Mechanics Choice: WTB Saddles
March 3rd, 2008 by Guitar TedThe Bike Lab is about upgrading your bike and building your dream rig. To that end, these are some of our top recommended upgrades. Most are things we actually use on our own rigs, or would feel comfortable recommending to our best friends. They are classic parts, smart designs, and in some cases new and revolutionary bits.
The list was compiled by Guitar Ted and Arleigh Jenkins, two real life bicycle mechanics and passionate cyclists. This is solely their considered opinions on what is a “Top Upgrade”. In the future, look for more “Top Upgrade” parts that will be getting reviewed here on the Bike Lab.
What It Is: Or more appropriately, what they are. WTB saddles, first introduced in late ‘96, have become a widely used saddle and WTB has expanded the line up to include just about every type of saddle you could think of for performance cycling.
Why Is It A Mechanics Choice: First off, saddles are a highly personal thing. Not everyone is going to love a WTB saddle. That said, they have more OEM spec than just about any other name brand saddle line, and they have several models that have found devotees amongst mountain bikers, especially endurance cyclists. The padding, shapes, and styles of WTB saddles make them one of the most well rounded offerings in mountain bike saddles out today.
The Mechanic Says: Okay, your saddle of choice might be something entirely different, but WTB seems to work for me pretty well. If I had to choose an off road saddle for a customer that didn’t really know any better, I would recommend a WTB saddle. Chances are it would be either a hit, or pretty dang close to the mark. Again, they have several different styles that work across a wide range of posteriors, so it’s hard to choose something other than their saddles when shopping for an off road performance perch. Add to this WTB’s Saddle Demo program and it gets even harder to choose something else.
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Excellent choice! The original SST still ranks as my favorite saddle.
The Laser Comp has a lot to do with why my XXIX is my favorite ride. and the Rocket on my Jake is what makes the Alu ride “good enough”, I have actually gotten to the point that I purposely look for bikes with WTB saddles, Stock.
BTW, anyone kmow where I can get another Laser Comp?
+1 for the SST…especially the SST.X in glitter vinyl. Why oh why won’t they bring back those gloriously hideous (but comfortable) saddles? Glitter vinyl brings out the Bootsie Collins in me!!!
I like the Rocket V, too. Great saddles all around from the good folks at WTB.
Funny you mention liking both the SST and Rocket V. If I’m not mistaken, the Rocket V is made using the same basic shell mold as the SST but the foam mold is obviously unique to the Rocket V.
It seems to me (well, my butt, at least) that the width of the two saddles is similar enough that I’m pretty comfortable on both (must be that underlying shell!). They DO feel different from each other, though — the overall padding and shape of the SST is a bit more comfortable for the long haul.
Quinn, Ebay is the way to go for WTB saddles…I’ve stockpiled a couple spares this way at crazy-low prices (discontinued models).
I still have my SST lying in the parts box, in need of being recovered. Love that thing. The Rocket V is cool, too, but I don’t think I’ll do one with all the embroidery again. Ouch.
The original SST is oh so good. If I hadn’t crashed and bent all of mine, I’d still be runnin’ ‘em. I’ve switched over to the Silverado or Rocket V on all current bikes however. I can do a 24 hour solo race on the Silverado, no problem, and it’s what I plan to toe the line with at T.I.v4 as well.
Yup, purdy good…
I have 1 SST.98 cro-mo rail, 2 SST.98 Ti rail, and 1 SST.2K Ti rail on my bikes. I did have the rails on the cro-mo saddle pop out of the perch during a crash, WTB reinstalled it for no charge. Last summer I had one of the rails on a SST.98 Ti break near the seatclamp. I called them up and asked how much to fix since way out of warranty, Cust Serv said $20. I sent on Monday, came back on Friday (I live in L.A. area) with no charge. WTB saddles are the best in my opinion and I will suggest to anyone looking for a quality saddle.
I have retained and transferred my SST 98 through three frames at this point. The scuff fabric has slowly served it’s purpose and has been scuffed away and has prevented any tears that would have occurred if leather was wrapped in that area. The leather has weathered well, but when I ride in the rain, the black is now becoming raw hide.
The nose design is great for those tight, steep technical climbs, when you have to just hunch down and squeeze another pedal stroke without lifting the front tire.
It was the most expensive MTB saddle at the time (I think 1999), but as time went by, it may have been the best value on any component to date.
I love this saddle and dread the day of it’s demise..