Final summer time Selle Italia debuted their first 3D-printed saddle padding for his or her high highway SLR 3D, however this 12 months two extra saddles get the identical therapy – the split-nosed Watt triathlon TT saddle and the all-rounder Novus Evo endurance highway & gravel saddle. Plus, their eco-friendly, inexpensive, and 100% made-in-Italy Greentech household will get a brand new off-road Mannequin Y saddle with extra standard titanium rails.
Selle Italia Watt 3D-printed triathlon & TT saddle
Designed primarily as a triathlon saddle, the brand new Selle Italia Watt 3D reimagines the Italian saddle maker’s top-tier tri perch with all of the tunable consolation and assist advantages of 3D-printed padding. Building-wise, the brand new Watt 3D makes use of the identical Digital Mild Synthesis 3D-printed TPU padding on high of an excellent light-weight Equipment Carbonio carbon shell & rails as you discover within the SLR Increase 3D saddle – and Specialised Mirror and Fizik Adaptive saddles.
What’s new after all, is adapting that tech to the distinctive ahead place of triathlete and time trial racing the place the longer the rider can keep in a single tucked aero place, the quicker they go.
For the flat-topped Watt 3D, that meant a tighter-spaced, stiffer diamond-shaped construction particularly below the racer’s sit bones from the rear to center of the saddle, but in addition by the slender break up nostril of the saddle. And since racing towards the clock typically means lengthy intervals of time spent attempting to keep up a ahead place on the nostril of the saddle, Selle Italia designed the Watt 3D with closed grippy triangle ridges alongside the within of the nostril to assist maintain the rider in place.
Selle Italia additionally sweated the little particulars, too. Beneath, the Watt 3D saddle will get a tender grippy 3D-printed TPU lattice designed to maintain your triathlon bike hung securely in place over the bike rack rails typically used within the transition zone, so you may rapidly transfer from swim to bike, however extra importantly simply toss your bike onto the rack earlier than the run with out having to fret about your fancy, slippery carbon saddle sliding off the rack.
The general slender U3 idmatch 133mm extensive by brief 255mm sizing stays unchanged from the usual Watt saddles. We don’t have official pricing on the Watt 3D but, however anticipate the highest Equipment Carbonio model to promote for a similar 450€ because the SLR. No phrase if a less expensive ti-railed model can even be supplied.
Selle Italia Novus Increase Evo 3D-printed endurance highway saddle
Extra within the realm of on a regular basis using, Selle Italia has additionally given its newest Novus Increase Evo endurance highway saddle – launched simply final spring – the 3D therapy as properly. The wave-shaped Novus Increase Evo 3D once more will get its personal utterly distinctive 3D-printed TPU sample design, reinforcing the flexibleness of the DLS additive manufacturing course of whereas reaching the identical basic results of various levels of rider assist vs. consolation all through completely different zones on the saddle.
The brand new Novus 3D saddle is available in two completely different variants, each sharing the identical brief match L3 idmatch form – 145mm extensive by 245mm lengthy. The highest Selle Italia Novus Increase Evo 3D Equipment Carbonio Superflow saddle sells for 430€ with a claimed weight of 181g because of a full carbon shell and 7x9mm oval rails. The Novus Increase Evo 3D Ti 316 Superflow saddle is a little more inexpensive at 340€ with a bolstered composite shell and tubular titanium rails, at an estimated of 216g.
Selle Italia Mannequin Y eco-friendly Greentech off-road saddle
Final up within the new Selle Italia line-up is one other Greentech saddle, once more intriguing me with how Selle Italia can leverage more-automated manufacturing to lower a product’s environmental footprint with much less waste & no adhesives, whereas additionally drastically decreasing the value to shoppers, and produce manufacturing 100% again to Italy.
This time the brand new Mannequin Y is an off-road-specific saddle with a middle-of-the-road form – not fairly curved, however not completely flat – and only a delicate stress reduction channel down the center of the padding AND a hidden Superflow stress cutout beneath within the shell itself. No mud o rear tire spray getting a direct line to your rear finish. Once more, at its core is an injection-molded bolstered plastic shell, with dense padding molded immediately on high of that.
However what’s actually new on this Greentech saddle is that it sticks with extra standard hole titanium saddle rails which can be molded immediately into the bolstered plastic shell. That makes for a harder saddle than the alloy & plastic-railed Mannequin X, however does barely bump as much as carbon footprint.
The brand new L1 142mm extensive x 246mm lengthy Mannequin Y continues to be made 100% in Italy – all inside 15km of Selle Italia’s Treviso HQ – and comes out to 2.06kg of equal CO2 in its whole manufacturing. That’s nonetheless a -34% discount in comparison with an identical saddle made in Asia, however greater than 2x the footprint of the Mannequin X because of these harder titanium rails.
Designed for gravel and mountain bike using, the brand new Selle Italia Mannequin Y continues to be fairly low-cost at slightly below $95 / 80€, and a very good bit lighter than the X at a claimed 277g.
Get the brand new Novus Increase Evo 3D & Mannequin Y saddles now by common sellers or direct from Selle Italia, whereas the Watt 3D might be out there later this summer time.
