# Saddle popped off rails



## norcalriderx2 (Feb 9, 2009)

my saddle popped off the seat rails on a low impact crash, wondering the best way to re-install back on, from the front or back first?
short of buying a new saddle, this one still is fairly new
wish I had'nt sprained my finger, it would be easier to re-install:madmax:


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

What seatpost? I've mangled saddle rails pretty good in crashes before, and no seatpost (even the cheap ones) has ever let the seat go.


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## roybatty666 (Mar 2, 2009)

I think he means the rail from the saddle body

Push the front in as the bent back part of the rail give leverage to flex the length of the rail and pop it back in


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## Jayem (Jul 16, 2005)

I've had that happen many times and I've never been able to get the rails back in. I suppose it could be done with a vice and the appropriate heavy tools.


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## Ronnie (Jan 17, 2004)

I've also had it happen to me with a high end WTB Pure saddle. I was on a road trip at Kingdom Trails VT. I took it to the local bike shop at the trail-head and was told that the manufacturers use special tools to put the seat on the rails. He must have been right. WTB replaced the saddle, no questions asked.

Ronnie.


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## Jwiffle (Jan 26, 2004)

I've ONCE been able to get the rail back in. Used a flat cone wrench, and flexed the seat and got the end of the rail to slide down the wrench and back into the hole. I've tried it on other saddles with no luck.


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## wyatt79m (Mar 3, 2007)

wow, didn't know that could happen.


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## shockfinder (Apr 17, 2009)

I had to buy a new saddle when it happened to me...


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## gmats (Apr 15, 2005)

I just got done seating rail back into a WTB SST saddle. My GF managed to have it pop out. I used a large pry bar, some clamps to hold the saddle down and a block of wood to leverage the upside down saddle and twist and push the rail into place. It wasn't easy but it's certainly do-able. Good luck with that.


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## markf (Jan 17, 2007)

never gotten that bad in for a customer who didn't have a brooks or similar. warrantied several and sold new saddles a few times. not a common thing but not unheard of.


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## cobi (Apr 29, 2008)

We managed to get one back on on the trail with a few guys and a leatherman pliers. It was not easy though.


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## Bikinfoolferlife (Feb 3, 2004)

gmats said:


> I just got done seating rail back into a WTB SST saddle. My GF managed to have it pop out. I used a large pry bar, some clamps to hold the saddle down and a block of wood to leverage the upside down saddle and twist and push the rail into place. It wasn't easy but it's certainly do-able. Good luck with that.


Hmm, have an old SST saddle (when it was a new thing) that in a crash soon after I got it, popped a rail; havent been able to do pop it back in even with a vise, but you just possibly inspired another try!


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## iron29er (Jan 1, 2008)

I've had that happen. That particular saddle had a piece of plastic that held the front of the rails. Just unscrewed said plastic piece, reinstalled rail and viola!

Jeff


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## teelow (Sep 28, 2007)

I also had a WTB Pure V saddle come off one of the rails. I tried with a vise and all sorts of other unsubtle tools, unsuccessfully. It happened on the trail, and I did make an awesome repair with several feet of duct tape. Functional, and good looking!


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## norcalriderx2 (Feb 9, 2009)

*saddle popped off rails*

thanks for all the replies, it was a Bontrager saddle, I sent them an e-mail to see if they could re-install, they said they do not, and if the rails came out the plastic shell , the shell probably is not good anymore, so I will but a WTB saddle


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## petey15 (Sep 1, 2006)

Wow, I just had this happen to me last night. I'd never heard of this before - just the rails actually breaking. I've got someone from work who is going to try to leverage it back into place for me this weekend. Luckily I have a spare :thumbsup:


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## awetdog (May 8, 2009)

Fiizik had a new one in the mail for me within hours. I had it in 4 days. No way that rail was going back in.


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## A1an (Jun 3, 2007)

Happened to a friend of mine's WTB Pure V after a crash. We managed to man handle it back onto the rail and ride on.


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## space (May 25, 2004)

Happened to me once, just replaced the saddle, I spent 15 minutes on the side of the trail trying to fix it before I decided to walk out.


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## Berkeley Mike (Jan 13, 2004)

Send it back to the manufacturer.


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## frito_mosquito (Mar 25, 2015)

This thread is the top google result for the search string "attach bicycle seat shell to rails".

God damnit.


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## DIRTJUNKIE (Oct 18, 2000)

frito_mosquito said:


> This thread is the top google result for the search string "attach bicycle seat shell to rails".
> 
> God damnit.


Slide the front in then put the back in the holes. Done!


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## root (Jan 24, 2006)

Contact LBS and ask. I've been told there exists a tool for this but I've never seen one.


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## J.B. Weld (Aug 13, 2012)

root said:


> Contact LBS and ask. I've been told there exists a tool for this but I've never seen one.


Ignorance & brute force- $43 @ UBT.


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## edubfromktown (Sep 7, 2010)

Happened to one of my saddles a few years ago. I contacted the (Italian) manufacturer and they referred me to a US dealer that had I mailed it to. Got it back in one piece and all was well for a while...

It eventually derailed again roughly a year later. My hypothesis is that once a saddle goes off the rails, it might be more prone to popping out.


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## onlycrimson (Nov 11, 2008)

Putt the rails in the holes in the back and pull over the front. 
But probably better to just get a new better saddle.


