Thomson Elite and Masterpiece Seatposts
Wednesday, November 28th, 2007
Thomson is a name synonymous with quality. If you’re looking for a well machined bike part, Thomson won’t let you down. Located in Macon, GA ,Thomson has been involved in CNC & Aerospace Machining and assembly for over 30 years.
Thomson currently makes two seatposts, Elite and Masterpiece. The Elite is the more common one and comes in just about every size imaginable. The Masterpiece is a lighter seatpost (~40g less than the Elite) but isn’t available in quite as many sizes and lengths.
Inside we take a look at each post and why they are recommended so much.
The two stems we’ve got outlined to show you are:
- Thomson Elite 30.0 x 330mm (available in black/silver)
- Thomson Masterpiece 31.6 x 330mm (available in black/silver)
- For more size options, see http://www.lhthomson.com
The Elite series posts are solid and can be used in every discipline due to its weight and strength. People who want a reliable post, use a Thomson. Freeriders / Downhill / XC / or Road, the Thomson posts are synonymous with strength and lightweight.
Thomson Elite seatpost (click to enlarge)
The Masterpiece seatposts are again solid and reliable. To achieve a lighter weight than the Elite Seatpost (~40g), what Thomson did was carefully machining the seatpost all over inside and out. They held closer tolerances by machining rather than by extrusion alone. The Masterpiece seatpost, and the Elite as well, are gorgeous to look at and retain their beauty even after extensive use. Masterpiece posts are ~7% weaker than their Elite counterparts but are still more than strong enough for any use.
Thomson Masterpiece seatpost (click to enlarge)
Thomson created a perfect list outlining the benefits of their posts quite well below.
- Over 40% stronger on ultimate strength test than the strongest production seatposts on the market.
- Over double the fatigue life of any other production models we tested. The tube and head of the Thomson seatpost are integral-machined from one single piece of high strength 7000 series aluminum. The head is not pressed or bonded in. This allows for superior strength and minimum weight, allowing higher strength at low weights.
- Lightweight - approximately 188 grams (250 length) for road bikes and 228 grams (330 length) for mountain bikes. Natural ellipse bore inside tube for optimum strength to weight ratio.
ellipse bore detail on the Elite seatpost (click to enlarge)
- A long 1.614 inch (41 mm) seat rail grip length. This helps prevent seat rail bending from impact loads. Most brand-x seatposts have grip lengths of .500 inch or more shorter than Thomson’s grip length.
- The Thomson seatpost design incorporates a bending fuse to prevent catostrophic failure. All brand-x seatposts we tested - every one of them - failed in catastrophic failure with the seat and clamp components - and sometimes pieces of the tube and head - flying off in all directions. This type of failure would dump the rider.
- The Thomson seatpost has a clamp, head, and upper tube strong enough to withstand 350 foot-lbs of torque. The tube will start to yield and bend at the seat tube clamp at about 250 foot-lbs of torque. Remember all brand-x posts Thomson tested flew apart at less than 150 foot-lbs of torque. Under severe impact the Thomson seatpost would bend slightly and allows the rider to come to a safe stop or finish the ride. The ride could continue.
(click to enlarge)
- Every component of the Thomson seatpost is 100% American made. This includes all fasteners and forgings.
- The Thomson seatpost has all parts captive and can easily be attached to a seat without disassembly.
- Infinite tilt adjustment minus 5° and plus 29°.
both Elite and Masterpiece have the same markings for tilt but the Masterpiece has additional branding (click to enlarge)
- Very low profile clamps - no seat interference - swivel nuts are down between the seat rails.
(click to enlarge)
- The designs and materials have passed extensive life and ultimate strength tests.
- Every production lot of seatposts will have ultimate strength and fatigue tests performed. Their on going testing program insures that every production lot of seatposts meets Thomson standards.
- Impact absorbing clamps - clamps, head, and assembly will spread and flex on impact to protect seat, rails, seatpost and rider.
- Adjustments can be made to the tilt of the seat without moving the seat forwards or backwards.
(click to enlarge)
- The Thomson Masterpiece seatpost (right) is machined out significantly more than the Elite(left)
(click to enlarge)
Weight
Price
- Elite MSRP is $89.95
- Masterpiece MSRP is $149.95
We’d hands down recommend a Thomson Elite to just about anyone who asked for a strong and light seatpost. The Masterpiece post comes at a premium though. The Masterpiece post is built for the cyclist who wants the lightest weight seatpost but still wants the safety, strength and adjustability of a Thomson. To make sure their posts are the best, Thomson has broken a ton of their own posts in order to test and make sure its as strong as it can be and won’t break on you.
Be sure to check the gallery link below for more pictures. You can purchase these posts at any good bike shop. Hit up Chad @ RedBarnBikes for a great deal on one of these fine posts.
[Thomson Seatpost Gallery] [Thomson Website]
Previous Coverage
November 28th, 2007 at 2:21 pm
Great job copying the LHthomson site word for word. Do you ever have your own, actual content?
November 28th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
Haha,
Yea the list is off of Thomson’s site as it says in the post if you can read.
Hate much?
Try reading before aimlessly posting comments.
November 28th, 2007 at 2:48 pm
Seriously can that guy even read.
It’s all solid information and they’ve told you it was a list Thomson made that does outline the benefits well and effectivly.
Anyone who wouldn’t use that list is stupid if they’re outlining the benefits.
Definitly sounds like someone’s a bit jealous.
November 28th, 2007 at 4:40 pm
“Great job copying the LHthomson site word for word. Do you ever have your own, actual content?”
Wow…just…just wow.
November 28th, 2007 at 10:53 pm
LOL, First post got owned. I wonder if it’s the same person who trolls around anonymously once in a while
Thomson is one of the few names synonymous with consistent quality out there. King, Woods, Thomson. It’s a small club
I never knew that his posts use an elliptical bore for added strength. Smart design
November 28th, 2007 at 11:11 pm
Whatever the ad copy says is true, I’ve had one on my Heckler for over 5 years and other than the occasional greasing it’s remained untouched. Well, the other exception is when I trash a saddle but the post is bombproof!