The Finest Dropper Posts of 2024

Dropper posts enable us to regulate our saddle top with the push of a lever, serving to to reinforce consolation, effectivity, and, most significantly, management whereas out on the path. Many individuals would argue that dropper posts are one of the crucial vital improvements in mountain bike know-how, basically reworking the way in which we journey.

The power to regulate the peak of your saddle on the fly ensures that it’s at all times positioned completely for the terrain you might be driving, and dropper posts have turn into a staple on almost all new mountain bikes and are working their means onto gravel bikes nowadays as effectively. With their meteoric rise to changing into a normal half, we now have extra nice choices to select from than ever earlier than.

In the event you’re on the lookout for a brand new dropper publish on your bike, we can assist! We rounded up 9 of the highest choices obtainable in 2024 to check and examine aspect by aspect. Over the course of a number of months, we put every mannequin on this evaluation via its paces whereas assessing vital efficiency traits just like the smoothness of journey, saddle clamps, set up, adjustability, weight, serviceability, and design. When doable, we additionally examined every publish with its personal model’s distant to see how they work collectively.

Our prime suggestions are listed beneath, adopted by the most effective of the remaining that are additionally nice choices to be thought of. To see the specs of all of the fashions we examined at a look, try our comparability chart. In the event you need assistance deciding what you want or the best way to discover a dropper publish that matches you and your bike, you may confer with our detailed shopping for recommendation and FAQ part.

Editor’s Word: This purchaser’s information initially appeared on our sister website, BikeRumor.com, and was posted on GearJunkie on July 26, 2024.

The Finest Dropper Posts of 2024

Dropper Submit Comparability Chart

Why You Ought to Belief Us

It’s truthful to say that the crew at GearJunkie is obsessive about all issues outdoor-related, and that features mountain biking. That is very true of merchandise like dropper posts that improve our driving expertise and efficiency out on the path.

Whereas there have been some reservations about adopting this new-fangled know-how after they initially got here out, you’ll discover droppers on nearly all of our mountain bikes and even a few of our gravel bikes nowadays. And we’ve tried lots of them. Whether or not for product launches, particular person evaluations, or on take a look at bikes, we’ve had the prospect to strive almost each mannequin in the marketplace.

For the needs of this purchaser’s information, we rounded up 9 of the most effective dropper posts obtainable in 2024 to check and examine side-by-side. Evaluation creator Paul Clauss spent months testing these posts in a variety of climate circumstances on technical northern Vermont trails that require numerous elevating and decreasing of the saddle. A mechanical engineer by commerce and a talented bike mechanic, Paul enjoys scrutinizing completely different designs, tinkering with changes, and is adept at differentiating delicate efficiency variations within the workshop and out on the path.

Every publish was weighed and measured for comparability to producers’ specs and put in on both his Santa Cruz Bronson or Chromag Wideangle hardtail for testing. Paul has an affinity for technical options and rock slabs, and luckily, the terrain close to his house in northern Vermont is a perfect testing floor for dropper posts with loads of ups, downs, and rocky, rooty challenges that require frequent modifications to saddle top.

Along with testing dropper posts, Paul has additionally contributed to our greatest mountain bike flat pedals and mountain bike flat pedal shoe evaluations, together with bike restore stands and bike pumps.

GearJunkie editor Jeremy Benson additionally contributed to this information. Benson has been testing and reviewing bikes, equipment, and parts for 8 years and has personally examined greater than ten completely different dropper posts. As an obsessive rider and racer, he’s at all times in search of out the highest-performance merchandise he can discover and appreciates parts that make his bike as mild as doable.

He’s additionally skilled the evolution of dropper posts firsthand and acknowledges that nearly each dropper in the marketplace is a lot better than any choices we had a decade in the past. A few of the different guides that Benson has contributed to incorporate mountain bike sneakers, mountain bike shorts, mountain bike helmets, and hitch bike racks.

Shopping for Information: The best way to Select a Dropper Submit

There are quite a few causes to make use of a dropper publish in your mountain bike, however it may be difficult to seek out precisely what you want. Right here we’ll break down a few of the vital issues that will impression your buy resolution.

Why Journey With a Dropper Submit?

Utilizing a dropper publish will mean you can elevate and decrease your seat with the contact of a handlebar-mounted lever. When your saddle is on the acceptable top for pedaling and climbing, it may possibly get in the way in which when attempting to maneuver your physique and bike whereas descending. However when your saddle top is about low for descending, it’s not within the correct pedaling place.

