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If you don't see the point of a dropper, because you're happy dropping it manually, then think of it as an upper post. It was a ride at Drumlanrig which really converted me, because it's not descents and climbs, it's all over teh place so being able to put it up for a short section of climb was awesome.
I reckon it feels a bit different if you've got all the skillset of riding hard stuff with saddle up, and not much experience of riding with the saddle down. But saddle down, for any sort of difficult terrain, is just better. It lets you move better, it lets the bike work better.
Me, I had a dropper in my rigid Soda- riding without suspension is fun and challenging, riding without a dropper just spoiled rides, for me.
mmm,
Mikewsmith,
yes I remember cantis,V's were a vast improvement,as were then discs.
not quite a grandad yet,although,can't see any problem with being one,as I inferred,each to their own,we all gota make a living,shame big corporate manufacturers take the lions share,but hey...
as I said,I've been riding my own style for a while,and I think I'm happy as I am,if folks want to spend £2-300 on a uppy downy seatpost,that's their prerogative,each to their own,same goes for suspension,to me it;s all high maintenance/high cost BS. ....IMO.
PS, dont need to 'calm down' as not angry.
you've got that confused with 'amused'
the amount of wknd warriors I’ve seen
genius.
TBH i don't GAS if you use a dropper or not. enough of my mates do, and screwing around with my seatpost while they disappear in to the distance got pretty old pretty quickly.
Keef, is that rigid SS fixed or do you take the easy option and run a freehub? Nobody needed those back in the day.
I have one on my hardtail, but I don't often fit it as it's used for bikepacking mainly and my main bikepacking bag is a seat pack. I know I can fit my dropper and my seat pack but I still find it better with a normal seat post. If I take this bike for a 'proper' ride that's not bikepacking then it'll have a dropper on it
My rigid bike doesn't have one but that's because nothing I ride locally requires a dropper
to me it;s all high maintenance/high cost BS. ….IMO.
So it's you versus the world. Just don't try telling us we're all idiots fooled by marketing 🙂
Whenever I give my ‘88 Explosif an outing, the thing that I miss (even more than disc brakes) is a dropper post.
I was out for a ride with a mate today and funnily enough he said that he’d give up suspension forks before he’d do without a dropper post now.
I was on my rigid singlespeed but even that has a dropper...
I think I’d give up suspension and gears before my dropper posts. Also, if you think of them as upper posts they make more sense (to me, anyway!)
I wonder what the OP's bike rides are like.
I wonder what the OP’s bike rides are like.
Have someone repeatedly kick you in the bollocks.
Like that.
I wonder what the OP’s bike rides are like.
It's dangerously close to mocking, which isn't my intent, but if another MTBer tells me that they're happy riding around with their saddle at optimum peddling height all the time I assume either they're some hardcore XC racer who can ride though the rock gardens and drops of those sorts of races arse-up, head-down and they're immensely impressive to me, or ride the sort of rides I take from time to time, over hill and dale, caring more about the view and chatting with mates than busting KOMs and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that, I just feel a bit sad for that awesome Primer though, it's meant for so much more...
I'm of course aware that very few of us are able to exploit our bikes to the full and I hate the term 'over-biked' but jeez if you can't throw your weight back on a Primer and giver 'er some now and again it's almost criminal.
As you get older being able to drop your saddle makes it easier to get on & off the bike?
Not just me then....
I'm in the 'yeah, it's ok' camp, I use it (more as time of bike/dropper ownership) goes on. I could do without one.
I don't have one but I can certainly see the point: my saddle position is a bit too low for efficient climbing and a bit too high for descending.
I went back to a rigid post last autumn & was surprised how little I missed the dropper.
I started with a Maverick Speedball before ending up with Thomson ones on both my bikes, so it’s been years. The new xc race bike doesn’t have routing for one & while I pondered drilling for an internal post I just stuck an old USE carbon post in.
There have been a couple of occasions I missed it but not where I expected; technical descent etc. Mainly gates, getting on & off the bike!
I think I’ll leave it off the xc bike but when I inevitably build a new fs bike I’ll probably stick one on that.
I never used to drop my post for any riding. It was a full height and stayed there. I was quite sensitive to the saddle being the correct height and the thought of moving it and then not getting it back in exactly the correct position was part of the problem.
