[bikenweed]

My buddy runs a Fox 36 Vanilla up front. He switched over from a 36 Talas/RP3 set up to the DHX/Vanilla last summer, and likes the coils a lot more.

Since there is nothing rocky or gnarly in, or anywhere near, Santa Cruz, you'll be fine with a 6" fork. The 888 will only succeed in 2 things: driving you broke from driving to N* every weekend, and driving you insane with its weight and height on the smooth trails around town.

 

[blue]

My buddy runs a Fox 36 Vanilla up front. He switched over from a 36 Talas/RP3 set up to the DHX/Vanilla last summer, and likes the coils a lot more.

Since there is nothing rocky or gnarly in, or anywhere near, Santa Cruz, you'll be fine with a 6" fork. The 888 will only succeed in 2 things: driving you broke from driving to N* every weekend, and driving you insane with its weight and height on the smooth trails around town.

Yeah, from talking to some of the locals I'm pretty sure that fork will be overkill for the area. I'll keep my eyes open for a good deal on a 36, Totem, or Lyric.

 

[croute]

mine with custom head set wiht lower bb ( 34 cm) and slacker ha (64°)
running a fox rp 23 or fox dhx c instead of dhx air and it works way better

 

[Evil Sylvain]

mine with custom head set wiht lower bb ( 34 cm) and slacker ha (64°)
running a fox rp 23 or fox dhx c instead of dhx air and it works way better

I like this color scheme. I'd be curious to try it with this set-up but visually the shock makes is at an odd angle.

 

[croute]

maybe its because of the tire section at the time of the picture ( 2.5 hutch rear and 2.2 mich mud front )

 

[blue]

My $1200 VP-Free arrived today. Pedaling around the block a few times it didn't feel THAT high. Definitely higher than I'd like. The HA is slack enough for me, but it's not a slung race bike. I think I'll drop down to an 8.5x2.5 shock (anyone wanna trade? ), the 7.825 is probably too short for what I want.

gratuitous photos:

 

[Bicyclist]

That's one helluva deal.

 

[blue]

I think I paid for it 20 minutes after the guy listed it on MTBr...sometimes it pays to be watching like a hawk.

 

[Bicyclist]

Definitely. I just bought a frame here and it was within the hour of posting I think. Not a super-cheap deal but exactly what I wanted.

 

[blue]

Took out the Free for the first time today...definitely a tall bike. Definitely wanting that shorter shock. Not sure if I want an 8.5 or 7.825 shock. Does anyone have the formula for figuring out rear wheel travel with the stroke of the shock?

 

[bikenweed]

ONLY go for the super short 7.875 shock if you plan on using a 6" fork.

DON'T ride the 7.875 shock with that 8" fork. It'll suck.

 

[blue]

ONLY go for the super short 7.875 shock if you plan on using a 6" fork.

DON'T ride the 7.875 shock with that 8" fork. It'll suck.

But I want a 62 degree HA!

'Cept not. Hell, the 200mm 888 is only 1cm taller than a 6 inch 66. Of course, it's 3cm taller than the 36.

I need a hunk of wood to figure out where things would sit with each shock length. I even did the calculations for a 7.5x2.0 shock...6 inches of travel. Teehee.