Classic Components: 2 Bolt Seat Posts

People don't often give a lot of thought to the basic seat post. Until they have one that doesn't stay put, that is. Or maybe the problem is that it's impossible to get the position "just right."

The Nuovo Record seat post is the perfect mount for
a Brooks leather saddle.

When it comes to seatposts, my favorites have long been the 2-bolt designs -- exemplified by the classic Campagnolo Nuovo Record, made from the 1960s through the mid-'80s. Campy also made a Gran Sport seatpost of the same basic design in the 1970s that looked almost identical (actually, they were so similar that I don't think I could reliably tell the difference between them). Particularly rare is the original version of the Record seat post from the 1950s -- which looked pretty similar to the later ones, but was made of steel, not aluminum.

The great thing about the 2-bolt design is that it allows infinitely small adjustments for saddle angle, while holding the saddle firmly in place, requiring less tension per bolt. Once adjusted, they do not move. Another benefit to the 2-bolt design is that one can make tiny adjustments to the saddle angle or the fore-aft position independently. That is, one can easily alter the tilt of the saddle without moving it forward or backward on the rails. Or move the saddle forward on the rails without affecting the angle. That isn't easily done with a single bolt post.

The big complaint people would have with the NR seat post was that it was a pain to set up. Its two bolts for tightening and adjusting were only accessible from above the cradle -- under the top of the saddle, which meant trying to get a wrench into the awkward and tiny spaces between the saddle rails and the side skirts. OK, in retrospect, it could have been thought out a little better. Maybe a lot better.

Campagnolo did make a special offset wrench for the task:

The classic Campy seat post wrench -- angled to get up under the saddle to reach the bolts. As an added bonus, the open-end was just the right size for adjusting the tension bolt on Brooks saddles.

Park Tool used to make their own version of the Campy seat post wrench that was a little easier to use -- especially with plastic saddles. Instead of gripping the bolt heads on their six sides, it gripped the bolts at the corners, which gave the user a lot more "angles" to work with, which was helpful when trying to work in the tiny space under a saddle. It worked great as long as the bolts didn't get rounded. I have one, but they're long out of production and very hard to find today.

Racing leather saddles - like the Brooks Swift (shown)
or the Swallow make adjustment a bit easier. Wide touring
models aren't bad, either.

Another thing about the Campy 2-bolt seat posts is that, in my experience, they are easier to set up with leather saddles -- especially those racing models with more cut-away sides. The side skirts on all-leather saddles tend to be a little more flexible than plastic, so its easier to get up under them with the wrench. I've found that plastic saddles, like the old Cinelli Unicanitor, or an '80s-vintage saddle like a Selle Italia Turbo, are tougher to adjust. The side skirts just don't have as much "give" to allow the wrench some room to work. For those, I think the Park Tool wrench shown above is a big help.

Campagnolo's first single-bolt seat post, the Super Record, also had to be adjusted from the top, so the bolt was nearly as difficult to access -- and it had the distinction of requiring arm-breaking tension to get the saddle to stay put. Even then, it might still end up slipping. At least that was my experience with them. I'd get the saddle position and angle where I'd want it, and torque the hell out of the bolt. Out on the road, by the end of a ride, the saddle would be pointing at the sky. For that reason, I've got a couple of bikes with full Super Record components throughout, with the exception of the Nuovo Record seat post. Yes, it takes longer to set up. But once it's set, you can forget about it.

In the '70s and '80s, there were some direct copies available.

This Sakae Ringyo, or SR, seat post from Japan is a very faithful copy of the Campy design. Not that I've tried, but I wouldn't be surprised if the parts were directly interchangeable. Sugino made one too, that I believe was very popular with the Japanese Keirin racing circuit. Vintage ones, sometimes NOS, can be found regularly on eBay. 

Today, if there is a "spiritual descendent" of the Campy 2-bolt seat post, I'd have to say it is this one, made by Nitto:

Nitto calls this model the Jaguar, but Rivendell fans probably know it as "the Frog" because the clamping parts, when viewed from the side (without a saddle mounted) kind of look like a smiling frog. So that's what they always called it in their catalogs. Whatever name people prefer to call it, the Nitto has similar dimensions and set-back as the old Nuovo Record, and it is sumptuously finished. But the real benefit of the Nitto design is that it adjusts with an allen wrench from below the cradle. What a concept. Superior clamping, nearly infinite adjustability for angle, and easy setup. There's also another model from Nitto called the S-83 which is very similar in design and I believe slightly less expensive.

On one of my bikes, I decided to give this post a try, from Velo-Orange:

The VO Grand Cru seat post has a good amount of set-back, is nicely finished, and adjusts easily from below the cradle. There is a newer version that has slightly more setback, though personally I prefer the look of this original version. At $55, the VO is a nice value. (photo from VO) 

I don't suppose there's anything wrong with a well-designed, well-made single-bolt seat post. But when a simple component works as well as the ones shown here, it's hard for me not to be drawn to them.

No retro-grouching today. Just a little look at stuff I like.