So today the 5th Reverb I've owned has failed. This one has lasted a record of 342 miles so far according to Strava (I'll qualify it by saying they've been pretty hard miles, but even still...), each of the previous 4 started playing up even sooner!
They're fantastic bits of kit when they're working, and the SRAM tech centre's near enough "no quibble warranty" is impressive, and using both SRAM shifters and brakes I love the way the lever integrates on the bar, but... I do feel there has to be a better answer. I'm in the fortunate position to own 2 bikes (and a spare Thomson seatpost for either), but am seriously looking for a better solution.
Has anybody actually managed to get decent milage out of a Reverb so far? Specifically, before it won't hold decent air pressure so drops down under the riders weight like a suspension post. I've bled so many Reverbs now, that I can pretty much do it with my eyes closed!
Mines two years old now, gets lot punishment in the peak district, never bleed or cleaned it really.
Sayning that I know lots of people that have had issues but as you mention sram have been very good in most cases they have sent a new one out
I've had three, one for over four years, and no problems with any of them bar snapping a hose barb (my fault entirely).
Mine is 3.5 years old and has started to drop about a centimeter when I sit on it. From what I've read, its most likely a leaky internal seal letting in some air. I use it almost every day and have never serviced it so can't complain. Don't know whether to sell it as a spares/repair and buy a new one or try and sort it myself.
Coming up for 3 years, and over 5,000 km... I've had to put more air in it a couple of times, but that's it. Great bit of kit.
4 years plus on mine, 2-4 rides every week throughout the year. Squirt of fork juice before each ride is the only maintenance it's ever had. Starting to feel rough now but still works fine
3 years on a reverb for me with only 1 service and a replacement plunger for when I snapped that off the lever, I think you're unlucky with 5! What keeps failing? Hydraulic lever - chose a cable one like a Thomson. Actual dropper - pick a new brand (KS, Thomson and Fox seem to have good reps) or go mechanical.
every 18months. drop it. pull up on the saddle without depressing the remote. send it back. get a new one. Best RS product evar IMO!
My reverb is faultless as is sweamrs's. 2 years with only an annual service. My KS Lev integra on the other hand... 3 in 6 months and I know of other Thomsons that have also failed. So my conclusion is that there is no nirvana where droppers are concerned.
Lev
2 years into a hard life, thought I had a failed cart but turned out it was just full of crap, never had to bleed the cable.
Best RS product evar IMO!
And IMO too... Performance (when working) and backup are incredible, but reliability is so poor I wouldn't entertain going away for more than a day's riding without also taking a spare seatpost with me!
My KS Lev integra on the other hand... 3 in 6 months and I know of other Thomsons that have also failed. So my conclusion is that there is no nirvana where droppers are concerned.
Wouldn't touch KS with a bargepole myself. Baaaaaaaaad experience from the Superstar years, but the products were as poor as the customer service both in fucntion and design.
Long been saying that with Droppers that they're a fantastic concept, poorly executed by pretty much everyone. In fact I've often been quoted saying "it's a case of picking the best of a bad bunch". Given the warranty and backup and the function when working, that's still the Reverb I'd say, but dear god I'm getting fed up with the bloody things failing!
What keeps failing? Hydraulic lever - chose a cable one like a Thomson. Actual dropper - pick a new brand (KS, Thomson and Fox seem to have good reps) or go mechanical.
Always the dropper itself. I much prefer the smooth action of the hydraulic lever over a cable setup, even despite the minor faff of the bleed (so used to it now, it literally takes a couple of minutes), but after a period of time, they start to develop a little bit of creep under weight, which rapidly increases and turns them into a suspension seatpost!
I think you're unlucky with 5!
The 5 as owned...
1. Original silver collared 31.6x380mm 125mm drop. Lasted less than 10 rides before it started dropping under my weight. Sent back to SRAM tech, replaced with...
2. Updated Black collared version of the same. Didn't last much longer than no.1 before going back to SRAM tech. Replaced with...
3. Same as above. Done maybe 200 miles, been on 3 different bikes though. Currently sat on my new HT, and it's got about 5mm of creep in it (experience tells me that it's got about 2 rides until this is about 25mm of creep)
4. Reverb Stealth 30.9x380 125mm drop. Was fitted to the Whyte T-129 SCR I had briefly earlier this year (Cokie now owns it). Developed play very quickly, sent back to SRAM tech and replaced with a new one. Bike then sold to Cokie (so suppose technically I've had 6 Reverbs even though have only used 5).
