Been thinking about getting one of these for some time, actually a few years. Now there seems to be a good few on the market.

Would I be right in thinking that the KS or kind Shock or Pure Racing i900 and i950 are at the top of the pile in terms of performance/longevity?

Any thoughts/experiences appreciated

"Would I be right in thinking that the KS or kind Shock or Pure Racing i900 and i950 are at the top of the pile in terms of performance/longevity?"

Nope, Gravity Dropper are. Though KS do seem to have finally got their product up to scratch too, and have an extra inch of drop. Still, the gravity droppers are lighter and have proven reliability.

Weigh a ton don't they? Not sure I could be bothered for the sake of a QR seatclamp, but does seem appealing on the surface.

gravity dropper is top of the pile imo. I dont think it adds much weight to be honest . Not sure of the difference to the thomson i swapped it with but i sure as hell cant feel it. I use it loads now too much more than i thought i would. Get the remote one tho 🙂

I've got a Jopin which by all accounts is very high maintenance, so far so good on that front, however which ever you choose the concept is great, get to a descent and flip, your 3 inches lower, perfect

Great idea but too expensive and too lardy still

Would concern me that the main page for the gravity dropper products has buttons to the side for all the spare parts, about 25% of the page width lol. Now I like things with spare parts, but worry what the prominance of the spares catalogue says overall!

No idea why they have so much over spares, I have had mine about 3 years now, the only thing I have had to do is to take the lever and the magnet bit apart and grease them as they were starting to get sticky. Too much mud. Apart from that no issues at all. And that was simply because I wanted to make it easier to drop using the lever

no issues with mine in a few years. Tho i know i can order any part i'll ever need . A bit like triggers brush lol

My 2009 i900 was poop, although allegedly the 2010 ones are improved. I'm not risking it and will shortly be getting an ugly but reliable Gravity Dropper.

Joplin is broken in the box over there, the 2nd GD is on (first one died after 3 years). MUCH better and 4 inches drop.

There is also the Blacx ( sp) which is Spanish I think. Silverfish have snapped that one up. Not sure on reliability but it sure looks purdy…

joplin works GD works
JOp;in requiresmore maintenance but not excssive IMHO
GD requires none but did break and require parts to fix

i got the joplin 4. i've only had it for four rides, no problems so far.

there are rumors that rockshox will be releasing a dropper seatpost. also syntace have one in the works.
might be worth waiting another year. i couldn't wait 😳

Had a KS, The LBS kept having to replace it due to problems. They then handed me a Specialized Control Post with no upcharge. So far so good

They're not that heavy coffeeking, a gravity dropper turbo is about 450g complete for the 400mm post, which isn't so much more than a Thomson 400mm at 290g claimed. I'm a total weightweenie but this I don't object to as it just makes such a big difference to my riding.

Always I say the same thing… If you're riding at an "up or down" place, like Glentress for example, where you climb and then you descend with fairly little climbing inbetween then it's just a convenience tool. But if you're somewhere like Kirroughtree, or just out on a nonpurposebuilt trail, that's when it really comes into its own.

I am also interested in a dropper. Heard mixed reviews and these comments seem to confirm them! Maybe the latest gens have sorted seals and movement in the posts?

Got a i900 and my one and only ride on it has been mighty impressive. Way too early to see if will last yet and I have to say I am expecting the worst. I have a dedicated mud plugger which takes the worst of the winter rubbish so maybe the dropper on the "good" bike has a chance of lasting – fingers crossed.

The whole concept just seems so right for modern biking – proper height for where power is king, drop a little for trickier singletrack, drop a lot for proper down bits. By the end of 3hrs I was using it instinctively.

I have no real long term experience yet but so far I would say having one with a remote is a must as is one that will allow partial drop as well as fully dropped. I used 1 inch dropped more than fully dropped.

My gd just got back from the states after breaking under warranty (6 months old). 10 days turnaround, £10 cost to post. Didn't ask for Proof of purchase or owt. The bracket that holds the cable stop to the post was glued on and fell off. Could of fixed it myself but why waste warranty. It always had a few mm of play, which you don't notice riding. Use it far more on a ride than I thought I would. Very useful.