Dropper posts mean you can alter your saddle top on the fly whereas driving, guaranteeing you’ve the correct seat top for the terrain you encounter. With a dropper publish, you’ll expertise:

1. Improved maneuverability: A dropper publish means that you can decrease your seat when descending steep or technical terrain, creating extra clearance between you and your saddle, making it simpler to shift your physique and maneuver the bike. That is significantly useful for bike/physique separation when cornering and when leaping. 
2. Higher effectivity: At full extension, your saddle needs to be within the very best place for seated pedaling so you may at all times profit from your pedaling effort.
3. Extra comfy driving: A dropper publish means that you can alter your seat top primarily based on the terrain, making for a extra comfy journey total. Exterior of decreasing the publish for descending, this may be vital on technical climbs – typically having solely 20mm or so of drop can assist you place down the facility and push up a troublesome transfer. 

The best way to Measurement a Dropper Submit for You and Your Bike

When buying a brand new dropper publish, the match for you and your bike is your first precedence. Not solely does it want to suit your body to be suitable, however you need it to fit your physique measurement and desires as effectively.

Seat Tube Diameter

This is without doubt one of the best steps – simply be sure you choose a publish that matches the seat tube diameter of your body. Most trendy mountain bikes have 30.9mm or 31.6mm seat tubes, and dropper publish producers typically present choices for much less commonplace choices like 27.2mm (for gravel and a few XC frames) or 34.9mm diameters. If you’re not sure of your seat tube diameter, you may usually discover it printed on the seat publish that’s at the moment in your bike, or you may look it up on the producer’s web site. When you ought to be capable of discover a publish that matches your seat tube diameter, you may typically buy a smaller one and shim the seat tube in a pinch.

Dropper Journey Size

Dropper posts are available a spread of journey lengths to go well with various wants, preferences, our bodies, and bikes. For mountain bikes, they usually vary between 100 and 200mm, with some outliers on both finish. For instance, the OneUp Elements V3 Dropper is available in essentially the most measurement choices, with 90, 120, 150, 180, 210, and 240mm journey lengths obtainable. Not surprisingly, as post-travel will increase, so does the general size of the publish.

Whereas many individuals attempt to match essentially the most drop doable on their bike to extend mobility, some riders could favor a shorter drop size for varied causes. How a lot drop you need normally is a matter of non-public choice, but in addition it’s typically a operate of what’s going to match in your body and work on your physique measurement.

Happily, some manufacturers are doing their greatest to attenuate the general lengths and stack heights of their posts, which makes it simpler to suit an extended journey dropper, and a few additionally present the choice to cut back journey with changes to make fitment a lot simpler than it was. On the identical time, many trendy bikes are being designed with decrease stand-over heights and shorter/straighter seat tubes that assist make becoming longer journey droppers simpler.

Figuring out If a Dropper Will Match Your Body

Most producer’s web sites have a instrument that will help you appropriately measurement a publish on your bike to maximise journey (and the OneUp web site will even present you which ones competitor’s posts will match with their Dropper Submit Size Selector). To make use of these instruments, you’ll take two measurements out of your body and think about a couple of publish measurements:

• X – your Measured Journey Top, from the highest of your seat collar to the middle of your seat rails (not the highest of your saddle). For instance, on the small Santa Cruz Bronson used for testing, that is 260mm.
• Y – the utmost seat tube insertion size on your body. On the small Bronson, that is 210mm.

With these numbers, use the instruments obtainable on most producers’ web sites to find out the utmost journey for his or her publish in your body. To double-check if a dropper publish will match by yourself, ensure that:

1. Your Measured Journey Top (X) is GREATER than the Stack Top (prolonged) of the publish, measured from the underside of the collar to the middle of the seat rails of the seat at full extension.
   1. On the take a look at Bronson, the Measured Seat Top of 260mm is bigger than the 150mm Journey PNW Loam publish’s Stack Top of 200mm. This implies the publish might be positioned at the popular top, assuming the opposite two measurements beneath are true.
2. The Total Size minus your Measured Journey Top (X) is LESS than the utmost seat tube insertion size on your body (Y).
   1. For the PNW Loam publish at 150mm journey, the Total Size is 440 mm. 440 – 260 = 180 mm, which is the size of the publish I count on to be within the seat tube at full seat top. That is lower than the measured seat tube insertion of 210mm, leaving 30mm of clearance on the backside of my seat tube with the publish on the measured seat top.
3. The Insertion Size (from #2) falls between the minimal and most insertion lengths of the publish. The insertion size have to be between the utmost/minimal insertion lengths for the publish.
   1. Minimal insertion of 90mm is lower than 180mm (from #2, the anticipated insertion size with the publish), which is lower than 210mm (the utmost insertion depth). On the anticipated insertion on the Bronson body, the insertion size falls between and most and minimal insertion lengths of the publish.

