It's no surprise that so much praise has been given to the Rocket V. Its fit is legendary, and it's look distinct. The Rocket V, with its Love Channel, Comfort Zone feature, and smaller Whale-Tail pedaling platform, is the choice of many top professionals.
Strengths: To date this is the best saddle I have used thus far. Comfortable yet narrow enough to slide back and lean behind the saddle on steep drops. The curve of the saddle cradles your sitting area in the center, the center of the shell has a cutout prevents hotspots with just the right amount of padding, not too thin or too thick. Looks great with the silver and black color scheme, even after 5 years. I have the titanium rails version and it's light. I'm buying the same saddle when it's time for a replacement.
Weaknesses: stitching on the nose is wears out, fake carbon fiber love channel cover is cheesey and already peeling off after several rainy trail rides.
Bottom Line:
Get this saddle if you're tired of the usual 'Weapons of Ass Destruction'. Everybody is different anatomically and saddles are tough to buy without sitting on them first hand, but just like everyone here who reviewed it I totally love this product.
Similar Products Used: Fi'zi:k, SDG and several Cannondale saddles,
Bike Setup: Huffy 7-speed, chrome kickstand, whitewall 2.1 tires.
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Submitted by
rob1208lv
a Weekend Warrior
from Las Vegas
Date Reviewed: April 15, 2010
Strengths: looks, light, love channel
Weaknesses: NONE!
Bottom Line:
Nothing better in my opinion, but seats are personal preference if you ask me.. I just got a white and red one for my niner, but I have had a silver on for 2 years now it's seen 3 bikes....
Strengths: Most comfortable Seat I've owned, period. Only slightly heavier than the ssm aspide and similiar race saddles that don't offer much comfort or padding. The dip fits me well. Much lighter than some other saddles I've had that were almost as comfy. I think it's reasonably priced considering what the weight and the price of the european competition.
Weaknesses: Durability?? I've seen a few of these broken, although I've not broken one myself. The soft spot seems to sag after a few years.
Bottom Line:
I've got 3 bikes. All 3 bikes so I have to have 3 of these saddles. My XC race bike has such nice parts on it I'm thinking of getting another SS hardtail for bad conditions. If so I'll be buying a 4th.
Similar Products Used: SSM Aspide (x3) SSM Aspide with the cutout (much less comfy than the normal Aspide, Selle Italia Flite and Some Flite variates. Fizik (nice but usually heavy).
Submitted by
Pedal
a
from Christchurch, New Zealand
Date Reviewed: February 14, 2008
Strengths: Got that well known Rocket V comfort at a racing light weight
Weaknesses: Harder than a Rocket V SLT and way harder than a Rocket V Race
Bottom Line:
Mate this seat with a light seatpost and ur bike will certainly lose that top heavy feel - the lightest comfortable seat I've found. Apart from a little expected 'throw down' wear on the back corners none of my Rocket seats have let me down - the rails and covers have taken years of abuse.
I've got 3 Rocket V models on different bikes at any one time and I'll briefly compare them. As you move from the Race to the SLT to the Stealth the changes are as expected: 1 $$$$$$ - the Stealth is not a very cheap seat 2 Weight - The Race is trail heavy the Stealth race light 3 Comfort - To me there is a real and surprisingly large difference in comfort - the Race model is plush and I've hardly ever got saddle sore even on long hard rides. The SLT is slightly less comfortable but for me the Stealth is only a 'comfortable' seat in a lightweight, racing context. This seat has drawn blood in endurance races. Now I only use the Stealth for rides under about 2hrs and I'm happy to trade off the extra weight of the Race model for extra comfort on longer hauls.
Despite this, I doubt you'll find better comfort and durability than a Rocket V at any of these levels of price or weight.
Similar Products Used: Terry Dragonfly and 1st Gen Specialized Body Geometry
Bike Setup: 96 Klein Pulse Comp, Manitou Skareb Super, Thompson post/stem, Easton Moneylite riser, king headset, Sram X.9 twisters/shifters, x.0 Cassette and chain, Avid Arch Rival/Speed Dial 7 brakes, WTB Rocket Stealth Team TI Saddle, Ritchey ROCK/OCR Rims 32 Hole Laced to LX hubs.
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Submitted by
Justin Cashion
a Cross Country Rider
from Franklin, NC USA
Date Reviewed: July 30, 2007
Strengths: Leather is nice and it is constructed extremely well. Love the Love Channel! Ti rails keep the weight down.
Weaknesses: Nada
Bottom Line:
I love this saddle! Got it at cost from my old job, and I love it. Everyone should be given one with the purchase of a bike. Never ridden a more comfortable saddle! wish I had one for the road bike, too...Hmmmmmm
Submitted by
Dalton
a Cross Country Rider
from Johnson City, TN, USA
Date Reviewed: June 27, 2007
Strengths: Very comfortable, light.
