a fair few months ago i asked if the use of an uppydowny post had transformed your riding... in other words, are you happy about the results of splashing such cash on something that could be achieved using a QR.
its a few months later and the question is still on my mind, so if you'd be so kind as to let me know if you still value it as much or has the novelty worn off?
cheers sexy people (and yeti) x
Got a reverb a few weeks ago, and I think they're a bit overhyped to be honest. Its not that big a deal for me.
Maybe I'll start to find it invaluable, but so far the only benefit I have noticed is that you're guaranteed to get the height of your seat back at exactly the same height everytime rather than being slightly off.
Its OK to use a QR if you know that the trail is about to get steep but I don't 'session' stuff, I just go riding, often on new trails. If it suddenly gets a bit nasty I drop the saddle, if I'm settling into a long climb I pop it up. Neither of those would be possible with a QR without stopping and losing flow or momentum. I wouldn't say its transformed my riding but my knees are happier on the climbs and my sphincter feels the same on the downs.are you happy about the results of splashing such cash on something that could be achieved using a QR
Transformed is a bit strong but it's made my riding far more enjoyable with less compromise. Just knowing that if the trail drops away or rises steeply I can instantly adjust my saddle to the optimum position, is simply brilliant.
cheers guys, all opinions welcome! 😀
Brilliant, but not transformed my riding.
I'll probably not build another nice/summer/expensive/FS bike without one put it that way, it's a comparable step foreward to going FS from a HT IMO*. Even on a uplift holliday it was nice to do the last jump, pop the seat up and spin upto the van where everyone else had to push.
*I still like and ride HT's, But only because a FS SS 29er with durable pivots doesn't exist yet.
In Swinley terms, you can ride deerstalker flat out, then straight into labrynth without either comprimising on seat hight for the climbs or the jumps!
I would say it has transformed my riding. BUT I think the less fit you are the more difference it will make, I'm fat and useless an need my saddle under me if I'm pedalling, but my mate who is a human whippet rides with this saddle at half mast all the time and just stands up when he needs to make an effort.. He thinks uppy downy seat posts are a gimmick, I think they are awesome.
That defines the discussion for me, almost anyone who says they are a WOT will probably be fit and anyone who raves about them is likely to be fat or unfit. (although I am not saying fit people will hate them and fat people will love them, but I reckon the majority of haterz will be fit and the majority of lovers will be fat)
I think it depends where you are riding, when in Swinley or my local riding, i use it very little and normally switch back to a normal one, especially in the grit of winter.
But for riding in more technical places, especially the Alps, Wales etc, i find it brilliant, it allows you to have the saddle right up on the uphills so that you can pedal and your legs be less tired, then onto singletrack and drop it just an inch so bike can be moved around, then if faced with downhill, drop it further, it pays for itself where the terrain is constantly changing and the terrain is more technical.
It also gives you more confidence if you know you can position your weight back a bit and not get hung up the saddle.
Had one. Sold it on fairly quickly... if I was doing a lot of XC riding I'd probably reinvest. But as I just like the gravity assisted side of riding I think it's an unnecessary extra for me.
That said, I do like the KS ones where they're lever operated under the seat - rather than all the faff of extra cabling and a remote button.
It's made my riding more fun. Places I wouldn't drop the post, now I do. I expected to go back to a normal post come winter (as above poster) but found that I really didn't like descending with the saddle up, so have now "winter-proofed" mine.
By the metric of "if it broke, I'd buy another one" then it's been the best bit of kit I bought last year.
I think you need to have a riding style to suit it or adjust accordingly. As follows...
I didn't see the point once I had it on I have to admit and it started playing up so I binned it after a few weeks in favour of my trusty Thomson. Mainly due to my very long established habit of gripping the back part of the seat with my thighs on the to improve stability/ control on most tricky stuff. Without it up the bike felt too loose at the back. For steep descents it was handy though but I could manage without it.
However...having studied some top guys a bit more of late (e.g. Hill, Peat, Atherton) I've seen how they move their hips sideways right off the bike (as well as backwards) and to do that the seat needs to be well out of the way. So I am planning to give it another go and try and adjust my riding style 😀
As alex says, its made riding more fun! Ive had 3 over the last year (Spec Commander, GD classic & X-fusion hilo). They have all been fantastic. Back when I used QR I never used to change it much and it felt like a chore when I reached hills and on some ruff bits I had to stop to drop it. The dropper has changed that all for me. I always end up at the correct height for whatever im tackling in seconds and I can keep my rythm and momentum going. I dont feel held back anymore.
