[Hougham]

I was just looking for any one who has used any of the triple clamp DH forks from any of these people and have something good or at least constructive to say about them. Im not looking for just a slagging match but rather a constructive view from people who know.

Avalanche
Bergman
Bionicon
Bombshell
Bos
Brunn
Conspiracy
DNM
Foes
Grossman
Hanebrink
Kowa
Risse
RST
Showa
SR Suntour
Star
Tech In
The
White Brothers
X Fusion

Many Thanks

 

[tuumbaq]

I was just looking for any one who has used any of the triple clamp DH forks from any of these people and have something good or at least constructive to say about them. Im not looking for just a slagging match but rather a constructive view from people who know.

Avalanche
Bionicon
Brunn
Conspiracy
DNM
Kowa
Risse
RST
Showa
SR Suntour
Star
Tech In
White Brothers
X Fusion

Many Thanks

You must have some crazy hook-ups if you can get a hold of a Showa fork!!!!
Sorry I don't have any info on any of those forks other than Ive heard from a reliable source the X fusion forks are suppose to be really good

 

[Zark]

what a roundabout way of asking "Whats a good inverted fork?"

 

[Hougham]

I have not even tried to get Showa forks though Showa being Showa you will be able to get hold of them if you really want. They will just probably not be branded as Showa lol.

I have had mixed feelings on the X fusion forks. I am waiting to get a final production fork and see how that ends up as the forks have been changing virtually every few weeks.

Its not really USD, Its more just looking at alternatives to the three brands that tend to dominate DH fork sales. Kowa, RST, SR Suntour, Star and White all do some normal way up forks.

 

[khoolhandz]

I have not even tried to get Showa forks though Showa being Showa you will be able to get hold of them if you really want. They will just probably not be branded as Showa lol.

I have had mixed feelings on the X fusion forks. I am waiting to get a final production fork and see how that ends up as the forks have been changing virtually every few weeks.

Its not really USD, Its more just looking at alternatives to the three brands that tend to dominate DH fork sales. Kowa, RST, SR Suntour, Star and White all do some normal way up forks.

At one point in time, T.H.E. used to have a DH fork which is basically made by Showa.

 

[Zark]

Risse:
I've seen a Risse Trixxy become completely unrideable in under 15 minutes riding.

 

[jonKranked]

avalanche forks feel great, are heavy, not a ton of adjustability but when you order one from them craig will valve it to your weight and riding style.

 

[Hougham]

avalanche forks feel great, are heavy, not a ton of adjustability but when you order one from them craig will valve it to your weight and riding style.

That is a interesting one. Were these your own forks? I did fancy giving a set of these a go.

 

[LOOnatic]

Supposedly the Tech-In is pretty hot in Yah-pan.
Jury still seems to be out on the X-fusion and Avy rocks but is heavy and pricey yet totally dialed.
End rant..............
Why try so hard to be different and spend lots more money?
Boxxer Team roxxores yur soxxers for hella cheap these days BTW.

 

[jonKranked]

That is a interesting one. Were these your own forks? I did fancy giving a set of these a go.

I've never owned one b/c of pricing, but know plenty of people that have them and have ridden quite a few. They would agree with what I said; it basically sums up their forks.

 

[CovicRacing]

At one point in time, T.H.E. used to have a DH fork which is basically made by Showa.

Actually, the T.H.E. forks were made by Kowa not Showa. FYI.

 

[khoolhandz]

Actually, the T.H.E. forks were made by Kowa not Showa. FYI.

Doh!!! I stand corrected.

 

[rosenamedpoop]

I believe Fox makes a pretty good fork called the 40 or something.

 

[dirttastesgood]

Avalanche=no
Bionicon=no
Brunn=no
Conspiracy=no
DNM=no
Foes=yes
Kowa=no
Risse=no
RST=hell no
Showa=good luck
SR Suntour=no
Star=wtf?
Tech In=wtf?
White Brothers-kinda
X Fusion-no

 

[norbar]

Well I've ridden DNM for 2.5 Year. Change the oil cuz the factory one is crap and the ride is very nice (i think I've changed sth else inside but nothing major). Its pretty butter and completely bombproof. I've hit a wall directly at like 50-60kph, a few bad landings from gaps (bottomed out) and the fork is still like new. It's very good for the price. The only problem is the heavy weight but I was very happy with mine for that time(and i still don't feel it as a bad fork it had a nice feel but I wanted sth a bit more racelike).

dirttastesgood Tech In forks are meant to be some really nice hi tech Japanease forks. It would be good to hear anything about them but I know no Japanease

Your also the 1st person I see saying foes was an ok fork. White had to many issues I think to be recomended.

Avy imho is nice but kinda heavy.

 

[Hougham]

Thanks jonKranked. I hear a lot of people saying the same thing about them. But being in the UK I dont get much chance to talk with people who have them as its more a US brand.

