Light frame heavy fork?
SuperDux
Posts: 4
Hey guys. I hope this is in the correct area....
I have recently put together rmy first Mountain bike in many years on a budget. Cost more than I planned (got shafted on donor bike purchase, every component needed service or replacing...) but I'm pretty happy with the result. XT drivetrain, kinesis maxlight xc2, tora 308 with moco damper fitted, a few cheaper bits to keep cost down but I'm not riding loads, couple of hours a week, and nothing too hardcore, really only XC type riding.
However, I have realised there is a real weight imbalance, the frame is specced at 1600grams, pretty light as I understand? The Torah are a bit heavyweight for true xc, weighing in at around 2300grams.
Is this a problem? I have very little reference point, the bike seems to ride downtown me, but will having a very lightweight frame and heavy fork cause any odd handling characteristics that I may not realise are problematic as I'm not too experienced?
Thanks in advance
I have recently put together rmy first Mountain bike in many years on a budget. Cost more than I planned (got shafted on donor bike purchase, every component needed service or replacing...) but I'm pretty happy with the result. XT drivetrain, kinesis maxlight xc2, tora 308 with moco damper fitted, a few cheaper bits to keep cost down but I'm not riding loads, couple of hours a week, and nothing too hardcore, really only XC type riding.
However, I have realised there is a real weight imbalance, the frame is specced at 1600grams, pretty light as I understand? The Torah are a bit heavyweight for true xc, weighing in at around 2300grams.
Is this a problem? I have very little reference point, the bike seems to ride downtown me, but will having a very lightweight frame and heavy fork cause any odd handling characteristics that I may not realise are problematic as I'm not too experienced?
Thanks in advance
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Comments
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I found having a lighter fork (2008 recon -> 2011 reba) meant I went higher on jumps and manuals were a bit easier, plus they were just a nicer fork to ride because they were new.
Upgrade if you want to, but if the bike feels nice as it is don't get hung up about it.
Currently running a RS 30 silver - will get something better but probably not until I kill these ones.0 -
SuperDux wrote:
the bike seems to ride downtown me
You mean downhill?
If it rides fine, don't worry about the weight. I don't think you need to worry about the weight distribution, you weigh much more than the bike and forks combined
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I can say that on a lightweight bike and lightweight forks, I find the front wheel gets kicked off line by stoney ground much easier than with heavier bikes/forks.
Lighter bike/forks benefit climbing as there is less mass to haul against gravity.
Don't worry about a problem you've not found to exist.0 -
He might mean front end heavy!
It's hard to say - they aren't light forks but it depends what you want to do with the bike.
If you want to lift the front wheel at times, learn to manual. You don't lift the front but push from the back.
Personally, on my XC bike I like light forks, but that's because of what I ride."Ride, crash, replace"0
