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brooks handvat

Originally uploaded by www.brooksshop.nl

Dutch dealer Brooksshop.nl has an interesting Flickr photostream. They are showing a few of the new Brooks items that won’t be available here for months. (like the grips in this picture)

John, in the U.K., sent us a picture of this B.66 that he found on Ebay UK. We’ve seen the shaggy B.17 that was give to dealers for ‘09 but John tells us that this B.66 was an earlier dealer award from the Sturmey Archer era. The “7C9″ stamp on the underside indicates, I think, that the saddle was made in March ‘97.

Tags: shaggy

Upcoming product from the Brooks company is the subject of a couple of interesting articles in the road.cc website.

In Life’s a Picnic at Brooks: Part 1 we’re told a little about a visit to the factory and why American hides won’t work for saddles. Then we learn about a new “Brooks Select” line of saddles, made from special Swiss hides, along with grips and a cape.

The previews continue in Life’s a Picnic at Brooks: Part 2 we go on to a bunch of new bags, that are headed our way, and a few other accessories.

You can also find an article about the rebirth of the Colt saddle.

road.cc is an interesting site and they have many nice pictures.

This is the first I’ve heard about most of these new products. Right now we can get the panniers ($560/pr), the bar bag, and the cape ($260). I am waiting for information on the Select saddles and the bags. You can get a rough idea of the prices by multiplying the ££ price by 1.5 to get the $$.

Gilles Berthoud has produced the lightest full-leather saddle on the market with the introduction of his Galiber model race saddle. Titanium rails and careful design result in a weight of ~305g. The Soulor is a stainless steel version and the existing Aspin steel touring saddle is joined by the Aravis titanium touring saddle. (The saddles are named for climbs in the French Alps).
Berthoud saddles are waterproof and hand pre-softened. They can be disassembled with hand tools and the tensioning mechanism in the nose is an advance over existing designs. All models come in black, natural (un-dyed) and “cork” finish leather.
These saddles are a fine example of M. Berthoud’s passion for fine cycling equipment. We are happy to be able to represent the Berthoud firm in the United States.

Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires can be hard to mount on a rim. They’re big, thick, heavy tires. The folks at Spa Cycles, in the U.K., have published a video that shows a good way to get a Marathon Plus, or any difficult tire. onto a rim.

Some of you have seen this bar tape on the Fizik Europe website. Since three of the colors are “black,” “honey,” and “antique brown” we have assumed they were produced with Brooks saddles in mind. (Fizik and Brooks are siblings in the Selle Royal family)

Turns out they are made for Brooks if you are somewhere besides the U.S.  The tape doesn’t meet the California lead standards!

Lead in bar tape? Who knew?

So, I guess if you want the dangerous, but nicely color-coordinated, bar tape you will need to do your shopping on the other side of the Atlantic.

Tags: bartape banned