Ibis Custom Saddle

(discontinued)

If you feel like your swimming in a seat of saddles in the industry, you wouldn't be the only one. Head down to your local bike shop and tell them you want to buy every model available and you're have a sales receipt of over 600 of them. With so many options, when do you settle and when do you upgrade? This is a great question and should be determined based upon a few key concepts: Fit, Style, Weight, and Price. I ordered an Ibis HD4 a few months back and decided to give their custom saddle a go. Here are my impressions:

Details:

• Stealth black Ibis logo
• Width: Roughly 132mm
• Approximate weight: 250 grams (263 grams actual)
• Rails: Hollow CrMo

Out of The Box...

When ordering a complete bike build from a company, you are often at the mercy of the manufactures' buyer's discretion. This couldn't be more true for saddles. What you see is what you get and there isn't much wiggle room from there. This was the case when I got my Ibis HD4. The the bike arrived, it came with the standard Ibis CroMo saddle.

At first appearance, it didn't look that bad at all. The profile looked solid, offered a deep ridge down the center to help relieve one's prostate, and the black on black design was a beautiful way to go in the design room. It comes with hollowed out CroMo rails which is an excellent way to keep things strong and inexpensive but offers a slight weight disadvantage at 263 grams. But at $50 retail, this is quite acceptable.

The rails themselves offer a great range of adjustability but is pretty much follows industry standard so it's not a key component that sets it apart. 

One thing I did find that set the Ibis custom saddle apart is the actual width of the saddle. Coming in at roughly 132mm across the tail, this saddle nestles on the border of narrow/regular widths. That being the case, it will be a fantastic saddle for some but not for others. There isn't much Ibis can do about this, much like Nike not being able to make a "one size fits all" shoe and so it comes down to the rider in regards to if the Ibis custom saddle is the right one for them. 

The best way to figure this out is to swing by one of your local bike shops and ask them if they have a saddle sizing tool. The tool is simple and you could probably make one at home. All it does is marks the distance of your "sit bones" that come in contact with the cushioned sides of the saddle. 

They key for a comfy ride is making sure that the saddle your are riding matches the width of you sit bones. As for the Ibis custom saddle, it's quite narrow which doesn't mean it's a bad thing. It means the best thing if it fit's your bottom. The point is, check to make sure your butt matches your saddle for optimal performance and comfort.

Bottom Line:

Coming in at $50 retail, the Ibis custom saddle is a very reasonable priced component. Weighing in at 263 grams, it's not the lightest on the market but with the CroMo rails, its plenty strong. With plenty of saddle rail, you'll be able to get the perfect fit if you are constantly dancing between frame sizes. One thing to keep in mind however is that the Ibis custom saddle is quite narrow for a standard saddle. Measure your "sit bones" and if they fall in line with the 132mm width, you're in business. As for me, I'm a little wider so I had to quickly replace it with a wider one. All and all, a decent standard saddle. Just wish it was a little wider so I could keep it.