[trialsboy50]

I hear everyone saying that a rigid fork makes you a smoother rider. Is this true and why? I would think its because it makes you choose smoother lines or something? I'm planning on getting rid of my SXr and putting a Kona Project 2 fork on.

let me know

byron

 

[ioscope]

No.
It's a lie for cheap people, just like the whole ss thing.

 

[ito]

It just makes you more hardcore and gets you dirty looks from people who read MBA.

The Ito

 

[riderx]

You learn not to rely on that crutch called suspension and start picking better lines and sharpening your bike handling skills.

 

[Cash-Money]

i was a much better rider on my 19" kona stuff with a rigid fork than i was on my 6x6 stab. it does really make you a better rider, if u dont learn, you'll get hurt

 

[jugdish]

You learn not to rely on that crutch called suspension and start picking better lines and sharpening your bike handling skills.

Very true but man, I gotsta be honest I wasn't fast enough on it to hang with my friends who were suspended. It is a lesson in bike handling and it'll show you how godawful sloppy you can be, just w/ front suspension (let alone dual)! It is damn fun though.

 

[douglas]

It just makes you more hardcore and gets you dirty looks from people who read MBA.

The Ito

It also fun to ride rigid SS and make your friends (on geared fullys)sad when they cant keep up. :biggrin:


Rigid > its pure, old school, its more real/direct..not sure how to explain that point, more fun, simpler, sometimes more control (ie fast corners)

 

[MMcG]

I rode with a Karate Monkey fork for a bit. I loved how the bike felt with it in terms of steering precision - it was harsh though. I should have given it more time.

I'm going rigid again on a 69er project though. We'll see how a Zion fork from Jenson USA stacks up against the KM.

 

[Qman]

my first two mt bikes were rigid, steel bikes. The term "full-rigid" wasn't muttered as people might have thought you were talking about something else.
a rich college buddy had the first suspension fork in the group; a ControlTech fork. We called it 'robobike'. The fork everyone lusted for was a Cannondale "Pepperoni". I was bummed when I bought my 3rd mt bike because nothing came with a rigid fork. Ended up with a Rocky Mountain Hammer race with a Marz. something or other on the front.

The more rigid you can use to get into the sport with the better for picking lines and developing smoothness but those skills transfer and the general school of thought is that you'll be faster on any bike if you have some solid saddle time on a rigid bike.
Anymore I just get too fatigued and the trails I ride the most have been more fun on the 5Spot. Besides, now I use my hands to make a living and sore wrists would not jive well for the work week.

 

[JRogers]

(I just realized this is another back from the dead thread, but who cares...) Rigid is just more fun sometimes. Bikes get so complex and high-tech that taking a step back from all the new stuff can enhance the experience and provide you with a new challenge.

Not sure that I really buy the whole "it makes you pick smoother lines/makes you a faster rider" deal. I ride my cross bike on the same trails I do my prophet and the cross bike makes me go slower because of the different lines I have to take....when I hop on the fully I don't take those lines, though; it's faster just to run into stuff.

 

[Qman]

Notice that my post says nothing about going faster despite your "quote". Picking better lines and developing smoothness doesn't necessarily mean you're going to go fast.

 

[JohnE]

Because I am too cheap and lazy to put a bouncy fork on my Unit...
(Hee hee, Unit! Hee hee)
Plus I actually like it and how it climbs and corners.

 

[MMcG]

Because I am too cheap and lazy to put a bouncy fork on my Unit...
(Hee hee, Unit! Hee hee)
Plus I actually like it and how it climbs and corners.

JohnE just likes pain and to suffer.

Hell he's a Blackhawks fan! After the pain and suffering endured watching the Hawks, riding rigid probably seems like a cakewalk! :biggrin:

 

[reflux]

Without dropping too much money, which forks on the market off the most comfort?

 

[MMcG]

Without dropping too much money, which forks on the market off the most comfort?

I'll be able to report on the Zion 26er shortly.

[/IMG]

 

[H8R]

Running a rigid fork will allow you to have the best time you ever had getting the sh1t kicked out of you.

 

[JohnE]

Geez, MM, your garage looks alot like mine. Dont you love it when your bike smells like hockey gear? Mmmmm....

 

[Jim Mac]

Suspension versus Rigid Fork Study #1: Me and Tequlia Doug (+ Tigg) were riding in the Pittstown SF in NY here last weekend. We stopped to rest and then sped off towards a smallish rock wall that the trail crosses over.

Me (suspension): I preload the suspension and bunny hop the rock wall.

Tequlia Doug (rigid fork): picks a very judicious line, wrists most likely aching.

For that reason, I prefer suspension. Both have different skill sets. I prefer learning techniques that allow me to go faster (though he did catch up to me post the rock wall, damn 29 " wheels!).

 

[MMcG]

Geez, MM, your garage looks alot like mine. Dont you love it when your bike smells like hockey gear? Mmmmm....

yeah! My girlfriend would not appreciate three smelly bags of hockey equipment in her basement - so the hockey stuff stays outside in the garage (stays warm in there though). That is my little corner for my hockey gear and all my bike stuff. My work area I guess. I've also got my receiver, cd player and speakers out there to crank tunes while working on bikes, or unloading or loading hockey gear.

 

[burtondogs]

I like rigid, because I think I feel the terrain more. Its a good feeling.
Just make sure you put a big soft tire up front.

Later
Jim

 

[Capt. Jack Sparrow]

When I first started mountain biking I rode a fully rigid singlespeed with a fat DH tire in front and probably a freeride tire in the back. It was a great way to learn how to pick lines and so forth. Although I took that thing dirt jumping and so forth... and my wrists were jacked up for over a year just from a couple days dirt jumping.

My next bike is going to be a rigid singlespeed, I think, to get back to basics. But this time I'm going to take it "easy" and spare my wrists.

 

[AA717driver]

I started out on a full-rigid Trek (it's all I had). I'm still nursing a bum elbow from the beating I took (tons of roots on my local trail).

Or maybe I dinged it doing an endo in a trail race (a trail running race--no bike to blame for this one!)...

I'm going to convert my Trek to SS this spring but haven't decided to keep it rigid or get a new fork. We've got a bunch of roots here in the Midwest.TC

 

[peter6061]

Going back to the 'smoother' thing, rigid forces you to learn to use your body (arms/legs) as suspension when riding over/through things. This makes you a much smoother rider. When you go from rigid to suspension, you take those skills with you. You can still plow through things and use your bikes suspension, but you have the added benefit of knowing how to absorb bumps and other objects better with your body. It's like adding suspension to your bike only when you need it.

 

[douglas]

Suspension versus Rigid Fork Study #1: Me and Tequlia Doug (+ Tigg) were riding in the Pittstown SF in NY here last weekend. We stopped to rest and then sped off towards a smallish rock wall that the trail crosses over.

Me (suspension): I preload the suspension and bunny hop the rock wall.

Tequlia Doug (rigid fork): picks a very judicious line, wrists most likely aching.

For that reason, I prefer suspension. Both have different skill sets. I prefer learning techniques that allow me to go faster (though he did catch up to me post the rock wall, damn 29 " wheels!).

yo, I had no wrist ache

 

[bikenweed]

With a tiny short 35mm stem and riser bars, my rigid fork feels great. Our trails around here (Santa Cruz) are pretty smooth, and the short stem puts a lot of weight on the rear wheel, giving more traction on climbs, aiding in technical cornering, and gives the wrists a break from the impacts on the front wheel. Try it out for yourself!