I don’t have a dropper post and apart from a short test ride round a car park have never used one. I’m tempted to spec one on my new bike and wondered what people would recommend? Am I right in thinking that the Reverb is one of the only hydraulic posts on the market, and as a result they need periodic servicing? Do other posts that use a cable need similar servicing?

The RaceFace Turbine is usefully cheaper than a Reverb on CRC and it’s specced as standard on Cotics. Do people rate them?

Thanks!

They’re all great and tehy’re all rubbish sometimes too. Some need loads of looking after, some need none. You can buy a Reverb and it lasts 2 hours, you can buy a reverb and it lasts 2 years.

i’m currently running a Magura Vyron which is wireless using ANT+ so no cables at all… I like it…

All need servicing, all need TLC, all will leave you stranded one day…. You just never know if it’s today or next year.

They all need periodic servicing of the main uppy-downy mechanism and loads of people don’t seem to bother ever. The Reverb needs the connection between lever and post bleeding like a brake occasionally, while other things just need a new cable.

All dropper posts seem to be faintly shonky but (increasingly) basically alright. I’ve had Reverbs x2 and Thomson x1 and would cheerfully buy on price if I was starting over.

🙂

Pretty much sums it up.

Manufacturers still haven’t got them right but they’re so useful we tolerate the problems with them.

If you buy one, do so with a warranty claim in mind. Does the brand have a good reputation for looking after customers (as much as I don’t like the reverb, they seem to have one of the best support systems) and from somewhere you can take it back to. It might be worth paying more to get it from a local bike shop just for the convenience factor.

I’m starting to think that all dropper posts should be supplied with two in the box so you’ve got a spare to use during your warranty claim.

IME.

Gravity Dropper; low tech, reliable, needs little servicing (and that’s easy). Difficult to source, expensive.

KS i950; sometimes “sticky”.

Fox Transfer; still waiting to be fitted. 2nd generation from Fox so hopefully glitch free.

all dropper posts should be supplied with two in the box so you’ve got a spare to use during your warranty claim.

Genius! 😆

IMO they take about as much looking after as a rear shock. If you can do an air can service you can do whatever periodic maintenance your post will need,and it’ll take about as long.

Thanks for the responses all, I think I’ll wait until I’ve test ridden one properly before pulling the trigger…

I agree about it being like an air can service but has anyone tried it with a Thomson covert?

You can unscrew the cartridge but not remove it so you can’t get the two sliding components apart without disassembly of the damper

As a caveat to my earlier post, I should fess up and add “unless it’s a spesh command post and you get the collar lodged in the groove where the bushing went and have to send it back to spesh for a full service”

has anyone tried it with a Thomson covert?

I think I remember Thomson feeling that their post was realistically not user-serviceable, but that was part of the trade off for a very long recommended service interval.

The long service intervals are wrong. One wet ride and it sounds like a pepper grinder.

I just put my ancient KS i950 back into use. It’s had one full service after it went a bit saggy, and a couple of DIY ones over the last 5 or maybe 6 years, still going strong. Meanwhile my Reverb that I bought last April is just back from its first warranty replacement. Annoyingly, for something that did not need a whole new post, I could have DIY fixed it, I just didn’t want to invalidate the warranty!

Side note; I’m not blown away with reverb reliability, both of mine have played up in more or less the same way. But people seem to find seatposts scary; servicing a reverb is no harder than a fork and Rockshox have a great service video online. For my model you just need one special tool (which you could probably bodge, but it’s a fiver, so I got the tool), and an oil tool which you can make yourself for about a quid. Don’t be scared!

I don’t know if modern KSs are still as good but the old ones were reliable, and pretty simple too. You can’t really home service the pneumatic part but the rest is easy enough.

BigDummy – Member

I think I remember Thomson feeling that their post was realistically not user-serviceable, but that was part of the trade off for a very long recommended service interval. cancelled out by the fact that you’ll have a warranty replacement before the service is due anyway

As above, they’re a moving component, so need servicing.
I’m a fan of the Reverb, because yes although it has it’s issues (no more than most of the others)
It can be serviced in the shop without the need to send it off, so same day repair=customer isn’t without
their bike. Has to be one of the best reasons for it.
Having said that, the Fox Transfer feels amazing & won’t drop if you rip the hose off with it being cable operated.

Can you “air can service” a Fox transfer?

Onzadog – Member
Can you “air can service” a Fox transfer?

Don’t know yet.
The question as been asked & we’ve requested dealer workshop training & currently waiting to hear if/when that can happen

Well if you buy a reverb the chances are you’ll get a new one every 18 months or so. A mate of mine sends his away for a service every year and usually gets a brand new replacement. I’ve just sent a 3 year old one away for a full referb (quoted £70) but has been stuck with SRAM for nearly 4 months. Chased it up today (or my LBS did) and SRAM have said they’ll just give me a brand new replacement FOC – not even being charged the refurb costs. Can’t argue with that.

Mate of mine got a Thompson. After 12 months it developed play, he sent it back to Thompson for a refurb as you can’t DIY refurb them, they did it FOC for him, so great service there too.

I usually get a good 18 months trouble free service from a reverb, I run two so when send one off for refurbishment i’ve got another to use, so never waiting for the refurbishment turn around time.

Everyone overlooks the Specialized Command Post, but it’s great. Mechanical locking collet, air spring, cable actuated. Unless you do what thepurist mentioned above (and it is recoverable at home, just!) then a service takes 15mins and only needs done occasionally. I just wish the Command Post came with an inline head..

Well for me the command post is the only option as I need setback.

No issues yet, but early days for me.

Been running Command posts on all our bikes, external and internal, for quite along time. Only had one go wrong which was after six years and no service to it.