Anybody use I-Beam saddle and post?

I’m fed up of normal posts creaking and as I need a new saddle and could do with a layback post I was thinking of an I-Beam.

Are they any good? Do they creak? Do they have as much for/aft adjustment as they look like they do?

Thanks.

I have had one on my downhill bike for almost 4 years now without a noise. Thinking about it i have never adjusted it from putting it on the bike. So they are great and light.

ps, they have all the adjustment you need.

I use one on my Anthem X. I like it. Depending on the saddle they can be a bit punishing on a hardtail – unless the saddle has the FX-style beam then it’s all very solid indeed under the padding.

An I-Beam setup has loads of fore-aft adjustment. They’re note always incredibly easy to adjust, though. The clamp on mine has had a habit of binding to the top of the seat post and requiring a few whacks to loosen off, unless I was pretty assiduous when greasing them initially. I don’t recall mine every creaking.

A friend’s SDG I-Beam seat post and its head parted company on a very cold ride a few years ago. It seemed to be a case of the bonding between them being weakened due to the cold, or something like that. I don’t know if this has been fixed or not.

Personally I’d have I-Beams on more of my bikes if only someone produced an uppy-downy seatpost with an I-Beam head.

Personally I’d have I-Beams on more of my bikes if only someone produced an uppy-downy seatpost with an I-Beam head.

whats that you say……

Personally I’d have I-Beams on more of my bikes if only someone produced an uppy-downy seatpost with an I-Beam head.

Please, please, please, PLEASE, can we have a reverb with an I-beam top.

I have been using an I-beam SDG Bel Air for the past year and love it. I was sick of bending the rails on normal saddles and so far the I-Beam one has put up with all the abuse I have thrown at it.

I am now looking to get an uppy downy post and am quite keen on the KS supernatural.

greeble – which version are you showing there as that doesn’t look like the Beam version KS are selling at the moment?

no idea sorry mmel, I just googled adjustable I-beam seatpost as I was sure I saw one before

Personally I’d have I-Beams on more of my bikes if only someone produced an uppy-downy seatpost with an I-Beam head.

and the sdg formula fx is the i-beam saddle to get

+1 Formula FX, so much comfier than the Bel-Air – plus if you’re not going up/down try the carbon SDG post, good flex.

OK, I had heard that KS and Gravity Dropper were looking into I-Beam uppy downy seatposts. I hadn’t heard that either was being distributed in the UK yet. Has that changed?

i got the ibeam mod for mine from GD direct in the USA

Loads of adjustment in them and lighter than a standard set up, but for me it was agony, even on a full susser, my mate on the other hand says it’s the comfiest saddle he’s ever had.

So i guess if you can then try before you buy.

I’am same as bazz
Loads of adjustment very light
BUT oh my arse???
Back to normal railed saddles for me

Been running iBeam on one of my bikes for 5 years now.

It came as standard on a new bike & I haven’t had a single issue with it in that time.

In fact it’s one of only two parts I’m still using from the original bike I bought 5 years ago.

Never had any issues with creaking easy to get the saddle in a comfortable position & once set it stays where it’s meant to.

As iBeam is less popular you can usually pick up a post/saddle for a bit less second hand – it’s not worth buying a brand new one.

I’ve had an i-fly for years, they can be a bit harsh but te newer ones are meant to be more comfortable.

There’s never been any noise any it’s very light.

I, for some reason, have an I-Fly on my BFe. Other than hurting my bum, it’s brilliant.

I have had exactly zero problems and not touched the thing since I fitted it a year ago….plus it weighs bugger all.

Run an I-beam for several years with zero issues. Eventually though the head lost its bond and the very top of the post cracked, though I’m ok with that considering how long I had it. Quick trip to a Blaenau hardware shop for a pipe clamp and good to go.

Just got a brand new 27.2mm layback post from CRC for £16 to replace it. Had to use a shim though for my 31.6 seat tube.

No issues at all. Staying I-beam for a while as the cost of going back to rail at a decent weight is too much.

I do get saddle-sore after long rides but not sure if thats the Bel Air or just a fact of life…

I’ve got an I-Beam post and Bel Air saddle, my main motivation was weight saving but I’m pretty happy with the set up. At the time there was an offer at CRC so I picked it up for £60 all in. To get a similar weight on conventional setup costs a damn sight more.

