SYNCROS RR1.0

£124.99 › Syncros win?

SCOTT’S COMPONENTS ARM Syncros offers parts and accessories covering everything other than framesets and groupsets. The RR1.0 saddle tops its road racing (RR) range, and has a carbon fibre-reinforced nylon shell and 7x9mm carbon fibre rails. It’s 275mm long and available in either 128mm or 139mm widths, our narrower example weighed in 13g over its claimed weight at 168g, which is still pretty light.

As a guide, Syncros says the 128mm model suits riders with sit bone widths between 9-12cm, and the wider version those measuring 11-14cm, so there is some crossover, and if you’re in the middle ground, compare the RR1.0’s widths to a saddle you already have and like.

The design incorporates a very shallow central channel with a split tail, leaving a triangular hole in the extended shell. This is said to offer the same ergonomic advantages as a central cut-out, while better supporting the ischial bones, which reduce weight on sensitive areas, so getting the correct width is important. It’s hard to say if the channel really aided our comfort, as other factors are also in play, but the hole allows extra road spray to wet your rear and seep along the channel.

Intended for racers who like a low, aggressive position, the RR1.0 has a flat profile and wide, shallow nose that looks longer and slimmer than most, but its shape is almost identical to Fizik’s Antares. Light polyurethane (PU) padding is wrapped in a smooth microfabric cover with perforated rear section, and Syncros says there’s more padding than its competitors. Our calibrated thumbs and weeks of riding tell us that it’s certainly dense PU, but other equivalent saddles offer greater thicknesses and differing densities.

The low profile rails meant raising our seatpost by 10mm to maintain saddle height, so increasing its ability to flex. This plus the carbon rails made the Syncros a fairly comfortable race saddle, although a join between the shell and cover on one side of the nose was annoyingly uneven. There’s minimal flex from the saddle’s shell, making it solid and supportive for maximum attack, so it’s ideal for fans of flat and firm seats at a decent price.