Dirttastesgood I am a little confused with your reply. Is no as in no good? is this from experience or just reputation? As I have always found the Kowa/Star forks to be a great fork. Very light and yet still stiff with a smooth action. I know a few people who have been racing with RST Sigma forks and the general feeling is they work perfectly well. I have had a few sets of X fusion Delta 8 (same as Bionicon) and never had a problem with them of yet. Though the damping on a few of the variants was not the best but still did the job. I look forward to getting a full production fork.

That is very interesting Norbar. I have wanted to have a go with these for some time but no one rides them in the UK. Though I think if I go out my way to get a set of forks again it will have to be a set of Tech-ins. I hear so much great stuff about them. I liked the Foes forks, but have not rode any of the newer generation. Perhaps the newer ones have lost there way a bit. On a side note where abouts in Poland do you normally ride. I was over there a few months ago and it looked perfect riding territory. I may have to have a trip back with my bike next time.

 

[sikocycles]

4 years on an Avy. Tried a boxxer WC but was not impressed. Went back to the Avy.

 

[norbar]

Hougham it depends what you wanna ride. Most of the stuff is still developing so its pretty poor choice anyway but I like the most trails in Pulawy(end of the world but nice flowy dh trail + some ns), Wierchomla and Zakopane (great NS but very hard to find without the locals). Heard also that Szczyrk has a nice new trail from this year's dh contes but failed to check it because of the injury. It will be likely much worse than your uk trails as most dh trails are to easy and we have little ns and parklike trails but there is much change recently (or at least some talk) about it so maybe when you'll next come there will be some nice new places to ride(there are rumors about a resort owner backing up local bikers in an idea to make a nice bikepark. That would be nice).

And about foes I think it maybe a bit like with 5th element. It was good when there was the biggest hype about it but now it's just kinda behind the leading stuff. And tell me if you get a tech-in I'm very interested in how they ride.

 

[no skid marks]

Kayabas

 

[norbar]

WTF? So exotic even google tells me nothing

 

[Ozzer]

Who makes the Star forks that come on lower end build kits for the MSC DH bikes? I really like those MSC frames..the older F4s... yeah, back to the forks.

 

[Ozzer]

Tech in stuff

Actually there are so many cool stuff in this page.

 

[Ozzer]

What?

lucky basturd

I hope that frame makes it to Ebay Japan.

 

[Ozzer]

It makes one wonder how many Hondas escaped compaction...

Hello Kunichuwa, do you accept paypal??

 

[Hougham]

Nice Post there Ozzer and great photos. Star is Kowa forks for sale in the EU. Dont know if Kowa make them though or if there farmed out.

 

[CovicRacing]

Nice Post there Ozzer and great photos. Star is Kowa forks for sale in the EU. Dont know if Kowa make them though or if there farmed out.

Hey Hougham,
Yes, you are correct, MSC Star is Kowa. And as far as I know, Kowa builds them in Japan, MSC just relabels them as their own. Same exact forks, just different stickers....

 

[Hougham]

Is there any news on there 180SI or is it 200ti? and USD forks yet CovicRacing? I may have to look at grabbing a set off you.

 

[Sandwich]

I have an avy dhf8 HK and I love it. Damping and action is superb, although very very small frequency bumps can upset it a little. It might be time for a rebuild or adjustment though. That's the only complaint with the action. Anything larger than a pencil is sucked up with no complaints. Adjustability is fine from what I've seen.

Weight is the biggest downfall, followed by trail (the distance from the steerer to the wheel mount). It can get pretty squirrelly on low speed maneuvers, but I don't think it's something that can't be overcome.

It's definately not a fork for anyone under 180lbs, IMO. It's just too big and heavy to really work it around like you need to, and I find myself considering a lighter weight fork to play around with and see what benefits exist. If you've got the strength and/or ride extremely rough terrain (plattekill, parts of diablo) then it's worth the weight penalty. Especially at plattekill, I've never questioned my fork choice there.

As for the list
Avalanche - see above, plus searches, there was a recent review by Zumbi or something.
Bionicon - Again, a search will find a review of the new fork by these guys, and it's not favorable.
Brunn - ?
Conspiracy - ?
DNM - Last I heard these were glorified MCU/Coil spring forks. They may have a cartridge. Not for serious riding from what I understand. They may have changed, but I doubt it.
Kowa - If you can get one, I've heard good things
Risse - Avoid at all costs. If you're building a beater bike, a Champ might be a fun fork (good damping) but customer service and reliability are next to none.
RST - Some of their older stuff was good, then it was crap, and now I hear it's good again.
Showa - Are these even available?
SR Suntour - See DNM
Star - ?
Tech In - Japanese house brand. Good forks from what I understand, but they aren't made for heavyweights. I heard damping is good and weight is like 6.5lbs.
White Brothers - I've heard a lot of good things, and they keep getting better. I've read a lot of comments on how these are people's favorite forks, and they wish they never got rid of theirs.
X Fusion - I've heard good things coming in the future, but that's it.

Sorry that I don't have a lot of first hand experience, but maybe this will help anyways.

 

[Ithnu]

I've got Kowa's on 2 of my bikes. I love them, smooth, and very little maintenance needed, they have top notch seals too.

