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Might be a bit behind on this but I do not recall anyone mentioning radial casing Tacky Chan anywhere, though I suppose it was only a matter of time.
Nice eye. I looked right at it and missed it... the hot patch graphics are different than the current radials.
That app sounds very simple tbh, I would whip one up if I currently wasn't kind of useless. The biggest struggle I could see would be sourcing the insertion depth data. It seems few companies actually mention the value. It'd be nice built in to something like geometry geeks where such data is open source.
It's odd how few companies care about insertion depth at a time everyone wants to run a long drop. For my personal preferences that disqualifies some otherwise nice bikes from fitting me.
I agree with this. I bought a Santa Cruz last year after being on a Stumpjumper Evo, on which I was able to run a 210 Oneup dropper. Having gone from 180 to 210 drop on the Stumpjumper felt like I had a completely different bike, and so, when my Megatower came with a 170, my first priority was to try and fit a 210. Unfortunately, insertion numbers aren't posted, and I couldn't test the old dropper (34.9 mm) and had to "guestimate" by holding it up to the outside of the bike and eyeballing if it would fit. I'm not sure it wouldn't be difficult for manufacturers to publish this information.
Might be too little, too late, but Santa Cruz does have a way to figure this out:
https://www.santacruzbicycles.com/pages/dropper-post-compatibility
Listing the max insertion depth would be really helpful, though.
There are a bunch of basic ones out there but how often does the average rider really need one? I'd bet the vast majority of riders just run whatever their bike came with...
Looks like a new Radial tire available from Schwalbe too, Tacky Chan joining the party. I haven't seen that mentioned anywhere yet.
I think there's a huge market for an app like this. I'd argue that every customer buying an aftermarket dropper would want to know this info, except maybe those over the height of 6'4/190cm. If an app like that was integrated into the webpage for every dropper post listing on a website or webstore, I think it would get used by 90% of potential customers. Who doesn't want more drop?**
**I don't want more drop, but that's not the point. Almost everyone else seems to want as much drop as they can get.
I have a 200mm dropper with a 415mm length straight seat tube and it sticks out about 3cm for climbing. Tried installing a 240mm dropper but couldn't run it slammed so sent it back. I'd take a 400mm or less seat post and 250mm or more dropper if it were possible because I want my seat completely out of the way when I descend.
The question is, how many people buy aftermarket dropper posts these days?
The real question is “why do bike companies spec such short dropper posts on their bikes?”
Give the people all the drop that’s possible. Any bike that comes with less than 210mm drop needs to be upgraded. Obviously, if it’s a light weight XC bike, it may not be necessary. But once a bike hits the trail or all mountain category it should come with lots of dropper travel.
As someone solidly un the sub 5' 10" category of humans, 210 is a bit much, I tried one on my last bike and very few mediums have the insertion length for a 210 and have the ability for me to be able to sit on it at ride height. I tend to find a happy place between frame and body with a 180mm. However, we know every dropper post can at least be adjustable now and should be. So make them adjustable for 50mm each and...
XS/Small should come with a 150 adjustable down to 100
Medium should come with at least a 200 adjustable down to 150
L/XL should come with a 250 adjustable down to 200.
That's 3 sku's per post diameter, with a mostly set insert length that manufactures can rally around per size and everyone can easily get a nice fit without swapping out posts. Even better, move all modern bikes to 34.9 so stuff isn't crammed in there. Done. Game over. Users win.
While we're discussing dropper seatpost consumer behaviour rumours, Merida has it figured out. As anybody who's been paying attention to Merida knows, its current FS models have a straight seat tube so that every single frame size comes with the same adjustable post that can be set to drop anywhere between 30 mm and 230 mm. I don't think it's available aftermarket yet, though.
I am 6’.
I ride a large Ripmo AF. I have a 175mm dropper and I have to slam my post to pedal when it’s extended.
I have short legs.
