Hi, im riding a boulder 2004 se bike, with an rst capa cl fork. THe fork is ok, but some bits over heavy rock are really rough. I was thinking of upgrading the fork to a second hand mazarocci z5 2001. What do you people think of that, considering I weigh about 54 kilos. I do some rough trail riding, at reasonably high speeds, with drops usually less than 1 meter. now heres the real problem: I use a 19 inch frame. If I buy just any fork, will it fit? DO I need to get a special type or a special adaptor?
Originally posted by Arpit Hi, im riding a boulder 2004 se bike, with an rst capa cl fork. THe fork is ok, but some bits over heavy rock are really rough. I was thinking of upgrading the fork to a second hand mazarocci z5 2001. What do you people think of that, considering I weigh about 54 kilos. I do some rough trail riding, at reasonably high speeds, with drops usually less than 1 meter. now heres the real problem: I use a 19 inch frame. If I buy just any fork, will it fit? DO I need to get a special type or a special adaptor? Thankss
Any Marzzocchi fork will be a big step up from your RST. The Z5 is a lower end fork but can be tuned to your weight & riding style. At your (light) weight you may need a softer spring. Check any secondhand forks very carefully for cracks or damage, don't want to be buying trouble. You need to ensure that your new fork has a long enough steerer tube for your frame. Measure your existing fork from the crown to top of stem. You can always shorten it if necessary. 🙂
Any Marzzocchi fork will be a big step up from your RST. The Z5 is a lower end fork but can be tuned to your weight & riding style. At your (light) weight you may need a softer spring. Check any secondhand forks very carefully for cracks or damage, don't want to be buying trouble. You need to ensure that your new fork has a long enough steerer tube for your frame. Measure your existing fork from the crown to top of stem. You can always shorten it if necessary. 🙂
Good advice. Think you'll find most Z5s of that vintage sold in Aus were air shocks, therefore easy to tune for a light rider. You might need to change to a lighter oil, or run them a little less full. Check especially for cracks around the dropouts, also for any sign of seal leakage.
Hi, im riding a boulder 2004 se bike, with an rst capa cl fork. THe fork is ok, but some bits over heavy rock are really rough. I was thinking of upgrading the fork to a second hand mazarocci z5 2001. What do you people think of that, considering I weigh about 54 kilos. I do some rough trail riding, at reasonably high speeds, with drops usually less than 1 meter. now heres the real problem: I use a 19 inch frame. If I buy just any fork, will it fit? DO I need to get a special type or a special adaptor? Thankss
Any Marzzocchi fork will be a big step up from your RST. The Z5 is a lower end fork but can be tuned to your weight & riding style. At your (light) weight you may need a softer spring. Check any secondhand forks very carefully for cracks or damage, don't want to be buying trouble. You need to ensure that your new fork has a long enough steerer tube for your frame. Measure your existing fork from the crown to top of stem. You can always shorten it if necessary. :
cool, thanks 🙂 hmm, I went to the bike shop and asked them about it, they said "oh no, you wont want to get an old second hand one, and they said the z5s just didnt work :/ then again they also told me not to use turpentine to clean the chain/deraillers , and wanted to sell me an aerosol of 20 dollar citrus grease, so i don't know where their priorities lie.... they said to get a rockshox- a judy for about 200 dollars new. what do you think of that?
Originally posted by Arpit On 27 Oct 2003 11:10:31 +1050, Bikesoiler <[email hidden]> wrote:
cool, thanks 🙂 hmm, I went to the bike shop and asked them about it, they said "oh no, you wont want to get an old second hand one, and they said the z5s just didnt work :/ then again they also told me not to use turpentine to clean the chain/deraillers , and wanted to sell me an aerosol of 20 dollar citrus grease, so i don't know where their priorities lie.... they said to get a rockshox- a judy for about 200 dollars new. what do you think of that?
