The Luna X5 is a women’s specific saddle that offers a low-profile, narrow-nosed saddle suited to both endurance and enduro-style mountain biking.
Fizik designed the Luna, and its road-cycling counterpart the Luce, specifically for female riders. The shape and construction was chosen to support both body shape and body movement when riding.
The Luna X5 is constructed from alloy rails, a carbon-fibre reinforced shell and a manmade cover that’s smooth over the body of the saddle with an abrasion-resistant textured cover over the wings.
A stiff carbon-reinforced shell is paired with flexible thermoplastic elastomer wing panels at the rear, which allow them to flex and move when pedalling.
The saddle has been designed with long-distance or long-duration off-road riding in mind, and works well with a range of body positions, but particularly with a more aggressive riding style.
It measures 275mm x 145mm, with a long central cut-out of 100mm x 15mm. The channel it sits in extends around 20mm fore and aft of the cut-out.
The profile from the side is flat along the mid section with a slight rise to the rear and a slightly convex nose shape. From the rear, the saddle is flat with a slight downward convex shape over the edge of the wings.
There are two sizes of the Luna X5 available: the regular, tested here, with a width of 145mm, as claimed, and the large which has a claimed width of 155mm.
Fizik Luna X5 saddle performance
A firm, flat rear platform with a slight upwards tilt is superbly comfortable for a wide range of on-bike positions and actions. It provides good support for the sit bones when sat centrally and forward for climbs, or back for descents.
Angling the saddle correctly is particularly important because of the bulbous nose design, which puts pressure on the clitoral area when leaning forward on the saddle, or when the weight is forward on the saddle when climbing. Extending the pressure relief channel further forward towards the nose would, perhaps, alleviate this.
The flexible wings do a good job of moving when pedalling, and aided by the sharp transition between nose and wing there was little noticeable rubbing.
The central cut-out is well positioned to relieve pressure on the soft tissue of the labia, and the foam on the saddle either side of the channel has enough give that it doesn’t chafe or rub.
However, the wide wings and the abrasion-resistant cover did catch a little on some shorts on technical trails when standing and sitting. Other than that, the smooth profile and flat rear meant getting out and back behind the saddle was an uncomplicated affair.
For the majority of riding, this saddle proved very comfortable and provided just the right level of support, comfort and performance.
Product
| Brand | fizik |
| Price | 99.00 EUR,90.00 GBP,99.00 USD |
| Weight | 198.0000, GRAM (155mm) - |
Features
| br_rails | steel |
| br_cutOut | yes |
| br_gender | womens |
| br_length | 281mm |
| br_availableWidths | 145mm, 155mm |
