Re: [CR] Anyone buy a Brooks B18?

Hi, Bob---

I have bought a Ladies B-18 to put on a '55 Claud Butler mixte project that I am putting together for my wife. The B-18 was fitted to earlier Claud mixtes and to many other top-flight British vintage ladies lightweights from the Turn-of-the-Century through the late '30s or so, when I believe it was discontinued because of ladies starting to wear shorts and short "skorts" and not needing to the downturned "hawk nose" of the B-18 to prevent their long skirts from catching. Claud Butler stopped fitting them as standard well before '55, but I just thought the B-18 was so cool I had to get one.

It certainly is a lovely, lovely saddle. I haven't yet sprung the bike or the saddle on my wife, but I don't expect her to take to a leather saddle. It is wide, somewhat stiff and pretty flat. Not necessarily bad qualities, but I have therefore bought an anatomical gel saddle cover (a Bell, not Brooks) for $10. It will both protect the saddle and make for at least the illusion of easier riding for my wife. I will pull the cover off if we go to a vintage event, or if she decides she likes to ride the B-18 as-is. When I present the bike to her I'll start with the gel cover stowed in the saddle bag. If she wants to cover up the beauty of the B-18 that'll be her call----I just can't make myself do it.

I mounted the saddle on another ladies bike project--a '67 Schwinn Paramount--and it looks tremendous, especially since the bike is Sierra Brown and matches the antique brown of the saddle. I don't think you can go wrong in the looks department with the B-18. How it rides I knoweth not.

Cheers,

Peter Jourdain
Whitewater, Wisconsin US of A