The shop obviously wants to sell you what they stock, nothing wrong with that, IF it's what you need/want. For that price (~$200) it sounds like a Judy TT. I wouldn't recomend anything lower than a Judy XC, it has dampning control & costs about $500+ new. Unfortunately most "real" suspension forks start at this price. You want to spend you money on the best upgrade that will last for your next few years of riding. Better to get a good condition, higher-end, secondhand fork, than something cheaper that isn't much of a step up. Do some reading on the different brands & list each option from the well known manufacturers. Then you will know what to look for secondhand.
Also citrus solvent (Citro Clean) can be found at the supermarket for $7 ~ $8 & works really well as a drivetrain cleaner.
"Bikesoiler" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
I wouldn't recomend anything lower than a Judy XC, it has dampning control & costs about $500+ new. Unfortunately most "real" suspension forks start at this price.
I bought an OEM Marzocchi MX Comp air fork from www.phantomcycles.com.au for $400 a while back. MASSIVE improvement over the RST 381's the bike came with.
Some people swear by RockShox (usually the higher end XC ones) whereas others swear at them. All manufacturers have bad runs but when I bought mine, Marzocchi seemed to be getting a good rap, along with Fox and to a lesser extent Manitou.
You have to weigh up the cost of your bike versus the cost of a new fork versus the cost of a new bike with a nicer fork :-)
"Bikesoiler" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
I wouldn't recomend anything lower than a Judy XC, it has dampning control & costs about $500+ new. Unfortunately most "real" suspension forks start at this price.
I bought an OEM Marzocchi MX Comp air fork from www.phantomcycles.com.au for $400 a while back. MASSIVE improvement over the RST 381's the bike came with.
cool, improvement in what way?
Quoted message said:
Some people swear by RockShox (usually the higher end XC ones) whereas others swear at them. All manufacturers have bad runs but when I bought mine, Marzocchi seemed to be getting a good rap, along with Fox and to a lesser extent Manitou.
You have to weigh up the cost of your bike versus the cost of a new fork versus the cost of a new bike with a nicer fork :-)
I bought an OEM Marzocchi MX Comp air fork from www.phantomcycles.com.au for $400 a while back. MASSIVE improvement over the RST 381's the bike came with.
cool, improvement in what way?
It's hard to explain, but basically, throwing the bike off everyday stuff it is SOOO much smoother than the RST's. Instead of thump crash thud, it's just zoop and continue. The RSTs also had a horrid topout knock, ie. when yanking back on the bars the front wheel moves down away from the bars and hits the limit of extension and makes a yukky thud noise. They don't seem to just bounce up and down when riding. They move but there is more restriction in when pedalling normally compared to the RSTs. They feel more solid compared to the obvious flex found in the RSTs. They look better too 😉
Quoted message said:
Quoted message said:
You have to weigh up the cost of your bike versus the cost of a new fork versus the cost of a new bike with a nicer fork :-)
Yeah, I paid 425 dollars for my bike,
So $400 for forks might not be such a wise investment! :-)
Remember though, if you put expensive forks on your current bike, you can always take them off again and put them on your next bike.
'then again they also told me not to use turpentine to clean the chain/deraillers'
I though Kerosine was the one to use. Is Turps OK?
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I used to use petrol, then I switched to kerosene because I was told petol stripped all the oils away whereas kero left some sort of protective hair-conditioner type thing. Then I switched to a LBS $ 20 for a wee spray-can citrus oil thing because it smelled nice and said it was Good For The Environment (which of course compared to petrol or kerosine is damn right) and one's share-house folks didn't complain about the smell... (which raises the OTB question of fire-stick feckin' wanke... ahem, fire-stick artists, and their kero smells...) Then to big $ 5 citrus-all-purpose-cleaner from the supermarket, which does the same thing.
Turpentine? Seriously? Fine for oil paints, but I can't see it being useful for drive-train cleaning.
Turpentine? Seriously? Fine for oil paints, but I can't see it being useful for drive-train cleaning.
Works SUPER well
Ah, I guess I'm wrong, then. Citrus oil stuff is a bit annoyingly only so-so. But if I drank it, I probably wouldn't slice my <insert Van Gogh and oil paints joke here> ear off. p
