With the Race Ti you don't have to suffer the consequences of an uncomfortable lightweight saddle. The Race Ti features a layer of EVA foam & a ultra soft leather cover. The Ti rails provide shock absorbency & reduce weight. 198g
Submitted by
Aaron Jenkin
a Cross Country Rider
from Melbourne, Australia
Date Reviewed: November 6, 2007
Strengths: Light, cjeap and looks slick on the bike
Weaknesses: As already noted a few times... BUT PAIN!!! Plus a bit narrow for my liking
Bottom Line:
Great looking, light and cheap saddle, but the longer I am on it the more it hurts. 70km yesterday was my 10th ride on it and it was hell. Certainly not going to be on the bike on that saddle again for a few days!!! Saddles are such a personal thing and what works for one may not work for another. But this saddle hurts more than any other saddle I have ridden and will be swapped out ASAP.
Similar Products Used: Specialized BG of various forms
Bike Setup: Medium-top end alloy hardtail
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Submitted by
Fleas
a Cross Country Rider
from Cleveland, OH
Date Reviewed: October 22, 2007
Strengths: Light! Looks good - sleek.
Weaknesses: None
Bottom Line:
Excellent race saddle! Easy clearance to move around it - good shape. Cheap! Not too slick/slippery.
Would not recommend for long-in-the-saddle rides. If you're on a lot of technical stuff where you are standing a lot, it's perfect. If you are spinning up fire roads all the time, then it's probably a little thin and short on comfort. I thought I would like it for long haul road-to-trail rides, but it started wearing on me after a few hours. For those extended rides I will seek more padding.
Can't grade it on abrasion- or impact-resistance... yet.
Bike Setup: Rigid 29er w/ gears, tubes, disc brakes
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Submitted by
Don Duende
a Cross Country Rider
from Eastern Sierra
Date Reviewed: October 19, 2007
Strengths: Light(200gm)and cheap.
Weaknesses: Comfort. This saddle didn't work for my wife on her road bike. So, I put it on my MTB for a while. Not the best saddle I ever had but not the worst.
Bottom Line:
Saddle comfort is a very personal experience. The saddle fit me much better than my wife, but not as well as others. On the MTB I don't spend as much time in the saddle, so the weight savings is appreciated.
Similar Products Used: Bontrager (pathetic) WTB Shadow V (good) E3 Form Gel (better)
Bike Setup: Intense 5.5, Maverick DUC32 fork, XTR, Chris King headset and hubs, Mavic 717 rims, Fox RP3, FSA carbon cranks, Candy C pedals, Thompson Elite seatpost, E3 saddle
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Submitted by
Cookie_Monster
a Racer
from Toronto, ON, Canada
Date Reviewed: August 2, 2006
Strengths: Leather cover Ti rails cheap very light
Weaknesses: OUCH!!!!! Butt pain!!!!
Bottom Line:
Hey, this seat is a bargain. But I get numb riding it after 30 minutes. My porker of a sofa seat WTB Pure V is much better for 1-2 hour rides. Must be the "whale-tail" design that my butt likes. I'd honestly use the Sette only for racing, but even then, I like more comfort in the long run - less tiring in a race. There are more comfy saddles in the same weight range, but you're gonna pay 3x-4x as much.
Bike Setup: '06 Kona Leroi RaceFace Evolve XC seatpost (2006)
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Submitted by
robotkiller
a Cross Country Rider
from JAX,FL
Date Reviewed: July 21, 2006
Strengths: lightweight, cheap. Ti rails, leather cover. Saddle shape is comfortable and looks kinda like a Selle Flite
Weaknesses: some may think it's uncomfortable. Graphics are a little chintzy. Looks weird having a cheapy saddle sitting on a fancy rig, but who cares - it works.
Bottom Line:
When I first put this saddle on, I thought it was the most uncomfortable thing I had ever seen. I was used to riding on my big cushy WTB and the Sette was just unbearable. And this was on a full suspension bike. I put it away.
Long story short, I bought a hardtail to replace the FS and eventually got around to throwing this sucker back on the bike. Again, unbearable. I decided to stick with it, however, and after a couple of long rides, I have adapted. Now I love this saddle -- the smooth cover makes it very easy to maneuver and now I find it to be very comfortable. Weird.
I never thought I could give up the WTB, but having a light saddle really makes a difference in the handling of the bike as well as sliding up and down the seat. Spinning seems more efficient now too.
I like it -- it's unbelievably cheap, has Ti rails and weighs in the 190s. I cannot think of a reasonable flaw. If you've wanted to try a light race saddle but don't want to pay a ridiculous price on an experiment, get this saddle.
