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This is how seatposts should be

2K views 17 replies 17 participants last post by  mbmb65 
#1 ·
While I was thinking about remote seatposts, (which I will probably never own) I was thinking that I can kind of adjust mine while riding. Kind of like having a remote lockout vs a normal tunkey lockout on the fork if you know what I mean. Then I realized that I cant, because the seatpost will rotate and turn sideways since I cant keep it perfectly straight with my legs. So what if seatposts and seat tubes were tapered just a little bit. Tapered isnt the right word I know, but thats all I can think of. Similar to how on a lot of road frames the tubes are kind of flattened for aerodynamics, except this would be just on the seat tube and post and not as flat looking as road frames. This way, you could adjust seat hight without having to worry about it rotating sideways. Theres never a reason to rotate the seatpost anyway, so why not? Anyone agree? Any reasons why not to do it?
 
#2 ·
I don't see a functional reason that seatposts should be perfectly round either, other than ease of manufacturing and vendor compatibility, in addition to creating inventory complexity (since you're probably need to carry regular round posts for quite a while anyway, just for compatibility with older bikes). It would probably add more confusion to the already fractured (and extremely close!) choices of seatpost diameters, if you had to add to that the additional questions of "round or directional?", "mount shape?", etc.

I suppose no one has had a big enough complaint about this shortcoming so far to induce them to create a solution.
 
#4 ·
Why have the option? I dont see a benefit of a round seatpost. Though youre right, it would make some more confusion.

With any shape but round the least bit of rotation would most likely jam the seat post in the frame rendering the adjustable feature useless.
I dont see that happening, but I also realized I cant think of a way tho make a clamp.
 
#6 ·
So the idea here is to be able to lower the seat while riding by using a QR seatpost clamp and a non-rotating seatpost? That's a horrible idea unless you are riding a very smooth, straight trail (road?) in which case why are you dropping your saddle? If you have to stop to lower the saddle, it's no big deal to keep the nose pointing forward. Even if the seatpost didn't rotate, I can't imagine trying to drop it while riding rough terrain. How do you control the height and speed of the saddle without a spring or hydraulics? Grab it with your butt cheeks? (I'n not even going to try imagining how you get the saddle back to its original position).
 
#7 ·
^^^^Exactly what he said^^^^
Plus it takes the frame makers more Fab work to make a flatten out and form a round pipe that already works great. More fab work more money to make. Plus as someone else stated a round seatpost can stick and weld itself to the frame. But a non-round post and frame will "really" have more sticking capabilities and issues. Plus strengthwise it could be an issue. Have you ever looked at the end of the infamous Thomson seatpost elite. Why are they so deemed the best aluminum seatpost on the market. Because they are light yet strong. They are this way because they shave weight (metal) where it is not needed to be so strong. On the sides of the post. Side to side movement isn't as much of an issue as back and forth movement on a seatpost. So look at the end of a Thomson seatpost it looks to be oblong. Wrong that is an optical illusion. The outside diameter is exactly round. But as you look straight down at it you will see the sides are thin and the front and back are thick.
Oh and BTW you do know that these adjustable seatposts that are on the market come in two varieties correct? The remote that is mounted on the handlebar. And one for you is the lever below your butt that you reach back and actuate. I don't know how many brands offer both but I know the Crank Brothers Joplin has both.
 
#13 ·
With an egg shaped seat post you would have to rely on the manufacturer of the fram and the post to have very good tolerances for your seat post to be aligned. That would drive me nuts if I had a frame and post where the seat was angled and there was nothing I could do about it.

Edit: and you are talking about a difficult shape to line up precisely.... A slight oval!
 
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