Cheap dropper seatpost

markmark.123

Does any one no where I could get a cheap dropper seatpost

warpcow

How cheap is cheap? The cheapest one that seems worthwhile is the one that goes under the names Tmars, Icelift, Traildrop amongst others.

PashleyRider

Make your own using a gas strut, about as cheap as it gets and it works!

jairaj

How do you control that to lower and raise it?

cooldad

With the seat clamp I guess. I don't think he'll get any money off Dragon's Den.

bluechair84

PaulOliver wrote:

Make your own using a gas strut, about as cheap as it gets and it works!

There's rather a lot of fail going on here You must be joking right?

CB75

is that the new ikea dropper post?

PashleyRider

Its not mine, but it actually works great. The flat section on the seatpost stops it from turning when going up and down. I love how this forum shoots somebody down for trying something that isn't bought from a shop, or for buying something that isn't expensive. Perhaps that is why there are so many generic and dull bikes on here compared to other forums....

cooldad

Fair point, but how is the up and down controlled?

PashleyRider

Seatclamp open, weight of rider drops the post, close seatclamp, go and have fun down a hill.
Seatclamp open, stand up, no weight means the post rises, close seatclamp, sit down and try to enjoy going back up hill.

Obviously it is not as nice as having some sort of easy to reach lever/remote, but for under £20 (inc budget post, some nylon to create spacers and the gas strut) it is a very affordable solution for those on a tight budget who are too lazy to get off thier bike to drop/raise the post

CB75

by the sound of it i think i would rather get off and manually put my seat up and down! in fact that is actually what i do!

cooldad

cooldad wrote:

With the seat clamp I guess. I don't think he'll get any money off Dragon's Den.

So I was right.
But no - by the time you've faffed around reaching down for the seat clamp, assuming you can reach it, you might as well just do it the traditional way.
I can see a few silly crashes though.

bluechair84

How did he get a flat section on the post to stop it turning? Was it something he bought?

PashleyRider

I would imagine a file, seeing as its just soft alloy it would take all of a few minutes to file a suitable flat section out. Spacers were made on a lathe, however he could of just bought nylon in the correct diameter and trimmed it to length.

oki

wow, what a bunch of arsey non imaginative replies to a completely logical idea.
tbh i'd just go with a lightweight air rifle spring or similar and use my weight to prevent ball smack but i'd much prefer going to the effort of reaching to save a couple of hundred quid for posts that always have too little adjustment.
around 9cm in general...aka fek'all/pointless (unless your short i guess)

you could probably even create a decent seal using a grommet, modified clamp and pressurize the seat tube.

reminds me of the forum post regarding aligning the stem to the wheel, the one where everyone was quoting park tools and dithering about eyelines and markings....all forgetting basic physics and geometry...the solution..a peice of string attached to both and pulled tight into a triangle . simple simple.

threads like these really make me despair in the human race, and dont forget the creation of mountain biking..modded bikes, not shop bought, bet they got roasted by unimaginative fanboys too. smh.

Woodmonkey

I align my stem with my eyes? Doesn't everyone?

dmont

oki wrote:

wow, what a bunch of arsey non imaginative replies to a completely logical idea.
tbh i'd just go with a lightweight air rifle spring or similar and use my weight to prevent ball smack but i'd much prefer going to the effort of reaching to save a couple of hundred quid for posts that always have too little adjustment.
around 9cm in general...aka fek'all/pointless (unless your short i guess)

you could probably even create a decent seal using a grommet, modified clamp and pressurize the seat tube.

reminds me of the forum post regarding aligning the stem to the wheel, the one where everyone was quoting park tools and dithering about eyelines and markings....all forgetting basic physics and geometry...the solution..a peice of string attached to both and pulled tight into a triangle . simple simple.

threads like these really make me despair in the human race, and dont forget the creation of mountain biking..modded bikes, not shop bought, bet they got roasted by unimaginative fanboys too. smh.

+1 It's quite a simple concept and very affordable. Very inovative.

paul.skibum

I have a Tmars dropper - £80 quid and works pretty well - my only complaint is the occassional unwanted seat up on very rough terrain or botched landings - going to fiddle with it to see if I can iron that out.

batmo

How quickly we forget the Hite Rite.

jairaj

dmont wrote:

+1 It's quite a simple concept and very affordable. Very inovative.

erm not really. Dropper posts without a handle bar remote don't have any where near as much benefit. You still need to stop to adjust the seat post or risk having a crash. So you might as well just have a standard post. While I applaud the guy for giving it a go and trying to be innovative I don't think he's pulled it off.

dmont

jairaj wrote:

dmont wrote:

+1 It's quite a simple concept and very affordable. Very inovative.

Erm, well, yes really.

