Opinions: would I be better with...

Goodgertron

Hi guys,

I'm looking to get some new forks for my bike, I don't have too much money to spend and right now I have two realistic options...

Some used (probably 2010) fox F100RLs remote lockout ~£240, or....

Some rockshox revelations RLTs with remote lockout also (brand new) ~£270

Anyone got good experience with either/both?

What would you recommend getting?

Thanks a lot

Goodgertron

Or for that matter does anyone think I could do better than both of those for that money, used or new?

ilovedirt

Revs are very good forks, fox require a lot of maintenance. If I had the choice, I'd rather not chance it with new forks and go with the brand new revs. Though they are two entirely different forks. If you're after short travel XC forks, you might be better off with rockshox rebas rather than revs.

karlbrewster

Rockshox. Because it's brand new.

supersonic

The Revs: better fork anyway, more adjustment.

But what travel do you need?

.blitz

Presumably for £270 the Revs are from Merlin in which case they will be OE Revs - no box/pump/stickers possibly different internals - and your warranty will be with Merlin and not Fisher's

Not likely to be a problem just be aware of what you are buying.

toasty

What's the bike? The Fox F100RL is more in line with the Reba.

Goodgertron

Hey blitz that's correct yeah, but it doesn't say they're OE on the site!

The travel isn't too important to me. For my riding 100/150 doesn't really make a difference, the forks I sold off my bike were Bomber 55RSs and they weighed about 3.2KG, I wanted lighter ones to go with my bike and these are roughly the same weight.

My bike's a 2010 Specialized rockhopper SL expert (I hope I'm not slandered for that!)

I want the forks for XC

.blitz

Goodgertron wrote:

Hey blitz that's correct yeah, but it doesn't say they're OE on the site!

What do you expect for £270

supersonic

Anything above 120mm on a Rockhopper is just madness, the frame is not designed to cope with it, and you'll void any warranty. In fact the warranty may be for 110mm. The Revs spaced down or a Reba will be the best bet.

Goodgertron

So the other thing is why are the revelations not better than the Rebas? They weigh about the same, both have dual air but the revelations have much more travel (unlikely to be hugely important but RRP is also £50 more.) Sorry for sounding like a bit of a noob with forks but I have never bought a new set!

supersonic

The dampers in the Revelations are better (dual flow rebound, adjustable floodgate as standard), but the new Rebas are lighter.

Depends on exact model.

Goodgertron

Ah okay that pretty much voids my point about that then supersonic! That hadn't really occured to me since the forks that came with it were 160!!! Was that dangerous then? It's a good job I checked with the experts haha!

Goodgertron

I imagine the weight difference is negligible though right? We're talking around 1.64kg for the Revs

supersonic

1520g for the Rebas. No point carrying the weight if you don't need it! But may be worth it for the better damper, and they are a bit stiffer.

Goodgertron

I only weigh about 54kg so if I miss breakfast maybe I can shave off the extra weight! Haha! Would it be easy to lower the revs then? Also would you suggest anything better suited around this price bracket (or preferably cheaper)

toasty

Revelations are pretty much Rebas with long legs, whether Revelations have any advantage at all over Rebas depends on the exact model. Things like "External Rebound Adjustment" just adds a dial, rather than requiring an allen key to adjust, it's certainly not a deal breaker.

Running 150mm forks on a 100mm travel bike will mess it up completely. It's not about having 50mm more suspension, it's about the head angle being completely out, steering being all over the place, BB being raised, front end coming off the ground on climbs, seat angle being slacker, warranty void and potentially snapping the frame.

supersonic

You need to fit a 30mm internal spacer to the air shaft (instructions on their website). Or a 20mm and 10mm.

The Rebas and Revs are as good as it gets for this money.

.blitz

You won't be disappointed with Revs the suspension action is fantastic and it's possible to set them up pretty much any way you prefer. The only negative is that the chassis is stretched to the max in 150mm guise they are light for a reason and even the 20mm thru axle Revs are twangy ime

But at 54kg and 100mm travel you will be fine.

Goodgertron

I just rang Merlin to ask about the OE thing. This is the conversation (he seemed quite defensive):

"There's no such thing as OE, people seem to have a misconception about it, basically we buy forks in bulk and they come without the boxes but other than they're exactly the same you're just getting them cheaper"

So I said, "what about the stickers? I've heard they don't come with them. Also do they come with a pump?"

To which he replied "they look exactly the same as the ones you'd get anywhere else, they work the same. No forks come with pumps anymore from rockshox. This is just a good way to get brilliant forks cheaper!"....

supersonic

He's wrong. Aftermarket Rockshox forks come with a pump and spare seals.

They may have a Rockshox warranty.

.blitz

Just to clarify my Merlin Rev Teams were stickered up as expected but there were no spares not even the little Rock Shox sticker. They came in a clear plastic bag in a plain brown box with a print out of the basic setup instructions from the RS website, and that's all.

Merlin do this all the time 2013 RS is out soon with different logos and (gasp) black stanchions so there will be some 2012 models to shift - e.g. Boxxers £450 for a coil RC whereas other sellers are closer to £650

But don't let this put you off you can buy a lot of stickers/pumps/seals/boxes for £200

Goodgertron

If you mean to spend £450 on forks there's no way I can afford that unfortunately

The other thing is my current front wheel has a 20mm hub. Would I be able to get an adapter for it (the current hub has no branding) or would I be best off getting another wheel somewhere? Where would be the best place to buy a pump? Gah this is getting monstrously expensive!

cooldad

Edited as makes no sense.

felix.london

The Boxxer is Downhill fork, he was just using it as an example of the difference in price between Merlin and other retailers

I bought my 2011 Reba from them last year. It was in a plain brown box but with extra RS stickers and the original (very limited) user manual. No shock pump or spare seals though.

toasty

I had some Rebas from On-One last year, came boxed in the proper box, with pump, all travel adjusters and everything. Don't recall getting spare seals, but I may have mistaken them for free haribo.

They're doing Rebas for £250 at the moment, no 20mm jobs though.

http://www.on-one.co.uk/i/q/FORSRERL/ro ... k__26_inch

Worth getting 20mm forks if you can find some.

.blitz

Goodgertron wrote:

If you mean to spend £450 on forks there's no way I can afford that unfortunately

No, it was just an example as felix points out perhaps I should've worded it differently

What I was trying to say is that the Merlin forks are not boxed-up RS aftermarket forks but for £270 they are a lot cheaper. Might be worth double-checking that the steerer hasn't been cut make sure it's long enough for your bike.

Shock pumps are £25 or so from pretty much anywhere nothing special required just a high pressure/low volume pump.

Shame about the hub though a 20mm axle is a definite bonus.

Goodgertron

Yeah I see what you mean blitz! Hmmm. Are people saying 20mm is generally better then? Should I just try to get some forks with 20mm dropouts? I really, really, really (!!!) want to get riding ASAP as I sold my old useless forks a couple of weeks back and my bikes in bits at the moment! Having to get a new wheel is going to be a pain though..

So is my best bet probably to get the Revs, lower them, get a new wheel with 15mm hub and sell my current front wheel?

Goodgertron

The other thing is I literally live 5 minutes away from the Merlin store so I could just go grab a set from there, but their wheels are quite expensive.

rockmonkeysc

Merlins wheels are very well priced! You won't get much cheaper anywhere else.

Goodgertron

It's just I thought for the money (£50 MIN.) for a front wheel I'd be better off buying one used. Maybe not though, what wheel would you recommend I get if I were to buy it with the forks from there today (going from the site)?