Kinds of Dropper Posts

Most dropper posts obtainable at present use a cable to actuate an inside floating piston (IFP) to launch a pressurized chamber, usually an adjustable air spring or a sealed hydraulic cartridge, to lift and decrease the seat. Whereas all of them carry out the identical process of elevating and decreasing your seat on the fly, dropper posts are available quite a lot of completely different designs.

Adjustable vs. Fastened Price of Return

Many dropper posts have an adjustable price of return. Sometimes, this entails an air spring, the strain of which might be raised or lowered (inside a beneficial vary) to hurry up or decelerate the speed at which the publish compresses and extends. This offers the consumer higher management over their publish and the power to dial in its efficiency to satisfy their wants or preferences. The Bike Yoke Revive 2.0, Divine SL, Wolf Tooth Resolve, and the PNW Loam all function adjustable air springs.

Some posts use sealed cartridges which have a set price of compression and extension. These posts have a predetermined spring price chosen by the producer that normally goals to hit the completely satisfied center floor of compression pressure/return pace. The Fox Switch Manufacturing unit, OneUp V3, and Crankbrothers Highline 7 are two examples of droppers that would not have adjustable air springs.

Infinitely Adjustable vs. Fastened Interval Journey

The overwhelming majority of dropper posts function what known as infinitely adjustable journey, that means they are often adjusted anyplace throughout the obtainable journey vary between full compression and full extension. Whereas it’s commonest to journey with the publish all the way in which up or all the way in which down, there are many circumstances the place dropping the publish just a bit bit is good, and infinitely adjustable posts enable you to take action.

A couple of posts in the marketplace have mounted interval journey, that means they cease solely at sure spots inside their journey vary. Sometimes, this model of publish makes use of an easier mechanical spring to manage the journey. The one publish we examined that adjusts at mounted intervals is the light-weight Fox Switch SL, which stops in solely two positions, absolutely compressed and absolutely prolonged.

Inner vs Exterior Routing

Most trendy mountain bikes are designed for use with dropper posts and normally function inside cable routing. Consequently, most droppers are additionally designed for use with bikes which have inside cable routing, and the actuator the place the cable connects is on the backside of the publish contained in the body. All the droppers we examined are made for inside cable routing, apart from the RockShox Reverb AXS, which is wi-fi.

Many older bike frames and a few gravel bikes would not have ports for inside cable routing. Fortunately, there are some externally routed droppers in the marketplace, although they’re much less frequent. PNW parts make a number of fashions of externally routed droppers, and you’ll typically discover related choices from Model-X and PRO should you go searching.

Actuation Types

Cable-Actuated

The vast majority of trendy dropper posts are cable-actuated, that means {that a} cable connects between the distant lever and an actuator on the backside of the publish. Whenever you press the distant lever, it pulls on the cable, which in flip actuates the publish and permits it to maneuver up or down. Cables are comparatively straightforward to cope with and cheap to switch.

Hydraulically Actuated

This model of actuation is way much less frequent than cable-actuated posts, nevertheless it works in an analogous means utilizing hydraulic fluid. The RockShox Reverb (not AXS) is the one publish in the marketplace that makes use of this method, and it really works pretty effectively. The primary downside is that it’s tougher to put in and take away your publish, given the presence of hydraulic fluid within the hose and distant lever, and it may be fairly messy. Older fashions have been additionally fairly delicate to chilly temperatures.

Wi-fi/Electrical

Given the speedy tempo of technological improvement, it comes as little shock that increasingly more merchandise are digital. Wi-fi or digital posts forego the cable or hose altogether and as a substitute use a small management unit on the handlebar that pairs by way of Bluetooth to a small motor on the publish to lift and decrease it. The RockShox Reverb AXS is the one electrical publish to actually achieve a foothold available in the market to this point, though there are different manufacturers engaged on bringing extra choices to market.

Dropper Options

Journey Discount

Some posts mean you can lower the utmost publish journey, guaranteeing you will get the utmost drop obtainable on your bike. For instance, on the bike used for testing with a stack top of 260mm and most seat tube insertion of 210mm, the OneUp measurement calculator reveals the utmost drop for my setup as 170mm, achieved by decreasing the journey of their 180mm publish by 10mm.