Transformed my riding? Probably not.
Worth the money? Definitely
Had a Reverb since April / May last year.
No problems with it.
Used it 2 or 3 times every week all the time, rain or shine. Local and in the Alps.
Massive transformation in my riding, my confidence, my flow, my ability.
I could not ride without it now. I ride a Transition Covert and look for techi jumpy knarly bits to ride.
almost anyone who says they are a WOT will probably be fit and anyone who raves about them is likely to be fat or unfit. (although I am not saying fit people will hate them and fat people will love them, but I reckon the majority of haterz will be fit and the majority of lovers will be fat)
It probably depends a more on where you ride and your skill level than how fit you are imo.
Round here there´s some really steep drop-offs/descents that I´d never be comfortable trying with a seat jammed in me backside.
i bought a gravity dropper for the mega last year and it was essential for that!
i thought id only have it on my bike for remag type races/ adventures but ive ended up leaving it on all teh time as its just so useful for general riding too, wouldnt say it was essential though!
Some of the drops / decents I do you cannot do with a saddle up. Some of the berms / corners I do you need your center of gravity low, you cant do that with your saddle up. Some of the jumps I do need a soft landing which you cant do with your saddle up.
It depends on your riding style and where you ride.
Mine drops 5 inches. Try the ladder drop at chicksands with your saddle up if your still not sure you need one.
The transformation for me happened the moment I started to adjust my saddle height for the terrain I was riding. I've been dropping my saddle for pretty much anything other than actual uphill for years and the moment I started doing that, I found my riding took a huge leap forward in terms of skill and speed.
I've been saying this for ages, but the point of dropping your saddle is not to do with riding steep terrain. It's about where you have your weight period. That goes for cornering fast on relatively shallow or even level gradient as much as it does for nailing steep drops.
Consequently adjustable seat posts were a revelation in terms of convenience for me; the skill and speed had already been achieved.
I think Nsdog's fat/fit comment may be partly true (I fall into the former) but not completely. There's no way you can do a six hour ride with your saddle at half mast and find that as much fun as riding with a saddle you can adjust at the touch of a button. But he does have something of a point in that a lot of times if you've adjusted your saddle down and then have a little section of up, being fit would compensate to some degree.
His argument also falls down on the fact that there is a lot of stuff you would have to be sat down to ride up in order to get the traction you need.
In summary, they are a major convenience boom for those trend setters among us who've been adjusting saddles for years. And for everyone else who has avoided that inconvenience, the ease of adjustment potentially represents a major paradigm shift in their riding style, ability and speed.
I got one a few months ago, and would never go back now.
Everyone has already made the points about convenience etc. but there's one aspect which I had never thought about before I got one and started to play about with:
I used to have my saddle height at a bit of a compromise - slightly lower than the optimum pedalling height, in order to allow a bit more weight movement for flat or undulatey (totall a word - shut up) singletrack. Now what I can do is have it set up at full-on efficient pedally height, but when I come to something where I want to shift my weight around but still be able to pedal (Stickler, for example) I can drop it by an inch.
Yup... transformed... and I am neither fat nor unfit 🙄
What I am is a rider who lives for the gnarlier and fun side of riding; and as such my uppy/downy posts allow me to play more on all the descendy bits without having to stop and fiddle before the next climby bit. What this means is more fun since I can climb better on the fun techy climbs I love as I'm able to roll straight on into them after the doonhall without having to stop to fiddle with my saddle height.
In my local forest (which is very techy) I either had to stop lots to adjust the saddle height or compromise either the climbing or the descending by leaving it up or down. It's much better now; not easier but better as my "flow" is no longer interupted by QR faffage.
I expected not to use it for the trail centres (i.e. GT) and big hill days where it's all up, then all down... but what I've found with the Reverb is that the infinitely adjustable height can be used to increase the fun by dropping the saddle a bit for even the smallest little downs; which improves flickablility and hence makes little rocks etc at the side of the trail into little fun things to go and play with on descents you normally wouldn't bother with. The same can be said for climbs and flat bits where you can see things and think, "oh, drop the saddle a bit and that would be fun"... and it is.
If you've got the terrain and like to play they are ace. For where and how I ride I love my adjustable seatposts... which is why I have one on my HT and FS.
I'd even like one for my rigid singlespeed since I tend to ride the same trails with it sometimes 😆
Yes it has transformed my trail riding. At 6'3 with a 35 inch inside leg, I have to have the saddle so high to get correct pedaling efficiency (I like a slightly smaller frame). Dropping the saddle even an inch or two allows me to corner, pump, jump and manual and hell of a lot easier.
