The saddle inscription should be "rodee main selon Rebour". Here is a link to a catalog scan about the Rebour treatment:
http://www.velo-pages.com/
Of course, it doesn't tell how they did it, nor what method would be best employed to restore such a saddle, but at least it might be of some interest.
John Hurley Austin, Texas, USA
Leslie Riessner wrote:
"I was very interested in the comments listers made in the recent exchanges on how best to care for leather saddles. I now have a related question. I recently purchased a 1981 California Masi and it has a French Ideale seat (CR90 model, I think). There is an inscription stamped into the top of the seat and although I cannot make it out clearly, I understand that it refers to the seat having been treated by the Rebour method. I gather that this was a way of pre-softening a leather saddle and was invented by the famous (to us, anyway!) technical illustrator Daniel Rebour. Does anyone know how the seat would have been treated, and whether this method is still in use? The saddle is very comfortable, I find, and won't need any break-in time for me."