Buying a Reverb dropper post.

OK, Ok I've possibly entered the world of dropper seatposts. This morning at work noticed Wiggle were doing Reverbs cheap, but as I was otherwise engaged didn't get time to buy one - and I find the Wiggle site a bit hit and miss these days. Then found that CRC have 2012 MMX Rockshox Reverbs on offer for £144, or £129 with the cheeky discount code: save15. At £129 it's a bit of a deal breaker for me - no way would I pay £300 for a seatpost but at the lower price it's fair game. I've gone for the full fat 125mm drop. I guess they are on sale as CRC seem to be in a slight price war with Wiggle and everyone else, and Rockshox have an updated post out soon. Watch this space to see if CRC actually deliver seeing just how cheeky that code was..... I understand it expired just after I used it, so I may be stuck if a real person checks my order.

Of course you need a bleed kit as the CRC Reverb doesn't. http://www.epicbleedsolutions.com/ do one at reasonable cost.

And really, CRC are posting this as a big sale, as are Wiggle and no doubt Evan's will have their Gatwick thing soon, but 99% of the stuff is just old tat isn't it? They move the prices around to generate a bit of interest, but most of this stuff is fit for one place only; the skip. I went to the Evan's sale a few years back, and came out with a PACE frame at half price, so there are some good bargains but it's all a bit like TKMaxx for me; too much effort looking through utter tat for a small reward. There's also the suspicion that many of the RRP's are just made up and the ultimate price shifts with the tides, bearing no relationship to reality. RRP's well into the hundreds for items in the sale at a tenner? Yeah right, pull the other one. These days I just look at the current price and make a judgement call on the day as to whether or not I actually need the item, and if it is fair value. However in this instance I figure the price to be so low, for such a small amount of stock, that if I don't like the Reverb I can sell it on eBay in four months time for the same price as bought. Half a day's sale at Wiggle or CRC won't affect used prices too much.

Quite probably I have no need for a dropper post, and will be upset over the sheer mass of the thing, but hey ho! at less than £150 I may as well give it a go. That's if I get it of course ;¬)

Oddly enough I'm not excited at the prospect of getting this bit of bike bling. It's still £150 on a seatpost that weighs the better part of 600g. And the reliability of these things is still suspect, not to mention the need for regular servicing meaning more expense. But the biggie for me is do I actually need one? Surrey where I am isn't that technical, and I've been able to cope with my seatpost being left in the same position now for over 20 years. I'm perhaps more interested in what it can do for twisty singletrack, where dropping the post away apparently makes a big difference to carving turns. However, as I'm fundamentally a muppet on a bike a big difference to me perhaps raises my game to that of slightly pathetic rather than average! And I'm not being self depreciating - you should see the video of me bolt upright in some corners.... er ;¬) We shall see, but I don't expect my riding world to change hugely. Don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to a new toy, but at the end of the day it is just a seatpost. What can it do for me?

*CRC have just sent me an e-mail saying that it has been dispatched. A Reverb for £129.99? That's mad. Quick look on the website shows the discount code no longer exists, and they've sold out of the common sizes. Bit of a lucky buy then? I guess, but I've never spent that much on a seat post. Indeed a few years back I bought a car that was road legal here in the UK for 12 months for just £170. The cycling world is a mad place to be.

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