The PNW Loam Dropper makes use of a tool-free system to lower the utmost journey by as much as -25mm (in 5 mm increments) with a built-in nylon shim. The OneUp V3 Dropper makes use of an analogous system however limits journey adjustment to 10 or 20mm and makes use of pins and information slots somewhat than the nylon shim. The Bike Yoke Revive 2.0 additionally permits as much as 20mm of journey adjustment, however the set of 4 5mm shims must be bought individually, and the publish have to be faraway from the bike for set up.

Equally, the Wolf Tooth Resolve can have most journey lowered, and they’ll set up spacers for you if you order the publish, or you should purchase journey discount shims after the actual fact and set up them your self or convey your publish to a store to have it performed for you.

Reset Valves

All hydraulic dropper posts can expertise air ingestion into the inside tubes over time, which can lead to a saggy or spongy really feel when sitting on the saddle. To fight this with out requiring a full rebuild of the publish, the Bike Yoke Revive 2.0 makes use of a reset valve, and the RockShox Reverb AXS makes use of the “Vent Valve” to reset the hydraulic circuit. Whereas Bike Yoke solely expects Revive customers to make use of the reset valve a couple of times a yr, this can be a good function to make sure constant efficiency of the publish while not having to tug it out of your body.

Different posts, just like the Wolf Tooth Resolve and the Bike Yoke Divine SL, have “self-bleeding” cartridges designed to purge any air from the system each time the publish is absolutely dropped.

Saddle Clamp

The saddle clamp on the seatpost head is the place your saddle rails connect to the seatpost. Good saddle clamps are quiet, keep on the acceptable torque, and make saddle set up/removing straightforward. Many of the posts on this take a look at used a normal two-bolt head design to regulate saddle angle and fore/aft place. A couple of fashions have clamp designs that assist make the set up and removing course of barely simpler.

Each the Fox Switch and the Crankbrothers Highline 7 have {hardware} that swivels, whereas the OneUp V3 dropper has slotted plates. Although we don’t usually set up/take away our saddles often, these seemingly trivial design options are actually fairly useful when testing dropper posts again to again. 

Distant Levers

Each dropper publish makes use of a distant to actuate the journey up and down. Whereas many posts used to come back with a lever, most posts are offered with out one nowadays, that means you may normally select no matter distant you want. Most levers for cable-actuated dropper posts (that clamp the free cable finish on the lever) are suitable with any publish, permitting you to decide on the lever that works greatest along with your ergonomics and cockpit setup.

The exception to this rule is the RockShox Reverb AXS, which comes with its personal digital management unit. For many of those posts on this evaluation, we examined them with their model’s respective distant levers to get a really feel for a way they work collectively.

The appearance and proliferation of 1x drivetrains freed up some house on the left aspect of the handlebar the place the entrance derailleur shifter was, so nearly all of dropper remotes are 1x levers that resemble a shifter paddle that you just press along with your left thumb. Examples of 1x distant levers embrace the Wolf Tooth Distant Professional, Fox Switch 1x Distant, Bike Yoke Triggy Alpha, PNW Loam Lever, and OneUp V3 Lever.

Many have textured steel surfaces to offer traction for the thumb, whereas some now use replaceable rubber pads for grip. Some manufacturers nonetheless make distant levers which might be designed for use with 2x drivetrains and/or suspension lockout levers, and drop-bar levers have gotten extra frequent as droppers achieve reputation on gravel bikes.

Like every other handlebar-mounted management, it is very important think about ergonomics, lever really feel, and actuation pressure when choosing a dropper publish lever. Whereas most lever producers do present choices for Shimano i-Spec or SRAM MMX shifter/brake mount connections, additionally they supply primary 22.2 and 31.8mm handlebar clamps. Usually yow will discover adaptors for different brake configurations like Magura, Hayes, Hope, and many others, in order that’s one thing you’ll possible need to think about relying on the brakes you employ.

As a result of most levers have a number of attachment factors to regulate the horizontal place of the lever, it’s normally pretty straightforward to place the distant in a great place in order that reaching it along with your thumb feels pure and intuitive. Some levers have further changes that enable ergonomics to be personalized even additional.

Weight

Dropper posts will at all times weigh greater than a normal seatpost, however most riders (and more and more, even aggressive cross-country racers) are keen to take a weight penalty for the elevated dealing with advantages of utilizing a dropper publish. In fact, all different issues being equal, lighter is mostly thought of higher, assuming efficiency isn’t compromised within the title of weight financial savings.

For this take a look at, we weighed the publish solely, figuring out that the load of the cable housing will fluctuate barely relying on the size required on your body, and that can even typically be constant on your bike no matter which cable-actuated publish you select. It’s also value noting that longer journey posts weigh greater than shorter journey variations of the identical publish as a result of further supplies wanted to make them longer.