5. A 420mm version of above, fitted to my Evil Following from new. The bike and post are 3 months old. Reverb started developing a small amount of play 2 rides ago, rode it today and it now has over an inch of suspension meaning riding the bike uphill hurts me knees as I'm not getting a full leg extension! It's coming out the bike tomorrow and getting sent back to SRAM tech.
Good to hear that some of you guys are getting good service out of yours. It's not like I've mistreated them either, as I pay particular attention to spray a little Fork Juice on the stanchion after cleaning, and I'm not spraying Muc-Off or anything anywhere near it (just a bit of soapy water once in a while). The funny thing is my GF had to buy a new Reverb for her current bike (different size required), so we sold the old 31.6 to a mate of mine. She had had no issues with it in a year of use. 2 rides on his bike, and it was straight off and back to SRAM tech too... I'm intrigued to know what they do with all the broken Reverbs too, as nobody I know has ever had theirs fixed and sent back to them, it's always a brand spanking new one in a box sent in the old ones stead!
Seems to be luck of the drawer stuff. I've had 4, still got 3.
One had 2 years of flawless use by me, then was sold with a bike.
One I've had for a year with no probs to report
One ive had for 18 months and it's currently in its third form
The other I've had for 15 months and that's in its second form.
All 420x125mm save for the 15 month one that's a 150mm
Given that when anything does go wrong it's normally sorted within a week (thanks stif) and having more than one bike, it's not really an issue for me. This may change when warranties start expiring...
Wouldn't touch KS with a bargepole myself. Baaaaaaaaad experience from the Superstar years, but the products were as poor as the customer service both in fucntion and design.
Had one from those days, failed on day 1, they fixed it no questions and it then worked for 3 years without fail till I got the Lev. Basing a judgement on the old importer is a bit childish too, things vary a lot.
Mines 3 years old, never had any maintenance apart from once when I squirted some GT85 in its general direction and only now has developed a bit of up/down action at full height. Don't notice it whilst riding so I'm just going to keep riding it.
That doesn't help you much OP but if mine died I'd go and get another without looking at the other options...
I've had two , the first one lasted probably 1000 off road miles before developing too much play . The second (on a different bike to the firat) is up to about 750 miles and going strong still.
I think the seat angle of the bike plays a part in how long the post lasts, a slack seat angle (which places more 'lever' action on the bushings) causes them to wear faster than when its fitted to a bike with a steep seat angle I reckon.
I've still got the original Reverb on mine which has been in use for the last 4 1/2 years and never needed to be bled or to be pumped up since fitting. Never serviced it, just clean the muck off it after each ride and give it a squirt of Fork Juice.
I've not read everything, but are you lifting the bike by the saddle when the post is dropped?
Mine lasted a year then started dropping, sent it off, got a new one pretty quick and has been fine for the past year.
I read somewhere that storing them in the down position is what kills them. The one that died was always stored down, I make a point of raising this one when not in use, I'll see how it fares
I read somewhere that storing them in the down position is what kills them
Based on the fact that I store my bikes upside down 95% of the time I'd say this is nonsense as I haven't had any issues with any of my reverbs in the 4 years of using them
Not sure whether them being upside down makes any difference, just whether the post is extended or not.
Just something I read, seems to make sense that having the chambers compressed 99% of the time would do some damage
They get stored with post up or down, probably down most of the time as I lower it as it easier to get in/out of car. Hasn't been a problem IME
Three years of heavy use before mine had a service (full strip down) although it had a fair bit of bounce from about 2.5 years. Six months on and I did have to strip it down again as it suddenly developed that bounce again, but I found a 'pinched' seal, which suggests I put it back together badly last time!
If you keep having problems with it dropping, I'd also ask if you're lifting the bike by the saddle- puts pressure on the seals in the wrong direction and lets air in.
The post dropping and becoming suspension like is usually one of 2 things: loss of air or oil mixing with air inside the post. They're really not very hard to bleed if you follow the youtube videos. You need about £20 worth of tools and a seal pack. But I can understand that you shouldn't need to do this every few months! I'm happy with every couple of years. Lifting them whilst they're down apparently doesn't help.
OP, Same here. 5th one and this one has done less than 200 miles, had one that died on the first ride!!
They are utterly terrible imo. So i use them until they break then get a new one from Fishers under warranty, flog that and buy a Specialized command post, which are always brilliant if a little crude.
I've had a similar experience to the OP with mine.
Had 1000 miles out of the first one I bought new in June 2014 before it started to "sag". Warranty replaced with new recently and I've done 80 miles so far and it's ok. Sold that old bike but kept the Reverb as my spare.
