> The narrower the Brooks saddle, the less setback it allows. A
> Professional will sit about 1" further forward than a B-17 when
> pushed back all the way. (I found out when I replaced a B-17 with a
> Pro on my Rivendell - thank God for those relieved clamps on the
> Campy NR post that Chuck Schmidt described in an earlier post.)
>
> Fortunately, the 74 degree seat angles of a decade ago are out of
> fashion again. (Never really were in fashion in Italy - my 1988
> Reparto Corse Bianchi had a 72 or 73 degree seat angle.)
>
> I find that with a Campy NR seatpost, I can use most Brooks saddles
> with a rather backwards position. Obviously, you want to stay away
> from many modern posts that offer no or very little setback.
>
> My feeling is that bicycles are designed to work together. Take a
> 1990s American racing frame with a 74 degree seat angle and a
> "modern" 0-setback post and wide-Q cranks, and it may work fine with
> a modern saddle, but not a Brooks. Change one factor of the equation,
>
> and it is likely you have to change others too. Fortunately, there
> being so many factors to the equation, it usually is possible to make
>
> it work.
Jan,
Thanks for the info--it basically confirms my experience about matching components from various vintages/eras.
Because there are so few modern seatposts with ample setback, and the aforementioned Brooks' rail issues, I'm considering having a frame made with a seat angle in the 71-72 degree range. Where I'm having doubts, however, is the front half of the bike. I'm trying to gather/study frame geometry of classic bikes with those angles, but it's proving to be harder than I thought. The typical 72/72 geometry was used on lots of off-the-peg tourers (espeically the British marques), but I want this to be for unloaded riding (I'm certainly no racer, so speed really isn't a concern).
Thanks again,
--mc
===== M. Chandler / JustRidingAlong@yahoo.com Superior, Colorado
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