Who has one? How is the functionality? How is the quality/durability?
Crank Brothers Joplin Seatpost
- Thread starter buildyourown
- Start date
I had one for a week and then sold it because I really didn't like it. It's well-built and seems solid, and everything worked fine on it, but there is about a quarter inch of rotational play in the seatpost, so your saddle will wiggle a bit from side to side. Nothing you can do about it; it's just how it's designed, which I found to be quite annoying.
adjustable seatpost for DH??????????
perhaps this belongs somewhere else??????
perhaps this belongs somewhere else??????
i have one. It works well but as mentioned already there is a bit of play in the seat but its nothing thats gonna annoy you when riding. The main draw back is 3" drop isn't enough. The 4" of the gravity dropper is better but its ugly. I've only used mine for a few weeks so can't really comment on durability. I have a friend who has one a bit longer and he's taken his apart and greased it etc and is always moaning about it and having to do it. I reckon he's got too much grease or two heavy a grease in there and its clogging it up as i haven't had to touch mine at all. Only problem i have is that the cable routing for the remote is important. Mine lowers fine but is a little slow to return as the cable slides back through the zipp ties i have when its compressed but doesn't return freely when I want the seat to raise.
I am waiting to see how the specialized one is. Looks promising.
Maybe your butt?
does megavalanche say anything to you?
raise your e-hands if you've raced a megavalanche...
Here's a thought. On an XC ride on your trail bike, practicing your DH skills on a long hairy descent, are you going to ride with your seatpost fully extended? Not me. I have a QR seatpost b/c I drop that post down on every lengthy descent b/c it's the way I love to ride.
XC geeks don't like gravity dropper posts. DH'ers do. Please re-insert the membrane. Your vajj is leaking on this thread.
The thing that bothers me about both the Joplin and the Specialized posts is how the release is at the head of the post. When you click the release and push the post down you have cable length that needs somewhere to go. No problem if the routing is good I guess.
I have the AMP from Precision Cycling Components and it rocks. I've personally never found that the 3 inch drop was inadequate. I've ended up using the 1 inch drop a lot for sections of trail that get rough but you want to be able to sit and spin the pedals when possible. I've used my AMP on both my Blur Classic and my Uzzi VPX and it's great on both.
http://precisioncyclingcomponents.com/amp.aspx
x
I have not personally owned a joplin, but friends who have them say that (in addition to the seat wiggle) they often have issues with the oil getting stuck in one chamber resulting in loss of post travel. Not too sure how accurate that is but the point is that they are not totally satisfied.
I've had a gravity dropper on my trail bike for about three years. It is kind of crude and there is a little seat wiggle, but I never notice it on the bike, and I appreciate the simplicity of the mechanism. I've had a few issues with things like broken cables and a broken lever, but it's pretty easy to repair/maintain once you understand how it works. About the only negative is that you need to put weight on the saddle to get it to raise up, but it's not too hard to get the hang of it.
I've heard very good things about the AMP but have not tried one.
I've had a gravity dropper on my trail bike for about three years. It is kind of crude and there is a little seat wiggle, but I never notice it on the bike, and I appreciate the simplicity of the mechanism. I've had a few issues with things like broken cables and a broken lever, but it's pretty easy to repair/maintain once you understand how it works. About the only negative is that you need to put weight on the saddle to get it to raise up, but it's not too hard to get the hang of it.
I've heard very good things about the AMP but have not tried one.
if i had a vajj, i'd probably be worrying about having a gravity dropper post on my "dh bike"...
Last edited:
Not too much info here but it's a start: http://www.bikeradar.com/mtb/news/article/first-look-specialized-command-post-18201
Although I haven't ridden one, I like the idea of them especially since my one bike does it all. And the Joplin/Speedball seems like a nice, clean design. I've seen people use "sleeves" to protect them and the seal, but my concern is how they'll handle mud that continually gets kicked up by the rear tire. (Regular maintenace, I guess). Currently when my seat is lowered, I find that I use my inner thigh and knee to help steer/weight the bike and I wonder how that 1/4" of seat "movement/play" would feel in that situation.
I'd still like to try one sometime.
toby
I'd still like to try one sometime.
toby
Get a Thompson. Problem solved.
