May 16, 2010
RockShox unveiled new thru-axle forks and a prototype 5" drop telescoping seatpost today at their 2011 product camp in Durango, Colorado.
Inside you'll find all the details and lots of pictures of the new Reverb seatpost!
Updated with video, watch to learn more about the new Reverb seatpost
Read on...
Watch the video to learn more about the new RockShox Reverb seatpost
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| 2011 RockShox Reverb seatpost |
Day one at the Durango, Colorado, RockShox camp saw us ride all sorts of new and exciting pieces of equipment, but the new addition that caught my attention was RockShox's entry into the telescoping seatpost category. Dropping posts are very quickly becoming a must have for many riders, and for good reason. They can add a level of flow to a ride that otherwise would at best require the pilot to slow down and pick their way through the gnarly bits with a seat that is hovering dangerously close to important body parts, or force the rider to come to a stop and lower their saddle for maximum downhill enjoyment. There are a lot of people out there that won't desire one due to lack of challenging terrain, or because of stubbornness, but the bottom line is there is a good chance that you would benefit from installing one on your AM or XC machine. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that in the coming years dropping posts will be like disc brakes, most serious bikes will have one. I'm guessing that the good people at RockShox feel the same. Enter the Reverb telescoping seatpost.
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| 2011 RockShox Reverb seatpost |
The Reverb uses a combination of air and oil to control it's 5" of stroke. Much like a air spring rear shock, inside you find an internal floating piston (IFP) that separates the two so there is no cavitation. While there are other seatpost options that use suspension fluid, the new Reverb takes it a step further by having a hydraulic bar mounted remote to activate the post. No more needing to make adjustments due to a stretched cable on a post that is very sensitive to tension, or having to replace a rusty cable the no longer moves freely through it's housing. The Reverb uses RockShox's Xloc hydraulic remote that can be mounted in tandem with your Avid brake perch to keep your cockpit tidy, or on it's own if you'd like to be able to mount it in a different position. One very interesting feature on the new post is the ability to easily adjust the return speed via a dial on the Xloc remote. More on this below. Keeping the insides inside and the outsides outside is a serious triple lipped seal with foam ring that sounds like it is better at doing it's job than a lot of competitors fork seals.
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| Cutaway of the hydraulically controlled Reverb post |
RockShox Reverb details
• 125 mm/5" of infinite adjustment
• Hydraulic actuation using 2 wt. suspension fluid
• IFP (internal floating piston) separates air spring and fluid
• Remotely operated by Xloc push button (left or right sides to be avail.)
• Return speed adjustable via dial on Xloc remote
• three-key anti rotation design
• Shaft material: 3D Forged 7050 Alloy
• Head material: Forged 7050 Alloy
• Includes Speed Lube bleed kit
• Zero offset head
• 30.9 mm and 31.6 mm diameters
• 380 mm and 420 mm lengths
• 515 grams
• September release date
• MSRP $295 USD
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| This dial controls the Reverb's return speed and made quite a noticeable difference |
Before we hit the dirt with the Reverb under us it was made very clear that although it is very close to production, it was still in prototype form. Regardless, I was simply blown away by how smooth and consistent the Reverb performed. Todays ride was close to four hours long and the terrain had quite a few climbs that split up the rocky and technical descents. In other words, the perfect place for a telescoping post. Grabbing hold of the Chromag saddle to check for play revealed only the slightest amount, around 1-2 mm at the end of the seat which means a whole lot less than that at the source. Three different keyed sections within the post should keep play to a minimum, but only time will tell how it holds up over a long season of all-weather riding. The Xloc remote took very little force to activate, much less than any cable activated remote, even with a new cable. Instead of a lever that would pivot, the Xloc is actually a button that you depress to lower or raise the saddle. There is a fair bit of throw, but it only takes a few millimeters to activate the Reverb seatpost. A dial at the hose junction, similar to the bite point adjustment dial found on Elixir brakes, is used to select the desired amount of rebound speed. Turning it in speeds up the return speed, while turning it out slows it down. The dial turned easily with my fingers. At first I wasn't overly convinced that this would be a useful feature, but I changed my tone once on the dirt. One of the biggest benefits of a dropping post is the ability to only lower it by an inch or two to lower your center of gravity on fast sections. Having the rebound set slightly slower than I would have otherwise used allowed me to bring the saddle up slowly to the point where I wanted it without it just extending to it's highest position. Very cool.
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| The Reverb's Xloc remote can be integrated into the lever perch or used on it's own |
On the trail the Reverb was impressively smooth. It didn't take any extra body weight or require me to "bump" it when I wanted to lower the saddle, it dropped wether it was under load from my entire body weight or if I was only gently pushing on the seat. Likewise, the return stroke was smooth and consistent. It was also firm and never lowered unless I pushed on the handy Xloc remote. Right now there are a number of different options to pick from with choosing a telescoping post, but I'm sure that RockShox is on to something with their hydraulically remote controlled Reverb post. Eliminating the steel cable actuation makes a lot of sense, and if the Reverb proves to be as reliable over the long haul as it was smooth and refined as my single day on it, RockShox has just raised the bar. If I had to pick the one issue with the Reverb, it would be that riders will have to wait until this coming September to get their own. Hopefully we'll have a production version to test before that!
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| The zero offset head uses a two bolt design |
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| Prototype #8? |
Stay tuned for more from the Durango RockShox camp!
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