Next one came on new bike and did 800 miles but already had "sag" after 400 but I carried on riding it until I had a good moment between races to send it off.
Then I bought a 2nd hand bike that was apparently fitted with a new Reverb in Feb 2015. I don't know how many miles it did but I've only put 200 on it and it has "sag" already and there's a click from the lower circlip which is annoying when suspension is locked out. I expect my LBS will just send it back when I next go in.
I'm only 71kg and 77kg with kit. I wouldn't be without a dropper post and none of them have completely failed on me and I've been ok riding them with the "sag" too. It doesn't really bother me. My LBS are straight on it though whenever I go in and send them back! I don't care.
I'm lucky to have ended up with 2 bikes and 3 Reverbs so I can rotate them as the next one goes bang.
*The "sag" I refer to = a seal has gone inside as far as I understand it. The post will drop 2-5mm when you sit on it.
I've still got the original Reverb on mine which has been in use for the last 4 1/2 years and never needed to be bled or to be pumped up since fitting. Never serviced it, just clean the muck off it after each ride and give it a squirt of Fork Juice.
This^^ +1
The "sag" I refer to = a seal has gone inside as far as I understand it.
If by gone you mean 'let air in' I think that's fine, if you mean 'no longer fit for purpose', it may well not be defunct. Serviced two reverbs that were dropping and in both cases the seals were fine- one got a new set, the other just got greased and reassembled. I think pulling it by the saddle just creates a vacuum somewhere that burps some air in.
How many other dropper posts can be fully stripped & rebuilt same day?
Seal kit £9.99 + a bit of time & it's as good if not better than new.
Yes they have their issues, but show me a dropper that doesn't & it's the only one that can be brought back from the dead without having to send it back as it's not a factory sealed cartridge.
There isn't another post out there that I'd put on my own bike.
@swanny853 only going by what a mechanic told me. It's only a temporary fix to pump the air back up to 250PSI too apparently. If the seal has started leaking that's it, it needs replacing. It's a 3h+ job so it's cheaper to send out new posts.
I haven't pulled the seat up on any of the Reverbs for a very long time since I found out that was a bad idea and the one Reverb I would have done that on was the one that lasted the longest anyway FWIW.
I think they're great. None of them have failed to work for me during a ride ever. I wipe the stanchion and lube the seal with fork juice after ever ride just as I do with the fork and shock. That gets the grinding paste crap out of the seals as much as possible.
I'm looking forward to the wireless remote 150mm dropper posts as seen in EuroBike. That'll mean I don't have to drill my frames for stealth routing to get 150mm drop. That's a stellar use of electronics on bikes if you ask me. There would be a button under the saddle too if it went wrong or you lost the remote. I hope SRAM make their own version. I'll be first in line.
If the seal has started leaking that's it, it needs replacing.
Hmmm, that's the bit I think I might be unsure on. If it's leaking because it's damaged, then yes, but my understanding (which could obviously be wrong!) was that pulling up on the saddle puts pressure on a seal somewhere from the wrong direction, allowing it to burp (i.e. it's designed to keep pressure in, not out). When the pressure is returned to normal, it's quite happy to hold in place.
That's not to say that a damaged seal wouldn't also cause the same problems!
Oh, and I also can't wait for a few more wireless remotes. I wouldn't have thought it would be that hard for rockshox- the hydraulic remote is essentially just there to push a big button in the post head anyway
Had one fail after 9months due to overheating (parked car, 30+ degrees) Sorted without quibble.
The new one is now 2yrs old and still looks and works like new.
I have had one on a bike for 18 months, and never had a problem, however, on my other bike, a YT Capra that's 5 months old, it's in the LBS getting its 3rd. One of the downsides to getting mail order bikes, you either have the choice of sending it back to Germany for them to sort, or paying LBS to do it for you.
It seems a bit hit and miss how long Reverbs last but it does seem there are a few ways to be "nice" to them that may help:
Don't pull the seat up when the post is down - ever.
Don't jet wash it.
Clean the stanchion and seal with a soft lint-free dry cloth after every ride.
Lube the stanchion with "Juicy Lubes" suspension lube or something similar.
Cycle it a couple of times and clean away up any muck that comes up form under the seal.
Go ride more.
Bleed the remote if it stops working.
Possibly pump it up to 250PSI if it "sags" - might rescue it for a while even though it says not to in the manual.
It's great that Reverb's have a two year warranty and most people seem to have a positive experience with the warranty.