Yep Components Uptimiser ST seatpost.

The world of the uppy-downy post has been dominated by a small number of companies since it became the must-have of the mountain bike world. However, there’s a new, Swiss, name on the scene and it’s keen to be considered with the best of them.

The pun-tastic Uptimiser comes in 30.9 and 31.6in sizes, and in two styles: either mid-cabled (ST) or bottom-cabled (HC) for internal routing in the seat tube.

Both versions are available in two different drops: 125mm and 155mm, and there’s a further option of the 155mm drop post with an extra 30mm of fixed post for the really long-legged. The travel is hydraulically controlled and air sprung, but cable actuated.

The lever itself is a familiar-looking joystick type, which can be activated in any direction (up, down, backwards, forwards) and it comes with an open-sided handlebar clamp that is easy to remove without taking grips etc. off (if you swap your one dropper post between your two bikes for instance) and it’s also very hard to over-tighten. This means it’ll always shift in a crash, though it can also move inadvertently in use.

Fitting the post was easy enough, and everything about it exudes that Swiss-quality kind of feel. All the fittings are finished perfectly and reminded me a lot of the precise nature of Thomson kit. There are spare O-rings and face plates for the cable attachment point, as well as a narrow valve adaptor for adding air if needed. The inline post is reversible, so you can have the cable mount on the front or rear of the seatpost to best suit your cable routing.

After putting it together without reading the instructions (as usual – after all, how hard can it be to install a post?), I had an issue where the seatpost would only go halfway down. This turned out to be an issue (well documented in the instructions…) where (only) the 30.9mm post has such thin sidewalls that the mechanism can be temporarily squashed by too much seat clamp pressure. Backing off the seatpost clamp to minimum value did immediately solve this problem, though I do worry for all the (other) ham-fisted home mechanics of the world.

Instructions read, I was on my way. The post has a very easy actuation, thanks to the big joystick lever, and is as intuitive as a shifter paddle to use. One-by users can run it under the bar and it will go on either side depending on where it fits best. I’ve been testing the 125mm version and I’ve used every millimetre of analogue adjustment. The stock pressure moves the post at a medium pace and very little adjustment is needed to get used to the post moving: no tapping of bum on saddle to get it to move in either direction, just push and go.

Over three months of wet and neglectful riding, the Uptimiser (ugh, that name!) has been flawless. There’s a tangible feel of quality to the post and the action. Thomson-like is the only way to describe it and the attention to detail is great. You can currently only order it direct from Switzerland, but despite the distance, Yep reckons that you shouldn’t need close back-up from them. Basic maintenance is as simple as any fork clean and there are tech tutorials available for bike shop staff if you need to do ‘deeper inspection’ like changing bushings. If you want a factory service, Yep will do it for you for free if you send it to its Swiss workshop.

Overall: Tactile quality from a company that has worked very hard to get things right. So far, it’s been flawless. A definite contender.

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