Abbey Tools Launch Saddle Fit System

Abbey Tools make some very high end bits of kit, and their latest is for people who need a saddle to be in exactly the same position each time they adjust it.

It’s available from their website, and costs $150 for a complete kit. Plumb bob and tape measure not included (of course, if you get this, you’ll be needing something to straighten your bars too…).

Of course, these kind of tools might seem ridiculous to a garage fettler with finely calibrated eyeballs and buttocks, but there are use cases out there for this category of tool: Race or demo day mechanics who have to build fifty bikes, pro-mechanics who need to get their racer’s setup spot on, and shop mechanics who need to fend off difficult customers. For all of those, or even home mechanics who don’t think this is ridiculous, what price can you put on sub-millimetre accuracy?

Abbey Tools say:

“It’s been said that Eddy “Mr. Millimeter” Merckx changed his saddle position 50 times on a brand new bike once because he couldn’t get it right. It’s this kind of madness the crew at Abbey have sought to eliminate with their new saddle Fit Kit because once you’ve found your perfect position you should be able to keep it. Ideal for traveling cyclists, pro mechanics, or any bike shop with discerning clientele – the Fit kit eliminates saddle discrepancies by consistently measuring from a fixed point to get the saddle to within +/- .5mm of the riders ideal position.

The key to the Fit Kit starts by basing all the measurements off a central, fixed position, the center of the crank. The Kit comes equipped with magnetic ‘bullets’ that fix themselves into crank arm fixing bolts or the preload cap on the non-drive arm on a Shimano crank and hook securely onto the end of any tape measure with a lip. From there all measurements can be made to various points on the plate that is secured on top of the saddle.”