Budget dropper posts

[xyz]

Giant contact sl is reasonably priced and has been 100% reliable for me.

[sethschmautz]

Thanks creaky!

[radam]

I did a rebuild on a KS i950 a few years back.. was a bit of a pain but worked out okay in the end. Until a muddy ride not too long after and the little ball bearing under the actuator got all jammed up with muck and froze and then got wedged in (basically permanently actuated, hello suspension post!) and couldn't get the fucking thing to budge. Sold it for parts on pinkbike to recoup some costs. If a factory rebuild could have someone prevented that from happening, I would've better off paying the $125 back then, but now that there are a couple ~$150 posts with 5" of drop and also a near infinite supply of lightly used posts on ebay/pinkbike/here, I'd say sell it with an accurate description for whatever you can get and move on.

[creaky fossil]

Thanks creaky!

Yessir. Last time I looked, you could get an entirely new cartridge for less than that $125 rebuild fee. Most of the KS failures I heard about in the first 2 yrs of LEV were cartridge failure. Some had internal tension line snaps. IMO the replacement of that tension line looks like the most annoying part of the rebuild. I know plenty of people who'd prefer to pay $125 than deal with that.

radam -- that was with the under-saddle lever actuator, like the old CB Joplin?

I think there's a good selection of cheap-ish droppers. Most are cheaper because they're quite a bit heavier, some because they're mechanically or ergonomically inferior. If I had to buy one today I'd probably buy another LEV, but a few of the newer companies might have enough in-use durability bugs worked out by the time I actually need to buy another. Most of the companies seem to spend their design energies on things I don't care about, like more than 125mm travel, or refining the flaws of their decision to use a hydraulic actuator rather than a cable. Internal cable routing as "required" now is pretty dumb, just complicates everything where the LEV's external cable routes smoothly. But dentists like their stuff to look Top Shelf, 'n' shit. So everything has to be de Stijl.

[radam]

radam -- that was with the under-saddle lever actuator, like the old CB Joplin?

It was a remote-style KS, but it was the the ball-bearing or rod or whatever that was underneath the actuator arm/lever that froze up. So the stuff under this

[Groomer Gambler]

Attachment 213772

[sethschmautz]

^^^^^What does that do?

[RootSkier]

Besides serving up softball jokes about flicking the bean?

[creaky fossil]

It's Paul Price's version of a seat collar QR. A true "budget dropper," you do the dropping after using the Paul lever.

Dem beans is not just one flushed suntan color, either. Nope. Silver, Black also. Be the first on your block.

[Dantheman]

Looks like there's a new Brand X post out with fixed external routing: http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/u.../rp-prod159176

[mntlion]

this might be a nice option for everyones reverbs that keep blowing up?

https://www.wolftoothcomponents.com/...ockshox-reverb

[XXX-er]

in 6 pages has anyone broached the subject of whether or not a budget post that blows up all the time ... might not be so budget ?

[smmokan]

I've offered it in other threads.... but if anyone wants a 20% discount off PNW's posts, let me know.

I have them on half a dozen of my demo bikes, and over the last 4-6 months the Bachelor and Rainier posts are the only ones that haven't failed on me. I'll never run another Fox Transfer, and KS can suck it. I may end up with PNWs on all of my bikes (15-18) next year. And no, I don't get them for free.

[grinch]

No real need. At this point it's mostly the expensive posts that are shitting the bed. The budget ones seem to have the best track record. PNW, brandx, giant, e ten , gravity dropper have a good rep

[bagtagley]

FTR, 1st gen Reverb and 3 y/o KS Lev not a single issue (knock on wood). Locally, the only posts I've seen/heard with issues have been Transfers. Maybe the people that paid more are more vocal? Smmokan's fleet experience is useful, the rest anecdotal (mine included).

Failure is assumed. The importance part is whether or not I can fix it when it breaks.

[akahn]

My Manic is doing great after 5 months of use. It's as smooth and sag-free as the day I bought it. I'd get one again.

