Getting a suspension fork... crap!

I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop told
me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty sucky?

--Brian

 

On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 01:56:18 GMT, J Brian Chamberlin wrote:
>
> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop told
> me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty sucky?

Well, I seem to recall mentioning that local shops don't generally have good prices on forks. I
think we forgot to mention that you might also be looking at a new headset, stem, and brakes,
depending on the age of the bike. That's at least $80-100 of additional gadgets.

And of course, they'll charge you nearly that much just to put them on. That's why a lot of us do
this stuff ourselves. Its really not as hard as it might look.

--
-BB- To reply to me, drop the attitude (from my e-mail address, at least)

 

"J. Brian Chamberlin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop told
> me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty sucky?
>
> --Brian
>

...and do remember, that to most of us, $350 isn't out of the question for a suspension fork - just
the fork, in the box. We still have to cut 'n file the steerer tube, repack headset (in some cases),
re-do the front brakes, put the stem/bars back on, etc. You get the point.

If you really have doubts, let us know:

1- What kind of fork you're getting for $350. If it says "Judy" anywhere on it, burn down the LBS.
2- Whether labor is included. $350 including labor isn't astronical, provided the fork is
worthwhile. Also, some shops (read: my shop) don't charge installation on parts you buy there. It'll
take me a half hour plus to do up a fork, but hey, we sold a fork. 3- More info on the bike. If it
has, say, a 1" front end, good forks in that size are getting harder to come by.

$350 may be good or bad - I'd pay that for the fork alone, remember - but ggive us some more
info, my man.

Chris

 

On 24 Apr 2003 03:32:41 GMT, BB <[email protected]> wrote:

>On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 01:56:18 GMT, J Brian Chamberlin wrote:
>>
>> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop
>> told me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty sucky?
>
>Well, I seem to recall mentioning that local shops don't generally have good prices on forks. I
>think we forgot to mention that you might also be looking at a new headset, stem, and brakes,
>depending on the age of the bike. That's at least $80-100 of additional gadgets.
>
>And of course, they'll charge you nearly that much just to put them on. That's why a lot of us do
>this stuff ourselves. Its really not as hard as it might look.

Okay, so where can I learn how to do this myself?

--Brian

 

On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 03:45:19 GMT, "Chris" <[email protected]> wrote:

>
>"J. Brian Chamberlin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>>
>> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop
>> told me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty sucky?
>>
>> --Brian
>>
>
>...and do remember, that to most of us, $350 isn't out of the question for a suspension fork - just
>the fork, in the box. We still have to cut 'n file the steerer tube, repack headset (in some
>cases), re-do the front brakes, put the stem/bars back on, etc. You get the point.
>
>If you really have doubts, let us know:
>
>1- What kind of fork you're getting for $350. If it says "Judy" anywhere on it, burn down the LBS.
>2- Whether labor is included. $350 including labor isn't astronical, provided the fork is
>worthwhile. Also, some shops (read: my shop) don't charge installation on parts you buy there.
>It'll take me a half hour plus to do up a fork, but hey, we sold a fork. 3- More info on the bike.
>If it has, say, a 1" front end, good forks in that size are getting harder to come by.
>
>$350 may be good or bad - I'd pay that for the fork alone, remember - but ggive us some more
>info, my man.
>
>Chris
>
I don't know what else to give you. I really know nothing about bikes. I'm a big guy so I bought
something that I didn't think was a

Last year I had surgery and just now it's feeling better. I'm starting off slowly but as far as the
bike goes, I know nothing about the parts of it. IT's a stock Trek 7000. That's it. =(

Sorry.

--Brian

 

> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop told
> me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty sucky?
>
> --Brian
>

My guess is that your bike has a 1" steerer that is complicating the conversion. You probably have
canti brakes vs V-brakes that may add to the conversion. It's my humble opinion that you would be
MUCH better off putting money toward a new bike if that's their best cost. Ride a few bikes that
retail for $300-$500 (that come w/front suspension) and you may be really impressed with what that
can buy. You are buying technology that cost $1000 plus just a couple years ago. It trickels down
that fast these days. Who knows, you may find yourself loving this and converting your Trek to a
single speed in a couple years!

Good luck w/whatever you do.

