Rock Shox Reverb First Impressions

Straight off my blog, http://vuracing.blogspot.com/.

So last week I received a Rock Shox Reverb and I finally got to get a ride on it to give my first impressions. It now joins the several seat droppers out on the market. While it certainly performs the task lowering the seat like any seat post dropper, it's how it does it that makes it so unique.

Ever wanted to say "Seat post - adjustable height" in different languages?
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It is available in two seat post diameter sizes, 30.9/31.6, with two different length options, 420mm/380mm. I chose the 31.6/420mm since my Trek Fuel Ex 9.9 uses a 31.6 seat post. As for the length option, they only had the 420mm option in stock. I would have gone with the 380mm option to save some weight if it were in stock.

What else is in box?

Rock Shox provided more than what I would have expected. While I did expect zip ties and perhaps some type of cable guides to aid in installation, I didn't expect it would include a bleed kit. The bleed kit provides two syringes and a small bottle of 2.5 wt suspension oil. I would suggest that future owners keep this set of syringes away from the syringes that they use to bleed their Avid brakes with. You do not want to risk contaminating the system with DOT fluid.
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Installation was a breeze and within about 10-15 minutes, I had my Reverb properly installed on my bike. Most manufacturers today provide most 5 inch or more full suspension frames with specific cable guides for those who want the option to run remote actuated seat droppers . While many of the newer bikes include those guides, my frame lacks those specific cable guides. Luckily Rock Shox provides some accessories to aid in installation. With the help of some zip ties, I was able to route my cable so that it looked aesthetically clean.

Neatly tucked with my rear brake cable



That's just a pellet gun in the background

I've always had the attitude that the seat height you start your ride with remains the same through out the ride; this is before seat droppers gain such popularity. One reason I had this view was because it took skill to clean sections with your seat at the normal height. Especially since I race, you need to know how to descend tricky sections with your seat at the right height. So with that said, there's definitely an ego part to that attitude.

I've ridden and cleaned Middle Merrill and without having to drop my seat so I never really had a need for a seat dropper despite them gaining popularity. On the other hand I hadn't seen a seat dropper that had features that appealed to me. Either they lacked zero offset or I didn't like how remote lever worked.

After a while, the idea of owning one started to grow on me. I understood the advantages of what lowering the seat could do. The ability to ride steeper sections with more ease and control certainly appealed to me and after spending some quality time chair lifting in Big Bear, I knew I wanted a seat dropper.

So what makes the Reverb different from the competition?

Well it is the first hydraulic actuated remote seat dropper instead of the common cable actuated systems. So the system less likely to be contaminated since it will be better sealed.

As far as I know, it's the only seat dropper that has infinite adjustments of travel, 125mm to be exact of travel. Why is this important? Well as opposed to having preselected travel increments, the infinite adjustment allows the seat to be lowered at any point making it easy to quickly lower the seat. Users will no longer have to find the preselected notches when lowering the seat when using the Reverb. This feature was awesome out on the trail since there were moments where I wanted to just lower the seat and I didn't care how low so long as it was a bit lower. The remote lever was easy to install and was very simple to use. Much like the lock out remote lever they use on Rock Shox XX forks, the Reverb remote works in a similar manner. Depressing the button will either allow the seat to be lowered or risen.

Fits perfectly between my shifter/brake and grip.

Rock Shox currently offers either a left or right remote lever. Currently they are shipping with right hand remotes only since my Reverb came with one and it does not seem there are any options when buying to request a left hand model. So for those who want the left hand remote will have to order it separately. As a bonus, those who are running Sram/Avid components will be able to take advantage of the matchmaker system to provide a cleaner handlebar set up.

Out on the trail impressions.

What better way to test it out they hitting up Lower Merill and Middle Merill in the San Gabriel Mountains. While climbing, I didn't feel the seat post move at all which was good. As I approached the descent, I was able to finally take advantage of what the Reverb was made for. It was very easy to lower the seat and the infinite travel adjustment made it easy to lower it where I wanted it. The steepest section of Middle Merill became super easy to clean with the seat lowered. As soon as it flattened out, I was able to bring the seat back up with ease. I may have mentioned it already, but the action on the Reverb is super smooth.

It was certainly foggy up toward the ruins.
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Final thoughts

While this was just one ride on the Reverb, I can't say how it will fare six months to a year down the road. However I do ride a lot and I'll be able to comment the Reverb's durability in the near future.

As for cons, I would say there was still some slight play with the Reverb. It was not noticeable while riding, but play still exist none the less. Perhaps this is simply an inherent design flaw that plagues most seat post droppers. The hydraulic remote does mean one more thing that has to be bled and taken care of should the time ever come.

However at the MSRP of 299.99, I would say this seat post dropper is competitively priced amongst the competition. Taking in account the hydraulic remote and the infinite travel adjustment, it seems that the Reverb has an edge.

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Nice write up. I know you have only ridden on it once, and it is your first adjustable seat post, but do you think you will use the entire range of motion? Can you share where you were able to find one (they are hard to find in stock atm)?

 

Lycra and platforms? :-k

 

Nice report Vu. Soon you'll be using that dropper more than your front derailleur-then you'll really know what it's all about. I remember when you guys said my AMP was an "old man's crutch"!

 

Haha I know right? Well unfortunately, when you're a Foes test rider, local professional DH rider, and known for ripping it up on the descents, you can wear lycra with flat pedals. As evident on that day, Jon left me in the dust. I'm just glad he wasn't on the old rigid shogun bike, would have put me to shame.

