Suspension seatposts- are they worth a punt?

[carvelos]

Hi anyone had any experience with these and if so are there any good makes? I ride a rigid '90's Raleigh MTB to work and the rough terrain has shaken my prostate, one kidney, half a liver and both eyeballs loose over the past year and what with protecting the NHS and all, I am running low on organs and glands.
cheers
Carlos

 

[Deafie]

Thudbuster. Fanfeckintastic!!!!

 

[Milzy]

Thudbuster. Fanfeckintastic!!!!

Looks horrible though & so thick.

 

[Deafie]

Does it really look that bad? At 40mph on single track you wouldn't care what it looks like either coz you'd be so very comfortable

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

What about an old-fashioned sprung 3-speed saddle? I find my old Raleigh roadster surprisingly comfortable when riding over rough gravel tracks, considering it's only on 1 3/8" tyres rather than the 2" wide ones on my MTB's. Both are running 26" wheels, so the saddle must be having a positive effect.

 

[carvelos]

Good idea. I shall pop one on and try

(sorry I cannot read your post without thinking that a 3-speed saddle combined with my 8 speed cassette will give me 24 gears again )

 

[Milkfloat]

What pressure do you run your tyres at? I would look at that long before any energy sapping seatpost.

 

[Sharky]

For the amount of damage to your body, that you describe, I don't think there will be a single magic bullitt solution. The weight of the body is taken by the three contact points - arms&hands; feet&legs ; and your seat. When hitting rough ground, I always transfer more of the weight to the legs and lift myself off the saddle. On a regular commute, you get to know every bump and dip and adjust riding positions accordingly.

So it's always worth experimenting and a suspension post might help, but also reassess how you are taking the bumps and vary the weight taken by the three contact points.

Good luck

 

[Andy_R]

Surely having your prostate shaken is a good thing....

 

[carvelos]

Surely having your prostate shaken is a good thing....

I thought it was until it fell out the other day, it was a right sod to get it back seated correctly. I had to ask for help in a bike shop and they weren't keen

 

[ColinJ]

I have an old USE Shokpost on my hardtail MTB.

For the amount of damage to your body, that you describe, I don't think there will be a single magic bullitt solution. The weight of the body is taken by the three contact points - arms&hands; feet&legs ; and your seat. When hitting rough ground, I always transfer more of the weight to the legs and lift myself off the saddle. On a regular commute, you get to know every bump and dip and adjust riding positions accordingly.

So it's always worth experimenting and a suspension post might help, but also reassess how you are taking the bumps and vary the weight taken by the three contact points.

What you are saying is correct and it is what I do, but I got caught out a couple of times on very rough technical descents and took almighty jolts up my spine. After that I put the Shokpost on and it certainly takes the sting out of the worst hits.

What pressure do you run your tyres at? I would look at that long before any energy sapping seatpost.

Running lower tyre pressures can only help so far offroad on real rough stuff. If you drop the pressure too much then snakebites await! My Shokpost is pretty stiff so I don't bob up and down when climbing, but do get a smidge more comfort.

 

[Sharky]

very rough technical descents

I can see how it would help under these conditions, but not sure if there are many mountain descents on the IOW.

 

[Milzy]

Just buy a good carbon seat post or get a brooks saddle. Maybe both.

 

[carvelos]

I can see how it would help under these conditions, but not sure if there are many mountain descents on the IOW.

still looking...............

 

[keithmac]

I use a Suntour SPX 12 on my commuter, takes the sting out of potholes etc.