This started as a shop for a £100 Forca seatpost which then turned up a TMARS seatpost for £65 but identical (Tiwaneese copy it seems) that then turned into a look on Superstars website for a £170 KS racing seat posts (got one already and it's been great) that then turned up an XFusion Hilo at £140
Ahhhhh, too much choice.
What works, what doesn't?
Reverb. No competition imo
Happy with my LEV, would like a Reverb Stealth but I dont have the bike to support it.
The LEV is great for solving the cable routing problem where cable movement rubs the carbon surface (1st world problem I know) and can sometimes stick out and get rubbed raw by the rear tire, I opted for a 150mm version and it been reliable so far, worth spending the money for reliability.
To counter that kslev... I have a reverb and a lev, the lev pips it. Just. Seat tube entry, cable operation and smaller tidier lever(it replacesthe inner lock on clamp of your grip) are the significant things that make it better. Otherwise they operate the same.
Since you're considering a £170 option a reverb can sometimes be had for that.
Whatever you choose I would certainly say that having hydraulic rather than cable actuation on a reverb is not something to be scared of in terms of maintenance. 2 years without having to worry about the effects of dirt on a cable is nice. Also, I snapped the hose the other day and sorting it was very straightforward. On the other hand, had I snapped a cable I could've probably continued to drop my post on that ride - I couldn't fix it til I got home.
KS - no importer/distribution/UK Support
Forca/TMAS etc all the same thing
Reverb still king?
Gravity Dropper!
My Hilo works way better than the forca which ended up in the bin. For a 27.2 frame it's pretty good.
If you have a bigger seat tube reverb seems best option.