Fresh Gear: Rockshox Reverb Seatpost

Like many others that have posted critiques of their adjustable height seat posts, I too have a love/hate relationship with the models I’ve run. However, although mechanical issues have ruined a few rides and seriously pissed me off from time to time, I can’t give up on them. Even with their occasional snafus, they’ve enhanced my trail riding experiences enough that I take the bad with the good — because when its good, it’s really, really good. During the last several years running the classic descender and Turbo models from Gravity Dropper, I’ve plenty of ups and downs (pun intended) but now the market is filled with a number of options, and I’m ready to move on. After researching and trying a number of options, (including owning a Joplin for several days) I’ve upgraded to the polished and sleek Rockshox Reverb post. The new adjustable post from Rockshox isn’t cheap, but it’s badass. 5″ of infinite seat adjustability, clean looks and sharp lines make the newest height adjustable post on the market quite a desirable upgrade.

The Reverb offers 125mm of infinite seat height adjustment with the push of the remote

I haven’t ditched my old post yet though — the industry hasn’t quite nailed the adjustable height post. Reliability is still an major issue; additional moving parts equals more maintenance on your ride, and more stuff that can break. I’m hoping mine holds up with a minimal amount of issues, but since this is my fourth adjustable height post, I’m keeping a backup plan in place. On my bike, if something can break easily, it likely will. Take traditional seat rails – one of the final upgrades I did to my Gravity Dropper Turbo was the change to an iBeam format for the post and saddle. Now that I’m back on a traditional railed post, I also have the possibility that the rails on my saddle will fail, so all of my road trips and major rides include a spare saddle and post in the car. (in addition to the spare chain and derailleur hanger.) As one could probably guess, I’m a bit of a skeptic. This is something I’ve learned from experience with these posts. And yet, I’m extremely pleased with this purchase. My biggest reason for making the switch was to gain the extra inch of height adjustability. In addition to that, the post itself will also drop lower in the frame, making it possible to ride larger scale dirt jumps without having to remove the post for a traditional post I can slam all the way down.

 Reverb mounted on the carbon Nomad, mid-ride on the North Umpqua Trail near Roseburg, Oregon.

My current steed for the 2011 season is a Carbon Nomad frame from Santa Cruz bikes, and at the moment it is my only suspension bike. On any given day it is pressed into use as a single track slayer or a mini-DH/ slopestyle steed with the change of a wheel set. Since it’s my only ride, all my components will likely wear at an accelerated rate, since my riding time is no longer split between other bikes in my quiver. All the components on my ride have been carefully chosen based on durability, reliability, and performance. Bottom line, the choice to go with the Reverb was well pondered.

I won’t go into technical details of the post as this ground has already been covered pretty extensively by other sites, instead focusing on my own personal experience with the post. (see this initial PinkBike post if you want to get tech) Like many other seat post owners, I’ve looked long and hard at the 5″ options on the market. Just about every model has its evangelists, as well as reports of failures. In the end, for me it came down to the aesthetics of the Reverb, as well as the greater availability of replacement parts, and that it can be serviced by the end user. When service requirements are a looming need, I’ll always go with the product that has the best support, then hope I don’t need it. In fact, Sram has a YouTube channel with instructional videos, which is good, since you’ll probably need to use them at some point. (see Link: How to Bleed the Reverb Remote)

For those just starting their research and shopping for an adjustable post, here are a few highlights of the Reverb:

Specs: (via SRAM)

Ups

• 125mm/ 5″ of adjustment; the post can be set at any point between fully extended and fully slammed
• The action of the post is actuated via a handlebar mounted remote lever via a hydraulic line that comes in a long length so you can fit it to any bike.
• The remote switch looks pretty sweet, and is adjustable; you can tailor the speed of the post’s extension to suit your tastes
• Minimal amount of side to side play
• Adding the correct size post to my carbon frame resolved all my slippage issues
• Light for an adjustable height post
• Nicest post we’ve tried to date
• The Avid Matchmaker mounting makes the cockpit area look super clean
• Bleed kit included, as well as torx wrench and fittings
• You can lift the bike by the seat; post does not extend when lifting the bike by its saddle
• dual-bolt micro-adjust saddle clamp is quality stuff
• Hose guide does a decent job routing the cable, which comes down with the seat
• Smooth action

Downs

• Lever placement: positioning means you can’t flip the bike upside down to service it in the field
• The remote on top is exposed and can break if crashed. If placed on the bottom you can smack it with your knee; I’ve crashed once so far, and the remote took a hit. Fortunately, it is just scratched, and still functions fine.
• You’ll need that bleed kit. My post was coming up when lifting the bike by the seat needing after two rides. This wasn’t an issue, but the seat was also slowly lowering on climbs.
• Cable is super long — you will likely want to shorten it
• Stories of the cable and remote breaking seem common

The Reverb remote lever mounted using the Avid Matchmaker Clamp makes for a clean looking cockpit; especially on a 9-speed setup.

Tech tips gathered from the web

• Check the air spring pressure. Mine was at 170psi and it should be 250psi. Once I added air the return rate improved, as it felt slow after a few rides.
• Be extremely careful clamping the post in a shop stand. It is very easy to damage the hose and/or barb. Do not clamp on the upper section of the post and do not clamp the hose.
• Some good tips from the NSMB Forums

We’ll be reporting back on the good and the bad in follow up posts. Got any tips? Please share them below.