Seatposts with more setback / offset



roshea

Well-Known Member
May 8, 2005
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Hi. I replaced my Arione saddle (LONG rails) with something shorter (Specialized Toupe) that is more comforable, but now I can't get the saddle back as far as I would like. My frame (CR1, 54 cm) has a pretty steep seat tube (74 deg) so it is pretty common to need a seatpost with some setback / offset to get a good fit (eg see this Cyclingnews article).

My current seatpost (Ritchey Pro Carbon, 31.6 mm) has some setback (25 mm from what I can find out?) and I'm looking for something in the 30 - 45 mm range to get the saddle back a bit further. As mentioned in the Cyclingnews article, Ritchey now make their WCS Carbon post with 45 mm setback, but I really don't want to spend $200+ on this if I can help it! Unfortunately the nice Thomson posts only have 16 mm setback.

Can anyone comment on these options or suggest others?

* FSA K-Force Light Carbon, ~35 mm setback, 29.4 x 250 mm plus 31.8 mm shim
* FSA SL-220, ~40 mm setback, 31.6 x 250 mm

A 250 mm long seatpost is fine for me. In general, are there any issues with using a shim for seatposts?
 
Using shims should be no problem.

The Thomson setback post that is angled back provides 16mm of additional setback compared to a regular post, not 16mm total.
 
John M said:
Using shims should be no problem.

The Thomson setback post that is angled back provides 16mm of additional setback compared to a regular post, not 16mm total.
Thanks JohnM. The Thomson setback posts (like my Ritchey) look to have the front of the clamp in line with the centre of the post. I just measured the Ritchey and it is ~ 20 mm setback from the centre of the post to the centre of the clamp, so the specs I had found on the web didn't match up there.

The Easton EC70, even though they are listed at 25 mm, look to be ~10 mm further back than the Ritchey (more setback and shorter clamp), so this might be an option:

post_ec70_350_%2706web.jpg
 
I'm looking at going with one of the FSA seatposts (mentioned in the first post) but am trying to find out a bit more about them. I sent an email to Bikewagon.com and their ebay store (where I would be buying from) on Monday but got no reply. I am in Australia; if anyone in the USA would be so kind as to phone them for me, I would be very grateful if you could find out:

- Do both of these seatposts use the same clamping mechanims?

- Both of these are listed as having 40 mm setback, but from the pictures
the K-Force Lite does not look to have as much setback as the SL-220: do
they both actually have 40 mm setback?

Their toll free number from Canada and all 50 states at 1-877-bike007 (1-877-245-3007).

Edit: I am looking at:
- FSA Carbon K-Force Lite 31.6 x 250 with Shim (Product Code: F192-0020-316)
- FSA SL-220 Micro-Adjust Al 31.6 x 250 (Product Code: F192-1030)
 
I have one of those FSA carbon posts with a pretty extreme setback. Top quality product. I use it on my crit bike which is a tad on the smaller side, shorter top tube.