Shock Upgrade...

Newfish · September 2012

Hello all,

I was wondering if someone could help. I have just got myself a spangly new set of wheels and am enjoying them immensly. Having had a good look at some of the reviews the week point is the forks, SR Suntours 80-100mm travel (depends on frame size apparently). My question is this, I have, through some rather good fortune, managed to buy a bike that I can upgrade over the months/years and personalise quite nicely, however, if I was to buy some nice new Rockshox with 120mm-150mm of travel, will this change the geometry of the bike? Or will the height of the handle bars off the ground stay the same by some magic of engineering?

If the geometry changes, then I am assuming that I will need to then change the stem (I think thats the right bit) to one that is either longer/shorter and has a different angle on it, in order to keep the riding position the same. Am I right?

Also, and totally unrelated, what are the advantages of ceramic derailleur cogs over plastic/metal ones?

Thanks for all and any help.

Simon.

nicklouse · September 2012

First of it is a Fork not a shock.

what is the current frame?
yes a longer fork will destroy the handling.
No changing the stem will not fix the geometery.

with the info given it sounds like a race Geo (or a cheap Spesh) so 120 would the MAX and that would be too much.

jockey wheels. none.

Newfish · September 2012

Thanks Nicklouse for the prompt reply.

My apologise, I shall remember in future. Its the 2012 Rockhopper, the standard one. Thats what I figured, just wasn't quite sure. Does every frame have a maximum amount of travel that they will allow then?

I wouldn't have said it was a cheap Spesh, what ever that is.

anj132 · September 2012

Newfish wrote:

Thanks Nicklouse for the prompt reply.

My apologise, I shall remember in future. Its the 2012 Rockhopper, the standard one. Thats what I figured, just wasn't quite sure. Does every frame have a maximum amount of travel that they will allow then?

I wouldn't have said it was a cheap Spesh, what ever that is.

In basic terms...
Yep frames do have a maximum amount of travel, go over that and you could invalidate your frame warranty (if still applicable).
It also has a knock on effect to handling of the bike and it effects the head angle, BB height, seat angle etc... frames are generally designed for a certain amount of travel.

More travel is not necessarily better and more isn't always better as it can affect the handling of the bike in an unfavorable way. But a better fork will probably be lighter and have better dampening. Does depend what ST fork it is you are upgrading from and to. Maybe better to ask in the buying forum for a 100mm fork on your budget and what fork you currently have.

Cheap is relative, £500 compared to a £2000 spesh is cheap but £500 is a lot if you consider a tesco special at £100.

Perhaps Nick should have said 'lower range' spesh.

supersonic · September 2012

I think the frame warranty is 110mm max.

Newfish · September 2012

anj132 wrote:

Cheap is relative, £500 compared to a £2000 spesh is cheap but £500 is a lot if you consider a tesco special at £100.

Perhaps Nick should have said 'lower range' spesh.

Fair point.

I need to do some more research about Forks, when I last bought a bike a set of Rockshox started at silly money, now you can pick up a fairly decent set, by the looks of it, for a few hundred. To be honest, I'll not upgrade until the ones I have either can't keep up with my riding or die from use, I was just wondering really. To be honest, I can't imagine that I would need more than 110mm of travel on a HT, if I start doing serious downhill, unlikely, then a FS might be the way to go.

Thanks for the replies.

nicklouse · September 2012

Newfish wrote:

To be honest, I can't imagine that I would need more than 110mm of travel on a HT, if I start doing serious downhill, unlikely, then a FS might be the way to go.

Thanks for the replies.

a FS does not make any bike a DH bike.

a nice new Reba would be a great fork for the frame in 100mm

http://www.sram.com/rockshox/products/r ... /term-id/7

cobba · September 2012

Newfish wrote:

Its the 2012 Rockhopper, the standard one.
Does every frame have a maximum amount of travel that they will allow then?

If your bike came with a 80mm fork then you can only increase the amount of travel on it by 10% without voiding the warranty on the frame.
An increase of travel to 90mm would be OK but an increase of travel to 100mm would void the warranty.

http://specialized.desk.com/customer/portal/articles/198409-is-it-ok-to-increase-the-amount-of-travel-on-my-fork-will-this-damage-the-frame-

http://specialized.desk.com/customer/portal/questions/388543-replacing-a-suspension-fork-on-a-2-1-rockhopper

http://specialized.desk.com/customer/portal/questions/219887-fork-upgrade-on-2-11-hardrock-sport-disc

Your bike should be able to handle a 100mm fork but you won't have any warranty it.

A good 80mm fork would be better then a bad 100mm fork and a good 80mm fork can't be compared to a bad 80mm fork.

