Swapping suspension fork for rigid one
- Thread starter Myosmith
- Start date
You will need a "suspension corrected" rigid fork that is comparable in length (crown to axle) to your current fork.
FWIW. While a "suspension corrected" fork may be the ideal choice, it also may not be ...
That is, the drawbacks of choosing most rigid forks which have cantilever brake bosses and/or disc brake mounts will probably be minimal compared with the unnecessary anguish in trying to find the perfect rigid fork ...
That is, close enough ([COLOR= #808080]or, shorter[/COLOR]) may result in a slighty better head tube angle if the actual axle-to-crown height is less on the rigid fork than on the current suspension fork ...
- for example, if the frame's current specs indicate a 72º head tube angle, then a fork which is about an inch shorter will result in a head tube angle which is closer to 73º ([COLOR= #808080]the "norm" for Road bikes[/COLOR]) ... [COLOR= #008000]a good thing[/COLOR].
The drawback in a readily available Rigid Fork ([COLOR= #808080]which may-or-may-not be significant[/COLOR]) is the resultant height of the BB shell will be slightly lower AND the reach may be a ([COLOR= #ff0000]¿[/COLOR][COLOR= #808080]half-[/COLOR])centimeter more ...
The change in BB height is probably only a significant issue if your bike has 180mm-or-longer cranks.
FYI. 29er Rigid Forks have a greater axle-to-crown length than 700c Touring-and-CX forks ... I think the latter are actually dimensionally close-to-or-the-same-as most 26" Rigid Forks and the difference is in the location of the cantilever brake bosses.
That's my very long-winded way of saying that other than steerer size that I woudn't worry too much about the particular Rigid Fork which I might choose for the type of change you are contemplating AS LONG AS it isn't a "standard" ROAD FORK ([COLOR= #808080]i.e. one which uses a standard 39-49mm brake caliper[/COLOR]).
Some years back I swapped out to a Kinesis fork on my MTB from a Manitou suspesion fork as the old girl hadn't seen a trail in years. I didn't do too much math with head angles and the like but thankfully it worked out well (I am much more particular when fork shopping for the road bike). The bike got lighter, more responsive, and looked great.
Hope you have the same luck.
Hope you have the same luck.
