Another 'Which Fork'? For my GT Aggressor.
MountainPete
Posts: 418
I'm new on this forum, and the main reason I created an account is because I am stuck for which fork to get.
I currently own a 2 year old GT Aggressor 1. I am very happy with it, and haven't made many upgrades (the most recent being new wheels and disc brakes). The fork the bike came with was a bottom-of-the-range RockShox Judy, and I am now looking for a substantial upgrade!
I have some criteria, which I've listed below.
-Price upper limit £300
-Variable travel (can't find anywhere what the travel currently is, but I'd say roughly 100mm. Not sure how much more travel will affect the geometry of the bike, but no more than 120/130mm)
-Preferably air sprung (but not all that bothered)
-Easy to maintain
-As light as possible (no values here, but it is a concern)
I have read about remote lockout etc., but I don't know whether it would be particularly useful to me, so any suggestions regarding that are also welcome!
Thanks for any help in advance,
Peter
I currently own a 2 year old GT Aggressor 1. I am very happy with it, and haven't made many upgrades (the most recent being new wheels and disc brakes). The fork the bike came with was a bottom-of-the-range RockShox Judy, and I am now looking for a substantial upgrade!
I have some criteria, which I've listed below.
-Price upper limit £300
-Variable travel (can't find anywhere what the travel currently is, but I'd say roughly 100mm. Not sure how much more travel will affect the geometry of the bike, but no more than 120/130mm)
-Preferably air sprung (but not all that bothered)
-Easy to maintain
-As light as possible (no values here, but it is a concern)
I have read about remote lockout etc., but I don't know whether it would be particularly useful to me, so any suggestions regarding that are also welcome!
Thanks for any help in advance,
Peter
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Comments
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If you're determined to have variable travel, the Rock Shox Revelation is very adjustable. Merlin do them for about £270, I think.
But are you sure your frame is okay to go up to 130mm?0 -
thinking of the same upgrade myself for my Avalanche 1.0
had some advice from Supersonic the resident GT man and he said go for the Revelations which is nice as they are the ones i had my eyes on.he thinks the frame geometry would be ok with the max 130mm travel.
great upgrade in my opinion.
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Thanks both of you. I have seen the Revelations but was worried about the amount of travel. However it is nice to know that they are a feasible option. I look forward to hearing from Supersonic (among others) to see what they have to say.
Thanks again.0 -
I don't personally know any RS Revelation owners, but I've heard they're very good, always good reviews in the mags for them too.
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If you're not adverse to trying ebay for a second hand bargain, maybe a set of RS Psylo's if a good condition pair come up- fairly similar to the revelations in terms of the standing within the whole range, 85-125mm u-turn. If you like to do self-services make sure you get some with the metal top caps, not the ones with the plastic 'strength of butter' ones though!
Always a gamble on ebay though
A friend has recently got Tora U-turn for his old GT. It's older than your's and not really suitable at all for the longer travel, but the u-turn is certainly a nice feature so as to wind it up for the downhills0 -
Thanks again! I have heard about U-Turn and seen it used - it looks like a useful feature.
A quick search on google on 'Rockshox Revelation' turned up many hits, ranging from £440 to £295. This is where I get confused. What is the difference between the £440 fork and this cheaper £295 fork apart from the Poploc?
Thanks again.0 -
I've been very tempted to buy from here, and if I do get some new forks these will be the ones for sure:
http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/id35028.html
Never bought from here so can't comment on service etc, but it's the best price i've seen0 -
I ran a 2006 Avalanche with a RS Recon U Turn (85-130) and at maximum extension the bike gets quite sloppy especially climbing so is best reserved for fast downhill where the lower spring rate and tons of travel really do make a difference.
Otherwise pick between 100 - 130 and ride a section you know well to tune the rebound and length to suit your style. Without the U turn I'd tend not to go for 130mm.
A basic Recon 351 spring can be found for around £200 but they are quite heavy (2.0-2.1Kg) so paying more for the air sprung might be worth it or step up to the Reba's/Revalations.0 -
yeah was only going to run the full extension on bumpy downhill,tune it to 100mm elsewhere and lock it out on the climbs.0
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MountainPete wrote:Thanks again! I have heard about U-Turn and seen it used - it looks like a useful feature.
A quick search on google on 'Rockshox Revelation' turned up many hits, ranging from £440 to £295. This is where I get confused. What is the difference between the £440 fork and this cheaper £295 fork apart from the Poploc?
