Decisions, Decisions....
I don't take this lightly you know
I realise that the forum have high expectations of my bike - it's funny because even though I've had it for more than 20 years, all of a sudden it doesn't seem like 'my' bike any more, I'm more 'custodian' than 'owner'.
So I've had a go with the saddle, and very quickly reached the opinion that whilst it was improving slightly with my gentle efforts, the only way forward was to consult the experts. The leather itself is very robust - its that top level of the hide that's been coloured that's so precious. So thanks to cloonaghpat for his inspiration - he showed on previous posts what he had managed with a black saddle and a repair kit.
Well having looked at the prices of the repair kits Pat had used, and critically critiqued my own abilities, and I thought I'd give be better off giving the pro's a crack. I can do mechanical, I can do logical, but I'm not sure I'm an artist.
So having agreed a fair but not insignificant quotation for the work (more than better looking saddles might be on offer for on popular sites) , next week the saddle is off to a professional leather restorer, to see what she can do with it.
And of course if what I receive looks nice and yellow, I'll gladly promote her services to the rest of you and if not Matt_wood55 will have the chance for his old saddle to sit atop Dave's old bike
I have also been applying some vigorous elbow grease to the front wheel - and in comparison, it has benefited ! I'll post some pics on the weekend, when I'm home.
Some suggestion on how to to clean the tan side walls of old tubulars would be appreciated!