I would probably never be able to ride a 200mm dropper on a full suspension due to packaging constraints. If you could even get a frame designed to have enough insertion and have a short seat tube such that you could have 200mm dropper and still touch the pedals, the seat would most certainly hit the tire.
I dont want to have to immediately uninstall and sell every dropper on every large bike I might buy.
I hear you, but being 6 foot I’ve had to sell every dropper post on all my size large bikes because they’re far too short. I argue, and this isn't to say I don’t understand where you’re coming from, there is a larger subset of the large bike population that could use a longer dropper. There have been some strong opinion pieces on the other site to sell stock bikes with non crap brakes, tires, and longer droppers. Although this wouldn’t be necessary or appropriate for all for everyone, I still support the idea that bikes should be stocked with longer, and adjustable, droppers.
Interesting, thought that frame would take it.
I'm 173cm, running a 200mm dropper in a small Warden, and while the frame allows more insertion than I run, the 200mm hits the sweet spot.
I'd argue that instead, more brands should pay attention to insertion depth. While there certainly is such a thing as too much drop, the first issue that needs to be solved is the insertion. The Enduro is one of the best examples of a bike that could have been good, but the insertion is the most common complaint I hear a lot.
I don’t get paid by Norco or anything, but I feel like they have the dropper post sizing pretty dialed. Here’s a screen cap from the specs of a 2025 Sight;
SJ 14 entered the chat.
I’m just under 5’11 and have massive amounts of seatpost showing on my s3 Enduro. But I agree, they should come with the shorter posts rather than the absolute max.
We can all ride with a saddle that doesn’t quite drop as much as “you’d” like, but you sure as hell can’t ride a bike with a seatpost is too long.
Showing my age but I was riding before droppers - they never stopped us having fun. I can’t think of a single bike on the market that doesn’t have at least a 100mm drop. If you can’t ride with only a 100mm drop I’d invest in some training.
^this. You can always ride with a “too short” dropper but you physically can’t pedal a bike with too long of a dropper. It’s better to allow people to ride their bike out of the box. Keep in mind the majority of people don’t care about a super long dropper, and that majority also doesn’t have the wherewithal to deal with finding a substitute post. Whereas, you keeners have the capacity to sort that out easily to get a longer dropper.
I just bought a medium bike with a dropper that was too long to ride and it took weeks to find a shop that had a suitable one of the same make to trade with for a shorter one.
You don't have to fully extend your dropper tho. You can extend it lets say 80% and ride just fine
Different seat height every time I extend the dropper, and having to micro-tune seat height with the lever every time? Hard pass, for me and especially for beginner riders.
It's not comfortable, but its rideable. It's less of a problem than not being able to put power into the cranks due to a too long dropper post
spam us i wanna hear it
Not a clear screen shot, but Orbea DH in the wild with a cover. From Tahnee instagram, looks like it’s working well
I thought you were right so I built one! dropperchecker.com
Doesn't solve the missing frame insertion info. But still makes it a bit easier to make a call.
great, now this has turned into dropper post/insertion rumors…
I want to confidently say that it probably won't look like a Session. But I'm also wrong about 9 out of 5 times on things! 🤣🤣
How many races will that thing stay undercover? Is there a rule regarding how much of the bike can be covered and we're going to see everything but the parts that go squish or can they run the Scuba Steve look for the whole season and keep us guessing?
Color me impressed. Love it when people take initiative and go get something done. Why not you?
Couple of thoughts that might be helpful.
- Instead of inseam, I'd prefer to measure the distance from BB to top of saddle on an existing bike. I think this would make it more accurate as well by accounting for pedal/shoe, personal preference on saddle height, and (if the same saddle was used) the stack of the saddle? Maybe you could keep both and let people choose?
- Maybe add some fine print on how the measurements are taken. For example, specify that you're measuring from the middle of the BB spindle.
Seat rails instead of saddle height. But yes, BB to rails should be used instead of inseam. Seat height is a common measurement used for bike fitting. It does need to be adjusted for crank length and/or pedal thickness too though.