Thomson Elite Seatpost, arguably one of the prettiest pieces on any high-performace bike, the Thomson Elite is also one of the most versatile components available. The same Elite Seatpost can be used for spinning away hours on your Road Bike, bashing thro
Strengths: Well designed and solid build. Adjustability.
Weaknesses: Longevity. Difficult to clean and change saddles.
Bottom Line:
This seat post worked fine for a couple of years then started to creak. Lubed, changed saddle, friction assembly paste, new seat clamp. Still had creak. Changed seatpost and no creak. Given the price, I think that there are better options.
Submitted by
willem3
a Cross Country Rider
from Bend, Oregon USA
Date Reviewed: September 19, 2011
Strengths: Beautiful design. Works well at first.
Weaknesses: Adjustability. The bolts tend to bend even when using the perfect amount of torque as specified by Thomson. The post starts to creak and needs service on a frequent basis in our dusty environment here in Bend, Oregon. It is not set and forget.
Bottom Line:
I initially loved the Elite posts. I have owned a few. Overtime, I began to realize the amount of service they require. I am very careful with my equipment and never overtorque. I had to purchase two bolt kits from my local dealer and found that greased or ungreased the post began to creak within a few rides. This happened on both of my bikes. I finally decided to replace my seatpost collars thinking that was the issue. I replaced the Hope Quick Releases with the Salsa QR's on both bikes. The problem did not go away. Finally, as an experiment I decided to try a different saddle. Still no change. Each time, I completely cleaned, regreased and properly installed the Thomson post. My final step was to purchase a RaceFace Next SL post to see if that solved the problem. It did. Now two months later, not one creak or noise at all. Flawless.
These posts tend to get the automatic five chilis on both Value and Overall on MTBR. For me, after a long-term evaluation, this is not the case. They seemed that way at first, but quickly disapointed. The RaceFace posts have been great on both my bikes. I now run the Salsa QR with the Race Face NEXT SL and WTB Rocket V Race (Titanium rails) saddles on both of my bikes. Totally solid.
Similar Products Used: Synchros, Race Face Next SL, etc...
Bike Setup: Ventana El Comandante Singlespeed and a Banshee Viento
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Submitted by
rod vargas
a Cross Country Rider
from Bolivia
Date Reviewed: April 30, 2011
Strengths: strong, looks good and does the job
Weaknesses: a little heavy compared to competitors , for weight freaks: get the masterpiece.
Bottom Line:
after using it for 10 years it's correct to finally submit a review on this product,
it's the best seatpost ever, the color is still on, the letters to considering i move it on every ride. i has never been re adjusted, no squeeks, absolutely stiff.
i use it on XC and downhill situtations.
Bike Setup: cannondale f 3000 y2k xtr,crossmax,selle italia and off course thomson elite./iron horse yakuza.
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Submitted by
SLORider
a Cross Country Rider
from San Luis Obispo
Date Reviewed: April 21, 2011
Strengths: Great seatpost, light and looks pretty
Weaknesses: Its pretty expensive.
Bottom Line:
The thomson seatpost is a work of art and highly engineered. I dont know why people are complaining that their seatposts are bending, if its bending they most likely are putting to much force on the seatpost, perhaps do to crash, foot coming off of pedal, etc... I personally think its awesome that the seatpost is designed to bend at a given force so that it does not destroy the bike frame. Below is a segment taken directly off of thomsons website concerning their product. Its a great seatpost, I wouldn't put this seatpost on my junker unless I had cash to burn, which I don't unfortunately.
/* The Thomson seatpost design incorporates a bending fuse to prevent catastrophic failure. All competitive seatposts we tested failed catastrophically with the seat and clamp components, and sometimes pieces of the tube and head flying off in all directions.
The Thomson seatpost has a clamp, head, and upper tube strong enough to withstand 350 foot-lbs of torque. The tube will start to yield and bend at the seat tube clamp at about 250 foot-lbs of torque. Under severe impact the Thomson seatpost will bend slightly and allow the rider to come to a safe stop or finish the ride.
*/
Similar Products Used: There are no similar products like the thomson.
Bike Setup: Santa Cruz Blur LT, the Blur LT is an awesome bike and the thomson rounds it out.
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Submitted by
malsta1
a Cross Country Rider
from Australia
Date Reviewed: March 9, 2011
Strengths: Strong, very good finish, long lasting.
Weaknesses: None whatsoever.
Bottom Line:
I replaced the origional seatpost for a Thompson and what a difference it made.
This would have to be my best upgrade so far.
I would highly recommend this product.
Bike Setup: Specialized Stumpjumper. No longer origional.
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Submitted by
mikeebear
a Cross Country Rider
from Brick, NJ
Date Reviewed: March 3, 2011
Strengths: Going strong for years
Weaknesses: None that I have ever had
Bottom Line:
I have had the Thompson elite for twelve years on my KHS FXT no creaks no problems ever. I probably never have to get another for another ten years as long as I don't crack it.
Weaknesses: Not idiot proof
Don't grease your seat post! It may start slipping & moving.
If it creaks tighten the 2 bolts that hold the seat.