If you have two wheels on the ground most of the time and do not constantly mess about on the bike, I doubt the benefit would be as much. For someone lanky like me, who rides his bike like a bmx, it is great 😀
my command post has transformed my riding. I always used to ride with the seat a little low when riding off road in case I came across something interesting in the trail. Now I have my seat in a nice efficient position nearly all of time and I pedal a lot better \ faster etc and still have as much fun with the technical stuff. I wouldn't do without one now
(edit - basically the same point 16stonepig makes above)
Still a massive deal for me, I barely ride without them- I'd sooner go without suspension most of the time!
Sometimes it's just convenience- somewhere like glentress red, frinstance, where everything is up or down it makes very little difference. But lots of trails aren't like that, you have mixes of climbing and descending. So, on those trails it makes a huge difference to me- it means keeping on riding rather than stopping, which can only be good right? (or, sometimes, riding something I would have ridden round otherwise)
The difference it makes in terms of tiredness can be huge too, when we were in france I was really just hanging on by the end of some big rides, and being able to pop the seatpost back up for wee climbs/flats mid descent made such a difference. Same for enduro racing.
HiLo (100mm Version) Here.
"Transformed"? No in fact my riding as such has not changed, as I see it the post is simply a labour saving device which makes a regular task a bit less bothersome.
I've not put one on My winter SS or my DH bike, only my XC/Trail HT, so it's not had much use lately, primarily coming out when the weather is nice (might be saving it from wear and tear to a certain degree?)
What it has meant is that I am not stopping to piss about with a QR on longer loops where managing to keep rolling makes more of a difference; i.e. seat up, get to fun bit and without stopping drop seat, and then without stopping again raise seat afterwards, overall 2x ~15 seconds per fun bit saved maybe, but it makes more of a difference than I thought it would in terms of having a nice un-interupted ride rather than a faff fest, and I cna drop my seat now on night rides where it is of benefit but I probably wouldn't have bothered in the past TBH.
If you never bother lowering your seat though then of course it's a pointless investment... Spend the money on something else you will use, or just save it.
the one thing I will say is that I would like to see more cheap dropper posts comnig onto the market, at the minute it seems to be the case that every new one released is more complex and hence more expensive than the last, I'd rather see some more cheap, simple and robust posts for the masses than yet another £200+ Gucci affair for the dandy-horsists, the filter down has thus far been quite slow...
My Gravity Dropper has been hugely transformative for me as well. Like Northwind, I wouldn't have a mountain bike without one now. I always used to use a QR to lower my saddle for the downs, but now, with a remote, my saddle height is always right like my gear is always right.
I just ride faster now, without having to stop all the time and without compromising on those sections when I couldn't be bothered to stop to lower or raise my saddle.
And I'm not fat or unfit. 😛
Got an old-skool GD and i love it.
Only got single-adjustment up, or 3" down.
I tend to drop it for anything going just slightly downhill and it just makes the descents loads more fun.
cheers again everyone... swinley forest is pretty much my backgarden/playground so its very much updownupdownupdownupdown instead of one massive up then one big down.
its a luxury item still in my mind so i'm not in a rush, keeping an eye out for a good deal or someone selling one due to a change of bike or something 🙂
Just got the 6" KS one which I have used a couple of times and a bit like the above not essential but makes riding easier and no mucking about with the saddle height once I have dropped it. I found myself going up and down alot as I found it fun to drop my saddle on sections I would have left it up in the past. Nice not having to listen to that grating of derbyshire grit in the seat tube as well and aqdjusting the clamp as it gets full of sh..
If it's reliable i can,t see me going back.
Less than disk brakes, more than lock-on grips...
Really enjoyed my Joplin, which just died after 18 months. I'll be buying another when I can be sure of a reliable one.
It's not essential until you've had one, then you don't know how you lived without one. 😆
The luddites I ride with are always make a big thing about putting their saddles down for the next section. I don't have to think like that any more, if it needs it I drop it.
Nearly a year with the reverb, I bloomin miss it when and I'm on my non reverb bike, it's get plenty of use where I ride.
I'd love one, but my frame takes a 30mm dead seatpost, and i dont think anyone does one in that size!
richieboy
you want a 27.2 gravity dropper, or hilo
with a 27.2mm to 30mm shim,
available at pretty much all online bike retailers!
