Dropper post advice

[2wheelwill]

Hi, I’m a roadie who dabbles with mountain bikes. I recently picked up a pretty basic Niner Air 9 hardtail and would like to add a dropper post - more for convenience/comfort than shredding the gnar, as they say!

I’m not looking to break the bank and stumbled upon PNW Components Loam and Rainer posts. They’re under $200 and seem to have a bit of a following. Wondering if anyone has experience with PNW performance, relatability and customer service? I’m also open to any alternative droppers in the under $300 range.

If it matters, I ride a medium frame and it takes a 30.9 post.

Any suggestions would be appreciated! Thanks!


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[.RJ]

Go for it, most droppers pretty good these days.

If the bike has external routing, make sure you get an externally actuated post and you can use your front derailleur guides.

[GonaSovereign]

☝️ Good advice above. PNW is fine. Make sure you sort out whether you can route it internally.

[trener1]

I dont personally have one but I know that they have a very good reputation.

[thermalattorney]

TranzX is the OEM that makes a ton of droppers on the market, include those from PNW and OneUp. What that means is reliability is going to be good, even for cheaper models.

Snag a OneUp for $215. They're going to give you the most drop for your frame size, even vs PNW Loam. I prefer the $50 OneUp lever as well due to its ergonomics. The Loam Lever is loved by many, but it sits farther out from the bars and requires more initial thumb movement.

The only thing the PNW posts do better is height adjustment, but that's the kind of thing you only do once, so it's not really a huge deal.

You'll love having a dropper. They encourage all kinds of good body english, even when climbing.

[proxient]

2nd OneUp, have had 3 posts with zero issues outside of the occasional easy cleaning / lubing and adding some air pressure maybe once a year. highly recommend.

[clyde the point]

Just added a PNW to my Marin HT, and on the first ride yesterday it performed flawlessly, seemed less sensitive to seatpost clamp tension ala Fox. I like their lever as well.