Quite fancy adjustable seatpost (Joplin, Gravity Dropper, etc) are they as usefull as they seem, what about reliabillity?
Gravity Droppers work very well in my experience. Done a couple of thousand miles on mine (Turbo 3in drop) with no probs. Only downside is the extra weight.
Love my gravity dropper, once you get used to them it's very hard to do without IMO, anything else just seems daft. I even leave it on when I put the rigid forks on the soul- rigid forks are fine but a rigid seatpost? MADNESS!
It does depend where you ride. The best example I can give is that at Glentress, where most sections are either up or down, it's just a marginal labour saving device. But at Kirroughtree, where most sections are both up and down with a flight of stairs in the middle, they're an absolute godsend. It's not just about dropping the saddle, it's just about having the saddle at the right height.
I love mine, I just don't enjoy having descent's with the seat post stopping me move around the bike. Definitely go for the bar mounted remote, you will regret it otherwise.
The Pure Racing i900 I had was rubbish. Crappy seals, scoring on the stanchion, seized after a few muddy rides, and I'm not the only one with those issues. I returned it for a refund in the end. I understand the gravity dropper is more reliable, although it looks a bit naff if you care about that sort of thing.
The concept is great though...when it works.
I've got the 3" remote Joplin and it works like a dream. Have zip tied a piece of old inner tube over the seal and the sliding stantion bit to keep the crap out, and have also liberally greased around the pivoting 'finger' part and it still works as good as new, and I've had it absolutely covered in mud.
Hmmm. Been thinking about one of these for a while. Is the Joplin 4 much different from the Joplin 3?
Is the remote much of an added advantage on the Joplin?
Having owned a joplin and a maverick speedball, personally not fussed with them gone back to a qr, part of that is changing my riding position and style after a skills day. I have found I can ride a lot more stuff now without dropping my saddle all the time.
I had no issues with either post mechanically and found the remote easier of the 2 to use.
Don't bother with a non remote one.
I've got a non remote i900 and a GD remote. The GD is miles better imo. The i900 was great when it worked but it's ****ed now.
I didn't bother with a remote and no regrets. It's a personal thing I guess.
err I tried a mates and i am obviously missing something.... lakes / peaks riding all the time and i just dont see the point - i rarely drop my rigid post even with a q/r - can only think of one occaision last year and that was on dollywagon pike !
paul 🙂
... lakes / peaks riding all the time and i just dont see the point
Obviously not riding hard enough 😉
[i]Hmmm. Been thinking about one of these for a while. Is the Joplin 4 much different from the Joplin 3?[/i]
Hi there,
the Joplin 4 has an extra inch of drop, 2 (longer) guide blocks inside to eliminate any side to side play, u-seals are used instead of o-ring seals and the saddle clamps have been reinforced.
Cheers
ran@2pure
My i900 with the remote has been grand and worth every single penny. To me they make even more sense on a hardtail, as it gives your legs a little more leeway to soak up the bumps before you get tapped in the n*ts. More confidence in technical sections, more confidence on drop-offs - getting your weight low in the centre of the bike works a lot better for me than doing so by hanging off the back of the bike. QRs are a pain if you prize your perfect, effecient saddle height position and don't want to waste time trying to get it back.
And I second Northwind, it's not always about having it all the way up or all the way down, some of the bits inbetween are good for different reasons on different terrain.
Pedalhead wrote,
"The Pure Racing i900 I had was rubbish. Crappy seals, scoring on the stanchion, seized after a few muddy rides, and I'm not the only one with those issues."
Yep, the old ones weren't fit for purpose basically. But they do seem to have upped their game, definately not as many bad stories going around as there were. Sorta kinda vaguely considering one for the Hemlock if money allows, on the grounds that it takes, oh, 5 minutes to swap the posts between bikes, and the KS has red anodised bits.
I love my gravity dropper - it's given me loads more confidence to hit corners harder and i really would miss it if I took it off my little hardtail. Needs servicing every 3 weeks or so so it's running like butter, but it's so easy to do, and it done in 10mins.
Gunna take it to Canada....can't wait!
I have a joplin for sale if you are interested in that? It's a non remote one 31.6 and it's as new condition
I've got a Joplin 3 and a Joplin 4. There is still side to side play (from new) with the Joplin 4, just not as much as with the 3. You can't feel it when riding.
Joplin 3 = 3 inches of drop
Joplin 4 = guess!
I've got 2 GD's with remote. I'd like a Joplin (cos I'm a tart and they look nicerer) but my bikes have skinny seat-tubes, so it's GD for me.