I got my Lev Integra on my other bike warranty-serviced in the spring to fix a sag issue, and it is actually holding up well also.

Thanks for the report. The Manic seems like the best bet for budget posts, for sure. I'm holding out for the 150mm version that's supposed to be coming out this winter.

[HankScorpio]

Race Face has a new Aeffect Dropper post out too. Only $220 for the 125mm version plus $50 for the remote. It looks like they fixed the shitty, pain in the ass set up from the first gen Turbine. The "ball" end of the cable now attaches at the seatpost, not at the remote lever. I'm just curious where the air valve is. Anyone dealt with one in person?

I was going to get another Transfer but these are tempting.

[grinch]

Pnw now has a 170mm in addition to the 150 and 125

https://instagram.com/p/BakYP5oFX-7/

[El Chupacabra]

Chain Reaction has the Brand X droppers on sale -- appears to be the same as the PNW droppers:

I needed an external cable routing one: $120
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/u.../rp-prod159176

The internal one is cheaper: $110
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/u.../rp-prod149024

Others:
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/us/en/seatposts

[D(C)]

So my Turbine dropper is leaking air. I’ll likely get it warrantied, but thinking I’ll grab a new post in the meantime and flip the Turbine when it comes back.

My inclination is to go with a Manic 150, but I’m also looking at E*Thirteen and PNW/Brand-X/Aeffect (which are said to be the same). All are available at a similar price and have good reliability track records. I’m not sure I can go wrong, but which would you go with?

[Anospa]

My turbine has been finicky the past year with the leaky air, its not in the product lineup anymore but still on the site. They are doing the aeffect now I guess, maybe see a different turbine in the future.

I have an e13 getting delivered today, will see how it works out. I went 170 and it sounds like they did some changes to it. There's a handful of reviews or comments on reviews by users that have had issues with it in wet/muddy conditions not being able to return from being lowered. They put in a stiffer spring and used different seals, I guess it was having trouble breaking free easily.

[smmokan]

So my Turbine dropper is leaking air. I’ll likely get it warrantied, but thinking I’ll grab a new post in the meantime and flip the Turbine when it comes back.

My inclination is to go with a Manic 150, but I’m also looking at E*Thirteen and PNW/Brand-X/Aeffect (which are said to be the same). All are available at a similar price and have good reliability track records. I’m not sure I can go wrong, but which would you go with?

Use code "CHASINGEPIC" on PNW's site for a 20% discount... that might help with your decision.

[D(C)]

Use code "CHASINGEPIC" on PNW's site for a 20% discount... that might help with your decision.

Thanks a lot. Sadly the conversion to CAD monopoly money kills the deal.

Picked up an Aeffect.

[D(C)]

Thanks a lot. Sadly the conversion to CAD monopoly money kills the deal.

Picked up an Aeffect.

So 4 rides into my Aeffect, it started sagging/slipping a few mm. It's that thing where, after sitting after fully extending the post, it drops a touch and you need to flick the remote to get that last bit of extension. I brought it back and swapped it for a Manic 150 (luckily I bought it somewhere I can do that). The Manic on my hardtail has been flawless over a full year, so that's the winner for me right now. The only downsides to the Manic are the longer than average insertion length and slightly heavier weight.

[HankScorpio]

So 4 rides into my Aeffect, it started sagging/slipping a few mm. It's that thing where, after sitting after fully extending the post, it drops a touch and you need to flick the remote to get that last bit of extension. I brought it back and swapped it for a Manic 150 (luckily I bought it somewhere I can do that). The Manic on my hardtail has been flawless over a full year, so that's the winner for me right now. The only downsides to the Manic are the longer than average insertion length and slightly heavier weight.

Glad I got a KS Lev instead of an Aeffect. Did RF at least change the spot were the air valve is? I had a Turbine dropper and hated it due to air leaking and having to remove the saddle to air it up every other ride. I've been using Race Face parts for years and they always make bullet proof gear - but the Turbine dropper was a huge disappointment.