[POLL] Hanging an eMTB by it's dropper post in a workshop stand?

[Christurbo]

Yes, this should always be an individuals approach.

I come at it from the view of trying to minimise the number of things that we EMTB’ers seem to needlessly worry or obsess over!

It would be good to have some official guidelines….. I just dug out my Transfer Post Install guide and saw this.

 

[TommyC]

I just clamp the top tube on my carbon frame. I remove the battery to save some weight. That cross bar thing looks good but what if you want to pull the front end apart?

 

[irie]

Thanks for the discussion!

Thanks for the monologue.

 

[irie]

I just clamp the top tube on my carbon frame. I remove the battery to save some weight. That cross bar thing looks good but what if you want to pull the front end apart?

I also remove the battery and clamp the top tube of our alloy frame bikes on the balance point. If necessary also makes it easy to rotate the bike in the stand.

 

[Tooks]

Thanks for the monologue.

Listening to a message, even when it’s a hard one, is a good life skill. Try it sometime?

 

[irie]

Listening to a message, even when it’s a hard one, is a good life skill. Try it sometime?

See above.

 

[Tooks]

See above.

I really don’t get this or a lot of other forums sometimes.

You’ve liked some of my posts in the past, I’ve probably liked some of yours, but you disagree with somebody over something stupid like whether it’s ok to hang a bike by it’s dropper, and all of a sudden you’re just being bloody rude with your monologue comments.

Back up what you wrote about droppers only being strong ‘from the top’, or stop discussing it and accept you might be wrong about something.

Honestly…

 

[irie]

I really don’t get this or a lot of other forums sometimes.

You’ve liked some of my posts in the past, I’ve probably liked some of yours, but you disagree with somebody over something stupid like whether it’s ok to hang a bike by it’s dropper, and all of a sudden you’re just being bloody rude with your monologue comments.

Back up what you wrote about droppers only being strong ‘from the top’, or stop discussing it and accept you might be wrong about something.

Honestly…

I can't see that saying that a monologue is a monologue can be insulting but if you take it that way ...

One reason I did not and will not engage is that if a bike is held horizontally then loads on clamped dropper posts are not vertical which would only open up yet another can of worms of subjectivity.

 

[Tooks]

I can't see that saying that a monologue is a monologue can be insulting but if you take it that way ...

One reason I did not and will not engage is that if a bike is held horizontally then loads on clamped dropper posts are not vertical which would only open up yet another can of worms of subjectivity.

Loads on a dropper post are rarely vertical anyway, that was my point, they need to be (and hopefully are) designed to be strong in all directions to cope with what we ask them to do.

Anyway, not worth falling out with somebody on the internet for, so let’s move on.

 

[Stihldog]

Lucy?…Snoopy?

The LBS’s here hang our eMTB’s by the dropper post or seat during a quick service. When I get home I store my eMTB in a Park Tool stand using a bar under the seat and stem.

I’ve only seen one bent seat post dropper (crash) and seals and guides naturally wear out over time. But I still use a bar to store my bike .

 

[maker]

Bike shop told me not to even lift bike by seat/post as it can suck air into oil.

 

[Tribey]

An E for me. Another Halfords false crossbar user.

Shouldn't B read 'Dropper vertical ' not level? Just saying

 

[Stihldog]

Bike shop told me not to even lift bike by seat/post as it can suck air into oil.

I completely agree with that. Made that mistake once with the AXS reverb dropper but it was a fairly easy fix. I fully extend the post now before I store my bike …in the stand or just sitting there overnight.

 

[XrayZulu]

Also curious about how others do it, some carbon frames are odd shapes like my Cube and I don't like the idea of winding a clamp down on a carbon tube anyway.

I now use a Saris Bike Beam which is great and I would recommend it

 

[BuzzinHornets]

Bike shop told me not to even lift bike by seat/post as it can suck air into oil.

This only applies when the dropper is down. When extended you can lift/hang to your hearts content. I think a lot of you are putting way too much thought in to this. If you have ever serviced your dropper and seen what’s inside you would not be so timid. It’s two very sturdy metal tubes and in most cases some brass pins to stop rotation and limit travel. You would have to get crazy like a chimpanzee to even start to stress the cartridge. At the absolute worst you may wear out the brass pins prematurely, this is like a $3.00 and 20 min fix.

 

[Binhill1]

I used to use dropper till I snapped the quick release

 

[Simmo3801]

E for me. I also use a false cross bar from seatpost to head tube which I find so much easier to get the bike on the stand

 

[SwampNut]

I'm glad I didn't read this before, since I clamp whatever on the bike however I fucking feel like it at that time, and since I was unaware that it could damage anything, it hasn't.

 

[Yoak]

I alwsys Clamp it on the top tube. Done that on all my carbon bikes. No issues what so ever.

 

[speciman]

Physics says that hanging my heavy bike level from a dropper post that isn't at the centre mass of the bike is putting alot of stress on the internals of the post (I assume bushes), here:

View attachment 121154

So which way is the recommended method?

