[foxfreerider11]

hey guys, Im guessing a lot of you have answered this question before and im sorry. I searched and searched till page 18 and found some answers to my fork questions but not all of them. Im lookin for a new fork to slap on my 2003 enduro comp I need a fork that can handle dirt jumping and moderate freeriding. ( I currently have a Rock Shox phylo XC). My question is should I go manitou or marzocchi? I need to have a solid fork with lots of options to ride the ladders and jumps and then pedal home without 160mm of travel all the time. Also i think it would be dangerous to go over 150mm on my bike because the rake on the fork, could snap the fork or head tube off when i land. but i dont know what my limit of travel should be. in my search of earlier forums I have gathered that the shermans are harder to maintain then the Z1's or the Dj's, but the shermans tend to be stronger. I am currently looking at the sherman flick or a marzocchi Z1 (any model really) or a Dj 2 or 3. all i really need is a good fork with travel adjustment preferrably from 90-150 and solid dampining. Price is a factor and the sherman flick is much cheaper then the Z1's. What do you guys think, im currently building up my bike and need some input once again.

Thanks again for your patients and info

 

[mobius]

Get a Manitou or Marzocchi. IMO i like marzocchi. The next might like manitou. My friend sean got a top of the line manitou sherman and hated it, sold it, ordering an 05 Z1. Don't put anything more then 5" on your bike it's not smart for the headtube nor for the geometry.

 

[Zark]

Unless its an 05 I wouldn't go more than 5" The frame is not designed to take more than than and it may alter the way it handles (slacker, slower steering)
I know mobius just said it, but it bears repeating. More travel doesn't mean better, I've learned this the hard way and still have to remind myself

Fork brands? I like working on forks and shocks as little as I can (sad but true) Marzocchi has a great reliability for seals and bushings (which require special tools to change, 1/2 the time a shop won't have the tool) The suspension is smooth and bottomless when set up right.

Manitou has improved in these departments, but I understand you still need to relube the stanchions and clean the seals. Even this sounds like too much effort to me They feel great when they are clean and tuned, I like the feel for sure. How often are we up on this though?

So I guess my Marzocchi pitch goes like this:
Marzocchi, endorsed by lazy home mechanics everywhere


I think if you want a Marzocchi for your enduro a '04 Z1 Q20 w/eta is the way to go. This would be a perfect all around agressive fork for an enduro. If you are doing everything a little bigger than you need to, go this route. I specified '04 since there is appearantly no 5" Z1 20 with the dual HSCV internals and eta. At least not on the website.

The Z1 FR II might work out but you loose eta with that option, i don't know if you'd use this or not. It also is half HSCV and half SSV. I haven't ridden any of these half and halfers 'zocchi is making these days, any one have some input on them?

 

[quickneonrt]

look at 04-up fox vanilla or a marzocchi z1, i had an 03 z1 on my enduro and loved it but time for a change. i'm getting the BETD 6" link for the rear, so i need to decide on a new fork also. Plus I have seen too many manipoos break, do a search on hcor

 

[Bicyclist]

I'd say that the Z1 would be a perfect fork, but you may want to check out the '05 All Mountain line... looks pretty sweet. They're on the Zoke website.

 

[Bicyclist]

BTW, I would recomend flipping the link to the steeper geometry if you go for a Z1, then it will still handle really well and it won't be too raked out.

 

[WestCoastHucker]

i tried to DJ with my enduro and her headtube fell off.....


the enduros are NOT good at handling any kind of abuse. there are a ton of peeps on this board who have killed theirs also............

 

[foxfreerider11]

hmmmmm that sucks for your enduro. How big did you go before the headtube broke? did you get the landing on tape cause that would be such a ligit crash. haha. but... I mostly do everything to tranny. Ive gotten 6 foot to tranny easily with my enduro ive had it for a year and nothings happened. but thanks for the heads up anyway ill be gettin a stinky or a coiler in a year so the enduro just has to hold up for a little longer.

 

[foxfreerider11]

bump?

 

[WestCoastHucker]

mine lasted less than 4 months....
going big isn't what kills them, most of the people who killed thiers weren't even going big at all..... they are thinwalled (super thin headtube; never seen one that didn't ovalize) lightweight bikes......

 

[foxfreerider11]

hmmm now you got me worried......that ill just be riding down a hill and the head tube will snap and then impail me

 

[foxfreerider11]

I got a guy telling me to go fox now. The fox vanilla, or vanilla R, or talus R? He says these are stiff forks. Is this true? I do want a fork that is fairly stiff and also tuff and reliable.

 

[T-Pirate]

I had a vanilla on my enduro, I liked it a lot...until the headtube ovalized.

 

[OGRipper]

If you can wait a bit, the new Fox 36 looks pretty sweet, relatively light, has the adjustability you want, and with a 20mm thru-axle it ought to be stiff.

But I'm just carrying on the great tradition of e-speculation here on RM, haven't ridden or even fondled one yet.