Seat post issues

Filip Kowalski said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

You can try wiping the post so it's "dry", but that can lead to its own
problems later on (seizing mainly).

You can also try filing the slot a little bit, so the clamp can tighten
more.

If it were me, I'd probably "rough up" the post a little, so it's less
slippery where it enters the frame.

Also, a blinkie light bracket can help keep a post from slipping down, as
can a hose clamp if you wanna get medieval on its ass. <eg>

If all else fails go to a bike shop and let them take a look.

Bill S.

"Filip Kowalski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Sidewalk chalk or fine sand

"TBF::." <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Filip Kowalski" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Sidewalk chalk or fine sand

yep. "rough" it up with a little dirt...

"Filip Kowalski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat.

Some people have had luck with a shim made from an aluminum can.

Filip Kowalski said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Just wipe the seatpost off with a rag and try it again. Sometimes too
much lubricant can be a bad thing and there's probably plenty enough
left in the seat tube to be sufficient.

JD

Tighten the QR a little. That don't work shim the post.
Shim made from a Coke,Pepsi,or ever beer can.

"Filip Kowalski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

GREASE IS GOOD

http://sheldonbrown.com/stuck-seatposts.html

http://www.jensonusa.com/store/product/QR707B02-Salsa+Lip-Lock+Seat+Collar.aspx

--
DTW .../\.../\.../\...

I've spent most of my money on mountain biking and windsurfing.
The rest, I've just wasted.

Quoted message said:

Tighten the QR a little. That don't work shim the post.
Shim made from a Coke,Pepsi,or ever beer can.

I am hesitant to tighten the quick release too much because I broke
one several years ago on a brand new bike because the seat post kept
slipping down. Sad thing is, I weighed 180 back then, now I am up to
230 with the same dang problem.

I have seen multiple recommendations for a shim, and I may go that
route, after wiping the excess gunk off of the seat post fails to
correct the problem at hand.

Thanks for all of the recommendations.

Filip Kowalski said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

See if you can get your hands on a micrometer and measure the actual
outside diameter of the seat post. It's not uncommon for them to be
well under "spec" (and of course, sometimes the wrong one gets bought
/ used somewhere along the line for other reasons).

The other thing is to make sure that there is no undue friction on the
pivot on the quick release lever. Some should be lubricated, some
shouldn't - but if there's much friction, what feels "tight" will
actually just be the effort involved overcoming the friction, rather
than actually tightening down the clamp.

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $795 ti frame

"Filip Kowalski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I was wondering if anyone in the group can give me some suggestions on
how to adjust the seat on my Trek 4500. The dang thing keeps going
down every time I ride it and it is really annoying to stop my ride
just to adjust the height of my seat. I think keeps going down
because of my weight (230 pounds at the moment).

I have already tried tightening the clamp that holds the seat post in
place, but that didn't solve my problem. Tonight, when riding, I
pulled the seat out and it looked like some form of lubrication was on
the seat post.

Should I spray the seat post with WD 40 to remove the original
lubricant? Should I even try adding another seat post lower on the
frame to have 2 holding the seat in?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

As Mark Hickey said, it may be too small.

Does the seatpost stay up under its own weight when the quick-release lever
is open? Or does it just fall down? If it falls under its own weight, then
the seatpost is too small or the seat tube inner diameter is too large.
Remember, a 0.1mm difference is huge when talking about clamped tubes.

In addition, make sure that the cam system of the quick-release is lubed up
pretty well. They often get gunky or dry, leaving the (usually) Delrin part
sticky or hard-to-slide. This makes the lever hard to close. Take out the
seatpost and flip the quick-release lever closed. It should take almost no
effort at all. If it does, spray it with a wet oil-based lube and it should
loosen up.

--
Phil, Squid-in-Training

I'm at 202 lbs naked. Well I never have a problem of a
slipping seatpost.

Quoted message said:

I'm at 202 lbs naked. Well I never have a problem of a
slipping seatpost.

Hopefully, you're putting on some clothes before trying to mount it ;-P
---
Slack

Quoted message said:

I'm at 202 lbs naked. Well I never have a problem of a
slipping seatpost.

Two concepts best left separate!

:-D