The price and the reviews sold me on this saddle. I raced it for the first time today (2 hours) and am fairly chafed even after buttpaste. In all fairness, I'm using a second hand clamp and bolt (lost the original in the last race)until the Thomson elite seatpost arrives. This has led to the seat sliding up along the Ti rails. What this seemed to do was bring the seat back a little and raise the front allowing for spandex grab. Since I was aware of it I was more careful but it caused me to stand up longer on my legs and burn energy. It may have also brought me up closer to the front; subsequently, more chafing than would have been normally if the seat would have stayed in position. I may get another slightly more comfortable seat for training and put this on for racing. 3 overall rating but I'll come back later after the new clamp if my theory is correct.
With the usual disclaimer that saddle comfort is individual- This saddle is the BEST. Light with a smooth leather cover and a great shape. Lets you move when riding without catching your shorts or chaffing your thighs. Minimal padding, but with the way the plastic frame flexes a bit none is needed. I've ridden 2-3 hours rides with no problems. I use it on XC and road rides. (Not sure I would trust it for big drops, freeride, etc.)
This saddle looks cool and is under 200g,seems to be well constructed and it's cheap!!With the thudbuster under it,it's pretty comfortable,without it?I'm not going to try to find out!For $25 this is as good as it gets!!
Bike Setup: 05'Rockhopper Comp,sette bar/stem,sette carbon spacers,profile bar ends,thudbuster 3G,blackburn rack,sette race Ti saddle
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Submitted by
Jason
a Cross Country Rider
from Johnson City, TN
Date Reviewed: June 13, 2005
Strengths: Light, inexpensive, flexy enough for comfort. Ti rails, leather cover.
Weaknesses: Maybe too flexy for a full-on race saddle. Being picky: the graphics on the saddle rub off after the first ride, but personally I think the saddle looks better without them.
Bottom Line:
You can't beat this saddle for the price. I know it won't suit most "racers", but its a comfortable saddle that cuts weight. Maybe a little too much flex to provide sufficient energy transfer when grinding it out.
Strengths: light, base with good flexibility, price
Weaknesses: none so far
Bottom Line:
It's rather unwise to review a saddle because everyone's rear end is different. Comfy for me could mean disaster for you. But for an unbelievable price which could only get you another swap out stock saddle, who can go wrong. For those who have experience on light weight/race saddle may found this a real treat, with a thin layer of padding on a flexible base, I've found it to be really comfortable. And for those who have always been hesitated to get a race oriented saddle because of the unsure comfort level marked with a somewhat rediculous price, here's your change to tried out a dirt cheap but quality product which can compare with those that cost 3 times as much.
P.S. I used this on my road bike which means much more saddle time compare to mountain riding. And just for reference, I'm a lightweight rider with bony butt.
Weaknesses: It's just what it says.......a race seat.
Bottom Line:
Make no mistake, this thing is a race oriented saddle. that's what it's billed as and that's exactly what you get. No frills (or padding!). For the price(point) I can't complain. I knew I was getting a light seat with minimal padding but I didn't know how minimal. It has less padding that the photo makes it look like (and the photo doesn't look like much padding!). I've gotten used to it but, I would've stuck with the higher priced Terry fly or similar had I known how little padding this had.
Don't get me wrong, SETTE does right by you on this one. $29 bucks hardley gets you a bike tube anymore so to get a Ti seat that's less than 200 grams for this price is insane. So, I give it a pretty darn high rating because me being delusional about my purchase shouldn't be their fault!
Bike Setup: Mavic, XT, Avid ti, Rock Shox Duke, Thomson.....
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Submitted by
brandon
a Weekend Warrior
from amarillo, tx USA
Date Reviewed: August 8, 2004
Strengths: super light, very forgiveing, strong leather
Weaknesses: none yet
Bottom Line:
i love this seat. its light, which is why i bought it, and is forgiving when you rack yourself. and its comfortable too as long as you dont sit on it for a long time.
The price is the best feature of this saddle - cheap! It's also fairly light and quite comfortable. I've only been riding on it for about 3 months, but so far it's shown great resistance to wear and damage (from crashes, sweat, water/mud, scratching, etc). In terms of comfort, it's not a lazy boy. But for a lighter, race-oriented saddle, it's actually quite comfortable. I would recommend this product to the dedicated XC rider or the casual racer. I'd say it's probably in the upper 25% of saddles in terms of comfort and weight, but when you factor in the price, it's gotta be close to the top.
