1998 LXT all mountain Seat post

[Jfogs]

Hello, just bought a 1998 homegrown LXT from craigslist. Seat post is fine for every day trails…my son would like a seat post that is 1-2 inches shorter for down hill stuff? Suggestions and size if you can help.

[tomatoadmin]

Are you looking for a dropper post or just a shorter post? A dropper is touch because I believe only Gravity Dropper had them in 26.8, and you might still have length issues relative to the shock/swingarm depending on how far it’s inserted.
Otherwise, you can check ebay and the like for cut seatposts, or DIY with tube cutters, a hacksaw and steerer tube cutter, or if you know someone that’s got a larger lathe. Disclaimer: DIY or someone else’s cut post obviously come with some risk…

[Jfogs]

Thank you… Just went to my local bike shop. He said eBay would be my best bet! Thank you for your advice! Really just looking for a shorter seat post for the downhill only days.  Really don’t want to cut the original.

[Jfogs]

I have another quick question. Where we often ride does have a lot of drop offs. So, I may try the hacksaw method. Can you explain the risks for me? So that I can try to avoid them? Would it be better for the bike shop to shorten the seat post for me?

[tomatoadmin]

The main risks are that a poor cut could leave a stress riser that could propagate into a crack, or if you pick a seatpost that’s got variable wall thickness (don’t recall which ones anymore) and you cut it down, it could be clamped in an area with thinner walls. Both are pretty unlikely but things to be aware of.

[livernose]

Bike shop can do it for you. My local bike shop uses a clamp on guide and hacksaw. The guide is to make sure the cut is straight. Then just sand the edges so they’re smooth. Those Titec posts are plentiful and not expensive if you want to go back original. 

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