Sprung seat post

[stevie_b]

I apologise if this has been covered already: I searched for it, but couldn't find any info.

Does anyone use a sprung seat post on their bike? My derriere is feeling the effects of me recently taking up leisure cycling, using a rigid aluminium bike (which I believe gives quite a stiff frame)

I'll get some cycling shorts obviously, and will probably change the saddle too to something more comfy, but just wondered about the sprung post....

 

[gbb]

I have one on my Trek hybrid Stevie...it does damp the bumps out. They're quite heavy...but if weight isnt an issue, i'd recommend one for comfort.

 

[Globalti]

Alternatively, if you're wealthy a carbon fibre seatpost is pretty flexible and is a fraction of the weight of a suspension post. It also won't wear out as the grit and water from the back wheel get into it.

You would do better to buy some padded shorts first (DHB shorts from Wiggle are comfy and good value) as well as a saddle, which suits your bottom. Don't go for a padded saddle, go to a good bike shop and sit on a few bikes until you find something good. The angle of the saddle is important too as well as the height - there are so many things to sort out before you buy a suspension seatpost. Oh, and don't wear pants under your cycling shorts.

 

[stevie_b]

Cheers chaps!

That's the 2nd time I've heard dhb from wiggle being recommended: they must be good.

Why wouldn't you recommend a padded seat?

 

[Globalti]

The padding transfers the weight to the wrong parts of your bottom, there is no substitute for a correctly shaped seat, which shares the weight between those two sit bones at the bottom of your pelvis and your perinium, the soft tissue between your legs. Some riders use the hardest seats, which you would think uncomfortable but which they love. I bought a bike recently with a Flite Titanium saddle, which looks lke an instrument of torture but is actually amazingly comfortable.

Bike shops who sell Specialized kit have a device for measuring the width of your sit bones so they can find the appropriate saddle for you. Specialized have made a virtue out of specialising in well-fitting and comfortable equipment.

 

[Disgruntled Goat]

USE do a suspension post

 

[upandover]

After getting my road bike i fund it was hurting my back, and put the suspension seatpost from my mountain bike on it. Really nice ride from it.

Cheers
Steve

 

[Andy in Sig]

The Cane Creek Thudbuster is the best suspension seat post of which I know. Not cheap but it does the business and if you change bikes you just switch it to the new one.

 

[andrew_s]

Parallelogram suspension seatposts like Andy's Thudbuster work better because the shocks are transmitted up the seatstays from the rear wheel hub, and the down & back movement of the saddle is in much the same direction.
The shock is at an angle of 45deg or so to the direction of movement of a telescopic seatpost, so they have a strong tendency to stick instead of moving.


If you've only recently started cycling, it's quite likely that you will be getting some bruising under your sit bones. You are best off just letting yourself get used to this - it does wear off. Soft saddles are OK for short rides, but tend to give problems due to restricting the blood supply to the pedalling muscles on longer ones.

There may be a better land where bicycle saddles are made out of rainbow, stuffed with cloud; in this world the simplest thing is to get used to something hard.[/I]

 

[andyfromotley]

i opted for a well padded arse instead, cheaper and no swapping from bike to bike required!
andy

 

[stevie_b]

Thanks for all the info guys, it's really appreciated! My bum will thank you all (not meaning to sound dodgy...)

 

[xpc316e]

Suspension seatposts do reduce the discomfort a little, but I ended up doing the logical thing after finding that one was not the answer - I bought a recumbent.

 

[stevie_b]

Well, it's only early days in my cycling life, so I'll give the shorts a fair trial, and only if they don't make enough of a difference will I consider a sprung seatpost or another saddle.

 

[xpc316e]

I tried many diefferent methods of solving the problem such as seatposts, shorts, and saddles before I reached the conclusion that sitting in such a manner was never going to be anywhere near comfortable for me. All I did was slightly reduce the pain and numbness. I was forced into buying a recumbent by a shoulder problem that meant that I was unable to take any weight whasoever on my arms, so I purchased a secondhand underseat-steered LWB 'bent. My shoulders were very grateful indeed, but my backside has also benefitted from the change. Any conventional bike is never going to be pleasant for me to ride, but my 'bent is superb. Do not shut out the possibility of doing things in a radically different way instead of rearranging the deckchairs on the Titanic.

 

[rickangus]

Nobody seems to have mentioned the possibility of a sprung saddle eg Brooks flyer rather than a sprung seatpost.

I've had two USE suspension posts and although the shock absorption is good I find the saddle fixing/shims wear out meaning that the saddle ends up rocking fore and aft and swivelling side to side which is hugely irritating.

I've been back to USE a couple of times and they've been very good at replacing the worn parts but the same thing happens again.

So, I'm now thinking along the lines of carbon seatpost with Brooks Flyer on top of it.

If anyone has any experience of that saddle I'd live to hear...

Incidentally, my wife has a B67s (which is sprung) and she loves it.

.