Weaknesses: None found yet.
Bottom Line:
Very comfy. It is on a road bike. The back edge of the seat is well padded allowing me to slide back and comfortably hang my butt off the back edge for a better climbing position when slogging up the mountains around here. I have had a cheaper model of wtb rocket with CroMo rails on the mountain bike for a few years and it has held up well.
Similar Products Used: fizik arionne, some selle italia with a cut out, wtb shadow, old selle italia 'shark', and a few brooks pros a couple of decades ago.
Bike Setup: Giant Team Once aluminum with Mizuno carbon fork, ksyrium wheels, campy record components.
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Submitted by
patrick
a Cross Country Rider
from colorado springs
Date Reviewed: June 6, 2007
Strengths: Light, very comfortable, seems durable.
Weaknesses: None found.
Bottom Line:
Great saddle, very comfortable and light. Nice on steep technical downhills, quickly can get behind it. Not much else, it's a saddle.
Submitted by
Simon
a
from Canberra, ACT, Australia
Date Reviewed: January 27, 2007
Strengths: Narrow, Flat, all leather, minimal padding, Ti rails, light weight, Small V and 'Crush Zone" for your vein to your boys.
Weaknesses: The colour! White is pretty easy to get dirty. I think it looks good but practically you've got to expect it to get dirty. The saddle doesn't have much crash protection - so if you crash often and your bike keeps endo-ing further than you do, look to the Rocket V's which have more durable construction. This is a Racing saddle!
Bottom Line:
This saddle is good for racers and experienced trail riders. The narrow saddle is of course, suited to people with narrow hips (just like me!). It's a very comfortable saddle with just enough padding to be perfect for enudro's but not so much to weigh it down. The Ti rails definitely help with the comfort factor. It's also quite flat, which allows me to move around quite easily.
Just keep in mind that this is a narrow racing racing saddle. Wider riders look at the Deva/Devo or other brands. It's perfect for riders like me: narrow hips and a saddle hardened bum. I love this saddle so much it's on my Trance and my XC HT racer.
Similar Products Used: Specialized Body Geometry, WTB Rocket V.
Bike Setup: 2006 Giant Trance 2: RS Revelation 426, Ritchey WCS stem & Race Face Deus XC bars.
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Submitted by
Jim Coles
a Weekend Warrior
from Austin, TX
Date Reviewed: July 24, 2006
Strengths: High quality. The drooped nose really works when I scoot to the front on climbs. It's very stiff for such a light saddle -- I get no flex when I slide up front or off the back. The narrow width makes it easier to get off the back than the WTB Laser. The price is fair. Variety of color/cover fabric options if you look around.
Weaknesses: Rough material (like a synthetic burlap or such?) on back of saddle grabs my baggy shorts when I get behind the saddle. Wish that where a more slippery fabric. Sometimes I actually get stuck behind the seat and have to dab. Humorous for my riding buddies.
Bottom Line:
The best 'narrow', light, high-end saddle I found. Great for tech trail riding with steep drops and steep climbs that require frequent shifting from the nose to off-the-back.
Similar Products Used: '98 Bontrager San Selle Marco clipped-ear. WTB Laser.
Bike Setup: Titus MotoLite 5/5 leaning towards Trail/All Mtn.
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Submitted by
Giancarlo Pelosi
a Weekend Warrior
from Miramar, FL, USA
Date Reviewed: July 13, 2006
Strengths: Not a bad ride for us heavier riders. Good cushion when you need it. Very uncommon among MTB saddles. This one is an exception. Also love the reflective material.
Weaknesses: None other than don't sit on your rump too long. Get up and pedal or use a granny seat.
Bike Setup: Giant Trance 1, XTR, XT, Shimano, Race Face, Chris King, WTB, ODI, FOX, Kenda Nevagal, MAVIC, and SRAM 990.
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Submitted by
Richard
a Cross Country Rider
from Huntington Beach, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: April 22, 2006
Strengths: Fairly light. Happy taint. Grippy sides let me control the bike in that scary moment before you've engaged you cleats on bumpy descents.
Weaknesses: After a while the foam has compressed somewhat -- but I guess that happens to every saddle unless you go foamless like those new all-carbon saddles -- too crazy for me.
Bottom Line:
I weight 175 and I ride both road and off-road about two to three times a week. I bought this saddle after reading the reviews listed under Rocket V. I wanted a light, but comfortable saddle to replace my $10 saddle after it started ripping. I did not know that I was riding in numbness until I made the switch. I liked it so much that I also got one for my road bike.
