Fork upgrade

Wizzer59

Hi guys
Thanks for having me I have been out of the MTB scene for quite a few years, in fact my last bike (which I still have) was a mk1 Marin Mount Vision .
Anyhow I have recently bought a hardly used 2013 Trek Fuel EX 5, it is in excellent condition and the only thing I can find wrong is the front forks (120mm Rockshox Recon's) the stanchions are quite badly pitted, so the forks will be my first upgrade.
There are a couple of things I need to know before I can spend my hard earned though, first is; Trek have what they call a E2 tapered head tube, does this mean I need a tapered steer tube? And if so what size?
And lastly any recommendations on a fork?? I don't have a great budget about £250 but happy to buy second hand to get better

Ps. 26in wheel btw.

cubedean

You will need a 1.5 - 1 1/8" tapered fork.

I'd be looking out for something like a Fox 34 or Rockshox Revelation at that travel.

Shouldn't be hard to pick up a very good set used.

Wizzer59

Thanks buddy, if I was to find one at 130mm would that upset the handling?

The Rookie

Nope, 130mm would be fine and you could probably get away with a 140.

Wizzer59

The Rookie wrote:

Nope, 130mm would be fine and you could probably get away with a 140.

Thanks bud, do Marzocchie or Manitou have anything decent?? Just trying to get as much feedback as poss. The other thing is what about axles?? At the moment I have normal skinny lil quick release, I see a lot of forks have big ol axles now, does this mean I have to upgrade wheels as well :shock:

The Rookie

If you use a fork with an axle (15 or 20mm) yes you will need a new front wheel, at 120+mm it's worth considering for improved fork stiffness.

Marzocchi and Manitou both produce decent forks, I'm not great on all the options for both, but a 120mm RS Revelation with a through axle would be a good option.

cooldad

I'd stick with RS or Fox for parts and support.

Wizzer59

Are these RS's any good on Fleabay??

Item no 182427495347

Wizzer59

Thanks for the advice btw guys

supersonic

It's not a bad fork - when working. The dual position air mechanism can be problematic, and it looks like you use a qr axle rather than 15mm (according to the spec for your bike)