How does the Thomson Masterpiece seatpost compare with a carbon seatpost?

[yoshirider]

I'm having issues trying to get my saddle level (it's close but the nose is off by a few mm) with the stock carbon Canyon VCLS seatpost that came with my frame. I have a Thomson Masterpiece sitting in the parts box and it looks like I'll be able to level the saddle easily with it, but I'm hesitant to swap it in because I have no idea how comfortable it is. Does the Thomson Masterpiece dampen road vibration close enough to a carbon seatpost to make it a worthwhile swap?

[pinoymamba]

if it's easier to adjust and get it to where you're most comfortable, i'd use it.

i doubt you'd be able to tell the difference...

i used an aluminum post on my canyon (syntace)

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5484/10618444734_16013aa65c_z_d.jpg

[kramnnim]

Might depend on how much seatpost is exposed...

You could go for a newer VCLS! http://cycletechreview.com/2013/reviews/canyon-vcls-post-2-0-seatpost/

[11.4]

Seatposts can give you a little extra comfort, but tires and saddle are worth a lot more. You have to get the seat post right in order to have much benefit at all. By that I mean, you have to have enough exposed and you should have a narrower post diameter -- a 31.6 mm Thomson is a lot stiffer than a 27.2, naturally. A setback post has more play than a straight post. And having your saddle positioned so the post clamps mid-range in the rails makes the saddle more complaint than if you clamp it all the way forward or back.

There was an interesting study -- don't remember where I saw it -- about torquing your saddle on the post. The conclusion with half a dozen seat posts and a dozen saddles was that tightening the mounting bolts an extra turn drastically reduced saddle flexion and decreased riding comfort. It makes sense, in a way. The torque ranges were all in the vicinity of rated torques for the seat posts. The only ones that didn't have much of a difference were those with one continuous clamp like a Moots.

[BeeSeeBee]

From a VeloNews test

http://i.imgur.com/bwUuZUel.jpg (http://i.imgur.com/bwUuZUe.jpg)

http://i.imgur.com/uT9Ho5ul.jpg (http://i.imgur.com/uT9Ho5u.jpg)

How this translates to actual road feel I have no idea.

[oldpotatoe]

I'm having issues trying to get my saddle level (it's close but the nose is off by a few mm) with the stock carbon Canyon VCLS seatpost that came with my frame. I have a Thomson Masterpiece sitting in the parts box and it looks like I'll be able to level the saddle easily with it, but I'm hesitant to swap it in because I have no idea how comfortable it is. Does the Thomson Masterpiece dampen road vibration close enough to a carbon seatpost to make it a worthwhile swap?

Any carbon post strong enough to not break when ya ride it isn't going to provide shock absorption when compared to the Masterpiece. Use the Thompson, great post, easy to micro adjust pitch.

[yoshirider]

Thanks for all the insight guys. I think I'm pretty much sold on using the Thomson. I just hope it's not too short after reading a very old thread from 2011 on minimum seatpost insertion in the archives (http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=88084). Didn't know there was a better way to figure out how long the seatpost needs to extend below the top tube to prevent cracks to the frame.

[pdmtong]

while many seatposts offer the fore/aft two bolt adjustment configuration, the thomson rail clamps includes tic marks so you can see precisely the angle of tilt. this makes adjustment and replication sooooo easy.

like others, I would NOT sweat the idea of masterpiece metal vs. carbon in a post.

if you are tilt sensitive, the best carbon post with an ill-adjusted saddle will leave you hurting whereas the perfectly adjusted tilt on ANY post will leave you smiling.

supposedly, thomson is coming out with a revised version of their setback post
around now so if you need setback, and the current is too short, you might consider waiting to buy

[Len J]

Yea but the Thompson setback is Fugly.

Just sayin. ;-)

Len

[Tony Edwards]

Yea but the Thompson setback is Fugly.