Greg

 

"J. Brian Chamberlin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On 24 Apr 2003 03:32:41 GMT, BB <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 01:56:18 GMT, J Brian Chamberlin wrote:
> >>
> >> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop
> >> told me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty
> >> sucky?
> >
> >Well, I seem to recall mentioning that local shops don't generally have good prices on forks. I
> >think we forgot to mention that you might also be looking at a new headset, stem, and brakes,
> >depending on the age of the bike. That's at least $80-100 of additional gadgets.
> >
> >And of course, they'll charge you nearly that much just to put them on. That's why a lot of us do
> >this stuff ourselves. Its really not as hard as it might look.
>
> Okay, so where can I learn how to do this myself?
>
> --Brian

Thanks to Danny! Start here first...hopefully they're still avail, otherwise I can email
them to you.

> Chapter 1-37 can be found at ftp://alcott.dyndns.org user name bike password bike

--
Slacker

 

"J. Brian Chamberlin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 03:45:19 GMT, "Chris" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >
> >"J. Brian Chamberlin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> >news:[email protected]...
> >>
> >> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop
> >> told me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty
> >> sucky?
> >>
> >> --Brian
> >>
> >
> >...and do remember, that to most of us, $350 isn't out of the question
for a
> >suspension fork - just the fork, in the box. We still have to cut 'n
file
> >the steerer tube, repack headset (in some cases), re-do the front brakes, put the stem/bars back
> >on, etc. You get the point.
> >
> >If you really have doubts, let us know:
> >
> >1- What kind of fork you're getting for $350. If it says "Judy" anywhere
on
> >it, burn down the LBS. 2- Whether labor is included. $350 including labor isn't astronical,
> >provided the fork is worthwhile. Also, some shops (read: my shop) don't charge installation on
> >parts you buy there. It'll take me a half hour
plus
> >to do up a fork, but hey, we sold a fork. 3- More info on the bike. If it has, say, a 1" front
> >end, good forks in that size are getting harder to come by.
> >
> >$350 may be good or bad - I'd pay that for the fork alone, remember - but ggive us some more
> >info, my man.
> >
> >Chris
> >
> I don't know what else to give you. I really know nothing about bikes. I'm a big guy so I bought
> something that I didn't think was a

> Last year I had surgery and just now it's feeling better. I'm starting off slowly but as far as
> the bike goes, I know nothing about the parts of it. IT's a stock Trek 7000. That's it. =(
>
> Sorry.
>
> --Brian

That's cool man...the important info I could use is: the model year of your bike, the specific model
of fork offered to you @$350, and whether or not labor/installation was included with that price.
Unless the fork is a steaming pile of crap - RST, InSync, RockShox Judy/Jett/Metro, etc., $350
doesn't sound bad - to make a completely under-informed generalization.

Chris

PS - You say "big guy", eh? Tell the shop you want a coil-sprung, not air-sprung shock, and see
about swapping the stock springs out for heavier ones. The shop should a) know what you're
talking about and b) be able to explain the differences to you. I would, but I'm sleepy.

 

"Slacker" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> "J. Brian Chamberlin" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> > On 24 Apr 2003 03:32:41 GMT, BB <[email protected]> wrote:
> >
> > >On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 01:56:18 GMT, J Brian Chamberlin wrote:
> > >>
> > >> I don't know much about these bikes. I have a Trek 7000 aluminum bike and the guy at the shop
> > >> told me it would cost about $350 to convert the thing to a suspension fork. Is that pretty
> > >> sucky?
> > >
> > >Well, I seem to recall mentioning that local shops don't generally have good prices on forks. I
> > >think we forgot to mention that you might also
be
> > >looking at a new headset, stem, and brakes, depending on the age of the bike. That's at least
> > >$80-100 of additional gadgets.
> > >
> > >And of course, they'll charge you nearly that much just to put them on. That's why a lot of us
> > >do this stuff ourselves. Its really not as hard
as
> > >it might look.
> >
> > Okay, so where can I learn how to do this myself?
> >
> > --Brian
>
>
> Thanks to Danny! Start here first...hopefully they're still avail,
otherwise I can email them to you.
>
> > Chapter 1-37 can be found at ftp://alcott.dyndns.org user name bike password bike
>
> --
> Slacker

Brian:

The Barnett's Manual Slacker provided, while very in depth, can be a bit technically overwhelming
for the novice. Also, in trying to cover every sort of bike around, a beginning mechanic can easily
get confused with the Banetts Manual.

Check out http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/FAQindex.shtml - it's easy to follow, just as good,
and it's supposed to be online - unlike Barnetts.

Chris (doesn't want to disparage the beauty of internet "sharing"...I have nearly 50 gigs of mp3s,
cartoons, live music vids, etc...like I said, beauty)

 

"Baxter" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news[email protected]...
>
> My guess is that your bike has a 1" steerer that is complicating the conversion. Greg
>
>
That seems unlikely on a Trek. Everyone I have had or worked on is 1 1/8".
--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado

 

> > My guess is that your bike has a 1" steerer that is complicating the conversion.
> That seems unlikely on a Trek. Everyone I have had or worked on is 1 1/8".