Newfish · September 2012

Thanks for that, I think I have the 100mm fork, so will wait patiently until it dies and then put something spangly on it.

felix.london · October 2012

Newfish wrote:

To be honest, I'll not upgrade until the ones I have either can't keep up with my riding or die from use

Tbh - the (cheap) fork is one of the few components that if you've got the cash to upgrade you will notice an instant improvement. Better traction/grip, better of big and small bumps, ability to adjust to your weight, riding style, terrain etc

As Nick said a 100mm Reba would be a great upgrade and can be had for less than £240;

http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/frame-forks/forks-shocks/rockshox-suspension-forks/2012-rockshox-reba-rl-forks.html

I've gotta 120mm Reba on my '06 'hopper but #1 - standard spec back then was 100mm fork and #2 - the 'hopper is my go to bike and I'm in the Alps so the extra travel and slightly slacker head angle are both welcome additions

Newfish · October 2012

Hello again peeps,

I have just dropped my bike off for its 6 week safety check and there are a number of things that have come up. The main one being that the seals on my current (SR Suntour XCR) fork have gone already! Now the LBS is sending them back to the manufacturer to either send out a new set or recondition them and send them back. Either way I am unimpressed and wish I had spent the extra on the better spec bike. My own fault but I did figure they would last longer that 8 weeks!!

Anyhow, these are my options and I was wondering if one of you knowledgable folk could help again. Please.

- If they send the same ones back reconditioned I shall probably leave them on until they die, so probably another 8-10 weeks.
- If they send a new set I shall take them off and sell them for something (a brand spanking set is £60, so although they will be new, I will probably sell them for £30-£40)
- Which then leaves me with no forks and leads me to my question.

What is the difference between;

http://www.sram.com/rockshox/products/r%20...%20/term-id/7 The one that has already been recommended.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=67888 These which I think are the same but in 120mm, and don't appear to come in 100mm from CRC.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=82530 These are old, so probably not worth it.

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=87807

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=71186

I'm a bit puzzled by the pushloc and poploc thing, which I guess is something to do with locking out the fork. In which case the last two are probably the same other than this feature.

What I am after is a good quality (£220-£300) fork, 100mm travel so the geometry stays the same, as I like it.
Something that I can put bigger brakes on than my current 160mm rotors when I want to upgrade.
Has fork mounted lockout.

Doesn't have to be Rock Shox, but I have only ever heard good things about them.

Other than Chain reaction cycles, is there another online place that people recommend?

Thanks in advance gents, and ladies.

supersonic · October 2012

Poploc is an bar mount for the lockout. Not really worth it.

Go for the Reba RLT if you can. You need quick release dropouts and a 1 and 1/8th non tapered steerer.

The Rookie · October 2012

In what way are the seals 'gone'?

The seals on the XC range have never been much more than 'wipers' they are pants, which i why I recommend servicing them and packing with grease below the seal to act as backup.

Most forks will take a 180mm disc, but what makes you think bigger will be 'better'?

Newfish · October 2012

The Beginner wrote:

In what way are the seals 'gone'?

The seals on the XC range have never been much more than 'wipers' they are pants, which i why I recommend servicing them and packing with grease below the seal to act as backup.

Most forks will take a 180mm disc, but what makes you think bigger will be 'better'?

It was the mechanic in my LBS who said they had gone, so only repeating what he said. There was lots of oil and grease on the stanchion and when I pushed down on the handle bars and compressed the forks lots of water and air bubbles leaked out of the rubber seal at the top.

If I can find the 100mm Reba's for a decent price then they take up to 210mm rotors so loads of room to play with there.

Bigger rotors will always be 'better' due to more stopping power, it's whether they will suit my riding style that I am more concerned about. But will have a play on someones bike who has some bigger ones before I go ahead with it. The forks are the main thing at the moment, and if I go ahead with them I will definitely not be getting a brake upgrade any time soon.

The Suntours are still under warranty so will see what they say when I get them back, just a bore as I now have no bike, wouldn't mind so much if it was 12 months old or something, I've only had it 8 weeks! Done just under 150 miles, only 50 of those off road, which is the reason I am thinking about the upgrade, if I can knacker the seals in 50 miles of off road, then either they aren't any good, I am working them harder than they are really recommended too for a budget fork (13 stone and not too shabby on the trails), or I'm just unlucky.

supersonic · October 2012

More stopping power is not always better though, if they cannot be controlled ie are too sharp to modulate.

Newfish · October 2012

supersonic wrote:

More stopping power is not always better though, if they cannot be controlled ie are too sharp to modulate.

Fair point.

Shock Upgrade...

Comments

Categories