Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 49 total)
  • Dropper seat posts – are they worth the £200
  • covbuggy
    Free Member

    Hi guys, I am considering a dropper post for my 2012 remedy 9. Never tried one so my q’s;
    How good do they work? Are the reliable? Which one is the best on out there, was looking at reverb? 100 or 125 travel? And are they heavy?

    Thanks in advance.

    Northwind
    Full Member

    Weeelll it depends. In terms of actual value, probably not. But mine make most of my rides at least a bit better, and some of my rides a lot better. Looking at cash values, mountain biking is terrible value, per ride or per mile or whatever but it’s still worth it for me… And the same applies to droppers.

    It’ll sound daft but when I ride my rigid XC bike, I fit my gravity dropper to it- because having no suspension can be fun, but having no dropper post is just annoying now.

    Reliable- my Gravity Dropper has been more reliable than some standard seatposts. My KS i900 was troublesome at first but has been plain sailing since. Both used for at least a couple of years, in all weathers etc, with no heroic servicing. They’re heavier than a standard post but not so heavy as to put me off at all.

    And 100 vs 125… Personally, the more the merrier. My GD is 100mm and that’s adequate, but the 125mm of the KS is better.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    Reliable – Some are some aren’t what you are looking for is good warranty 🙂

    Weight – go look it up

    Best so far looks like reverb with KS running second. People swear by gravity dropper but most I have seen didn’t work properly.

    Travel – time to work it out for yourself!! Look at bike with seat up. How much exposed seat post do you have. The top of the Reverb is about 1″(25mm) but check in a shop or online. If you have room get the 125mm. The most important thing is that on the up it should return to your natural top pedal position.

    Is it worth it? Define Worth…. My KS has been great love it. If you don’t have one you wont understand why it’s better really. If you have £200 to spend on a bike then a worthwhile investment. If your scraping the cash together then not top of the list.

    FWFW I’m currently looking at the new KS Rev in 27.2 or changing my HT to a BFe to fit a 30.9 in that too.

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    Mugboo
    Full Member

    If fun & flow feature highly on your list and you can spare the cash then get a Reverb bought from Germany.

    After decent forks and disc brakes, they are the thing most likely to change your riding 🙂

    I reckon even the XC boys will end up using them. Imagine how much faster they’ll be on descents. I still struggle to imagine how you ride Worry Gill with your saddle up!!

    tomhoward
    Full Member

    They’re the best thing since suspension forks IMO. Well worth the money, my Reverb works beautifully, no problems reliabity wise and although they are heavier than a regular post, if its going on a Rememdy, the difference isn’t so much that you’d notice it. Length wise, how much post do you use now, more than 125 mm sticking out of the frame? Go for a 125 (or 150).

    If your riding involves lots of short ups and downs, you’ll love it. Even if it doesnt, you’ll be riding along at full height, see a tasty bit of trail, drop the saddle instantly, and enjoy not taking one in the tackle, or stopping to drop your saddle and ruining your ‘flow’. Oh and get a remote version of which ever post you go for, so as you don’t have to take your hands off the bars when the going gets rough.

    el_boufador
    Full Member

    For me, yes they are definitely worth the £.

    Like Northwind, counter-intuitively I find a dropper post probably just as useful (or more) on a rolling XC type rides, compared with a big day out in proper hills.
    Reason being is that you wouldn’t stop to drop your saddle normally because the DH runs are too short to warrant it. A dropper post makes the most out of these short sections.

    timc
    Free Member

    made up with mine! would recommend!

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    They make a difference in a good way. Some rides more than others. On Sunday evening I was knackered as it was the 4th ride of the weekend, so standing up to climb was a no no and the first mile or two was an off camber singletrack which contours along a slope, occasionally plummeting down and climbing back up, would have been very hard to do it all standing whilst that knackered and near impossible with the seat up.

    Worth ~£200? Depends, if you have £200 in the bank and nothing to spend it on then it’s better than £200 in the bank, on the other hand £200 buys a nice 2nd hand BMX/fixie/commuter, all of which could also be a lot of fun. I’d probably prioritise one on a build over say XTR Vs SLX or hope hubs/headset or shimano hubs and FSA headsets if that makes sense. If it was a dropper seatpost or eatign food for the next fortnight I’d go for the food.

    JoeG
    Free Member

    I went to a dropper seatpost (KS Lev) earlier this year and can’t imagine going back. I’m having to relearn how I ride. I was lazy; butt on saddle 99% of the time. But when you drop the saddle, you can’t be. So I’m practicing riding standing, bought a book on bike skills, working on the “attack position” and am considering going to wider bars now. Once I get up to speed on some skills (like remembering to get into the proper (higher) gear to pedal while standing instead of just coasting, I will be a much better rider and enjoy riding a lot more.

    vinnyeh
    Full Member

    I’ve now pretty much lost the ability to ride techy downhills with the saddle up. Seriously.

    rob-jackson
    Free Member

    surely in the “attack position” you are subconsciously tense as you are thinking “i am attacking this” no you aren’t you are riding a bike, you need to relax and commit not attack.

    day grumble over

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    surely in the “attack position” you are subconsciously tense as you are thinking “i am attacking this” no you aren’t you are riding a bike, you need to relax and commit not attack.