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## Cayenne_Pepa (Dec 18, 2007)

Guys, you need to "re-create" the same exact saddle flex to get the front rails back into the nose pocket. My $180 Bontrager RXL Carbon did the same thing and I was about to toss it out, since Trek refused to cover it. Somehow, my LBS geniuses managed to ham-fist the rail back in for $10.


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## Strafer (Jun 7, 2004)

Seems WTB saddles are more prone to this problem, had it happen twice for me.
Fixed the first one with motorcycle tire iron and brute force, but had to bend the saddle quite a bit to do it.
After that it remained too flexible in the middle so ended up replacing it.


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## frito_mosquito (Mar 25, 2015)

LBS says it ain't worth the trouble. My only hope now is WTB comes through.


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## frito_mosquito (Mar 25, 2015)

Not covered under warranty due to impact. So, what's a reasonable replacement?


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## kokyman (19 h ago)

Hello guys!

Recently I've had a huge problem with my precious Natural Fit saddle that is sitting on the saddle post of my Radon e-bike.

Natural Fit is the sub-brand of Cube, and my version of the saddle is named "Sequence". It is incredibly comfortable, sporty, soft, durable, and not so cheap (around 60-80 bucks, depending on the store).

I fell off my bike 2 weeks ago, and somehow one of the rails of my saddle got out. Obviously, the impact of hitting the concrete was very strong, although my bike didn't have any visible damage (thank God!). Only later, when I got home, did I notice that one of the rails was not in the "hole".
It's worthwhile to mention that prior to falling off the bike and the rail popping out, my seat was exposed directly to the sun. The sun had obviously loosened my saddle's plastic structure to a degree, and it was much easier for the rail to pop out. I've fallen from my bike several times prior to that, and the saddle had never popped out before.

Everything else with the seat looked quite normal. I googled the topic, and couldn't find any final solution to the problem. Some guys advised twisting the steel rails and then returning them somehow to the original position, others suggested twisting the saddle to the back (until the rail pops back in), etc. etc. Most of the guys recommended buying a new saddle, emphasizing that it cannot be truly repaired.

I realized that I can't bend the steel rail on my own without proper tools, and even if I manage to do it, it will never be the same once I straighten it out again. I tried hard to bend the saddle backward, but it didn't work, because in order to succeed, the popped rail needs to bend in opposition to the other rail as well. And it doesn't, after a certain position.

So, I stuck to some of the most interesting bits of advice that I could read on the forums: warming up the plastic bottom plate of the saddle, and then trying forcefully to pull the rail back in.

After a lot of struggle, I finally MANAGED TO DO IT! And I promised myself to share the story here, if I ever succeed.

So, this is my saddle, for the start:

Natural Fit "Sequence"
This is one of the rails popping out after falling off the bike:


One rail popped out
It seems that it's much harder to return everything back to normal, if only one of the rails is out. If both of them are, it's easier, and you can decide whether you want to take everything out, and then try to put back only the "nose" of the rails.
The only tools that I used (plus the heater, room calorifier) are:

Without warming up the plastic to a decent degree, it's hard to twist and physically manipulate the saddle's structure. Therefore, I did let the heater warm up the saddle for at least 2 hours, at the maximum temperature possible and as close to it as possible:


After the plastic loosened substantially (can't be seen, but felt), I then proceeded to manipulate the saddle, and the hole. I used the screwdriver while trying to "guide" the rail back to the hole. It always looked like it will work out, but it always slipped again at the very last moment. Therefore, I stopped and proceeded, stopped and proceeded several times; each time warming up the saddle more.
Finally, I realized that, in addition to the aforementioned methods, I'd also need to use the rubber hammer and also damage the very beginning of the hole to a degree, in order to get the additional millimeters that were required for the rail to pop back in. I reasoned that it's not so important if I damage the entrance of the hole, for as long as the rail will have enough support deep inside, once it's back in.

The rail back in the saddle again
That's exactly what happened. How I managed to pull the rail back in is the combination of several methods:

warming up the bottom plate
"beating" and loosening the entrance of the hole with the screwdriver and a hammer, to facilitate the easier return of the rail
guiding the rail back in with the screwdriver a few times, and in the end
using the combination of:
a) a screwdriver to guide the rail back in, while banging at the same time with
b) a rubber hammer over the screwdriver to use additional force.
Unfortunately, I don't have a photo of doing it (since it required both of my arms), but it's pretty simple: I stuck the tip of the screwdriver in the hole, used my fingers to connect the shaft of the screwdriver with the tip of the rail, twisting everything down towards the plate, and in the end using a rubber hammer over all of it, for additional force.

The rail back in the saddle again
Somehow it managed to return. I was so happy, I saved some bucks, and got my favorite seat back. Once you sit on it again, and especially during a few next rides, the seat will go back to the original position even more. (immediately after the "repair", it will probably look bent because of the twisting of the back of the seat).
And that's it! If you have any further questions, feel free to ask!


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## Mountainfrog (Mar 7, 2006)

Reinserting Saddle Rail


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## edubfromktown (Sep 7, 2010)

Mountainfrog said:


> Reinserting Saddle Rail


That is badass and... 

Mac Tools (wrenches) FTW 

Sent from my KB2005 using Tapatalk


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