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review

Selle San Marco Mantra Full-Fit Carbon FX saddle

8
£179.99

VERDICT:

8
10
Comfortable race saddle with a great shape and firm padding
Weight: 
164g

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The Selle San Marco Mantra Full-Fit Carbon FX is the company's answer to the flat-profiled, aggressive, racer's saddle. It's surprisingly comfortable considering how firm it is, and the carbon fibre construction brings the weight right down.

  • Pros: Comfortable despite its firmness
  • Cons: Central channel isn't the most effective

Taking the Mantra CFX out of its box, I had some trepidation about how I was going to get on with it. A prod of the padding with my thumb and it barely moved, and looking at the pretty much dead flat profile, I had images of me spending a lot of time shuffling around.

> Find your nearest dealer here

Out on the first ride, though, all of that was completely unfounded.

The padding has just enough movement to take the sting out of the road while being totally supportive to your bodyweight. It doesn't sag or let you bounce around, and for me at least offers a great compromise.

Biofoam is what San Marco calls it: 'This padding has a biodynamic structure that follows the movements of the pelvis during pedalling, this guarantees comfort, reduces weight, and provides lasting resistance and ideal support. The 'closed cell' surface ensures the water repellency of the padding.'

Selle San Marco Mantra Full-Fit Carbon FX saddle-2.jpg

The flat profile is designed for riding hard and fast, being aimed at the type of rider who has plenty of flexibility and is therefore crouched over the handlebar with little unwanted movement at the pelvis.

This kind of spirited riding is when the Mantra feels at its best, but taking things a little steadier and sitting up – adding a bit more weight on the saddle – still results in a good degree of comfort, even after four hours or so.

The Full-Fit part of the name is in relation to the central channel that runs through the saddle to provide some pressure relief. It is quite shallow, and as far as I can tell doesn't really bring a whole lot to the party.

> 9 ways to make your bike more comfortable

Numbness isn't really something I suffer with, regardless of the saddle, so it was no big deal for me, but if you do need some relief there are various Mantras that have full cutouts, such as the Supercomfort model that Dave recently tested.

The Mantra CFX is pretty light at 164g for this narrow model (you can get a wider version too) thanks to a carbon-enhanced nylon shell and full carbon fibre rails.

Both of these add to the stiffness as well and Selle San Marco says that the crossover design of the rails at the front of the saddle resists spin and torsion under pedalling.

Selle San Marco Mantra Full-Fit Carbon FX saddle-4.jpg

The rails are quite long, too, and offer over 60mm of fore and aft adjustment.

Money-wise the Mantra CFX costs £179.99, which when you have a look around at some of the current opposition is about on the money. Both the Astute Star Lite VT and the Fizik Antares R1 Versus Evo are about the same, and come with full carbon fibre rails and a carbon-reinforced shell. 

> Buyer's Guide: 13 of the best high-performance saddles

Overall, the Mantra CFX is a great shape and offers plenty of comfort, especially if you are the type of rider who likes to spend a lot of time on the limit.

Verdict

Comfortable race saddle with a great shape and firm padding

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Selle San Marco Mantra Full-Fit Carbon FX saddle

Size tested: Narrow (S1)

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

Selle San Marco says, "The Mantra Full-Fit Carbon Fx Saddle boasts advanced carbon rails, a race-orientated shape, aggressive styling and is designed to optimise your performance.

"Created using ergonomic studies, this saddle has a flat platform that provides you with the ideal balance of efficient power transfer and comfort that lasts all day. This is thanks to the combination of Selle San Marco's light, strong and twist resistant carbon rails, Bioflex padding and its 'Full Fit' design."

For riders who want a firm and flat saddle for high speed riding, the Mantra delivers.

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Selle San Marco lists these features:

Cover: Microfeel & Carbon

Shell: Carbon Fibre Reinforced

Use: Road

Saddle Profile: Open / Flat

Dimensions:

Narrow: 278x136mm (ID-Match Ref: S1)

Wide: 278x146mm (ID-Match Ref: L1)

Weight: 160/164g

Product Data

Rail Material: Alloy

Road: Yes

MTB: Yes

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10
Rate the product for performance:
 
8/10
Rate the product for durability:
 
8/10
Rate the product for weight (if applicable)
 
8/10
Rate the product for comfort (if applicable)
 
8/10
Rate the product for value:
 
7/10

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

It pretty much delivers on its design spec as a lightweight racing saddle.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Flat, narrow shape is great for hunkering down and smashing the pedals.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Pressure relief channel doesn't really feel like it does much.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

For what you are getting, it is very similar in price to a lot of the big brands.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

It's a well-made race saddle with plenty of nice touches, with a firm yet comfortable ride.

Overall rating: 8/10

About the tester

Age: 40  Height: 180cm  Weight: 76kg

I usually ride: This month's test bike  My best bike is: B'Twin Ultra CF draped in the latest bling test components

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: time trialling, commuting, club rides, sportives, fixed/singlespeed

As part of the tech team here at F-At Digital, senior product reviewer Stu spends the majority of his time writing in-depth reviews for road.cc, off-road.cc and ebiketips using the knowledge gained from testing over 1,500 pieces of kit (plus 100's of bikes) since starting out as a freelancer back in 2009. After first throwing his leg over a race bike back in 2000, Stu's ridden more than 170,000 miles on road, time-trial, track, and gravel bikes, and while he's put his racing days behind him, he still likes to smash the pedals rather than take things easy. With a background in design and engineering, he has an obsession with how things are developed and manufactured, has a borderline fetish for handbuilt metal frames and finds a rim braked road bike very aesthetically pleasing!

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