Just sayin. ;-)

Len

I am a function-over-form guy, and not generally preoccupied with aesthetics when I am buying bikes or components. That being said, the Thomson setback post is one of those products I consider simply too ugly to be used on any bike I would ever own. It's just an eyesore. Other than that one exception, I think very highly of Thomson components (including the straight seat posts) from both a functional and aesthetic perspective, but the setback post is just hideous.

[Len J]

Highly functional ugly.

[chiasticon]

wait...so you have the post sitting there unused and you're asking "how's it going to feel"?

put it on. ride it. then YOU tell US :banana:

[Ahneida Ride]

wait...so you have the post sitting there unused and you're asking "how's it going to feel"?

put it on. ride it. then YOU tell US :banana:

Been riding a Thompson MP for years .... great post !

[kgreene10]

I rode a Masterpiece for a long time and then switched to an Enve carbon. I did also switch the saddle to one that is the same model but has carbon rails. All else on the bike remained the same. I get more comfort with the carbon. It's noticeable but not huge. Still, it's enough that my lower back is happier after a number of hours in the saddle. I wouldn't hesitate to go back to the Masterpiece but I like my current setup more. 27.2 btw and a LOT of post exposed.

[josephr]

Might depend on how much seatpost is exposed...

You could go for a newer VCLS! http://cycletechreview.com/2013/reviews/canyon-vcls-post-2-0-seatpost/

looks like Canyon just got Ergon to put their logo on it....still a very nice post!

[11.4]

I rode a Masterpiece for a long time and then switched to an Enve carbon. I did also switch the saddle to one that is the same model but has carbon rails. All else on the bike remained the same. I get more comfort with the carbon. It's noticeable but not huge. Still, it's enough that my lower back is happier after a number of hours in the saddle. I wouldn't hesitate to go back to the Masterpiece but I like my current setup more. 27.2 btw and a LOT of post exposed.

Not surprised. That VeloNews review came up with the same observation -- smaller diameter, exposed length, and any setback all help create more comfort. Was your Enve straight or did it have any setback?

On Thomson setback posts -- two points worth mentioning. I do agree on the fugly issue, but I'd rather have it fit. But here are a couple real issues to bear in mind: First, if you only have a short amount of post exposed, do realize that you won't be able to get the post low enough. Hope that didn't escape anyone's notice. And second, if you let a Thomson setback post slip, when the bend hits your seat lug it will try to pull the back off the lug. Not pretty. You can end up with a torn lug or a bent one.

[p nut]

I really haven't noticed any difference between my Thomson and Campagnolo Record carbon seat posts. They're both stiff to me and can't tell the difference.

Regarding the setback Thomson: they don't look THAT bad...on a mountain bike... :)

http://i828.photobucket.com/albums/zz208/201C/3F771ACA-D68F-494A-AD75-2288A12CC589_zpsyjreo0mo.jpg

[yoshirider]

They don't look bad when you have a wedge attach to it. It helps to hide the bend.

[Gummee]

IME once you get below a certain amount of seatpost showing, everything feels similarly to one another.

I've ridden a Ti post, a CF post, and an AL post on the same bike and unless you're riding something seriously compact, they all feel like seatposts.

The differences come in when you're riding something with lots of seatpost exposed. I could definitely tell the Dean Ti post flexed when I had it on the mtn bike(s), but not when I had it on the road bike(s). (that seatpost has moved around a bunch over the years I've have it)

M

[shovelhd]

I rode a Masterpiece for a long time and then switched to an Enve carbon. I did also switch the saddle to one that is the same model but has carbon rails. All else on the bike remained the same. I get more comfort with the carbon. It's noticeable but not huge. Still, it's enough that my lower back is happier after a number of hours in the saddle. I wouldn't hesitate to go back to the Masterpiece but I like my current setup more. 27.2 btw and a LOT of post exposed.

It's the carbon rails, at least in my experience.

OP make sure and use a liberal dose of carbon paste on that post.

[Len J]

They don't look bad when you have a wedge attach to it. It helps to hide the bend.