Now to respond to Bonsainut's question. I don't think I will use the entire range of travel on the Reverb. It not going to be as if I will ride it at every millimeter of adjustment. There's going to be lowest, somewhere in between, and full extension. The importance of the infinite range of travel is that it simply makes it easy to lower the seat. With any other design, you have to lower it till engages/clicks into place. It has to find those "indentations" before you can release the lever, otherwise it will return to max height.

@Rossage; hahaha, that is true, we were calling it an old man's crutch.

 

Thanks Vu - I think I may have confused you. I wasn't talking about using all the different "infinite" settings, but rather the full adjustment range of the seatpost. The Reverb has 5" adjustment range. Many other remote adjustable seatposts have 4" and some have only 3". I went out and took a look at my seatpost, and I think I typically drop it about 3" from riding height to DH height - and to me that makes a huge difference. I was just curious whether you were dropping the seat all the way, or stopping somewhere midpoint. Dropping a seat 5" seems like a lot, but maybe the trick is to set it so riding height is somewhere in the middle, and you drop it for descents and actually raise it for climbs.

I don't know; I have never used an adjustable seatpost before but everyone around me who has one says you will never live without once you get one.

 

I understand your question now.

While 5" is a lot on a seat dropper, it's nice to have the option to do so. However the beauty of the infinite adjust allows you lower it 3" if you want. You may never have drop it 5", but you'll always have the option. I imagine if you ride some really steep stuff, and mean super steep, then I can see myself using all 5". I spend a lot of time riding in the San Gabriel Mountains, and I just lower the seat halfway. Heck just simply lowering it makes a big difference for me since I've ridden so much with the seat up.

As for availability, I work at Helen's Cycles in Arcadia, so I simply ordered it from one of our vendors. As of now, they only have the 420mm length option in stock. See if any shops near you can order it.

 

Have you used it on the rock drop at Chantry? UWC is th eperfect place to test a dropper. Short steep ups and flowy, rocky, downs.
I have gotten used to the detent stops in my dropper with a 1"-4" set up. Not sure if I would like an infinte post but I'm willing to give yours a try!

 

So I got my Reverb yesterday as did a friend of mine. He called me after installing his saying it was going up really slowly. First I told him to make sure his seatpost collar wasn't too tight. Then I told him to check the air pressure, which it ends up is a no-no according to the manual. Guess he should have read it first. Then I told him maybe he needs to bleed it.

When I got home I decided to install mine hoping it was just his that might be bad. Turns out mine was doing the same thing. When you adjust it to the fastest setting, it would barely go back up. If you put it to the slowest setting you couldn't compress it either. So I tried bleeding the actuation line. No luck. Then I though maybe the speed adjustment needs to be at a certain setting, so I set it to the fastest speed and bled it again. Now it works like a champ. The line is pretty long, so I trimmed it and bled it again. On the fastest setting it goes up almost as fast as my old RASE. Haven't had a chance to try it out on the trail yet, but it seems to work pretty well. Just a bummer about having to bleed it.

Here's a video of it not working. Maybe I should take one of it now as well.

[youtube]g8_Oli7jAsc[/youtube]

 

After bleeding

[youtube]d2uLVXBCx9A[/youtube]

 

Just picked one of these up from The Path this morning for CB's 5 spot. Installation was easy, but it did need a bleed to achieve a more acceptable range of extension speed. The Matchmaker option is great and keeps the bars less cluttered. As mentioned above, there is a slight amount of play, but it is very small, and certainly less than I've felt on other brands of dropper post.

Routing the hose took some experimenting. On CB's bike, the hose would get caught up in the suspension linkage when the seat was dropped. Routing it up the front of the post using the guide included in the box solved the problem, and the hose is also out of the way of the rear wheel.

 

Nice!

shitty

 

Mine's on its way - projected delivery next Monday. LOL that's the cleanest looking bike I have ever seen

 

Looks really slick, too bad it doesn't come in 27.2 or else I'd jump right on it this holiday season

 

Not trying to bring any negativity, but this is not the first, nor the only, dropper style post with infinite adjustment. Many others have done this same thing for quite a while.

As for using the whole 5" of adjustment, I find that with my Joplin 4 that when I'm wanting to get a little more styling with jumps I wish I could drop my seat just a bit more, but still bring it back up to full riding height.

 

Sorry, double posted. Don't know how to delete this.

 

Thanks for the review, I only heard of the reverb a couple weeks ago and am really interested in getting one now as I get off my bike to change the seat adjustment many times on my local trails.

 

I am still getting used to mine - which is a general adjustable seatpost issue NOT having to do with this particular model. I still find it disconcerting when the seat drops while I am rolling Takes some getting used to.

I need to dial in the settings a little to get it to rise faster, but otherwise this seatpost is behaving just the way it was promoted. I have absolutely zero wiggle in mine; perhaps it will loosen up after I ride on it a bit, but right now it does not budge when I am playing with it on the bike stand at home. I certainly felt no wiggle on the last couple of rides I have taken it out on.

Have to say I am very pleased. Shop around a little and you can find some merchants who are offering great prices.

 

I just got my reverb today finally. It seems to work great on the fastest setting but probably will need some bleeding to get the slow setting to work better. I am struggling to find a suitable cable routing option on my Intense Tracer. Anyone have a Tracer/Reverb combo? If so how did you route the cable?

If I want to shorten my cable do I need any parts besides the provided syringes?

 

Per the Rock Shox manual and my experience with mine you don't need to bleed the system when cutting the hose. Turn the speed setting to full slow (counter clockwise) cut the hose, remove the old piece of hose from the barb fitting and jam the new end on. Worked Twice for me when setting mine up. Also, I think I'm the first person who hasn't had to bleed his to get it to work right, lucky I guess.