re-spacing fox f-series forks

[Guttersnipe]

I am trying to make up my mind about a new fork.

 

I'd like one that I can run at 100mm for racey days, and 120mm for a slacker head angle/more travel when playing. I don't want the weight, complexity, and (reputedly) inferior suspension action of travel adjustment.

 

I know its pretty easy to respace a Rockshox Reba from 80mm-100mm-120mm.

 

Does the same apply to current Fox F-series forks?

[Wernervdmerwe]

Same concept as the RockShox, but maybe look at the Talas, you can change the travel with a dial on the air side.

[Johan Bornman]

To respace a non adjustable fork requires the fork to be opened and the oil sacrificed each time. This goes for Fox or Rox, albeit cheaper for the Rox since you only sacrifice 20ml x 2 here and 20ml plus 150ml for a Fox fork.

 

If you really want to adjust it all the time, get a Talas or Rox Reba U-Turn. There is no inferior suspension action since the moving parts are exactly the same in the non-adjustable and adjustable forks. With your eyes closed you won't be able to tell the difference.

 

The Talas and Reba U-Turn are radically different in their design. The Talas uses a complex air chamber system system that requires some expertise to service and you should be prepared to pay quite a bit more for its service.  The mechanic needs some special tools.

 

The U-turn Reba uses a mechanical screw system and it is foolproof and easy to service. Expect to pay just a little more than a standard Reba for its services. No special tools are required.

 

For your purposes a respaceable fork is not the answer. Having said that, I make a point of asking my customers why they have adjustable forks and most....no all, tell me then just keep it on one setting and havent bothered fiddling with the adjustment in months/years.

 

Think twice whether you really do need it.

 

[Guttersnipe]

Thanks Johan, that is a useful answer.

 

Here is the tedious background: I have a santa cruz blur xc which is great at going up hill, but due to both its geometry and my foolishness in building it up as light as possible (Manitou R7 MRD absolute, revolution spokes, kcnc skewers) doesn't flatter my skills on the way down quite as much as the old blur classic did.

 

By all accounts the new carbon blur xc with its slacker head angle is more confident on the way down, and while its primarily designed around a 100mm fork, its apparently really fun with 120mm. It shares with my current bike a longer top tube than the old blur classic, which is a good thing, and you can build it up to 10.5kgs with no stupid-light parts.

 

While I am sure a stiffer fork and more sensible wheels would help the handing on my current bike, I was considering indulging both my inner weight weenie and by inner hooligan by building over most of my parts onto a new frame.

 

I thought 120mm would be good for more trailsy days, and I could take the fork down to 100mm for racing.

 

I agree with you about travel adjust - I know most people don't use it much when they have it.

 

I suspect the thing to do for now is rebuild my wheels with competition spokes, and get an f100 fork, maybe with a qr15 and see how that changes things.

 

I have a reba on my 29er, and its currently set up at 80mm, perhaps I'll respace to 100mm it as an academic exercise next weekend.

[Johan Bornman]

Thanks Johan' date=' that is a useful answer.
Here is the tedious background: I have a santa cruz blur xc which is great at going up hill, but due to both its geometry and my foolishness in building it up as light as possible (Manitou R7 MRD absolute, revolution spokes, kcnc skewers) doesn't flatter my skills on the way down quite as much as the old blur classic did.
By all accounts the new carbon blur xc with its slacker head angle is more confident on the way down, and while its primarily designed around a 100mm fork, its apparently really fun with 120mm. It shares with my current bike a longer top tube than the old blur classic, which is a good \

 

Cut cut cut cut cut cut

 

[/quote']

 

Leave the Revolution spokes alone. They're not part of the problem. Get proper steel Shimano skewers and use those poofter shiny ones for concourse days.

 

Stiffness at the front end can be improved as follows (in order of importance). I'm putting handling over brute strength in this list.

 

1) Going for 32mm stanchions over 28mm. 40mm for Serious downhill or freeride work.

2) Upgrading from skewer to through-axle.

3) Upgrading from moffie skewers to Shimano ones.

4) Going for 1 1/4 inch steerers over 1 1/8th inch ones.

etc etc.  but now we're in strength over handling territory.

 

Wheels don't come into handling at all (given that the rims are of reasonable weight and there are 32 spokes in them).

 

 

[Guttersnipe]

Ha! I knew the skewers would annoy you. They annoy me. I've got lots of shimano steel ones scattered between various bikes and easily swapped in.

 

To be fair, the stanchions on the R7 are 30mm, not 28mm, but I can't seem to love the thing.

 

I'm intrigued that you reckon the spokes are fine - that's good to know.

 

The rims are stans olympic, as you might have guessed from from the preceding.

 

So a fresh fork would sort the stiffness, and while I am at it, I might as well go qr15, which hardly seems to add any weight, and is evidently stiffer even than a manly shimano skewer. Maxle lite seems a little less, well, light.

 

That done, there is just the matter of the head angle - but I do like to fix problems in stages, so praps I'll leave off the new frame a little longer.

 

Hey - you just saved me 25k. For now.pistadex2010-01-02 16:29:26