Damping – in simplified terms – is nothing more than resistance to movement. In the case of the Pademelon CS.1, it’s an oil-generated resistance to your steering input. But what’s the benefit? This small hydraulic steering damper – which is mounted directly to your head tube – promises to absorb minor impacts and vibrations caused by rocks, roots, and everything else the trail might throw at you, thereby stabilizing the front wheel. The aim is not only to reduce rider fatigue but also to enhance safety and stability.
While steering dampers have long been common in motorcycle racing, they’re still a rare sight on mountain bikes. Jeremiah Boobar – founder and CEO of Pademelon – is on a mission to change that. During his 16 years at RockShox and SRAM, Boobar worked as a race technician, global race and product manager, and is also recognized as a co-founder of the BlackBox program, which remains responsible for prototype development in the racing circuit to this day. Some of the veterans among us might still remember the TRUVATIV Boobar handlebars – guess where their name came from ;). The idea of a steering damper had been circling in Jeremiah’s mind for years but was never realized during his time at SRAM. After spending another eight years as “Director of Suspension Technology” at Cannondale, the time had come to launch Pademelon Performance Products and put his accumulated experience into developing a steering damper. It’s no surprise that not long after its release, top riders like Jack Moir, Richie Rude, and Remi Gauvin were already tearing up the trails with the Pademelon on board. The CS.1 damper is based on the Hopey Steering Damper, which was developed decades ago but never really broke through. Jeremiah approached Tim Hopey and purchased the intellectual property, which allowed Tim to move on to other projects he was interested in. This IP became the basis for what is the Pademelon CS.1.
By the way, pademelons are small marsupials and part of the kangaroo family. Their connection to the hydraulic CS.1 steering damper? Both are native to Tasmania – and pademelons like to hang out in groups with poor social structure, just like us mountain bikers ;). Basically, though, Jeremiah just needed a name for his new company – and since the animals are popular in Tasmania and happen to have a cool name, he simply named his company after them.
Currently, Pademelon offers just one steering damper model,the CS.1, which retails at € 499. Depending on the bike you plan to mount it on, you’ll need the appropriate mounting kit, which costs an additional € 100. It’s available for various headset standards and is compatible with both dual-crown and single-crown forks. All in all, the Pademelon CS.1 sets you back roughly € 600 and weighs around 200 grams, depending on the specific configuration. But remember: You will also remove some small parts, like the top cap and some bolts, which makes for an extra weight around 139-176 grams.
What exactly is a steering damper and how does the Pademelon CS.1 work?
At its core, a hydraulic rotary damper helps tame the front end of your bike – especially when things get rough and fast. The damper essentially decouples handlebar movement from trail-induced impacts and vibrations, reducing unwanted wobble and oscillations. This is intended to deliver greater stability and less rider fatigue.
Pademelon offer a simple analogy to explain how the hydraulic damper works: imagine you’re standing in water up to your neck and try spinning in a circle. That’s fairly easy. Now extend your arms outward – you’ll need significantly more force to rotate because your arms have to push through more water, which slows down your movement and acts as a form of damping.
In the case of the Pademelon CS.1, however, it’s not the person rotating in the water – it’s the water rotating around the person. The person’s outstretched arms represent the vane inside the oil chamber, while the outer housing, connected to your handlebars, rotates around it. As your handlebars and the housing rotate, the volume on the opposite side decreases, generating hydraulic pressure. The shaft contains an adjuster bypass through which the oil must pass during rotation. This bypass adjuster controls the flow rate, allowing you to fine-tune the damping resistance. When the bars return to the center position, a check valve in the refill circuit opens, allowing oil to flow freely and eliminating damping. The faster the steering movement, the greater the resistance and the stronger the damping effect. Looking at the inside of the damper housing, you’ll notice a varying diameter. If the system rotates more than 37.5° in one direction, a gap forms between the housing and the vane, allowing oil to flow freely without resistance. In other words, there’s no damping beyond this angle, enabling tight and slow turns to be made without interference from the damper.
What’s the difference compared to Syntace’s K.I.S. system?
The Pademelon CS.1 is a hydraulic rotational damper, while the K.I.S. system by Syntace is a spring-based steering stabilizer. The latter exerts a pulling force to return the handlebars to a central position by building tension with a spring – something that can quickly feel unfamiliar to many riders. In contrast, the Pademelon CS.1 steering damper generates resistance, too, but only during steering movements. This means that the system maintains your current handlebar position and doesn’t actively pull you back to center. Quite the opposite – since there is no damping effect when returning to center, it feels as if there’s no system installed at all.
The Pademelon CS.1 Steering Damper on Test
For over six months, we tested the Pademelon CS.1 steering damper on a Specialized Stumpjumper 15, putting it through a wide range of weather conditions and countless trails. Initial installation is somewhat involved and takes time, but shouldn’t pose a problem for experienced mechanics. The best approach is to watch Pademelon’s installation video, which clearly outlines each step and gives you a good idea of the tools and skills required. Throughout the entire testing period, the system ran flawlessly – no loose headsets, no creaking, no weird noises.
Once installed, the damping can be fine-tuned via a small dial that offers three full turns of adjustments. When set all the way to “light,” the damping effect is barely noticeable – effectively disabling the system. If you turn the dial carefully, you’ll feel the limits of the adjustment range, although there’s no mechanical stop, so you could theoretically over-rotate it. Unfortunately, there is no direct indicator of your current setting beyond the printed labels on the dial. With some practice, however, you’ll be able to sense the current setting through the resistance at the handlebars. The first turn results in very light damping that’s barely noticeable on the trail. At the other extreme, the maximum setting is clearly perceptible and, in our opinion, mostly too firm – though some riders might benefit from it. We mostly rode between 1.5 and 2.5 turns and adjusted the damping depending on the trail and conditions – which is literally a matter of seconds.
You quickly get used to the damping after just a few rides since it has very little influence on your steering behavior. Overall, the damping had a consistently positive impact, bringing more composure to the bike in hectic and fast trail sections. It makes it easier to hold your line, and absorbs small slips and impacts rather than transmitting them unfiltered to the handlebars – all without compromising steering precision. On steep and fast descents, particularly where the rear end tends to break loose under braking, the Stumpjumper felt significantly more composed, and the damped connection between front and rear brought additional stability. Riders familiar with e-mountain bikes will recognize the added composure heavier bikes offer on rough terrain – that’s what the Pademelon feels like, just without the extra weight, aside from the 200 grams of the damper itself. In tight, slow corners, the system is virtually unnoticeable, as damping is disengaged in those situations. However, if you primarily ride such trails, you likely won’t benefit much from a steering damper.
Even when climbing, the steering damper doesn’t get in the way and actually helps you hold your line. Particularly in technical and steep sections, the bike tracks straighter and is easier to manage in sketchy low-speed scenarios. If you’re someone who struggles riding hands-free, the Pademelon is a great aid – and even pulling off hands-free wheelies becomes noticeably easier.
Conclusions about the Pademelon CS.1 Steering Damper
The Pademelon CS.1 steering damper is a well-engineered, genuinely useful system – though it comes at a price. Once installed, it can be quickly adjusted to suit different trails and riding conditions, and you’ll find yourself getting used to the damping effect in no time. Throughout the testing period, the system never got in the way and particularly on rough and fast trails, the steering damping added a sense of calm and noticeably improved control.
Tops
- Improved control
- More stable handling
- Easy to adjust
Flops
- Hard to read setting
- Expensive
For more information, visit Pademelon’s website.
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Words & Photos: Peter Walker
