ONEUP V2 DROPPER & V3 REMOTE REVIEW

LONG PINNED PINNERS REJOICE | THE 240MM DROPPER

Words by Robert Johnston  |  Photos by Ben Gerrish

Finally, we’re at the stage where long travel dropper seatposts are becoming increasingly commonplace. And rightly so: if I’m adding a few hundred grams up high on my bike, I’d love to get the full reward in return. As a reasonably tall man who’s primarily legs, I need a very high seat to get optimum leg extension when pedaling; however, I also ride BMX frequently and so understand the merits of a very low saddle for dynamic movement on the descents. With a large difference between my optimum climbing and descending saddle position, I’ve had to compromise a lot over the years with far too many 125mm or 150mm droppers featuring on both personal and test bikes. Thankfully a few years back, companies such as OneUp Components realized the benefits of longer drop lengths and developed increasingly long droppers to give the best ride experience for riders of all sizes. Recently OneUp hit the 240mm mark for their longest dropper seatpost offering, the longest yet to hit the market. After previously enjoying their 210mm V2 dropper, I was keen to see if life would be even better with the longest dropper post on the market, and if the extra drop would come with any drawbacks. Let me tell you how things are faring six months on.

THE LAB

OneUp Components released their v2 dropper a few years back and have since expanded the range by adding an increasing number of options to provide various lengths for the common seat tube diameters (30.9mm, 31.6mm and 34.9mm). Riders are now able to choose from drop lengths between 70mm and 240mm to suit their riding style and size, and OneUp continues to offer one of the lowest insertion depths and stack heights on the market to allow riders to maximize the amount of drop they can fit on their bike. Regardless of the choice of drop (they provide 90mm, 120mm, 150mm, 180mm, 210mm and 240mm options), the post can be shimmed by 10-20mm to reduce the maximum extension and allow the rider to obtain their perfect drop length. And to make it as easy as possible to determine the correct size of seatpost to purchase, OneUp has a Length Selector Tool to help.

The OneUp V2 dropper comes with a 2 year warranty, and is user serviceable with guides provided to make it nice and easy and spare parts readily available. This includes the cartridge, which can be replaced for $69.50 should problems arise after this warranty period, and even the keyway pins that keep the post running straight which can be replaced with oversized versions to account for wear in the dropper or to tune out any free play. There’s an air valve at the top of the cartridge to check and tweak the air pressure between 250 and 300psi. The 90mm and 120mm options will run you $199.50, whereas the longer options retail for $229.50 for the dropper post only.

The OneUp V2 is a cable operated dropper post, for which they recently released a new lever option in their V3 remote. This remote was designed to produce more leverage and reduce the force required to operate any dropper seatpost, dropping the input force by 27% over their V2 remote. There’s a large rubber thumb pad which can be replaced for a choice of 7 different colors, which features an integrated cable port to allow you to easily tuck away an uncrimped cable end. Cable tension can be tweaked easily with the integrated barrel adjuster. OneUp offers a wide range of options for dropper remote fitment, to help it to integrate neatly with the majority of systems, and the remote features three threaded holes to obtain the best position on the bars. The OneUp V3 remote weighs a claimed 29g and retails for $45, with additional cost depending on the bar clamp option selected.

THE DIRT

I ordered the 31.6mm diameter OneUp V2 240mm dropper with a V3 remote with the 22.2mm bar clamp, which tipped the scales at 673g and 48g respectively. Installation was a breeze, thanks to the lever end cable clamping and easily accessed seatpost actuator for sliding in the cable barrel end. The cut mark at the lever makes determining the correct cable length as simple as can be, though it’s worth double and triple checking that everything is moving well before you do the final trim to size in case the cable outer isn’t sitting in place correctly. The seat clamp system theoretically allows you to fit the saddle without fully taking out the hardware, but I often found it difficult to get everything lined up well, and usually opted to fully take out the rear bolt and fit it at the end. It’s far from the most difficult system to get together and offers ample tilt adjustment to cater to just about any seat tube angle.

The V3 remote has a nice smooth actuation with limited lever force, and the OneUp system only falls short in terms of its light action to the likes of the SDG Tellis by a small amount. It drops smoothly initially and returns quickly with a nice audible “thunk” to let you know it’s up and ready to accept your derriere for seated pedaling duties. The rubber pad on the V3 remote adds grip and comfort effectively, and the ergonomics left me without any complaints.  Sure, it’d be nice to have various options to tweak the rotation of the lever, but it’s not necessary as proven by the OneUp remote. Surprisingly there is limited, if any, loss of stiffness of the dropper post in its 240mm guise, holding solidly and suggesting a long and happy life of supporting my weight. There’s a small amount of rotational free play in the system as standard, but it manages to avoid any rattling and I was unable to feel it when pedaling. It’s nice to know that there’s always the option to purchase the oversized pins to tune this out if it was to worsen over time, but after six months I haven’t felt the need.

Through this six-month testing period the OneUp V2 dropper has seen the full spectrum of trail conditions and has terminated with a solid few months of Scottish slop. Over this time, I’ve had the V2 dropper apart twice to give a full clean and regrease, and regularly give the main seal a go-over with a pick and some silicone lubricant to pull out the dirt that accumulates over time. I wouldn’t say the OneUp V2 dropper has the best weather sealing on the market, however it instead offers very quick and easy servicing which prevents having to ever ship the post off to a service center. So, if you’re happy to keep an eye on how it’s running and pull it apart if you notice any dirt being dragged onto the shaft or change in the smooth running of the post, then it’s a very economical option that’ll last a long time. If you regularly ride in a very wet and muddy climate and refuse to carry out this basic maintenance, the chances are you’ll end up with a scored stanchion and sticky post.

The cartridge has held up solidly for the duration of the test, with no need to top up the air pressure and no sagging under my weight. It’s safe to say that life with a 240mm dropper is pretty damn sweet, especially when it works as fuss-free as the OneUp has. That said, for me I think the 210mm drop may be preferable for most riding. In the steepest and gnarliest terrain, I’ll take that 240mm happily, but that extra drop means you’ve also got to sit 30mm deeper into a squat to lower it. I’m not saying that 30mm suddenly creates unmanageable fatigue, nor does it take notably longer, but it’s reasonable to assume that both factors are negatively affected to some extent. More options are much appreciated, and riders sitting even higher up the scale than my 189cm will be very thankful that OneUp has placed the longest option onto the market without any apparent drawbacks to durability or performance. It seems like a bargain compared to some of the more expensive options, too.

The Wolf’s Last Word

With up to 240mm of reliable and effective drop, and a very reasonable price tag compared with many, the OneUp V2 dropper is a fantastic option that has become my new go-to post to recommend to riders looking for fuss free performance. The remote is a solid option to accompany it, with nice ergonomics and effective operation.

Price:
$229.50 – V2 Seatpost
$49.50 – V3 Remote (without clamp)

Website: Oneupcomponents.com