New Stems, Dropper Posts, Lights, & More From Bontrager - Across the Pond Beaver
Bontrager Line Pro 0-Degree Blendr Stem
As long as my stem doesn't move or malfunction I'm happy, but Bontrager have added a few bonus features to the new Line Pro Blendr stem. The 'Blendr' in the name refers to its ability to easily mount accessories. A Garmin mount and an Ion light mount are included, along with the Blendr mono base that those two mounts attach to. The 3D forged 7075 alloy stem is compatible with both Trek Knock Block and standard headsets and spacers.
Lengths: 35mm, 45mm, 55mm. Price: $115
Bontrager Line Elite 34.9 Dropper Seatpost
More and more mountain bikes are moving to 34.9mm seatpost diameters, including the new Trek Slash. To meet the growing demand, Bontrager released the Line Elite 34.9 dropper, which is available with 100, 150, 170, or 200mm of drop. That travel amount can be reduced by 10 or 30mm in a matter of minutes by installing a plastic shim.
The air-sprung post is cable actuated, and Bontrager says 20% less compression force is required to lower the seat compared to previous models. The post comes with an under the bar lever remote that's compatible with SRAM MatchMaker and Shimano EV mounts. MSRP: $330 USD.
Bontrager Ion Comp R Light
Like it or not, the days are getting shorter in the Northern Hemisphere, which means night riding season is just around the corner. Bontrager's Ion Comp R light puts out 700 lumens of illumination, and can be mounted on a helmet or handlebar. Most riders will likely want to supplement the $80 Comp R with something even brighter for more serious after-dark adventures – pairing the Comp R with the 1300 lumen Ion Pro ($125) would make for a powerful and compact night riding set up.
The USB-rechargeable Comp R has a 1.5 hour run time at full power, 3 hour run time at 500 lumens, and 6 hours at 300 lumens, plus even longer run times in the two flashing modes.
Bontrager XR Trail Lock-On Grips
Bontrager's new lock-on grips have an inner core that's made from recycled plastic, the result of a partnership with Plastix, who “sources fibres and rigid plastics primarily from the maritime industry, including end-of-life fishing nets and ropes that would have ended up in the sea or landfills. The company sorts, shreds, washes, separates and dries the material before extruding it into Green Plastic pellets that can be used to manufacture consumer goods.”
There are three versions of the XR Trail grips – the Pro ($35), which is a dual-lock on with a 32mm diameter, the Elite ($35), a single lock-on and a 31mm diameter, and the Comp ($15), which has the same dimensions as the Elite but with a nylon lockring instead of aluminum.
Bontrager Verse Saddle
Bontager says the new Verse is their “most versatile performance saddle ever,” with a shape that's designed to work for all genders and all terrain, from road to trail. There are four different widths (135 – 165mm in 10mm increments), and three different price points.
The $220 Verse Pro sits at the top of the line, with a carbon reinforced shell, carbon rails, and minimal padding to save weight. Next comes the $150 Verse Elite, which has Austenite rails, and a little more padding than the Pro for extra comfort. The $90 Verse Comp uses stainless rails, and, like all of the other models, has extended rails for more positioning options, and a full length pressure-relieving cut out.
All of the models are also compatible with Bontrager's Blendr mount that makes it easy to mount a Flare tail light.
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I just don't see the appeal of these types of lights. No matter what brand you buy, you are limited by current battery technology. You either end up with a small light that has low output and a short battery life (e.g., one ride like this one), or you end up with a 10lb weight on your head. At least if you buy a cheap flashlight to put up there you can carry a spare battery in your pack and you haven't spent much money.
I'd rather just put a regular light up there and put a decent battery pack in my backpack. Then I can run my light on medium or high for an entire ride and not have to charge it for 3-4 rides.
Most people will be amazed tho when they first turn it on if they haven't had any kind of a decent light before.
It's great that you're happy with it and i'm sure it does a great job, but there are lights out there that will give you a better beam pattern, better output, some better features etc. for the same amount of money. Simple as that, i'm not trying to hurt your feelings.
@b3n: From the price of the Ion Pro i'd probably buy a Fenix BC30 V2, 4 18650 batteries, and a 4 bay smart charger. Nice beam, 2 XM-L2 leds, included wireless remote, 1500lm output on high with a decent run time, which you can extend if you bring extra batteries since it uses replaceable 18650s. For a helmet light i'm a fan of flashlights, but that's just me.
I'm not super up to date tho, i'm sure there are other sweet lights I don't know about.
I’m actually learning something here.
If I did a little more research I would probably get something with replaceable batteries and have spare ones on me. LED should have about 10000 hours of lifespan, but the battery will probably be dead after 1500 - 2000 hours of use and I will end up tossing these in the garbage. I guess this is an issue with any battery build-in device
That being said this built-in battery gives me 1,5 hours on max output ( even on a cold winter ride) which is rarely needed because I can get about 3 hours running both at 50% power, most of the blue trails are absolutely fine with just one light. So in a real-world scenarios, they have plenty of runtimes. In real word all of those cables, external battery packs is just pain in the ass to deal with. I also found that that two 1000 LM lights are far more superior to one even 8000lm for a single track. These lights are a super compact and neat package. At the end the price was also half of what Fenix or Nightcore is charging for battery replaceable models.
Bontrager dislikes: seatposts