No..... They still look bad.

[krismac23]

Specialized CGR seat post. You won't regret it on a road bike. I had it on my Cx bike but the cradle system slipped once during a race. I went back to a Thomson for security but miss the CGR a bit. I think the Enve post does really well also.

[Mark McM]

Any carbon post strong enough to not break when ya ride it isn't going to provide shock absorption when compared to the Masterpiece. Use the Thompson, great post, easy to micro adjust pitch.

How does this statement square against the Velonews test results (in the post directly before), which showed that most of the carbon posts tested have more shock absorption than the Thomson Masterpiece posts?

[kramnnim]

How does this statement square against the Velonews test results (in the post directly before), which showed that most of the carbon posts tested have more shock absorption than the Thomson Masterpiece posts?

I've been thinking the same thing.

[redir]

I like the look of their set back post unfortunately I cannot get my Brooks saddle level with one either. I really don't get why but it will not rotate far enough for me to get it level. Must be the Brooks rails or something. As for carbon, I saw 3 carbon posts in ONE cyclocross race break. I don't think carbon belongs on a seat post especially for MTB or cross.

[ceolwulf]

As for carbon, I saw 3 carbon posts in ONE cyclocross race break. I don't think carbon belongs on a seat post especially for MTB or cross.


Ouch. Yeah that's partly why I got the aluminum version of the Cyrano.

[kgreene10]

Not surprised. That VeloNews review came up with the same observation -- smaller diameter, exposed length, and any setback all help create more comfort. Was your Enve straight or did it have any setback?

On Thomson setback posts -- two points worth mentioning. I do agree on the fugly issue, but I'd rather have it fit. But here are a couple real issues to bear in mind: First, if you only have a short amount of post exposed, do realize that you won't be able to get the post low enough. Hope that didn't escape anyone's notice. And second, if you let a Thomson setback post slip, when the bend hits your seat lug it will try to pull the back off the lug. Not pretty. You can end up with a torn lug or a bent one.

No setback on either.

[11.4]

How does this statement square against the Velonews test results (in the post directly before), which showed that most of the carbon posts tested have more shock absorption than the Thomson Masterpiece posts?

I think he's saying that he's run a high-end, highly respected shop and seen lots of broken carbon posts and not many broken Thomsons. That's all.

[Volant]

As a previous forumite said, put it on and ride it. Then, please let us know your findings. Thomson MP is my go-to post except on one frame that has an ISP.

Give it a whirl and let is know!

[yoshirider]

Turns out the thomson mp I have in the cabinet is too short. :( I could swap in a thomson elite instead from my CAAD10 I guess... Unless someone wants to swap? I have MP 27.2mm x 240mm

[oldpotatoe]

How does this statement square against the Velonews test results (in the post directly before), which showed that most of the carbon posts tested have more shock absorption than the Thomson Masterpiece posts?

I'd say look at the defection and try to decide whether or not that teeny deflection really='shock absorption'..

Like the gorilla tester of cranks and how much they 'deflected', yup, they did, noticable to mere mortals-nope.

Think the point is, "my bike frame feels harsh, uncomfortable..I'm gonna buy a carbon post mentioned in that Velonews article and that'll fix it"...-don't think so.

[pdmtong]

Yea but the Thompson setback is Fugly.

Just sayin. ;-)

Len

Generally yes but less so on sloped frames or when a small amount of post is showing

[Mark McM]

I'd say look at the defection and try to decide whether or not that teeny deflection really='shock absorption'..

Think the point is, "my bike frame feels harsh, uncomfortable..I'm gonna buy a carbon post mentioned in that Velonews article and that'll fix it"...-don't think so.

Are you sure that's always the case? Especially with a long seatpost, when I put a load on the saddle, I can see some very visible flex in the seat post. But any flex in the frame is too small to see. The Trek Iso Speed design takes this a step further, by putting a pivot at the seat tube cluster, so that the entire seatpost/seat tube column can flex.