    2/10

    just up and further forward!!

    weeksy
    Full Member

    I gave my KS900i to my mate for Morzine… I charged him £100.

    By the end of the 3 days… he’d have paid me £400 for it LOL.

    He adores it…

    Personally i wasn’t keen on the action of up/down, but i rekon i’d have got used to it. Although i didn’t feel i needed to raise/lower my seat on the trip.

    forge197
    Free Member

    In the alps every penny in the uk less so

    I used my last year in the alps then it sat in the garage until this year where I am using it in the alps.

    I did service it before coming back out,, though the cable for the remote snapped as I cleaned the bike after PDS !!

    hugor
    Free Member

    If there was a reliable hydrolic one I’d buy one today.
    I’ve paid more for upgrades with trivial if any benefit.
    Unfortunately for every person who says they’ve had brand x post for 12 months problem free, there’s 5 who say they’ve had it serviced 3 times since they bought it last week, but it was amazing while it worked and it completely transformed their riding!

    kiwijohn
    Full Member

    Heavy
    Expensive
    Unreliable
    Never drop my saddle because I’m a riding god
    Pass.

    theendisnigh
    Free Member

    I think its worth it, it took me a while to get the most out of it, initially I would forget I had it, but once it became second nature it is now an essential item on the bike. I got a reverb from hibike May 2011 and no issues so far. If it broke I’d have to get a new one despite the cost.

    PeterPoddy
    Free Member

    No

    cheese@4p
    Full Member

    Yes, yes and yes

    smogmonster
    Full Member

    Depends on what youre riding – if its flat XC type stuff then no, not worth it at all. If its saddle up, saddle down, saddle up, saddle down techy stuff, then yes, theyre worth every penny. I ride Guisborough a lot, there is very little flat stuff around there, and a lot of steep ups and downs, so my KS is invaluable. Its not that it cant be done with an ordinary post, but its a lot less faff.

    coolhandluke
    Free Member

    It depends if you stop at the top of steep bits to lower your saddle. If you just ride on and live with the saddle where it is then don’t bother with one or wait for a cheaper second hand one to turn up, like I did.

    Also, if you stop to raise your saddle on long draggy climbs, as I used to, maybe worth it.

    I used to generally ride everywhere with the saddle in one posittion unless I got tired on a long climb when I would raise it a bit to make the leg work easier.

    I got one s/h and it’s been worth it but don’t think I’d part with £200 for one.

    juan
    Free Member

    If you are just riding along probably not. Just drop your saddle using your QR seat clamp. Now if you were to race a marathon, with a lot of up and then down and then up and down again very steep and very technical sections with uphill in between then it would be worth it.
    It will give you this extra little thing on the up. And a tad more confidence on the down. Although they are very popular for enduro racing they are not that useful. I have never raced my enduros with one and to be fair I probably wouldn’t. For a very long and techy marathon on the other hand I would. I find 10 cm to be plenty enough. The GD is by far the most reliable. And you can get a 125 mm one but it will only come in 30.9 diameter.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    Having used one in the Mega, Gravity Enduros and normal riding it’s the normal riding that it gets used the most.

    Got my missus a reverb for her birthday and now she is finally using it she loves it.

    FunkyDunc
    Free Member

    So many people use them these days there must be some thing in them. However say for example at Gisburn Forrest, would one be useful on the red route? I’m struggling to think what advantage it could give me.

    swingbing
    Free Member

    When I ride I tend to ride with guys that don’t have these, we stop at the bottom and top of every hill to raise and lower posts. It’s just part of our riding day. If I get one I’ll still have to stop and wait for them.

    Very tempted though.

    hughjengin
    Free Member

    Only an opinion. But, I had a 125mm KS for my Zesty, sold it after 3 months. Didnt see the point, More weight and just something else to go wroing and have to look after. If all of your riding is technical rocky, testing your limits of technical riding then simialr stuff to the Sweary Northeners type of riding then I guess it may be worthwhile, but then again why not just drop a regular post using the QR ? I’d sometimes come home from a 3 hour ride and realise I hadnt dropped it once, and it still needs a clean, cable lube etc etc. Othertimes I would be conscious that I should use it more, come to a section where I thought it may be useful to lower the seat and find it never dropped properly becasue of a sticky cable or something !! And then proceed as normal, go home clean and lube for the next time it decided to not use it 🙂
    I miss it in about 2% of my riding, which is mainly where a section has particularly steep or techy bits followed by pedally flat or uphill sections where its not convinient to stop manually lift your seat back up. For me it surely wasnt worth the money, extra weight, and the hassle of owning another mountain bike part that requires maintenance, servicing, cable cleaning for the very few times I used it.
    Having said that I dont race Enduro type stuff, I would think its essential for that when you are against the clock and you need the saddle up and down during a mixed sections.