Ummmm, try and keep up. Thomson, doesn't make a telescoping seatpost.
Thanks for the input guys. Anybody have a price on the AMP?
http://precisioncyclingcomponents.com/Buy.htm
I would be a bit weary of getting the AMP post. I heard rumors that they lack after sale CS. These guys have day jobs and seem to operate out of a garage...who knows where they'll be in 1-2 years.
Lol I know but what it honestly the point of having one of those...Especially on a downhill bike. Unless of course you are putting it on a different bike.
Not all DH venues are created equally. I can think of two courses in CA that I'd consider using one. I know someone in town who has a Joplin on his Sunday, he said it was sort of an expirement but he was digging it.
It makes sense from a racing aspect: If the couse has a long flat spot or short climb you either need to compromise riding position or pedaling efficiency with your seat height choice. Anyone who's raced Fontana has thought about this at the wall
Yeah I could see its uses maybe after a Dh run but not on a actual course. You should be going too fast for that. And you should be standing up to sprint its faster and yes I know the wall you speak of lol.Not all DH venues are created equally. I can think of two courses in CA that I'd consider using one. I know someone in town who has a Joplin on his Sunday, he said it was sort of an expirement but he was digging it.
It makes sense from a racing aspect: If the couse has a long flat spot or short climb you either need to compromise riding position or pedaling efficiency with your seat height choice. Anyone who's raced Fontana has thought about this at the wall
I wasn't looking at one for DH racing but DH training on a 6" bike. That still pertains to DH that's why it's in the DH forum.
I run a Joplin on my Uzzi and I love it. Initially I just got it for Super D racing but while getting used to it on normal rides I found myself using it all the time. Advantage over a Gravity dropper is that you can lower the saddle to anywhere within the 3" range. Sometimes lowering it just by 1" is enough to make you rail corners way better (especially with the high BB of the Uzzi). And if a short climb is ahead just put it up again. I really like it for "trail" riding on the big bike and found the 3" adjustment range enough for me but I like to run my saddle higher than most on my downhill bike too. The lever is pure genius, simple, effective and can be operated on rough trails without a problem.
Drawbacks so far are the already mentioned wiggle in the saddle that is not too bad during normal riding but I find it annoying on grinding climbs. I first thought it might give problems while pressing with your leg on the saddle in corners, but it didn't.
Other than that, the saddle on the Joplin can be pulled up while being in the lowered position. This is annoying when picking up the bike but I never had problems with air getting trapped in the hydraulics (something that the manual says can happen). One time I had my baggys getting caught on the saddle and pulling it up when I tried to get off it, which resulted in a crash.
I haven't found a perfect cable routing yet. The way it is now the cable touches the rear tire when the post is low under full compression. Guess this a frame specific problem.
The seatpost is the same like a fork stanchion and I had already some stones nicking the surface. In contrast to a fork the post is right in the path of flight of the stuff your tire thows at it.
All that said, I really love it. It is on the bike nearly all the time. Only when I go jumping/riding stunts I take it off because I am still kinda freaked out about the baggy-saddle-hangup-crash.
There is a new drop post in the market now from Fezzari. It looks like the Joplin but it is a little different in a few ways. This one has 4.9" of drop and goes for $199.
I have been using it on my trailbike for a while now and really like it. The remote is small and works well. I haven't had any seat wiggle problems but you can move the seat a few degrees by grabbing it and twisting. The head has a limited range of tilt adjustment which could be problematic if your seat tube is really steep and you like to tilt the nose up so just be aware. Otherwise, it just works - goes down under your weight, pops back up with an air spring. Stops anywhere you like between full up and full down and stays there. Weight is about the same as other drop posts - heavier than a Thomson but fine for me.
There is a non-remote option for $169 too.
is this the same as the one from kind shock?
http://www.descent-world.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=910&Itemid=82
http://www.descent-world.co.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=910&Itemid=82
I like the sound of that. I drop my seat almost exactly 5" when descending, which makes the Gravity Plopper and the Joplin kinda useless to me.
Yeah, I think that's who makes them.
I would try ghetto rigging up an old inner tube guard for that thing. Just cut a small strip of tube and zip tie it to the top and bottom of the post so that it covers the stanchion part. Just an idea.