Of course the new ones are, but if his bike is old, then it is with 1" steerer no matter what. If he
just gave a little more info on his bike...:/

 

"Juho Huttunen" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
| > > My guess is that your bike has a 1" steerer that is complicating the conversion.
| > That seems unlikely on a Trek. Everyone I have had or worked on is 1
1/8".
|
| Of course the new ones are, but if his bike is old, then it is with 1"
steerer no
| matter what. If he just gave a little more info on his bike...:/
|

Convert to ahead headset and get a Zoke. Get with a dealer and check the catalogs. Last I looked
they still had 1" stuff available.

---
__o _`\(,_ Cycling is life, (_)/ (_) all the rest, just details. Nelson Binch =^o.o^=
http://intergalax.com

Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.474 / Virus Database: 272 -
Release Date: 4/18/2003

 

"Juho Huttunen" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> > > My guess is that your bike has a 1" steerer that is complicating the conversion.
> > That seems unlikely on a Trek. Everyone I have had or worked on is 1
1/8".
>
> Of course the new ones are, but if his bike is old, then it is with 1"
steerer no
> matter what. If he just gave a little more info on his bike...:/
>
>
You may very well be right, but that last Trek I worked on was a '92 930, and it is 1 1/8" I guess
it does not really matter, it would be easy to find out a the LBS.
--
Craig Brossman, Durango Colorado

 

On Thu, 24 Apr 2003 04:07:53 GMT, J Brian Chamberlin wrote:
> On 24 Apr 2003 03:32:41 GMT, BB <[email protected]> wrote:

>>And of course, they'll charge you nearly that much just to put them on. That's why a lot of us do
>>this stuff ourselves. Its really not as hard as it might look.
>
> Okay, so where can I learn how to do this myself?

You really need to invest in a book. It'll pay for itself after just one or two repairs, and will
easily pay for itself several times over with major work. "Zinn and the Art of Mountain Bike
Maintenance" is good.

There's also good info on http://www.parktool.com/repair_help/FAQindex.shtml, from which the
following pictures have been borrowed.

Some topics have come up here which may be confusing, but they do make a lot of difference in how
much this will cost. I'll discuss them briefly. If your answer is A on any of these, you'll need to
get more info about what to do. Most of this stuff changed about 1998-2000. If its ALL older stuff,
you'll be looking at a fair amount of work and at least a couple hundred dollars (even with a
cheapo fork).

Brakes: Which do you have?
A. Cantilever (older bike), will look like this:
http://www.parktool.com/images/repair_help/cant13.jpg
B. Side-pull (unlikely): http://www.parktool.com/images/repair_help/obw01.jpg
C. V-brake (newer), will look like this:
http://www.parktool.com/images/repair_help/V_centering.jpg

Answer A means additional money and work.

Headset/stem: At the very front of your frame, there is a vertical tube through which the steering
tube passes. This is the headtube, and the bearings in it are called the headset. Will be one of
two types:
D. Threaded (older bike), has a big nut on the top, like this:
http://www.parktool.com/images/repair_help/headtype43.jpg
E. Threadless, like this: http://www.parktool.com/images/repair_help/headtype40.jpg

Again, A means more money and work.

Lastly, the size of the tube that passes through the headset will be one of two diameters. The most
common size is 1 1/8". I'm not completely sure how you'd measure this since I've never had a 1"
tube, but I suppose a ruler would be a good start. Some people seem to think some Trek 7000s had the
smaller tube. You probably won't be able to get a low-end suspension fork with a 1" steerer tube.

--
-BB- To reply to me, drop the attitude (from my e-mail address, at least)

 

they make all of their 85mm forks in 1"

--

--
Justin Collins [email protected]

"Nelson Binch" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Juho Huttunen" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> | > > My guess is that your bike has a 1" steerer that is complicating the conversion.
> | > That seems unlikely on a Trek. Everyone I have had or worked on is 1
> 1/8".
> |
> | Of course the new ones are, but if his bike is old, then it is with 1"
> steerer no
> | matter what. If he just gave a little more info on his bike...:/
> |
>
> Convert to ahead headset and get a Zoke. Get with a dealer and check the catalogs. Last I looked
> they still had 1" stuff available.
>
>
> ---
> __o _`\(,_ Cycling is life, (_)/ (_) all the rest, just details. Nelson Binch =^o.o^=
> http://intergalax.com
>
> Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.474 / Virus Database: 272
> - Release Date: 4/18/2003