A: Bike level, dropper post at an angle. (Easier to work on)

B: Dropper post level, bike at an angle. (Slighly less easier to work on)

C: Let the bike find it's own angle. (Even less easier to work on)

D: Don't be lazy, raise the dropper out of the frame a bit more and clamp the main body of it. (Potentially having the bike at any angle you want without stressing the dropper's internals but potentially stressing the frame where the dropper's body is mounted)(Not Pictured, too lazy )

E: None of the above (comment below)

Also curious about how others do it, some carbon frames are odd shapes like my Cube and I don't like the idea of winding a clamp down on a carbon tube anyway.


View attachment 121155



View attachment 121156

View attachment 121157

Remarque : Je suis au courant de cette vidéo où ils estiment que seulement 27 Nm de force de rotation sont appliqués lors de l'accrochage d'un VTT normal avec un poids d'environ 30 lb que le compte-gouttes devrait très bien gérer. J'ai utilisé Chat GPT pour extrapoler leurs chiffres en supposant un vélo plus lourd de 53 lb et il compte un peu moins de 48 Nm de force à la place, si le compte-gouttes est d'accord avec cela, je ne le sais pas. Même ainsi, lorsque le vélo est serré, je jure que je peux voir la tige de selle télescopique se plier (probablement juste en voyant des choses, mais cela ne me semble pas juste)

 

[speciman]

pression principalement verticale non inclinée ....... et si tout votre 90k était sur la selle, la roue avant serait incontrôlable
Sérieusement, ce que nous examinons en termes de forces avec une pince sur la tige de selle est au mieux une section de 200 mm serrée et les forces agissant dessus sont à la fois verticales et horizontales, ce qui donne un vecteur de probablement 60 degrés et qui n'a aucun rapport avec les forces appliquées lors de la conduite.
Si vous essayiez de plier la tige de selle télescopique qui est le vecteur de force que vous appliqueriez avec un long levier ......... c'est-à-dire dans ce cas plus que le centre avant de l'ensemble du vélo. vous n'irez nulle part en essayant de le plier en vous asseyant dessus !!

Bonjour,je suspend toujours mes vélos a la tige de selle au plus bas et une sangle au plafond relié sous le cadre au niveau de la potence,ça le soulage un peu plus

 

[Romney]

Lower part of the dropper post for carbon and top tube for the aluminum.

 

[edruid]

No but in that case you'd likely have both wheels off which would make things easier. I clamp by frame in that case. As long as you're careful I think it's incredibly unlikely you'd damage the frame.

ohhhhhhh, you are sure? I'm at 5 months of battle with cube about that very point. top tube cracked on the sides. Warranty denied based on their certaianty I crushed the tube (I didn't).

 

[edruid]

View attachment 121175

good idea

 

[Christurbo]

I alwsys Clamp it on the top tube. Done that on all my carbon bikes. No issues what so ever.

Not when you have frame protection film.

 

[E-MAD MALC]

I use the dropper stanchion, but leave the front wheel on the ground. If I need to work on the front wheel, I drape the bike over the work stand top bar. The work stand top bar is at the top of the down tube, underneath the head tube. I am not averse to putting the bike upside down on the floor if I need to do some large torque work, like removing the cassette or any work on the BB.

If I was going to suspend the bike on the dropper, I would pull it out a bit and use the dropper body. But I know where the dropper cable is and can do what is required not to jam it up when reverting to normal (unlike my now closed LBS who bent the cable and ruined it!)

The dropper body is fine for me never had any problems

 

[Bob Orbea Rise]

I hang mine from the garage ceiling via garage door rail under the saddle nose, and or (depending what needs doing) via hooks under the handle bars

 

[RipGroove]

I take it these bike beam/false crossbars are resting up under the stem? Just had a look at my bike and I'm pretty sure it would be squashing the cables if I tried using one?

 

[Apps28]

Are you lot for real? Clamp it on the top tube- that way you can work on the dropper too.
If you’re worried about clamping carbon then you’re obviously over tightening it and I’d be more concerned that you’re capable of general bike maintenance in the first place.

 

[RipGroove]

Are you lot for real? Clamp it on the top tube- that way you can work on the dropper too.
If you’re worried about clamping carbon then you’re obviously over tightening it and I’d be more concerned that you’re capable of general bike maintenance in the first place.

The top tube of a lot bikes in this thread simply isn't the right size or shape to clamp in a normal workstands clamp. And clamping carbon with with the amount of force needed to secure an ebike is most definitely not good for the carbon at all, it's not at all designed to be stressed that way. The inside will start delaminating and it will become much weaker, you won't see it because it'll be on the inside.

This is coming from someone who spent about 2 years making the internal ear cups for F35 fighter pilots helmets out of carbon fibre by hand so I've seen first hand what happens to the carbon layup when it's squashed in directions it shouldn't be.

IF the top tubes were small and round and did fit in the clamps properly and the bikes were much lighter then you might just get away with it but the second you apply any force you are asking for trouble down the line.