Air/spring RockShox/Marzocchi?

mightyi

Having decided to replace the knackered forks on my 09 Cube Attention "project", i'm in a bit of a quandary what to get. I've read some decent reviews for the RockShox XC32 TK forks around, but I've also found the Recon Coil models at a very good price. I know both of the ones I've looked at are coil spring models, but at the moment budget won't stretch to £200+ for solo air recons etc. Reading around, there appears to be good prices for Marzocchi air forks in the sub-£200 bracket; being a heavier rider i believe air would be the better way to go - but on my budget, what would be the best option to go for?

nicklouse

it depends on what you have found.

some Marz are poor as are some RS.

so link up to what you have found and then we will see.

mightyi

Thanks for the quick reply!

Ok was originally planning to go for these XC32s, seems a decent enough price?

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/roc ... k-ec043519

Then i saw the Recon Silver TKs...

http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/f ... -2013.html

but not 100% certain if i can find a remote lockout for these as that's something i'd ideally like to have!

Then I saw these Marzocchi air forks....

http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... 2012_Forks

Any other suggestions gratefully accepted

supersonic

Go for the Marathon R: I tested all these forks for WMB last year, the Marathon won.

mightyi

thanks for the quick reply supersonic - i've just been reading up on them. can get the LR 2012 for £179 a CRC, but just a bit concerned about their reliability - a few people saying the plastic dials at the top are brittle - and the dampers are made by Suntour? I also saw a few posts from people suggesting the coilspring Manatou Match comp forks, which are the same price on CRC - whats your view on these ones?

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=70170

my only concern with the marzocchi over the rock shox is that there seems to be far less info kicking around regarding servicing them DIY (some people went so far as to say don't try as the caps are plastic etc!). Not sure if you've had any experience regarding that side of them?

Butterd2

I bought some Marz Marathon LR's for £120 new (but unboxed) on eBay, on the basis of the WMB review and I'm very pleased with them so far. I weight 16st plus gear and they work fine for me. I've also serviced them (and extended the travel to 120mm) with some basic instructions sent to me by Windwave (their UK servicing people). It was easy enough to do and Windwave were extremely helpful when I called them. The caps are indeed plastic but they have survived an winters thrashing around Surrey Hills and still look as good as new.

supersonic

The Manitou is a decent fork for harder riding, but is heavy and I wasn't overly impressed with the performance. The Marathon seemed smoother in operation, if a little more lively.

Suntour make internals for some forks.

swod1

I'm a heavier rider too and i was recommended by a few people to look at air shocks as an upgrade over my current suntour xcm v3 forks which are heavy and don't seem to compress enough on bumpy terrain like the spring is too tight or something (I have tweaked the rebound setting on the fork)

Does it take some getting used to switching from coil spring to air sprung front forks ?

supersonic

Not really, but you need an shock pump to set the sag.