Gilles Berthoud Soulor/Galibier saddle question

If anyone has one of these…What saddle tilt did you find worked best? Level? Nose up or nose down?

Any advice will be appreciated.

I've got a couple of Galibiers and a couple of the bigger/wider Aspins, they have all needed to be a bit nose up to work for me, I think the Aspin a smidge more so than Galibier but then they are on bikes with higher bars and a less aggressive postion. Level didn't work for me, just ended up sliding forward.

Either way just cos that works for me doesn't mean it will for you!

For ref, Galibier on the Mercian, Aspin on the Carlton

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Thank you that is really helpful…I am planning bin getting the Soulor with stainless steel rails… I can’t justify getting the Galibier with Ti rails…My bike set up is similar to your Mercian…bars lower by a few centimetres than the saddle…so, I will try nose upwards by a few degrees and take it from there. 😄

You might also find you need to adjust the angle once you have a few miles on it too, my Galibiers started off a bit flatter than you see in the pic and I actually had to angle them very slightly more nose up once they'd taken a shape from my sitbones. FWIW they bed in a lot quicker than a Brooks in that regard, a few hundred miles tops.

Did you get the Galibier from new? Initially, did it feel comfortable when the saddle was level?

May I ask why you bought the Galibier (Ti) and not the Soulor (stainless steel)?

These are both excellent builds! Have you converted them from 27” to 700c? It’s my current obsession to get fatter tyres. Also, is that Ken Ryall frame currently on eBay yours? Very similar vibes.

I have both Aspin and Galibier and run both a fraction nose up otherwise I feel I need to push back at the bars.
(Galibier could be for sale if you did want ti)

Yes had the Galibiers from new, they were comfortable enough when new, but they got better as they bedded in, needed a couple of small tension tweaks as they did, but been stable now for a fair while.

Only reason I got the Galibiers is pure unadulterated tartyness, although I did have a Soulor for a while too. They probably flex a tiny bit more than the Soulor but I wouldn't bet on being able to tell in a blind test!

EDIT - I just checked my receipts and the last Galbier I bought, which is the one on the Mercian I purchased in 2018 and it was £142 posted so less than what the Soulor seems to be now!

Thank you! and yes they were both originally on 27s, but the Mercian was always intended to run either, 27s or 'sprints'.
The Mercian is a lovely thing, I have a couple of others too (one SS, one geared) but this one is probably objectively the 'nicest' and takes 32s with guards easily on 700c.

The '65 Carlton is my local town/errand bike is just like wafting around on an old armchair with wheels, and it's just the right side of shonky, the paint is mostly falling off, it has some surface rust, and it's a mix of original bits and some newer bits that have replaced worn out parts (BB/hubs/rims etc) and it was definitely a Friday afternoon build from the factory as some of the lugs are a bit wonky but it rides great :-)

And yes the Ken Ryall is mine! I'm having to sell a few bikes to make room as I've had a bit of a habit for the last decade or so and got far too many!

@marxist_vulcan, I'm guessing from this thread and your questions that this will be your first GB saddle?

Are you coming from riding other leather saddles like Brooks or modern type saddles?

Thanks for that. I have the same habit. Currently trying to convince myself I don’t need that Ken Ryall…

No..I have had an Aravis but was too wide for me....I have used Brooks but I didn't set it up properly and it didn't work out....This time, I have worked out the width of my sit bones...10.5cm....so the Soulor/Galibier would be more suitable.

I only used the Aravis level ..not nose up.

The Souler is £159.99 from SJS Cycles.

PM sent. 😀

Ah righto, was just going to say that I've found the GB saddles to come up a little narrower than their Brooks equivalents, the Soulor/Galibier is very much on the narrower side, hopefully it'll work out for you and perpetual bottom-bliss awaits :)

Just crack on and experiment with positioning, tiny adjustments can make a big difference to feel on these saddles.

Currently, I have a SMP 20VTc Gel…which is 144mm wide and that is fine…it is quite good but just not totally right…in the past with leather saddles, I have gone much wider but narrower seems better. Moreover due to changes I have made to the cockpit…Nitto Technomic 225mm stem and a 38cm Nitto shallow bars…I can comfortably ride most of the time on the drops…so in a more aggressive riding position.

All your advice has been very useful and very appreciated by myself….just waiting for a reply from @zephyr26 about his GB Galibier.

Have also found SMP good choice too Drakon is best for me for comparison. Even more position sensitive than BG though

I might keep the SMP for the winter as I don’t use mudguards.