I’m thinking of purchasing a Reverb, probably from Merlin as they have them in my size on offer. It comes with a 1,500mm hose – that seems quite long, am I likely to need to shorten it? And if so, how much of a faff is it? The one I’m looking at doesn’t come with the bleed kit…

Yes you will need to shorten it. No it’s a 5 minute job. Stanley knife & a set of pointy pliers if it’s the older ridged barb, or just a stanley knife if it’s the newer threaded barb.

Youtube for the SRAM Tech video for how to. No need to bleed after.

It’s a 2012 model, so I’m guessing it’s the new threaded type… Cool.

Cheap bleed kit from here if you need it, but I’ve shortened a couple and not needed to bleed after.

Bleed Kit for RockShox Reverb Seat Post & 2.5wt Fluid

Actually, running an alternative cable routing might mean you don’t have to cut. I run mine down the downtube then up the seattube, this way means there is no hose flapping about regardless of what position the post is at. Looks very neat too, copied the idea from an off the shelf setup, annoyingly can’t remember which bike it was now!

That sounds pretty cunning… But won’t it still have a flappy loop when dropped regardless? The hose has to go somewhere, surely?

**edit** useful site too – I need a bleed kit for my Formulas!

Nope, it just changes the position of a the curve a little. If you want I can get some photos this afternoon?

Aye that would be ace cheers! Think I’m gonna pull the trigger today… Under £200 is an important psychological barrier 😉

I did not need to cut mine – fitted to a medium sized Transition Covert.

Fit it without cutting and make sure it is routed well in the up/down position. Some route it along the top tube, some along the down tube. Experiment before cutting.

As promised:

IMAG0264 by mark_penman, on Flickr

IMAG0265 by mark_penman, on Flickr

Front brake hose looks a bit long 🙂

I call it ample 😉

Ah now that is pretty cunning. I can see some playing will be neccessary…

Surely the long front hose is for rad barspins?

That’s a big old flappy loop still sticking out the front, my OCD couldn’t cope with that much hose.

I ran a similar setup on my old Zesty & it worked well, as there was spare guides from not running a front mech. It had a bit of a loop when down, but stayed out of the way. My Nomad has proper dropper guides on the underside of the TT & it’s much neater now. Still not as neat as a Stealth one i’ve been trying to hunt out.