Hope Eternity

Only three years in the making, Hope's Eternity seatpost has seen a lot of engineering effort for such a simple, mainstay component with seemingly little room for much in the way of innovation. With the Thompson Elite firmly in its sights as the king of the seatpost world in terms of 'posh but tough but quite light', is the Hope Eternity a contender or a pretender? 

The post itself is machined from custom Altium T6 aluminium and has a ribbed finish. It's available in a 400mm length only and the common diameters of 27.2, 30.9 and 31.6. The Hope branding it etched in along with height markers down the back of the post. It's probably for the best that the post only comes in black although many will miss the opportunity for yet another red anodised Hope component.

The ribbed finish gives the post a bit of grip to it; adjustment is easier and it seems less prone to slipping and creaking when it's grotty out. The finish has proven extremely robust so far as well!

The seat post head is a side clamping item also machined to precision, the saddle is held by chunky M6 bolts. At first glance it looks like some other side clamping posts but the Hope has two bolts that do up independently which makes adjustments and fitting a little less fiddly. The side plates are spring mounted two which also aids initial fitting.

it certainly delivers on the 'posh' brief...

The head is bonded to the post rather than it being machined from a single piece like the Thompson. Whether the Hope is any weaker in this area for being a two piece bonded item, we were thankfully unable to find out.

The overall quality and finish is what you'd expect from Hope and it certainly delivers on the 'posh' brief. It didn't break despite spending most of it's time on burly trail bikes and only time will tell if it's truly bomb-proof. Our 400mm 27.2 item weighed 245g - a fraction lighter than the same sized Thompson at 280g, so it's light enough! At £69.99 it's even priced to compete with the Thompson.     

the most astonishing thing it does is simply do its job...

It's a bit of a shame there aren't different lengths available, not everyone wants to cut their posts down. It's also a shame that the post comes without a layback option either!

It's difficult to review an item like a seatpost when the most astonishing thing it does is simply do its job. But that's what the Hope Eternity did and while we're unable to verify its ultimate strength, it's otherwise a match for the Thompson (assuming you don't need a layback) and even pips it slightly for weight. If you're looking for that 'posh but tough but quite light' seatpost and you want something different, the Hope definitely fits the bill.

A credible alternative to the Thompson Elite but lack of options lets it down.

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