Rockshox Reba SL/Race vs. Fox 32 F100 RL/RLC...

Jeast
Jeast Posts: 176
edited September 2009 in MTB buying advice
For no particluar reason, I was wondering which is best? There seems to be a 50/50 split on £1k-1.5k ish bikes, and I can't figure out which is actually the better fork! Or is one pretty much as good as the other?
Boardman MTB HT Pro

Comments

  • Jeast
    Jeast Posts: 176
    Ok, I'll put it another way...If I were to replace my '09 Reba Race with Fox 32 F100 RL, would that be an upgrade or a side step? Or would the next sensible upgrade be SID?
    Boardman MTB HT Pro
  • llamafarmer
    llamafarmer Posts: 1,848
    Why would you upgrade between such similarly specced forks?

    I have a Reba SL on my Cube and a Fox 32 F100 RL on my Anthem and I marginally prefer the Fox. It feels slightly smoother and is easier to set up imo. I also don't really like the push/poploc (whichever it is) on the Reba, in fact I've taken it off.

    But I'm no fork expert, this is purely personal preference based on my own experience.
    Giant Anthem X
    Cube Ltd Race
  • The Spiderman
    The Spiderman Posts: 5,625
    Probably need the Reba Team to with the black box damping,to match the damping performance of the Fox.

    I have a Reba SL though,and for 90% of the time its great.It can occasionally feel harsh if really pushed,on repeat hits,but weighed against this Rebas, are really easy to service,light,cheap and reliable.

    Expensive upgrade for slightly better performance,IMHO.
    2006 Giant XTC
    2010 Giant Defy Advanced
    2016 Boardman Pro 29er
    2016 Pinnacle Lithium 4
    2017 Canondale Supersix Evo
  • Jeast
    Jeast Posts: 176
    Ok, so a switch to Fox 32 F100 RL would be a very slight upgrade in performance but probably not worth the expense. What if I were to upgrade to SID Team then? Same again?
    Boardman MTB HT Pro
  • The Spiderman
    The Spiderman Posts: 5,625
    Seen new Reba Teams on Ribble today for £300,so would depend on what you got back for your Reba Race.

    Given that the likes of On One have been selling new Reba Races for as little a £250,I would guess that you`d get no more than £200 for them secondhand.So £100 to upgrade......might be worth it,just.... :wink:

    Are the current forks working to your liking,though?

    To tell you the truth,I`ve caught the ugrade-itis bug and somtimes its the law of diminishing returns with bike bits.

    I reckon for 90% of people standard Reba Races are all the fork they`d need.
    2006 Giant XTC
    2010 Giant Defy Advanced
    2016 Boardman Pro 29er
    2016 Pinnacle Lithium 4
    2017 Canondale Supersix Evo
  • The Spiderman
    The Spiderman Posts: 5,625
    Jeast wrote:
    Ok, so a switch to Fox 32 F100 RL would be a very slight upgrade in performance but probably not worth the expense. What if I were to upgrade to SID Team then? Same again?

    Whoops read that again.SID is similar to the Reba performance wise,but about 100g lighter.
    Would you notice the 100g saving,only you will know. :lol:
    2006 Giant XTC
    2010 Giant Defy Advanced
    2016 Boardman Pro 29er
    2016 Pinnacle Lithium 4
    2017 Canondale Supersix Evo
  • llamafarmer
    llamafarmer Posts: 1,848
    Jeast wrote:
    Ok, so a switch to Fox 32 F100 RL would be a very slight upgrade in performance but probably not worth the expense. What if I were to upgrade to SID Team then? Same again?

    Do you actually need an upgrade? I got the impression from your first post you were trying to decide between a new bike with a Reba and with a Fox 32.....

    If you've got a Reba, it's a good fork, so it seems a huge expense to upgrade to a SID.
    Giant Anthem X
    Cube Ltd Race
  • Stoo61
    Stoo61 Posts: 1,394
    Can't really compare as ive gone from Suntour XCR to Reba SL 09....

    Of course the Reba is astonishing compared to the XCR and i'm very happy with it. As a poster said previously, its all the fork I need. Easy to set up and seems very much fit and forget with endless performance.
    THE Boardman
    Pink Orange 224
    Humble but Defiant Roadie
  • Jeast
    Jeast Posts: 176
    llamafarmer wrote:
    Do you actually need an upgrade? I got the impression from your first post you were trying to decide between a new bike with a Reba and with a Fox 32...

    Probably not. I've recently bought the '09 Boardman HT Pro, and I was just wondering what would be most obvious upgrades to consider...
    Boardman MTB HT Pro
  • The Spiderman
    The Spiderman Posts: 5,625
    Jeast wrote:
    llamafarmer wrote:
    Do you actually need an upgrade? I got the impression from your first post you were trying to decide between a new bike with a Reba and with a Fox 32...

    Probably not. I've recently bought the '09 Boardman HT Pro, and I was just wondering what would be most obvious upgrades to consider...

    Tyres can make a massive difference.The Boardman has Speedkings which are great for dry trails and are fast,but you might want bigger or grippier tyres for more demanding riding or something toothier for the winter.
    Wheels are always good,but you would need to spend £250-300 to get any worthwhile improvement over what you have.Hope hubs with Stans ZTR 355 rims would be a good choice.
    You could fine tune your comfort with a different saddle,and grips or maybe get some carbon bars.
    The rest is pretty damn good as it is,and couldn`t be significantly upgraded,without spending big money.
    2006 Giant XTC
    2010 Giant Defy Advanced
    2016 Boardman Pro 29er
    2016 Pinnacle Lithium 4
    2017 Canondale Supersix Evo
  • Jeast
    Jeast Posts: 176
    Yeah, I'm in the process of upgrading the finishing kit, grips and saddle. All Ritchey WCS.

    I've been looking around at tyres and quite like the look of the Conti Race or Mountain Kings, probably 2.2, maybe supersonic.

    The wheels will have to wait I think, as I'd like to go for something a bit special. Although I could maybe start by swapping the hubs out with Hopes.

    I'll probably stick with the Rebas for the time being, I just really like the SIDs!
    Boardman MTB HT Pro

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