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=43707
works fine on my bike
Bought one, its quite useful, if it broke tomorrow, would I buy another ? Doubtful to be honest. Sometimes I will ride a trail, and only when I get back to the car, do I realise I didnt drop it once ! So lugged around the extra weight, cables and still hae to give it the same TLC that I would have, had I dropped it a dozen times.
I have to admit though, I found it more useful at the more tech places like Coed Y Brenin, than the likes of Llandegla.
When I first used it, it was a weird sensation of having nothing there, suprising how much I subconsciously I must have used an undropped saddle to feel the lean of the bike and to have that bit of resistance to work against.
Its mighty handy when things get a bit out of shape though 🙂
i hated using my qr at llandegla. it was then i decided to get a reverb for me and a diverese 3inch 27.2 drop one for my daughter 🙂
The biggest benefit for me (I don't have one) is that the Thursday night rides (when about 6 droppers are in evidence) have many more faff stops so I can get my breath back while the guys are hitting their posts and saying "why is it stuck?" or "why is it wobbling".
Being able to drop it at a whim means you're more likely to do it on bits of trail you normally wouldn't bother dropping the seat for, letting you work the terrain a lot more than you might otherwise do (also sometimes good to encourage you to pedal less.) I think this is probably where it would most likely transform your riding.
If you're near swinley and fancy trying one out for a week or so then you're welcome to borrow mine (got a seat operated 30.9 and a bar operated 31.6).
Absolutely, I got a Kind Shock i900r on my Trance and it was the first ride on it on Sunday and I could feel the difference immediately.
You dont think it will make a difference but I flew up the hills with the seat at optimum height and drop it 5" and weight transfer and body position on the bike was so much better. You can move around the bike making flicking and jumping easy, brought me back to my trials days moving around the bike.
I would say give it a go and see whether you like it, do your revision on which one fits your budget and bike and the size your fancy but i think now mine is fitted am not going back 🙂
richieboyyou want a 27.2 gravity dropper, or hilo
with a 27.2mm to 30mm shim,
available at pretty much all online bike retailers!http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=43707
works fine on my bike
Thanks, but my alpitude has a lot of seat tube protruding above the top tube, dont fancy testing it with a shim.... food for thought though.
Edit: didnt look at the link, 100mm long shim would be fine! Time to break out the credit card then....
I've decided I'm getting one but can't decide between that new DSP big horn, KS i900L, or the hilo, reverb is out because i dont want remote.
It's not essential until you've had one, then you don't know how you lived without one.
I'd agree with that! Bought a HiLo for the P7 from Wiggle (£160 with a discount code) just after Christmas and after just 2 rides I'm completely sold.
I've decided I'm getting one but can't decide between that new DSP big horn, KS i900L, or the hilo, reverb is out because i dont want remote
Mmmmm, have to be honest but IMHO (and after just 2 rides with a dropper post) I'm not sure you'd get the full benefit without a remote. When the trail drops away down a rocky gully and you think 'oh bugger, could do with the seat down', that's not really the moment you want to be riding one-handed and fumbling for a lever under your saddle.
Rob
Same answer as the last tkme you asked, except i have now got one for the ht too
Game changer for me, hate xc without it.
I definately wouldnt go without a remote, the whole point of it as far as I am concerned, You go down a nasty section of trail, you can drop the post mid section if needs be, or if you forget to do it at the top. And if a downhill gets pedally for a short section flick the button on the bar, and you've got your saddle back. The advantage for me is that you can raise and drop the saddle several times during a mixed downhill section and you arent committed to dropping it before you start a downhill and then raise it back up when you are finished.
I have a reverb and have had to replace the remote barb due to a small off (actually 6ft drop to my right) took about 5mins and bleeding about 3 mins so easy.
I live in NJ usa most of the riding we do is up down, up down tech stuff, some of the downs are better tackled on a dh bike but the ups are way too steep. The reverb has made my riding faster due being to fly up and down hills quicker as the dropped seat makes for better control it has also made me tackle new stuff, one thing it has done which is not mentioned as much is with the saddle an inch or so lower you really can do twisty singletrack so much faster.
Hmmm.... back to rethink some stuff. sorry for hijacking this thread, I'll shut up now. 😉
Definitely worth the money if you pay <140 IMO.
Anymore and its diminishing returns.
The only annoying thing is when they start to wear or break. Standard seatposts silently do their job. Pooks expensive one failed recently- imagine he'd have been out on a alldayer in the Lakes?
My seatpost has stuck a couple of times.
cheers again everyone 🙂
I've ignored horas advice and ordered myself a reverb 😈