I started to struggle on steeper/more technical trails so bought one 2nd hand to try. I wouldn’t build a mountain bike without one now. I did find it took a while to get used to, but it’s brilliant. I’ll only use a rigid post when bike packing, but the riding is more sedate, so less of an issue.
If you only ride mellow trails then I agree you might not need one, ride anything steep though and they're a welcome addition.
I personally like them for the ability to get on the bike without pulling a hamstring!! Having the saddle at the right pedalling height means it's much easier to go on with the saddle dropped and then extend it once moving.
As you get older being able to drop your saddle makes it easier to get on & off the bike?
I'll admit to that, particularly as bikes have got longer travel they can get bloody high when unloaded!
Back when it was a post with a QR I'd rarely get it right first time putting it back up - always would be not quite the right height or perfectly straight, it'd annoy me then I'd stop again to adjust it.
Can't imagine not having one. Even if I built a cheap rigid winter singlespeed I'd stick a brand-x dropper on it.
Tomhoward,
I must confess,I've just sold my fixed cross bike,and yes hands up,I run a big girls freewheel,(but in my mid 50's with a knee op a few years back,I'm getting soft in my old age) stil ride fixed on road/gravel etc,tho.
but then again,I don't recall many running fixed mtb,when it all started,but have dabbled,and I'm not the only one....
Molgrips, no not all of you 😉
Just Googled the OP's bike. Flippin eck. If you aren't dropping your saddle then you're wasting your money on that bike and aren't even close to using it the way it was designed. If you really don't like a dropped saddle sell that bike and get something else.
I have no desire to go back to the days of riding steep stuff with my post at full mast and getting stuck behind the seat when i reached the bottom.
Or getting my shorts sucked in between the canti straddle wire and the rear tyre for that matter.😲
My brother and I designed one on an envelope back in the 90s before even the Gravity Dropper existed. We thought it'd be essential for the kind of riding we could do but I didn't have any resources to take it any further back then. Turns out we were right and I wouldn't be without one on any xc through trail to enduro type bike. The downhill bike can easily do without one.
Of course don't forget the hite rite...
Like I said before, we mainly ride in the Lakes and don't fight shy of the gnarly stuff. The bike gets used as intended. My riding chums are much braver (and younger) than me and they don't use droppers either. However, since I've still got it, I'm going to put it back, give it a bleed and see if it improves my riding. I'll persevere for a bit longer this time. Thanks for all the comments.
I drop and raise my saddle more than I change gears. A dropper makes me feel safer on any form of tech.
My riding chums are much braver (and younger) than me and they don’t use droppers either
Do you drop your saddle though? If not your in the complete minority.
I've been riding a rigid again for about four years now..i mostly ride fireroad with bits of singletrack and a couple of enduro's like Scott/Dyfi. I have just put a £127.99 reverb on last week to do Builth and it was much easier in the mud by getting the saddle out of the way. I didn't need one for the dyfi last year as I had no problems (it was dry) but it'll be much easier this year with a dropper on.
I mostly ride on the North Downs here in Kent so nothing truly extreme and I'm not an extreme rider anyway. 😃
I would say they are very useful but not essential, for me anyway.
I like the consistent pedaling position, the ease of mounting or dismount (a great unforseen bonus!) And being able to lower the saddle going down.... Yes, it's bloody handy but not essential. To me.
All of that said, what parts parts bike are essential when all is said and done? Most of my bike consists of parts that strictly speaking don't need to be there. However I enjoy those parts and what they do, so it works for me.
Basically, there is no right or wrong on this just opinion and riding expectations surely?
Anyway op give it a try for a month and if they arent for you then sell it on to the converts? 😃
(Not me though, wouldn't touch a Reverb when there are Brand X's available for peanuts. Lol)
Enjoy the riding either way!
They are terrain depended.
Flat fields, green routes and tow paths = don't need a dropper (don't need a mountain bike either)
Anything else = a dropper will make it more fun and allow you to ride faster/cleaner/safer/more fun
Just to add to the general feeling - droppers are a long way from boost hubs and new headset standards in the things the bike industry does to irritate me. I've had one since 2007 (a gravity dropper) on my big bigger bike, and I hate not having a dropper now on any bike.
