Magura Vyron eLect wireless dropper

[LimboJim]

I put a original model Vyron eLect dropper on my Bulls in early 2017 (just as the new version came out), and it was awesome for a year and a half. A few weeks ago, however, I lifted the 50+ lb bike by the seat and the Vyron's top just popped off, spewing blue hydraulic fluid everywhere. I checked the post's air pressure regularly, and it was consistently between the 180-220 PSI recommended range. I also had no major crashes with the Vyron installed.

When I examined the post's inner construction after it exploded, however, it seemed that the threads that held the top down were worn, or (more likely) just not very deep to begin with. My guess: they didn't account for the 15-25 lbs of extra weight of eMTBs when engineering those top threads.

Anyway, the warranty gave no time limit that I could find, and said to bring it to the place-of-purchase or contact Magura for repair or replacement. Because I bought it from bike-discount.de in Germany and I'm in America, I emailed Magura USA. It took a week-plus (and a follow-up re-mail) to get a reply, but they provided a prepaid shipping label and I sent directly it to them.

Today (a few weeks later), I got a spankin' new Vyron from Magura (2018 model, I believe), so kudos to them for backing up their product! Still, I'm posting this to alert other eMTB owners with Vyron posts to avoid lifting their bikes with the seat.

 

[gizmo]

It's never a good idea to touch the dropper post or seat when lifting your bike, and if you have been doing it for that long, you have been pretty lucky it didn't fail sooner. That said, Magura replacing the seat is great. I own a Magura Vyron and it has been trouble free and I love it. BTW, I own 4 dropper posts on various bikes and all the manufacturers recommend not handling the bike holding the seat or seat post, including Magura.
Thanks for your post.

 

[LimboJim]

It's never a good idea to touch the dropper post or seat when lifting your bike, and if you have been doing it for that long, you have been pretty lucky it didn't fail sooner. That said, Magura replacing the seat is great. I own a Magura Vyron and it has been trouble free and I love it. BTW, I own 4 dropper posts on various bikes and all the manufacturers recommend not handling the bike holding the seat or seat post, including Magura.
Thanks for your post.

Thanks Gizmo, FWIW I wasn't touching the post when lifting over logs etc., just the saddle. I re-read my Vyron's manual a couple times, and there's nothing in there about lifting the bike this way, just a warning against hanging the bike by its saddle or post.

I too own a few other bikes with different droppers, and re-read their respective manuals to see if any of them forewarn about lifting with the saddle. Rockshox Reverb - nothing. KS eTen and LEV - nothing. This surprised me; I figured there'd at least be warnings against lifting the saddle when it's pushed down.

 

[PDoz]

surprised me; I figured there'd at least be warnings against lifting the saddle when it's pushed down.

Can you explain the issue with lifting via saddle when the post is dropped? I've only got 2 bikes with dropper posts but frequently lift the bike whilst the seat is down ( I transport the bike seat down , and sometimes it's easiest to grab the seat rather than other parts of the bike) .

 

[LimboJim]

Can you explain the issue with lifting via saddle when the post is dropped? I've only got 2 bikes with dropper posts but frequently lift the bike whilst the seat is down ( I transport the bike seat down , and sometimes it's easiest to grab the seat rather than other parts of the bike) .

Do your posts lock into down positions, or do the saddles pull up when you lift your bikes?

It's my understanding that lifting some dropped posts can suck air in where it should not be, which can cause a "suspension" effect (where the post sags when you sit on it). I don't yet understand the inner workings enough to explain further, maybe someone else can?

My Rockshox Reverb post has been suspensioning for awhile, but otherwise works fine. Its saddle pulls up when compressed, and I lifted it a few times that way. I could hear the suction...

Not all droppers use air springs, however, like the much cheaper KS e10, which I installed on my Motobecane eMTB. While it's much slower to respond than the Reverb, its saddle won't pull up if I lift it when down. Since I don't value speedy response very much as a recreational rider, I now lean towards the cheaper posts.

I remember reading that newer Reverbs lock into dropped positions (mine was a stock part on a 2015 Felt Lebowsk-e), but I don't know if that means they're suspension-effect-proof. To me, though, lifting bikes by the seat is a convenient, automatic thing to do; seatposts (and saddles) should be designed to withstand this motion repeatedly.

PS If your posts are air sprung, think about this before leaving them down for long periods: air pressure on droppers is often ~200 PSI. When fully down, that can quadruple.

 

[PDoz]

Forgive my ignorance, but if the post has over 200 psi in it - how do you drop it ?

 

[MikeDD]

I was curioushttps about this and I found this: https://www.bluestonebikerun.com/blog/2016/2/25/2-tips-to-keep-your-dropper-post-tip-top

I was storing mine down when not using, so I could get on the bike.

I reviewed my manual today. It says to store with the seat down to protect the post from nicks that could damage the seal.
I have a Specialized post on a 2018 Levo FSR 6Fattie.

 

[Blueflash]

I installed a KS LEV Integra dropper post on my bike this summer. It's a fairly high end, air spring type post. It's strange that there are no warnings or recommendations for things like lifting or storing the post. This post will extend if lifted from the down position. I avoid doing it but it's hard to keep from just grabbing the seat when you need to lift the bike. It makes sense to not store the bike with the seat down. Yet, pretty much all of these posts are compressed in their packages from the factory. By the way, I love my dropper post.

 

[LimboJim]

Once you've descended a technical downhill with a dropped seat, it's hard to imagine riding without one!

indeed they're down when new, but I've found the pressure to be very low on the couple droppers I've unboxed. When my Vyron blew apart, it was pretty forceful even in its extended position. It'd be crazy to ship them like that, no?