Now that we’re starting to reach peak dropper, even those in the racy, XC crowd are starting to think about height adjustable posts. Typically though, they don’t need as much travel as the modern trail or enduro bike, so 9Point8 thought they could use the extra room in the post to change things up a bit.
Modeled after their popular Fall Line droppers, the new Fall Line R is perfect for XC frames that have a lot of exposed post, but still could use some droppability. But if the 475mm length post is too long to fit into your frame for your saddle height, don’t worry – just break out the hacksaw (or pipe cutter)…
For the most part, cutting your dropper post seems like a completely foreign concept. Doing so on most of the posts on the market would render them useless, but the design of the Fall Line R is a little different. Calling it a “stubby dropper in a long post,” 9Point8 has designed it so the bottom 135mm of the post can be cut off. This could be very useful should you run into a rivet or frame element that prevents you from inserting the post fully. But the full 475mm length makes it so XC high posters can still get the proper saddle height with 75mm of dropper travel.
The dropper mechanism is tucked up deep inside the post, which leaves the bottom section free to cut. 9Point8 has detailed instructions and there’s plenty of warnings on the post itself, but note that you can only cut the post with a hacksaw below the dropper mechanism that extends about an inch and a half past the maximum cut line. To cut it to this point, you’ll need to use a pipe cutter instead.
As for the post itself, it’s a 390g dropper which makes it pretty competitive even with other options in carbon fiber. The universal head accepts round or oval rails, and it’s available in 30.9 and 31.6 for $489 this fall.
If you have the room in your frame, don’t need so much saddle height, and want more travel, the Fall Line R will be available in a conventional 125mm travel version as well. Weighing in at the same 390g, the non-cuttable version is actually a bit cheaper at $459 with the same head. Both posts use the same mechanical brake dropper mechanism that has won 9Point8 a lot of fans to date.
More good news if you’re a fan of the 9Point8 dropper post – they have a new lever. And not just any lever, a co-branded lever called the Digit through a partnership with Wolf Tooth Components. 9Point8 said that they were considering developing a new lever of their own, but WTC had done such a good job on the ReMote that it just made more sense to work together. Designed to work specifically with the leverage ratio needed for the Fall Line, the Digit is just an $18 uncharge when ordering a post, and it’s compatible with all 9Point8 droppers.
Finally, while the new Fall Line R series gain a universal head that works with round or oval rails, the rest of their posts still are only round rail compatible. However, they have a new over rail head that will now work with the oval carbon rails that can be retrofitted to current posts or ordered with a new dropper. Unlike the head on the Fall Line R, this head is only compatible with oval rails, so if you need to run round rails you’ll have to go back to the original head. When purchased with a new dropper, the head is a $17 uncharge.
