Dropper post choice

i've come to believe that a dropper is for me. I basically have 2 choices as i need a 27.2mm post. I can go with a KS Lev 100 mm drop or a Thompson Elite dropper with 125mm of drop. After taking a few measurements and going over the specs of each post

Thompson Elite overall length 430mm……fully extended is exactly where my max seat height is, collar is bang on my clamp. full length of post is as far down seat tube that is possible before hitting inside inside cage brazing for bottle cage.

KS Lev over all length 400mm…. with post in max position i will have a gap of about 30mm between seatpost clamp and post collar.

what post would better suit me, not worried about price, but more on the correct size and reliability of the 2.

For what its worth I have a KS Lev that has been in for warranty twice in less than 2 months of use. Can't comment on the Thomson but I would probably go that route.

the one adavantage the KS has is the cable dosent move. Seems to be hit and miss as to warranty issues. If the thompson didn't have a cable that moved with the post it would be hands down the choice

Pretty sure Gravity Dropper also does a 27.2. I've never rode one, but there's a few folks on here that seem to swear by them. Quite a bit cheaper than Thomson and KS Lev too, I believe. Their rep for customer service is pretty good too.

i would get the shorter of the two regardless on the brand , i currently have a CrankBros Kronolog and i wish it was shorter in travel and over all length plus i would like internal cable design as well .

I have had a gravity dropper in 27.2 for a couple years and quite like it. It works. The Thompson seems very nice as well but the gravity dropper has been reliable, easy to service and cheaper.

Gravity droppers work, almost endlessly, and when they do have a hiccup, then they are easy to strip down and repair, you can get spare parts or service with less than 2 week (normally one week) turn around.
Totally rebuildable, and a factory rebuild is about $18. No cable movement, sturdy two bolt seat rail head.

another vote for the gravity dropper, for all the reasons others have mentioned, plus it seems like post length and drop are important considerations for you, and with a gd you can specify both

Yeah, forgot to mention that my first dropper was a GD turbo back some 7-8 years ago and it was pretty faultless. Not flashy, but light, very reliable and easy to rebuild.

Other than its but ugly looks i would think about it, but after spending all this cash on a new build i want to put something good looking on my bike

A couple of things to consider when you are getting dropper recommendations. The weight of the rider, seldom mentioned, is pretty important. At 220 no gear, the comments of a 150 pounder is not necessarily valuable or even relevant to me for this type of equipment.

More drop and more weight may not be an optimal combination.

The other thing is seat tube angle. I was told that some posts suffer prematurely from seal problems due to the angle and subsequent pressure. Slack tube therefore needs additional research.

I use a Thompson on a Chilcotin. Yes it costs more than some but I have had a good experience with it so far.

A couple of things to consider when you are getting dropper recommendations. The weight of the rider, seldom mentioned, is pretty important. At 220 no gear, the comments of a 150 pounder is not necessarily valuable or even relevant to me for this type of equipment.

More drop and more weight may not be an optimal combination.

The other thing is seat tube angle. I was told that some posts suffer prematurely from seal problems due to the angle and subsequent pressure. Slack tube therefore needs additional research.

I use a Thompson on a Chilcotin. Yes it costs more than some but I have had a good experience with it so far.

I am somewhere around 200lb.

Looks like i leaning more towards the Lev, With my seat in its max position, the 100mm drop will be perfect , with the levs collar just slightly above my seat collar. Biggest slling feature to me over the thompson is the stationary cable mounting. I am only 160 lbs fully geared so i don't have alot of extra force behind me.

Looks like i leaning more towards the Lev, With my seat in its max position, the 100mm drop will be perfect , with the levs collar just slightly above my seat collar. Biggest slling feature to me over the thompson is the stationary cable mounting. I am only 160 lbs fully geared so i don't have alot of extra force behind me.

I'm pretty much exactly like you. Was debating between the Thompson and Lev. I like the Lev cable design so went with that. So far it works well but I guess time will tell how good it is. I've been using mine for ~2 months with no issues so far.