Thanks again.
They seem to be exactly the same forks, although I know many people who have had bad experiences with Winstanleys."Melancholy is incompatible with bicycling." ~James E. Starrs0 -
Thanks again all. I have been doing some more searching (and talking to various people) and I think either the Reba or Revelation is the right choice. I looked at the Fox forks, but they all seem to have a travel of 140mm (except for the F-series, which are really expensive).
I think that 130mm of travel is too much (except for the most extreme of down hills), so a fork with perhaps a middle value of 100mm is good (a range of 80-115mm say). As far as I know, both the Reba and Revelation have got an option which accommodates this range.Remote lockout is a bit pricey at the moment, so I don't think it is all that necessary.
Finally, I now need some help finding either a Reba or Revelation within my specified price and travel range. The RockShox website confuses me a little as it gives various different values for their fork travel (take a look at the Revelations). It finally says that the travel is 85mm to 130mm, which would be perfect.
uk_mr_brownstone - that looks like a really good deal. The only thing that worries me about it is that it says the RRP is £299 - I thought that model was more expensive than that...
BlackSpur - thanks for the heads up on Winstanleys - I might try to avoid them.0 -
The Poplock upgrade can be bought for £30 by itself - not too expensive and possibly a worthwhile upgrade in the future."Melancholy is incompatible with bicycling." ~James E. Starrs0
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In that case, I think that is the best option - get the forks, use them and get used to them, then get the Poplock if I think it would be a useful upgrade.0
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You may want to consider the pros and cons of coil vs air before you buy. Coil forks are heavier, less adjustable (usually just preload and rebound adjust) but cheaper and with plusher travel. Air is lighter and infinitely adjustable, but then more expensive."Melancholy is incompatible with bicycling." ~James E. Starrs0
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Thanks BlackSpur - I was just about to ask the pros and cons between air and spring sprung forks. By 'plusher travel', do you mean smoother?0
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More searching. I think I have whittled everything down to 2 choices - the Rockshox Revelation 426 Air U-Turn 2008, and (a new entry) the Magura Menja 2008. They are a similar price, but I was thinking that perhaps the 'suspension quality' would be better on the Magura than the Rockshox as you aren't paying for any clever mechanisms (e.g. U-Turn).
I need some help in deciding between the two - any reviews, thoughts and comparisons would be really useful. I might put a post in the 'General' forum too.
Thanks.0 -
RS forks are fool proof - and the Uturn is a must really, as 130 is too much to ride all the time. The bike is designed around 100-110mm of travel, but warrantied for upto 130, where it works well going downhill.0
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MountainPete wrote:More searching. I think I have whittled everything down to 2 choices - the Rockshox Revelation 426 Air U-Turn 2008, and (a new entry) the Magura Menja 2008. They are a similar price, but I was thinking that perhaps the 'suspension quality' would be better on the Magura than the Rockshox as you aren't paying for any clever mechanisms (e.g. U-Turn).
I need some help in deciding between the two - any reviews, thoughts and comparisons would be really useful. I might put a post in the 'General' forum too.
Thanks.
I have the Air uturns and they are beautiful! Look good, easy to set up, feel nice and takes the trails very well might i add. Plus i have mine set at 130mm and work just as nice even on the climbs.0 -
Thanks guys! I think that almost settles it then
A final question - what are the main differences between the Rockshox Reba and the Revelation?0 -
Reba only goes up to 115mm travel. It is lighter, with a less sturdy structure.0
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revelation will take a lot more hits, much more burlyer fork than the reba.
So it depends what your gonna be doing?0 -
In that case, I think the Revelation has won.
I am a cross-country cyclist but I tackle tough climbs and downhill straights. I think the Revelation will last me longer than the Reba, and be more useful.
I know that the Coil U-Turn version of the Revelation has a much larger range of travel than the Air U-Turn. What are the disadvantages of the coil version (other than weight)?0 -
Cant set it up to your weight - with the air spring you can precisley do this. However air forks are less 'plush', but are lighter.0
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I knew there was something! I think that, combined with the weight means that I will go for the Air U-Turn.
No one has any last minute suggestions?0 -
For the money, great fork! I'd go for it.0
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Agree'd go for it! You won't be dissapointed!
Looks teh sex aswell! only in white remember!0 -
In that case, I think I will. Thanks for the help everyone!0
