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dropper posts for the pro tour?

Last Post 09/02/2014 10:03 PM by Dale Dale. 11 Replies.

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Posts:2881

09/01/2014 09:15 AM
Resist that urge to laugh, at least for a moment. Pros: Customize seat height after a bike change without having to find a team car. Maybe put these on the Mavic yellow neutral bikes to start. Drop a little for some rough stuff Drop a lot for a high speed descent - safer than doing a tuck while crushing nuts on the top tube. Cons: complexity and reliability (but these are getting worked out as the manufacturers gain experience with mtbs. I would list weight as a con but with the UCI weight limit there is room for the added weight without increasing the overall weight of the bike. They also come with internal routing, so no aero penalty other than a round seatpost. (In case you're not familiar with dropper posts, they provide real time, on-the-fly, infinitely adjustable seat height over a 4 or 5" range. Simple to use. Just push a button or pull a lever mounted on the bars and the seat drops until the lever is released, then holds at the selected height. Push or pull again with weight off the seat, and it rises until you release the lever. Super handy for technical off road riding; wins over skeptics, including me, very quickly. Reliability has been a problem but is improving. And now Thomson makes one. )

Posts:2881

09/01/2014 09:33 AM
PS, they also can be activated with a lever under the seat - lighter and simpler, but less easy to use.

Posts:511

09/01/2014 11:46 AM
FSA make a road version already. Basso used one somewhere. And Nibali too. http://www.veooz.com/photos/CHJemjk.html

Posts:46

09/01/2014 12:22 PM
Posted By Andy Eunson on 09/01/2014 11:46 AM FSA make a road version already. Basso used one somewhere. And Nibali too. http://www.veooz.com/photos/CHJemjk.html yeah, pretty sure nibali used one in stage 5.

Posts:2881

09/01/2014 12:40 PM
Cool, thanks for the link. I didn't know this idea has been discussed on other forums, with the usual "hmm might work" and "I don't need no stinkin' dropper post and you don't either because I say so" responses. The Thomson comes in 27.2mm and has 5" of infinite adjustment, but no detentes. The FSA moves a total of 2cm in two 1cm drops, weighs a touch less than the Thomson (when equiped with underseat adjustment, no remote control lever). Fixed points might be easier to set in the heat of battle unless you add the extra weight of a handlebar control.

Posts:4209

09/01/2014 03:56 PM
Round posts are increasingly heading the way of down tube shifters......so the volume for such an idea is gonna get pretty small per bike design.

Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!

Posts:338

09/02/2014 10:55 AM
It's been done before; perhaps not with as much sophistication, but certainly cheaper and simpler: http://ridingresearch.com/2013/05/01/hite-rite-to-dropper-seat-post-oligopoly-of-innovation/

Posts:2881

09/02/2014 03:22 PM
Recently discovered cave drawings in France show early humans using primitive dropper posts while hunting mastodons.

Posts:1767

09/02/2014 03:51 PM
Posted By Frederick Jones on 09/02/2014 03:22 PM Recently discovered cave drawings in France show early humans using primitive dropper posts while hunting mastodons. Sadly this was before the invention of the wheel and pedaling squares was the norm. Early humans failed miserably in chasing down their prey on bikes.

Posts:2881

09/02/2014 07:59 PM
At least one had round wheels. Can't see the seatpost. . PS:Another theme of this silly thread:

Posts:338

09/02/2014 09:39 PM
Ah, my favorite Fred, on the first carbon frame.

Posts:1767

09/02/2014 10:03 PM
LOL! I surrender to your superior skill, lsd. Well done, sir!

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