The Bel Air is a great all day saddle, but the stiff chassis makes it unsuitable for a hardtail IMHO.

Had them on all my bikes for the last 5-6 years. Find them as comfy as
Any other saddle and much easier to adjust.

They arent particularly comfy, and they look awful!

They are cheap and light though.

If you’re the sort of person who dines out at weatherspoons and wears jogging bottoms when nipping to the shops on a sunday, then you’ll probably be happy with one.

Hmm well I have been know to have the odd beer and a burger at the local weatherspoons or maybe a breakfast on occasion but i don’t make a habit of it. I also should confess that i have been known to pop up to Tesco local for more beer while wearing joggers.

Maybe they are for me.

Having never eaten at weatherspoons but occasionally wear track suit bottoms when popping to the shops I can confirm that I beam stuff is brilliant. I don’t look at it when my ar*e is on it and for my slender seventeen stone theyve never creaked or moved or broken.
Mr tailforth make of that what you will.

Used them for 4 years, in the last 12 months I’ve now broken the I beam on two formula fx’s and am going back to rails 🙁 🙁 🙁

DON’T GO LAYBACK I-BEAM. My layback snapped a couple of weeks after buying it. Snap was in the cast clamping area at the top. V poor design IMO. The inline ones may be better. I have photo’s of the snapped post if you’re interested?

like the design even though had one fail after 12 months use and one fail after 2 rides, both were in cold weather, neither had any serious use…..

witnessed another fail in similar cold conditions

IMHE design principle of the clap is great, function is good ….. engineering / product testing of bonding the head in to the post is shocking……

Another fan here, I reckon my I-Fly is the comfiest saddle I own, much more so than my Spoon saddle. They are damn light as well.

I found mine ok on my Chameleon, which wasn’t exactly the most forgiving of hardtails. No issues with mine, no creaking and its survived a few slams too. CRC always seem to have good deals on the post and saddle.

Just to echo the point above about layback posts. Don’t buy one of the SDG ones, they are made of the softest of soft cheese. Mine lasted one ride before the attachment point deformed out of shape and cracked. CRC refunded without me even sending the post back so it must be a known issue.

Stick to the inline version, no problem there.

Thing is I could do with a layback and the layback ones are the only ones in the offer.

they are brilliant, super light…and…esecially on hardtail position the clamp towards the front end of the saddle to give a nice bit of flex to take the edge off rough stuff.

before anyone jumps in i am very heavy and have never snapped mine.

Yeah, that’s why they are on offer! 🙄

If you need a layback then get the Kore one

click

I think there’s a decent chance that you could get as much layback from a non-layback I-Beam post as you can from a layback regular seatpost. They really do have far more fore-aft adjustment than the regular system.

If you need a layback then get the Kore one

Whereas I was reading reviews of the KOre which say that because the clamping area only touches in four points instead of a continuous design like original SDG’s, that they can damage the rail and/or snap.

I’ve just bought a layback SDG, oh man, looks like I might die… I’ll be keeping my receipt handy just in case…

Actually, I was disappointed from the start as the clamp had not been bonded into the post in line with the etched text. Not MASSIVELY important but annoying nonetheless..

I think there’s a decent chance that you could get as much layback from a non-layback I-Beam post as you can from a layback regular seatpost.

You can get a lot but I was a bit worried about having so much leverage on the front of the saddle so thought a layback would be the best bet.

I’ve used I beam and saddles for 5 or years. No problems. I find to Bel-Air saddle is comfy. Only thing to be aware of is that if you are careless when fitting/adjusting the small serrations on the saddle I beam can be damaged and the saddle will keep working loose.

I don’t think I’d call the Ifly comfortable, but it is light……

kayak23 – Member
If you need a layback then get the Kore one
Whereas I was reading reviews of the KOre which say that because the clamping area only touches in four points instead of a continuous design like original SDG’s, that they can damage the rail and/or snap.

Both saddles I damaged (see earlier post) where on a carbon kore layback post dunno if that’s the reason or oincidence

As an aside, does anyone other than SDG make i-beam saddles?

Andy