 

[Huck Banzai]

My RST HI-5 rox!

woOot

 

[norbar]

Sandwich I've used my dnm for serious stuff. I think they are bashed because of the bad rear shocks they make. (I'm using an rc2x now so don't think I compare it to suntor or sth)

About WB. Heard to much about blowing. Wanted one for some time but that changed my mind.

 

[Hougham]

My RST HI-5 rox!

woOot

lol that takes me back. Back in the day I had a basterdized set that worked ok for the time. It used the lowers off the early USA MOZO Pro with the machined alloy dropout and seal cups. With the custom RST warranty only billet alloy brace. With the Hi5 legs but with a modified air damper valves. Then coil springs in the top with a custom made auxiliary oil damper cartridges that sat in the middle of the springs.

 

[RedOne]

Brunn makes real "custom" forks. Custom color, travel, brakemount and a custom tuned suspension.
Their forks are reliable and nice machined but I don't know if their suspension system is still up-to-date

 

[freakrock]

what's the word on bergman forks?

 

[Ithnu]

Here's my 2 bikes with Kowas. The Faith has a 180 (20mm negative in case you didn't know, so its 200mm effective) with the FPC unit. Its fairly light, I weighed it with both crowns and the axel and it came to about 7.6 lbs, much lighter than my buddies 8+lb 2008 888 WC.

They do low speed compression AND preload through the FPC and the spring is actually for progression to prevent bottom out.

I just got the 160ss and haven't messed around with it much, but the travel adjust is very easy to use. Solid feeling fork too. I've jump off smaller things, 2-3 feet and even with my weight, 215lbs, it great. I'm going to be using it for a Super-D bike next summer.

 

[Hougham]

Nice looking forks there Ithnu. Its the weight that most appeals to me about the Kowa.

 

[no skid marks]

I have an avy dhf8 HK and I love it. Damping and action is superb, although very very small frequency bumps can upset it a little. It might be time for a rebuild or adjustment though. That's the only complaint with the action. Anything larger than a pencil is sucked up with no complaints. Adjustability is fine from what I've seen.

Weight is the biggest downfall, followed by trail (the distance from the steerer to the wheel mount). It can get pretty squirrelly on low speed maneuvers, but I don't think it's something that can't be overcome.

It's definately not a fork for anyone under 180lbs, IMO. It's just too big and heavy to really work it around like you need to, and I find myself considering a lighter weight fork to play around with and see what benefits exist. If you've got the strength and/or ride extremely rough terrain (plattekill, parts of diablo) then it's worth the weight penalty. Especially at plattekill, I've never questioned my fork choice there.

As for the list
Avalanche - see above, plus searches, there was a recent review by Zumbi or something.
Bionicon - Again, a search will find a review of the new fork by these guys, and it's not favorable.
Brunn - ?
Conspiracy - ?
DNM - Last I heard these were glorified MCU/Coil spring forks. They may have a cartridge. Not for serious riding from what I understand. They may have changed, but I doubt it.
Kowa - If you can get one, I've heard good things
Risse - Avoid at all costs. If you're building a beater bike, a Champ might be a fun fork (good damping) but customer service and reliability are next to none.
RST - Some of their older stuff was good, then it was crap, and now I hear it's good again.
Showa - Are these even available?
SR Suntour - See DNM
Star - ?
Tech In - Japanese house brand. Good forks from what I understand, but they aren't made for heavyweights. I heard damping is good and weight is like 6.5lbs.
White Brothers - I've heard a lot of good things, and they keep getting better. I've read a lot of comments on how these are people's favorite forks, and they wish they never got rid of theirs.
X Fusion - I've heard good things coming in the future, but that's it.

Sorry that I don't have a lot of first hand experience, but maybe this will help anyways.

Chinese whispers. Spreading rumors is not helpful.

DNMs are one of the most underated punter forks. Not worth big bucks,but if they're cheap they're good.

 

[Hougham]

Hmmm I have never really looked at these before properly. But just started and it actually looks quite impressive DNM have there. multiple stage coil spring that would allow staged adjustment of spring characteristic through the travel. A final small polyurethane spring stage that also acts as the bump stop. In so getting a very controlled and gradual bottom out I would imagine. It has a preload adjust on the spring leg for fine adjustment. The damper is a oil type with floating piston. There is a standard rotational rebound adjust on the top of the damper leg. Compression damping is controlled buy using a simple yet very adjustable valve used to adjust the pressure resistance against the oil.

I just wish I knew some one local with a set so I could have a try.

 

[Ithnu]

Nice looking forks there Ithnu. Its the weight that most appeals to me about the Kowa.

I just got a Ti bolt kit for the dual crown, so it will be a little lighter yet. I'm still deciding if the Ti spring is worth it. If I did them both, it would probably weigh closer to 7.4 or 7.3 lbs I'm thinking.

 

[Sandwich]

Chinese whispers.

racist.

Seriously, Hougham, what you're describing is a RS Judy. 1996 called, and nobody wants that fork back.

I won't deny that they'll allow poor people to ride. That's great, but there's no sense in comparing them to something like a showa or avalanche. I'd even take a risse over a DNM.