    AlexSimon
    Full Member

    My riding has come on leaps and bounds since I got mine. It’s only a 3″ Joplin, (paid £120) but even that has totally transformed my bike.

    I get totally annoyed when I’m on my hardtail and get to a fun-looking bit on a flat section and have a saddle up my arse.

    It went back to 2pure once for warranty work, but it’s been fine the rest of the time with a couple of basic services. 3 years now I think.

    (it should be noted that my frame design made lowering a normal seatpost hard).

    I wouldn’t have my main bike without one now, whatever the cost (I would drop from XT to SLX if it meant having one for example).

    chiefgrooveguru
    Full Member

    They’re only worth it if you like to ride corners/rollers/jumps/drops/berms/steeps/hops as well as possible without having to compromise on pedalling power and endurance on the uphill or flat & straight bits. Despite comments to the contrary I’d say this makes them more valuable on flatter up-along-down-up-down-along terrain than big climbs and big steep descents. I flick the lever on mine much more than my front shifter (when I had one).

    thisisnotaspoon
    Free Member

    Unfortunately for every person who says they’ve had brand x post for 12 months problem free, there’s 5 who say they’ve had it serviced 3 times since they bought it last week, and 500 who just ride it without problems of fanfare

    FTFY

    My reverbs been fine and so ahs everyone else’s I know, even mine with the original supposedly breakable hose connector despite it taking quite a torturous route to stop it dropping into the rear wheel.

    Wozza
    Free Member

    I was interested but a little sceptical of dropper posts, but a new frame (Fuel) forced me into taking a plunge. I bought a Joplin because I didn’t like opening and closing the seatclamp on my frame and I wanted a full length tube in there too, plus it was cheap so was worth a punt.

    It’s almost a cliché with these things but it really has totally transformed my riding, I’m faster and MUCH more confident downhill in general which has led to me going off stuff I never would have tried previously. Yeah you can just drop your regular post, but if you’re anything like me, I just never used to bother with the faff, now it’s no faff at all, and all that’s without taking into consideration the ability to pop it back up again for the flat bits inbetween drops.

    Are they worth £100? Definitely.
    Are they worth £200? Most probably, depends how and where you ride.

    Question I’m trying at the mo is are they worth £324.99?

    sam_underhill
    Full Member

    Wozza – just got my Lev from wiggle. waited until a 10% code + another 3% with quidco so total was <£250.

    forge197
    Free Member

    My Joplin 4 has been back for warranty work once in two years, it does need cleaning and regrease quite regularly to keep it going up and down and smoothly

    alpin
    Free Member

    i’m surprised people say that they use them more when visiting the alps than on their local trails….

    for what they are i think they are very expensive and from what i have seen and heard not all that reliable.

    for me an uppy-downy post isn’t worth the extra weight and effort (maintenance). none of my riding involves short climbs and descents, rather climbs that last between 1-3 hours (500-1500m) and long descents. besides, myself and riding buddies stop and faff with knee pads, food and the like at the top.

    if i were still living in the UK and my rides involved lots of short climbs and short descents then i would be tempted to part with the cash.

    Jeffus
    Free Member

    Buy a Reverb , the up and down thing is great , its just a superb tool , the only -ve is the initial cost and if you are a weight weeny , it makes me a better rider, I struggle with the seat up and the saddle reaming my butt on steep techy trails. 😀

    Burchy1
    Free Member

    Pretty much agree with what Alpin has said with regards to riding location. I use a GD in the UK, great bit of kit and so simple (however i didn’t pay anywhere near full price for it).

    I’ll be taking a normal post to the Alps though as the bike will either be on the trailer going up or the saddle down to ride down.

    Wozza
    Free Member

    sam_underhill – Member
    Wozza – just got my Lev from wiggle. waited until a 10% code + another 3% with quidco so total was <£250.

    Nice one, cheers.

    quarryman77
    Free Member

    Bought a reverb last year on a bit of a whim – since then I have quickly grown to love it and it really does make switching from climbing to steep downhills a doddle. Expensive, always the worry that it might fail, but until then I am a fan and would recommend.

    billysugger
    Free Member

    Bought one a year ago.

    One of the best things I’ve ever bought for a bike.

    As has been said, depends where you ride.

    I don’t spend £200 easily so I wasn’t sure at first either.

    It’s not even all about the DH stuff either, if you’re at full stretch (leg wise) on a tough climb that turns rocky it’s nice just to be able to ‘squash’ it an inch on the move to give you that ability to pop up onto/over things.

    I must be getting old because I’m getting nearly as much satisfaction from riding tech stuff slowly without dabbing as I do riding faster bits without dying.

    slimjim78
    Free Member

    Yes. I mean, No.

    or maybe?

    justatheory
    Free Member

    I had a Reverb and sold it. I do miss it but not massively. Would I get one again? Probably but it’s not a priority.

Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 49 total)

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