not going back. You don't what a flat saddle My2cnt

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## JCWages (Jan 26, 2015)

6foot4 said:


> where do you measure?


You can start here. They also have DIY instructions for measuring sit bone width. https://www.sq-lab.com/en/sqlab-ergonomics/sqlab-concepts/sqlab-the-way-to-the-perfect-saddle.html

FWIW, I'm far from a clyde at 6'3" but 180lbs yet my bones measured 13cm which means for all-mountain type riding I would need a 15cm-16cm saddle. My current saddle is a Fabric Scoop Radius which measures 14.2cm and feels decent but I'm going to test an SQLabs 611 which measures 15cm.


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## Mr Pig (Jun 25, 2008)

So not answering my question?

The reason I asked is that if you don't ride enough it makes zero difference what saddle you buy, your arse is always going to be sore.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

protsi said:


> This is what you need. Believe I when to the same route you are right now
> 
> 
> 
> ...


You really can't say that because it's too individual. What works for you might not work for me or the next guy. I have three bikes with three different saddles and one is pretty flat and probably the most comfortable saddle of the three.


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## Nubster (May 15, 2009)

Mr Pig said:


> So not answering my question?
> 
> The reason I asked is that if you don't ride enough it makes zero difference what saddle you buy, your arse is always going to be sore.


Exactly. A new rider or one that doesn't ride often or hasn't ridden in a while is going to have a sore a$$ no matter what. I logged in over 2000 miles last year and basically didn't ride at all for several months and my first ride of this season after only 12 miles I was so sore it wasn't funny.


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## Mr Pig (Jun 25, 2008)

I ride most days so rarely have a problem despite not wearing padding and having a firm saddle. Conditioning is way more important than components.


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## stonant (Mar 11, 2016)

SQ labs offers a free at home fit kit if your LBS doesn’t have one.


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## protsi (Dec 21, 2010)

Nubster said:


> You really can't say that because it's too individual. What works for you might not work for me or the next guy. I have three bikes with three different saddles and one is pretty flat and probably the most comfortable saddle of the three.
> 
> View attachment 1198243


With time you can get into any saddle but. If you try the one in the pick you gone love it. I have few different saddles even flat fizik nice but the selle is the all around winner. I run the ms150 and I can run more no soreness of any kind.

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## BigJZ74 (Jul 18, 2010)

I've tried tons of different saddles and after lots of trial and error, I've settled on the Specialized power arc expert 143mm. It's a firm saddle that's a lot shorter in length than the norm, but it gives me the ability to lean forward a lot more while climbing steep stuff without the need to shift to the nose. With the extra tissue big guys carry, shifting in the saddle leads to more pinching and tissue irritation especially on longer rides. I originally tried the original power in 155mm and it was the most comfortable saddle i ever rode but the width made it harder to get behind it on steep descents. I switch to the 143mm arc version and as long as they make it, i'll never try a different saddle again. Currently runnning it on 2 bikes and my trainer and have a backup should one break. I went through 11 different shaped saddles before I found the Power.


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