TESTED: Fox Transfer SL Dropper Post

Words and photos: Mike Blewitt

While many years ago cross-country and marathon racers erred away from dropper posts for the extra weight, dropper posts have been consistently used on the majority of racer’s bikes on the world stage for at least five years, with notable hold outs like Nino Schurter and Emily Batty rocking dropper posts these days.

Dropper posts have frequent service intervals, and the reliability of Fox is hard to beat alongside their long service intervals. However, their Transfer post was often left behind compared to lighter options from KS, DT Swiss and BikeYoke. While the updated Transfer shed some weight, with the competitors offering posts around 350-400g, the Transfer may weigh about 150g more, depending on drop and post size.

Introducing the Transfer SL

The Transfer SL met the call for a light post, and it shares very little with the rest of the Transfer family, beyond basic appearances. The head is trimmed down to save weight, and it’s a traditional telescopic post, unlike the inverted DT D 232 dropper. But like the DT Swiss post, the Transfer SL uses a mechanical spring as a zero-one post. That means it can be up, or down, with no infinite adjust. This means Fox saved weight on sealing without an air spring. It makes for a simple post with a very light action to actuate at the lever, and lower.

The action is very supple on the post, but the downside is movement when the post is extended. Mostly in a fore/aft direction, and not the wiggle that a lot of dropper posts get. It seems very much out of character for a Fox dropper post – but it’s not something I ever noticed when riding.

The post is available 27.2mm, 30.9mm and 31.6mm sizes with 50, 70, 75 and 100mm drop options, depending on post size. All posts are internally routed. While posts may weigh as little as 327g, I tested the 31.6mm 100mm drop version, which is the heaviest. My test sample weighed 410g, 11g more than the claimed weight.

Fox have thinner walls on the lower tube to save weight, and the cable clamp is inset, and it can clamp the cable or hold the cable head, depending on what lever you’re running. This is a great change to allow riders to choose a lever that suits their cockpit and ergonomics.

On the trail 

The Fox Transfer SL has the most in common with the DT Swiss D 232 I tested in 2020, as it’s a two position post with a very light action to actuate, and to compress. Riding a two position post takes a little bit of adjustment, and is clearly best on a short drop post. Normally I would drop my post a little on sections I wanted to pump, or for flatter descents to just have a bit more easy movement on the bike. But with a post like the Transfer SL you need to decide if you’re up, or down. 

The other big difference is just how easy it is to put the post down. A few other dropper posts on bikes in my shed take a lot more effort, especially getting the last 20% of drop. Some need a service, some are quite new. But the Fox Transer SL is near effortless, and that really counts for a post being used for racing. 

I used the Fox Transfer SL for about 6 race days during the test period, and any of my concerns or thoughts about the movement at the head, or the lack of infinite adjust disappeared when I had a number on the bars. For trail riding, I think most riders would prefer more drop than the 100mm maximum, and would like infinite adjust. But on race day the post reliably did exactly what I needed, without skipping a beat.

Verdict

At first, I wasn’t sure what to think about the Fox Transfer SL. The movement at the top of the post when not riding was off-putting. They say the Concorde leaked fuel until upto speed and everything expanded, and the movement in the Transfer SL was not at all noticeable when riding, it just had easy and smooth actuation and action. I really like that there are some very light options. My test post weighed the same as my 80mm drop BikeYoke Rascal, although even after service the Rascal takes more effort to compress, although it is infinite adjust. I think this is well worth a look for anyone after a short drop post on their cross-country or marathon bike. And the ease of actuation should be pleasing for anyone with smaller hands, or who does ultra endurance events as well.

RRP: $639
From: ridefoxaustralia.com.au

Hits:

• Light weight, light action
• Reliable Fox performance
• Lots of drop and size options
• Performance model saves money

Misses:

• Two position only
• Fore/aft movement