Bottom Line:
Great post. Have had 2 of these posts for 6 years and they are still going strong!
Just installed an old post into a new (to me) ebay frame. Previous owner of the frame decided to coat the seatpost tube interoir with grease. This is causing some seatpost slippage but I'll get some DAWN or grease cutter to clean it out, should stop the slippage. If not I will clean the post & toss a coat or 2 of paint on the lower part. It's been used so much the black anodizing is worn off.
Bike Setup: I have used it on many Mountain Cycle bikes, now it's on my Carbon HT.
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Submitted by
onegymrat
a Weekend Warrior
from Southern California, USA
Date Reviewed: December 10, 2010
Strengths: Sturdy and fairly light
Weaknesses: Zero
Bottom Line:
Thomson products are simply dependable. The adjustments to this seatpost are precise and they never waver. The markings are easy to see on the head of the post. No creaks, no noise, perfect. You can always find lighter posts (carbon or Thomson Masterpiece) but you may sacrifice piece of mind. They are solid and unbreakable but still fairly light.
Similar Products Used: Specialized stock seatposts
Bike Setup: 2010 Pivot Mach 5
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Submitted by
jimziky
a Weekend Warrior
from california usa
Date Reviewed: September 15, 2010
Strengths: i'm a big guy 240lbs+ i'm 6'2", but i like med frames (17") i ride my thomson almost to the max line. i don't even feel any flex. ease of set-up and adjustment.
Weaknesses: none so far got my g/f one she loves it too
Submitted by
John.M
a Cross Country Rider
from Niles, Michigan, USA
Date Reviewed: August 8, 2010
Strengths: Length, strength
Weaknesses: Slipped until I put a coke-can shim in, now it's great
Bottom Line:
I bought a SE Stout that was on the border line of being too small for me. That bike came with a 350mm seatpost, and I found myself needing about 1/2" more height that the stock seatpost couldn't deliver. I am a clyde (230lbs), and do a fair bit of XC, so I knew I needed something that could handle some stress. I read the reviews on here, and chose the setback version of the 410mm Thomson Elite seatpost from a height and knee alignment perspective.
The first two rides were great on the new seatpost went well. It felt solid, especially on the Stout - but it did slip down about 3/4" over about a 10 mile ride. I cut up a coke can last weekend, and built a shim for it. Over 30 miles this morning, it didn't move a millimeter.
Overall, I am very impressed, and pleased with this seatpost.
Bike Setup: 2009 SE Stout single speed; Avid BB7s; Thomson Elite 410mm setback seatpost
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Submitted by
jcsnyc
a Weekend Warrior
from Brooklyn, NY
Date Reviewed: August 2, 2010
Strengths: Looks awesome. Does not get scratched at all. Super rigid. Super tight fit due to ridges. No Creaks!
Weaknesses: Have to remove when I lockup the bike for fear it will get stolen!
Bottom Line:
I had a major creaking problem while riding recently. I replaced bottom bracket, tightened cranks, greased all drivetrain items up and still the creak continued.
Finally removed seatpost and rode and creaking went away. Moved Thomson Elite from my Mountain Bike to my commuter and had a blissfully silent ride in today.
I've run 3 or 4 Thomson Elites. Always wondered why I should pay a premium for a seat post (I mean, it's a seat post) but did it on the belief that it was superior in strength and was also Made in the USA. This post, a 2009 31.6, sustained a pretty significant bend - not sure how, but it could have been a botched landing where my foot came off the pedal (I'm 180 lbs).
Anyway, I was disappointed at the bend, but emailed Thomson. The warranty rep was SUPER responsive (like within 5 minutes) and offered me a "one-time replacement." OK, cool - so I shipped my post back to them on February 1, 2010. But they're back ordered. So today is February 25th and still no seat post. All my other bikes are 30mm or 27.2mm, so my Knolly's been down for a month now. So here's the bottom line:
1. Paid $80 for a quality post with premium support;
2. The post bent within 1 year (to be fair, my other Thomsons had no issue - but then again, neither have the Amoeba, FSA, or Race Face posts);
3. Got tagged for shipping to send the post back for warranty;
4. As of this morning, FSA 31.6 posts (IN STOCK) for $20.39.
Thus, if I took the same $80 I spent on the Thomson, I could buy 4 FSAs, still have a warranty, and have 3 back-ups.
So, the question you have to ask yourself is, seriously, what features on the Thomson post justify the price delta?
Submitted by
alanchan
a Cross Country Rider
from Toronto, Canada
Date Reviewed: January 19, 2010
Strengths: Clamping power, build quality
Weaknesses: Adjusting seat angle can be a bit difficult.
The stock bolts are not long enough for some saddle, an extra long bolt kit is available for extra price.
Bottom Line:
Best seatpost out there. If you need a layback seatpost, this is also a perfect one. It actually bents at the middle unlike other brands just set the clamp behind the post and tends to fail during heavy impact.
I was going to try the Masterpiece but it just takes off the weight by making the inner circle round instead of oval. The Masterpiece also don't 410mm length. Elite is the way to go.
