i have an older aluminum specialized roadbike i train on in the off season. stiff as all hell. gives great power transfer, but gets a bit uncomfortable on those long sunday rides on rougher roads. would a carbon seatpost make any noticeable difference?
Not in my experience. But it will look cooler. Search here a month back for a long discussion on same.
Seatposts make little to no appreciable difference, unless it gives you the ability to crank the saddle back a bit further. I have arguably two of the most comfortable setups in the world: Corima Fox for the race bike (carbon frame/post), and a GT Course (853 steel frame/ carbon post). My back has been killing me, and I can’t race. Both bikes beat me up even though they never did in the past.
Very good bike builders whom I respect have told me this: comfort comes from the top tube, and also from well-executed geometry and building techniques.
But I will reiterate stemming from my back experience right now- a carbon post won’t make one lick of difference.
After replacing all my seat posts with carbon ones I read that they don’t make a different since the compression properties aren’t different. Apparently a titanium seat post might be best.
My feeling is that you’d be disappointed with the difference, at least as far as ride quality goes.
One that I used on my 19 lb aluminum hardtail when I was into MTB racing was the Moots Laidback.
I totally absorbed vibration and “gave” a little, smoothing out the ride
I would try to borrow one and give it a test. I put a carbon fiber seat post on my bike and it seemed smoother to me. Unfortunately, I couldn’t put my seat far enough forward as with my other post so I switched back.
i have an older aluminum specialized roadbike i train on in the off season. stiff as all hell. gives great power transfer, but gets a bit uncomfortable on those long sunday rides on rougher roads. would a carbon seatpost make any noticeable difference?
Switch to a carbon post. Trust not your eyes nor logic, but your butt. Give it 2 weeks to notice the diff.
I don’t know if it’s just the placebo effect, but I put a Corima carbon post on my Alu Trek 2000. It feels more comfy to me.
A coworker of mine just got an inexpensive carbon seatpost and claims he can notice the difference, that it is noticeably more comfortable. I was skeptical, but he is convinced it is true. The post he replaced was a very cheap and heavy AL post. He is also a big guy, about 200 lbs.
I think it is possible the effect is real, but I don’t think it has anything to do with whether the post is carbon or not. Likely the old post had very thick AL walls (probably to obtain adequate strength using a cheaper alloy) and didn’t flex any, and the carbon post may be flexing a bit under his weight.
I think the degree to which you’ll feel a difference will depend on:
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The amount of seat post that’s exposed. (You’ll feel the difference more with a compact, sloping top tube frame.)
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Seat tube angle. (Slacker geometries will allow you’re body weight on the saddle to ‘flex’ the seatpost. Steeper seat tube and the vertical forces will be directed more in a ‘compressive’ direction.)
I switched out my stock aluminum seat post for a bladed carbon post and I could tell a difference. Anyone that wants to argue with my butt can feel free to do so.
----->Trent
I switched out my stock aluminum seat post for a bladed carbon post and I could tell a difference.
Can you get someone to swap your two posts, cover them up so you don’t know which is which, then you ride them with earplugs, and report back to us the results of your saying which is which? Take six total runs. Make sure the saddle is in the same position relative to the frame, of course.
You have got to be kidding me. Have someone blindfold you. Put a stability running shoe on you, then put on a motion control shoe… can you tell a difference? I can. I can also tell a difference when I switched my seat posts. I ride between 150 to 400 miles per week (3 to 4 rides per week). I can feel tiny differences when I am in the saddle for 5 to 6 hours. I can tell if I run a different tire, different air pressure, and also a different seat post.
----->Trent
I’ve been using the same super-long Dean aluminum seatpost for years. I just swap it from my previous bike to the new one. It’s black, and is probably mountain bike-length, but it’s great for 650c steep-angled bikes. I really show a lot of seat post length when I ride.
Kahuna
What about some of those shock absorbing MTB posts?
Oh! yeah! I have a Soft Ride, I don’'t have to worry about that.
i have an older aluminum specialized roadbike i train on in the off season. stiff as all hell. gives great power transfer, but gets a bit uncomfortable on those long sunday rides on rougher roads. would a carbon seatpost make any noticeable difference?
No