After hinting on the potential for particular person rider customization with their first 3D-printed Adaptive saddles, Fizik One-to-One lastly delivers that full customized saddle match. Powered by confirmed GebioMized saddle stress mapping, the true innovation is simply how simple Fizik has made the customized becoming course of. Developed to be easy and quick, Fizik will measure you in your bike, then customized print a saddle to satisfy your particular help wants. It’s not low-cost, but it surely’s additionally not that costly – as little as 15% greater than the price of their earlier top-tier Adaptive saddle.
We have been intrigued. So I obtained fitted. I obtained a customized saddle made. And I’ve been driving it for the previous 2 months. And the customized match actually does ship on consolation.
Fizik One-To-One customized 3D-printed bicycle saddle
3D-printed saddle padding mainly made 2 most important claims from the beginning. 1, it meant that each separate zone of a saddle might provide a novel degree of help, relying on how a lot was wanted in every space. And a couple of, for the reason that padding was printed separately, the one factor stopping every saddle from being customized printed for every rider was a necessity to gather particular person rider information and design a padding construction tailor-made to that rider.
So first, Fizik developed their inventory 3D-printed saddle line with the complete (and lately rising) Adaptive vary. Its zonal cushioning provides stiffer help below the sit bones the place you want it, however much less resistance in opposition to comfortable tissue. It’s a reasonably large deal, and the driving force behind Specialised’s comparable Mirror saddles. Each primarily based on piles of averaged rider place information, matching rider physiology with focused help constructions within the padding.
Then, Fizik labored on particular person customization.
GebioMized stress mapping made easy
The principle impediment to creating a customized match saddle accessible to the plenty was accumulating particular person rider match information.
So, Fizik when to the corporate that was already doing it on a smaller scale. German firm GebioMized has been utilizing their distinctive patented stress mapping system for 20+ years to measure actual dwell pressures between the bicycle owner & saddle. A giant a part of that’s used for refining rider place on the bike and matching one of the best present saddle to the rider. I did a GebioMized stress map match 4 years in the past, and lowered peak stress by 20% – an actual sport changer. However I caught with one among their inventory saddle shapes and padding.
The difficulty is/was, it was a protracted match course of, and required about 90 minutes with a talented bike fitter. Not a low-cost course of, and simple so as to add at the least $200+€ to the price of a saddle. Nonetheless completely value it in my thoughts for a dedicated bicycle owner, although.
An fascinating apart, Czech customized saddle maker Posedla obtained across the complicated information assortment course of with a a lot lower-tech answer to deliver customized match 3D-printed saddles to market two years in the past, at a barely lower cost.
However, Fizik labored with GebioMized and their stress sensor tech to make the method sooner and simpler.
One-on-One, step-by-step
So, Fizik labored with GebioMized to create a easy smartphone app-based setup that may accumulate rider stress information shortly and get you on the best saddle for personalization. All it’s important to do is pop into one of many choose Fizik match studios with your personal bike, get a quick stress match check in about quarter-hour or much less to create a customized 3D-padding profile distinctive to the person help wants of your physique in your bike.
To do this, you roll your bike on to a Wahoo curler coach that grabs your entrance wheel. Fizik places their new 64-point Bluetooth stress sensor mat on high of your present saddle. You experience for a minute in a number of positions to get a common stress map profile.
The app suggests what saddle form and width appears most acceptable.
So then, the bike store will swap in the usual Fizik saddle in that form. They usually rerun the stress map check. The ensuing stress readout is then despatched to Fizik, the place their parametric design system adjusts their honeycomb padding construction to supply help the place you want it, and comfortable construction the place you don’t.
You choose which saddle rails you need, after which, Fizik provides it to the 3D-printer queue.
The saddle padding will get printed (which takes about half a day), after which finally connected to a inventory shell.
After which delivered again to you to experience a full customized saddle.
So how does it really feel & how does it experience?
I went to Italy somewhat over two months in the past and obtained my very own customized match, 3D-printed Fizik One-to-One Adaptive saddle. The method put me on a large 155mm Aliante saddle form, which I’d not have considered. And it recognized an imbalance that me noticed placing extra stress on the best facet.
And the saddle it created is distinctly asymmetrical in its padding stiffness. There’s even an excellent comfortable space on the center of the left facet the place it seems like there may be virtually no help, however which corresponds to my stress readings.
The Fizik One-to-One Adaptive saddle doesn’t right any match concern or right imbalance that you simply presently have, it merely responds to the stress out of your sitting positions, and accommodates that with matching help.
So, I’ve been driving most of my highway and gravel rides for the previous a number of weeks on this saddle and I can say the match is nice. I don’t really feel like I’ve the flexibleness to maneuver round as a lot on the saddle as I usually would on a flatter saddle. However I’m completely content material to simply sit in place and spin, in whole consolation.
I do know it’s not low-cost. And I do know for cyclists with a number of bikes, the considered spending 5 hundred bucks on each saddle is a bit wild. However we spend a lot time sitting on a saddle. I feel it’s actually value placing within the further effort to optimize consolation below your butt.
Fizik One-to-One Adaptive saddle – Pricing, choices & availability
The brand new Fizik One-to-One 3D-printed Adaptive saddles can be found now if you get a customized slot in one among their choose 25 worldwide sellers already outfitted with the particular coach and pressure-mapping tech. Get match, and get a customized saddle.
The saddles themselves can be found in six shapes on carbon-reinforced shells, and a pair of widths every, from highway to gravel to XC to triathlon.
And pricing is $499 / 459€ for the R3 sequence with ti Kium rails, or $599 / 499€ for R1 with full carbon rails to save lots of a number of grams. Fizik selected to not provide a customized One-to-One Adaptive saddle on the full carbon 00 degree, as the extra stiffness doesn’t guarantee the identical rider consolation afforded by the customized becoming.
All saddles are made-to-order (clearly) within the northern Italy manufacturing facility headquarters of Fizik. And as soon as ordered and paid for by means of your native store, Fizik will both ship it on to you. Or you may have it despatched to the Fizik seller store the place they are going to do a follow-up stress mapping check to point out how your saddle stress has improved.
You’ll be driving on a customized 3D-printed saddle about 2 weeks after you get your customized match.