I even use one for bike packing (I don't use a seatpack). I did the highland trail 550 and the lakeland 200 with the dropper on last year. I was considerably slower than the winner on the 550, but he used a dropper too...
He rode 550 miles with 53000 ft of climbing in 3 days 10 hours, including some pretty technical terrain. Maybe keef can show him the skills he clearly lacks!
I don't even use a bike anymore, just a saddle and dropper post gaffer taped to my arse, as I pogo down the trails.
🙂
That's great, you are now immune to standard changes, faffing with what tyres for what trail conditions and its super light. Win win win.
If you feel you don't need one, then I can see why you'd think it was just one more thing to go wrong. Having moved up from the Chilterns where you don't need one at all really, to Calderdale where it's pretty steep (and slick in the winter) it just gets the post and saddle our if the way enough to allow a greater range of "body English". Certainly adds to the fun, I think.
Try it for a month, see what happens? If you still don't like it, flog it and you at least have a lighter bike
Ianpv,I bet he had gears too.....;-)
like I say ,each to their own.
The bike gets used as intended.
Unlikely, since it will have been designed to perform around a rider whose body weight is lower than yours will be.
Cheeky bugger. I'm 10st 10lb. I probably need a bit more lard to make most suspension work 'as intended'. Especially noticeable on my motorbike.
^ OP. molgrips meant body weight lower as in lower on the bike, CoG, not lighter.
I like the middle way. On my old HT, and now moved to my Fat, I have an underseat lever KS. Yes, you have to think a bit in advance, so I use it as an on the fly QR sorta thing. I like the Raiser analogy too: I usually ride most things 1 to 2" down from full climbing extension.
Advantages: no annoying cable or remote to route or need to bleed, can easily swap with solid post & saddle for bikepacking or between bikes, cost nowt secondhand, is only 350g over my Thomson fixed post.
I killed the Reverb on the FS on a very wet Wales trip, so I'm going to remove it and try this. Reckon it'll be fine.
(I've a rigid SS too with fixed post and it's staying that way; as I ride less gnarr on it and it's all part of the KISS ethos of that bike)
I can’t live without one, but I used to spend a lot of time dicking around changing my saddle height, even back in the day. I hate riding anything fun (jumps, drops, DH trails) with my saddle up. Always have done.
Its one thing that genuinely makes riding better for me
molgrips meant body weight lower as in lower on the bike, CoG, not lighter
Yes, that's what I meant.
In the lakes there are lots of long bumpy descents - those are rough without being technical, so whilst I'd still drop the saddle, it's less of an issue. What a lower saddle allows you to do is move around a lot more, and get your weight in the right place for manouevring the bike - body English, as mentioned above. Not required on a long stony track, but essential on singletrack if you want to go fast.
Do French MTBers talk about 'body French' I wonder?
uppy downy seatpost,that’s their prerogative,each to their own,same goes for suspension,to me it;s all high maintenance/high cost BS. ….IMO.
What do you mean when you say suspension etc is bullshit?
Do you mean it's benefits are a lie and a fabrication by the industry to sell more bikes? Or do you mean it's just not a necessity to ride your bike and have fun?
If it's the former then I fear for your sanity, if it's the latter then I might be inclined to agree with you, although it does open up many more riding possibilities that could be considered even more funerer!
Cheeky bugger. I’m 10st 10lb. I probably need a bit more lard to make most suspension work ‘as intended’. Especially noticeable on my motorbike.
I think this misunderstanding is quite telling. As has been pointed out the meaning was getting weight lower rather than lighter. If the meaning of lowering weight down into the bike went over your head them you very well might not see the advantage of a dropper post.
^^ A common or garden misunderstanding of a sentence on a forum is not the same thing as being undecided on the merits of droppers. 😃
Ones a mistake, ones an opinion.... Bit harsh to join dots between the two?
I used to be in the don't bother camp with a dropper post. Then I bought a bike with a dropper and now I wouldnt be without one. I use it every ride and its 100% improved my riding.
Maybe. On the other hand to someone who understands the benefits of getting low on the bike the meaning would have been obvious. Or maybe they are just a bit touchy about their weight 😉
There are benefits to having a petrol engine on a bike but not everyone wants to ride a motorbike... 😉
Anyway, just thought it a smidgen harsh to make a link between the two points you raised is all. 🙂