The Thomson Elite has been around for a long time, and has been largely unchanged since its debut. The post is machined from 7000 aluminium, with a highly ovalized cross-section. The tube walls are 3mm thick fore and aft but only 1mm thick on the sides.
If you’ve got an unusual or old frame with an obscure seatpost size, Thomson should be your first port of call. The Elite is available in dozens of sizes, so you’ll be able to get one for that 1990s Fat Chance. A layback version is also available, although it achieves its offset with a bent shaft, which some people find aesthetically displeasing, and also prevents the saddle being dropped right down.
Both variants use the same twin-bolt head, which has never let us down. The only downside we found is that the Thomson is slightly narrower for its stated size than rival posts. Some riders report slipping issues once repeated raising and lowering causes the machining marks to wear off the shaft, but it’s dependent on the frame and seatbinder in use.
The vast majority of users have never had a problem. Other posts have picked up some of Thomson’s features, but the Elite is peace of mind in seatpost form.