Mountain Biking - Adjust seat height on the fly? What are those things called & who makes a good one?

What are those things called that let you collapse a seatpost like an office chair? You press a lever and sit and your weight telescopes the seatpost, then when you press the lever with your weight off, a spring pushes the seat back up?

What are those called and who makes a good one? Please help if you can. :)

dropper post. and i would wait for the KS Integra Lev. Should be out soon. 1/2 the weight as the other options and the cable is mounted at the bottom rather than the top.

dropper post. and i would wait for the KS Integra Lev. Should be out soon. 1/2 the weight as the other options and the cable is mounted at the bottom rather than the top.

With a low claimed weight of 450gms, no, it's not anything close to 1/2 the weight of the other options. My GD post is a little over 500gms. with remote, and my two Reverbs only a touch heavier. Consider most manufacturer's claimed weights sometimes end up being quite optimistic.

The only advantage at this point is the cable mount being static - not moving when you cycle the post.
Since it's not out yet, durability, smoothness, ease of use, etc., and any other potential issues are an unknown. From what I can tell, the Lev is also slated to be more expensive.

If you wait for one, may as well wait longer and see what ride reports pop up about it, rather than be a guinea pig for KS. Their post have been as hit or miss and problematic as any others. Some riders have had no trouble, some have had a lot of trouble. YMMV.

IMO, the best compromise going right now in terms of function/price/weight/durability is the Gravity Dropper Turbo. Ahem - the cable doesn't move on that model, or on their other remote model. I say this as someone who owns one of those posts, and two Rockshox Reverbs - all running smoothly. I prefer the function of the Reverb overall, but as said, for the best overall - the GD kills everyone else. Easy to work on if need be, and the company takes care of things very quickly if you have any issues.

Gravity dropper makes the most reliable. it's the ugliest and heaviest and always works no matter what.

i loved my rock shox reverb, then i had problems and it never recovered. they have problems...we have to bleed them/warranty them quite often

crank bros joplin also is quite good, also has some problems here and there....

crank bros joplin also is quite good, also has some problems here and there....

That's...quite the understatement.

There still aren't any lower priced options these days, right? They're all still in the $200+ range?

There's an NOS Hite Rite up on eBay right now.

Need a loose fit seatpost for them to work well. Maybe 1/20 MTBs I've seen are loose enough with correct post size.

There still aren't any lower priced options these days, right? They're all still in the $200+ range?There is only one that I know of: the bottom-end KS post, which run under $50. I have what's left of one and do not recommend it. It is heavy, the poor sealing makes it vulnerable to dirt and moisture and it eventually loses its nitrogen charge.

Gravity dropper is straightforward, completely mechanical and fully serviceable - - would probably be my first choice when I spend the money to do it right.

I have one of each and both have needed repair. I prefer the Joplin. The remote release cable on the GD busted off and is now securely held by zip ties. Since the trigger is attached to the bars, it's a pain to move it to another bike. The Joplin is operated by a lever under the nose of the saddle, and that allows me to move it from one to another of my bikes, leaving my tools and spares under the saddle.

Gravity Dropper stops only at the ends of travel, the Joplin stops anywhere.

There is only one that I know of: the bottom-end KS post, which run under $50. I have what's left of one and do not recommend it. It is heavy, the poor sealing makes it vulnerable to dirt and moisture and it eventually loses its nitrogen charge.

Any idea what it's called? Now that I know of it's existence I can't help but want to see it, even if it is a POS. Can't find it searching online, though.

Any idea what it's called? Now that I know of it's existence I can't help but want to see it, even if it is a POS. Can't find it searching online, though.It was the i850. Here is what it looked like: http://www.pure-race.com/KS%20i850.html

Hexagonal steel inner post. It was a bit odd, as it was also a partial suspension post - - it had an inch or so of suspension cushion at whatever position it was stopped at. PricePoint sold them for a while as a Sette house-brand post that went on sale occasionally for $30. QBP or BTI (can't remember which) had the i850. I ordered one through my LBS for about $45 for my wife's bike and that one is still functioning (but she's easier on stuff than I am).

Ah, the Sette post. Unfortunately that one's not sold anymore, if I recall correctly. Sucks because even if it is crappy, it was offered in 27.2, which is what I need. A lot of others aren't offered in that small of a post size. I'd probably pick one up and just keep it really well greased or something(Maybe makeshift black cloth sleeve over the shaft to keep the dust off) if they were still available. :(

Agreed on the GD being the most reliable. I've had one for a couple years with no issues and no maintenance. I also own the KS i950r and have had zero issues, though I have only owned that one less than 6 months...so far so good.

The KS Lev looks like a nice option, but from what I have heard the pricing is outrageous. The Fox DOSS should also be out before too long, but it looks like Fox missed IMO.

3speed...if you want to save some money on one, pick up a used Gravity Dropper.

Gravity Dropper stops only at the ends of travel, the Joplin stops anywhere.
You can buy the multi-position GD, which allows you to drop the post 1 inch and full drop.

3speed...if you want to save some money on one, pick up a used Gravity Dropper.

I never really see them for sale for much less than new, and when I have they're never 27.2mm post size. :(

^^ That used to be my problem with GDs because they did not come in the smaller sizes. Now, however, they make 26.0, 26.8, 27.2 and 30.9, plus shims to help fit all other sizes.

I never really see them for sale for much less than new, and when I have they're never 27.2mm post size. :(
Keep an eye out on the MTBR classifieds....one recently sold for $150 shipped: http://classifieds.mtbr.com/showcat.php?cat=18. Maybe even post a wanted ad up on MTBR - want ads are free.