Upgrade (fork) questions
Marshall20
Posts: 2
Hi, I’m new to the site, but looking for a bit of help after doing plenty of searches and looking though old threads on here.
I currently have an old (2000 model I think, black/silver if that helps narrow the year) Specialized Hardrock, ridged, with premium A1 frame, which I bought as it seemed a good platform for me at the time to ride and upgrade as time went on.
Now 7years, 1 wedding, 3 house moves, 2 kids and 2 stone heavier later, I’m thinking of starting the upgrades (although I changed the saddle at purchase!).
Primary use of the bike is going to be to get some fitness back, mainly light to moderate XC i.e. no big drop offs, but also a fair bit of riding with the family and the youngest (currently 18mths) attached to the bike via a rear seat. These family outing are not just on tarmaced surfaces but the many farm tracks which cris cross our area, so can be quite rutted.
So my questions, I’m looking at front forks and have approx £200 to spend including fitting. I’m assuming 100mm of travel should be the max I should be looking at with my bike?
Second, does the fact that there is going to be extra weight on the bike some of the time, all be it at the rear, effect the choice of shock I should be looking at, i.e. an air shock that can have it’s pressure adjused from one ride to another?
And lastly, do I use all my budget on the fork, or only part of it and change the flat handle bars to risers? i.e. will the combination of the 2 offer better stablity with a kiddie on the back.
The two forks I’ve been looking at are both Marzocchi (due to my initial assumptions in Q2 about air forks), with the XC500 if I’m to use my whole budget, or MX Pro and riser bar combination, although I’m open to all other suggestions.
TIA.
Andy
I currently have an old (2000 model I think, black/silver if that helps narrow the year) Specialized Hardrock, ridged, with premium A1 frame, which I bought as it seemed a good platform for me at the time to ride and upgrade as time went on.
Now 7years, 1 wedding, 3 house moves, 2 kids and 2 stone heavier later, I’m thinking of starting the upgrades (although I changed the saddle at purchase!).
Primary use of the bike is going to be to get some fitness back, mainly light to moderate XC i.e. no big drop offs, but also a fair bit of riding with the family and the youngest (currently 18mths) attached to the bike via a rear seat. These family outing are not just on tarmaced surfaces but the many farm tracks which cris cross our area, so can be quite rutted.
So my questions, I’m looking at front forks and have approx £200 to spend including fitting. I’m assuming 100mm of travel should be the max I should be looking at with my bike?
Second, does the fact that there is going to be extra weight on the bike some of the time, all be it at the rear, effect the choice of shock I should be looking at, i.e. an air shock that can have it’s pressure adjused from one ride to another?
And lastly, do I use all my budget on the fork, or only part of it and change the flat handle bars to risers? i.e. will the combination of the 2 offer better stablity with a kiddie on the back.
The two forks I’ve been looking at are both Marzocchi (due to my initial assumptions in Q2 about air forks), with the XC500 if I’m to use my whole budget, or MX Pro and riser bar combination, although I’m open to all other suggestions.
TIA.
Andy
0
Comments
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Air shocks make sense to tune the the spring rate to your preference, but many coil shocks have adjustable travel, ie the RS Uturn. I wouldnt get a riser bar - the fork will noticably lift the front end anyway.0
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I just upgraded my hardrock Sports forks from the jobby like RST's to some Marzocchi MX Comp ETA's with 120mm travel....what a difference. They are air adjustable on one leg and they make the bike feel so much more planted.
I would recommend the Marzocchi's all the way
The Doo0
