Decided to treat me and my bike earlier this year and finally got a dropper post for my Orange 5. I’ve always struggled with confidence once the terrain gets steep so I am hoping that a dropper post would fill some of my many skill gaps!
As one of the most popular upgrades, there are dropper posts available from all the big brands as well as some smaller independents. After doing my research, reading reviews and asking mates it came down to a choice between the RockShox Reverb (hydraulic and the market leader) and the Brand X Ascend (cable controlled, budget friendly with a good reputation for low maintenance).
In the end I went for the Reverb, as Chain Reaction Cycles had a decent deal (£159.99, RRP £268.99). Out of the box it was very easy to fit, my Orange 5 does not have internal cable routing so it was a case of getting out the cable ties. But it fits neatly and was ready to ride in an hour.
When seated on the saddle, I do not notice a difference between riding with a dropper post and riding with a regular post. There is no movement in the saddle and it feels rock solid. Because of the set up of my bike controls (quite old skool – I still run a triple chain ring!) to deploy the seat post I have to take my right hand off the handlebars to press the lever – which is never ideal – so I find myself being quite cautious where I use it. I know all the trails where I live, so I know where the dropper post is needed and I have time to prepare but this might cause issues on less well-known rides. I also find because I am quite light-weight it takes quite a lot of pressure of the saddle to get it to drop.
These niggles aside, the dropper seat post is certainly a lot less faff compared to a regular post and I find myself using it more and more in places, where in the past I would have ridden with the seat post up because I didn’t want to stop to adjust it. It has definitely added to the enjoyment and I wish i’d got one sooner!
Positives: Easy to fit out of the box, excellent build quality and looks great. Definitely has given my riding a confidence boost.
Negatives: I find I have to put quite a lot of pressure on the saddle to get it to drop and I don’t find it is natural to use it yet – more practise needed!
Unfortunately, locally (where my riding has been limited to this year due to Covid-19) we don’t have loads of long, steep downhills where a dropper post really comes into its own, so fingers crossed for more opportunities soon to properly test how it feels!
Own the Trail 