Whereas a heavier dropper publish received’t be as noticeable on the path as a heavy set of tires or wheelset, it’ll add to the general weight of your bike and could also be a consideration for you. All of the posts on this take a look at weighed between 441 grams (Fox Switch SL) and 655 grams (Rockshox Reverb AXS). For the common droppers, the OneUp V3 is persistently one of many lightest weight choices, weighing in at 515 grams within the 210mm journey size (433 for the 150mm model).

The Wolf Tooth Resolve is shut behind at simply 514 grams at 160mm of journey (with 10mm extra journey). For these tremendous aware about weight, like XC racers, there are some “superlight” choices in the marketplace these days, just like the Fox Switch SL and the Bike Yoke Divine SL. These light-weight fashions do save a good quantity of weight, coming in at 441 grams and 451 grams, respectively, however they’re supplied in a narrower vary of drop lengths. To not be outdone, the OneUp V3 droppers at the moment are lighter than the SL variations.

Set up

If you buy a brand new dropper from a motorcycle store, it’s common that they may set up it for you. If you buy a dropper from an internet retailer, you may convey it to a neighborhood store and pay to have it put in, or should you like wrenching by yourself bike, doing it your self is comparatively easy, assuming you’ve cable/housing cutters and cheap mechanic expertise. A high quality restore stand doesn’t damage, both.

The set up course of is basically the identical whatever the actuation methodology:

1. Run a bit of cable housing (or hydraulic line) from the seat tube to the exit port close to the top tube. Which means you pull the housing via can rely in your body, and it’s at all times a good suggestion to make use of present housing to tug via new housing each time doable — this helps information the brand new housing via tight curves within the inside routing.
2. Connect the cable to the actuator on the backside of the publish and run it via the housing. Place the housing within the housing cease on the base of the publish
3. Push the publish into the body whereas concurrently pulling the cable/housing (or hydraulic line) out of the exit port close to the top tube.
4. Connect the cable/housing to the lever after mounting it to the handlebars.
5. For posts with hydraulic actuation, bleed the system. For cable-actuated posts, clamp the cable to the lever, trim the cable, add a cable finish, and use the barrel adjuster to realize correct cable rigidity.

Upkeep

Much like shifting suspension components, most dropper publish producers advocate cleansing, inspecting, and lubricating your publish after each journey and performing their model of a full service between 100 and 200 hours of driving.

Droppers for Gravel Bikes

Because the gravel bike market continues to develop and mature, some fashions are coming geared up with dropper posts, and/or the frames function inside cable routing to accommodate one. In fact, not everybody wants or desires a dropper on their gravel bike, however those that journey steeper, rougher roads or prefer to enterprise onto singletrack trails could discover that the advantages outweigh the slight weight penalty.

Most, however not all, gravel bikes have smaller 27.2mm seat tube diameters, and luckily, many manufacturers now make droppers on this measurement to satisfy the rising demand. Basically, dropper posts made for gravel bikes have much less journey, starting from round 50mm to 125mm. On the extra reasonably priced finish of the spectrum, OneUp Elements makes the V3 27.2 in 90 and 120mm drop lengths.

Crankbrothers presents one of many largest ranges of drop lengths with 60, 80, 100, and 125mm choices for his or her Highline XC Gravel publish. Fox makes a 27.2mm model of its light-weight Tranfer SL in each Manufacturing unit and Efficiency Elite in each 50mm and 70mm drop lengths. On the excessive finish of the worth spectrum, the RockShox Reverb XPLR AXS brings wi-fi dropper know-how to your gravel rig.

Worth

Dropper posts are nearly at all times dearer than inflexible posts, however contemplating the efficiency advantages they supply, we really feel they’re value their weight in gold. Like something in mountain biking, we have now fairly a couple of choices, and so they come at a reasonably wide selection of value factors. Most droppers price between $200 and $400, with the exception being the wi-fi RockShox Reverb AXS at $861. Whereas we completely love the Reverb AXS, the worth is definitely powerful to justify when cheaper choices carry out simply as effectively (however with cables). That mentioned, should you’re keen and in a position to spend that a lot, it’s an unimaginable dropper publish.

For these with much less disposable earnings, the least costly mannequin we examined, the PNW Loam, will set you again round or simply over $200 (plus a bit extra for a distant should you don’t have already got one). This publish performs very effectively and undoubtedly hits the candy spot of value and efficiency. For only a bit extra, the $270 OneUp V3 Dropper is tremendous mild and clean and is available in essentially the most drop lengths.

FAQ