Unless you're a professional XC racer or even an amateur, then yes. Lets face it, if you have 2 or 3 seconds to spare ( while still riding ) then one of these is perfect, either under seat lever or seat clamp will do the job, or spend a fortune on a thump lever beside your brakes........
Think about it, £200 > £300 for the luxury of having a thumb lever over £20 or so for a manual..... No brainer to me.......
Then again, I'm still looking for a cheap dropper for myself... this may be the answer..

Dmont

oki

but the remote is just a simple cable actuated latch, you could rig that fairly easily.
hell you could even make a lightweight electronic setup for under 5quid
(old camera release, a gear cable, various options out there)
im more of a modder than a buyer though, always have been, and tbh i usually do better than some expensive products, especially regarding bike gear and pc's but then its always easier and more effective to create a one of a kind compared to a one size fits all a whole lot more satisfying too, thats in our nature.

i just get annoyed at the negative attacks and stupid jokes from people who could do with a wider thought process.
and its true that some of us haven't had the budget or parents to buy all the extra (and everytime overpriced) gear, and for those people posts like the above are really useful.

latest annoyance is the chainguides, extortionate at 150, best of em are only worth about 20 at the most once in production, and design costs very little, even getting them produced they make huge profits off a few measurements.
it seems companies are taking people for suckers way to often these days. (90 dollars for an iphone 5 case for example...its a chunk of cheap plastic ffs).

anyways rant over (struck a nerve lol), hope to see the diy dropper design mature

got use of a workshop with some nice 3d cutting gear recently , i expect to produce some basic gear thats built better and sold cheaper and have some nice ideas for items that aren't even on the market yet. electronic gear shifting..had that around y2k, and it cost fk all. shimano shame on you for those prices lol

oki

mind you if its annodized thats got to be worth an extra 200

jairaj

dmont wrote:

Erm, well, yes really.

Unless you're a professional XC racer or even an amateur, then yes. Lets face it, if you have 2 or 3 seconds to spare ( while still riding ) then one of these is perfect, either under seat lever or seat clamp will do the job, or spend a fortune on a thump lever beside your brakes........
Think about it, £200 > £300 for the luxury of having a thumb lever over £20 or so for a manual..... No brainer to me.......
Then again, I'm still looking for a cheap dropper for myself... this may be the answer..

Dmont

You've completely missed the point of a dropper post. The idea is that they enable you to keep more flow by not having to stop at all or even slow down. You see an obstacle up ahead, flick your switch and drop your post and carry at full speed. Once you're over the obstacle, flick the switch again to return the post back to full height.

If you're gonna stop for 2 or 3 seconds to drop your post then I see no difference to stopping for 7 or 8 seconds to adjust a normal seat post.

Yes they are extremely expensive for what they are but they also absolutely fantastic but you really need a handlebar remote otherwise its a waste of time.

oki

"while still riding " ..theres nearly always 2 seconds to take one hand away from the bar

ok, a question as im looking into potential creations.

how much would you pay for a fairly lightweight electronic system (lets say 100g max -the seatpost, electronic allowing either preset positions or via a slider that corresponds to the seat height max/min).

i have some concepts that might work, but would there be interest?
i'm too lazy right now to chase specs and prices but i need to see a man about a dog pretty soon.

pilch

oki wrote:

"while still riding " ..theres nearly always 2 seconds to take one hand away from the bar.

If you are only riding fire roads maybe, I had a below the seat version I found I used it way less in technical singletrack and the "fun stuff" than the bar mounted one I have now which is far superior, no loss of focus, no wobbling about one handed - its seamless.

I think the below the seat version is handy, but the bar mounted system is a game changer, that's not to say I dont appreciate DIY stuff, its just a different animal.

coulddobetter

Could people actually ride before dropper posts came into fashion?

felix.london

yes but not as fun or as fast

paul.skibum

felix.london wrote:

yes but not as fun or as fast

Nonsense - of course it was as fun - stopping doesnt reduce the fun and fast is only relevant if you care - I bought a dropper because I ride alone a fair bit which means stopping isn't really a need so dropping before descents can be done on the fly - having got it I realised I dont really need to drop my post much in any case.

I find around Swinley it makes some sense but I still dont really need to drop my post there - most Welsh trail centres have anti motorbike gates so they have a self made stop is there anyway - Peaks I dont drop my seat much, Alps I might but then its for so long a short stop doesnt matter - ultimately its a crutch for people who need to hang off the back surely ....... I am being slightly argumentative for the sake of it by the way!

downhillbike

how about the e ten post it is just a budget version of the ks and are dirt cheap on the german bike sites had one on my m9 and it worked great and a bargain at under a £100

97th choice

oki wrote:

"while still riding " ..theres nearly always 2 seconds to take one hand away from the bar

n.

You must have some skill then, at 10mph you will travel 10-15 metres in 2-3 seconds. As I'm usually hitting the dropper switch as I'm about to go downhill fairly steeply I'm usually grabbing brakes or hanging on, so the last thing I would do is want to let go with one hand.

I don't knock a DIY post but you have to recognise that it's the remote that completes it as a game changer.