160mm to 200mm

PB Forum :: Downhill
160mm to 200mm
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flag Irish-Ranger
Posted: Apr 5, 2012 at 15:01 Quote
I have got a Marin Quake 7.1 going under the knife and getting a few upgrades hear and there.. the question is, is it safe to put a set of 200mm forks onto my frame, i am looking to get longer travel due to wanting to enter in a few races... if anyone can help, i appreciate it!
flag angry-times
Posted: Apr 5, 2012 at 15:25 Quote
how much rear travel does it have? you would probably get away with it however i may be cheaper in the long run to just get a purpose built downhill bike if downhill racing is what you want to do. tripple clamps are not the only thing that make a dh bike. you also need a good strong wheel set, powerfull brakes, dh tires and most importantly the frame geometry to fit it aswell. your quake probably has a head angle of about 67 degrees. for dh you want between 63 to 65.5 degrees
flag Irish-Ranger
Posted: Apr 5, 2012 at 15:48 Quote
it still has the Marzocchi Rocco TST.. think they are like 200mm like.... ive already got the upgrades and just need fitting, got Hope tech x2 evo brakes, DMR comp Wheels... and yeah its 67 degrees... can it still cope with 200mm forks?
flag angry-times
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 3:00 Quote
yeah itl be fine. freeride bikes are tough
flag manicmastiff
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 4:23 Quote
In my opinion if you are going to race this bike I would prioritize differently. What fork is on the bike at the moment?

If it were me, I would invest in Offset Angle Bushings for your shock (£35 ish) which will slacken the bike and lower the bottom bracket making cornering and descending better. I would also send the shock and fork to TF Tuned and get it set up for your weight whilst wearing your race kit (body armour etc). Tyres are the most important upgrade, always have good DH tyres and a set of mud tyres. I believe the Quake has a 1-1/8 Head tube so Angle set is out of the question. My bottom line, it's not the amount of travel you have, it's how it's used. Just my opinion.
flag Irish-Ranger
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 5:16 Quote
bungalowbill wrote:
In my opinion if you are going to race this bike I would prioritize differently. What fork is on the bike at the moment?

If it were me, I would invest in Offset Angle Bushings for your shock (£35 ish) which will slacken the bike and lower the bottom bracket making cornering and descending better. I would also send the shock and fork to TF Tuned and get it set up for your weight whilst wearing your race kit (body armour etc). Tyres are the most important upgrade, always have good DH tyres and a set of mud tyres. I believe the Quake has a 1-1/8 Head tube so Angle set is out of the question. My bottom line, it's not the amount of travel you have, it's how it's used. Just my opinion.

the standard forks are still on... 160mm marzocchi 55 R..
yeah sounds like a good investment to be fair...
im taking the rear shock out to get it serviced and tuned when i get back to my Camp where it stays like, theres a man down the road from me who does it like....
ayyye, im looking round for a good set of tyres, at the moment ive got schwables fat alberts on, what would you recommend?... and cheers for your help!
flag manicmastiff
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 11:42 Quote
There's no easy answer for suggesting rubber mate. Everyone has different opinions based on where and what they ride, for example experienced racers will always recommend soft compound at low pressures for grip on rocks and roots but your average weekend warrior will suggest average pressures and a wider range of tread patterns as they'll ride gravel and stuff also.

Bottom line is if a tyre is good for roots and rocks it may suck on gravel. Also the better / softer the compound of tyre the faster / easier it will wear, this also means if you are cycling a soft DH tyre to the trails on Tarmac you are cutting its lifespan and damaging the properties of the rubber a little. Pretty crap eh.

Shwalbe's make good tyres from what I've heard, I've never tried the fat Albert. A basic recommendation for our weather and woods would be a 50a compound rubber at 2.5" wide. Something which can shift the dirt whilst rolling will help (high roller, Michelin Wild Gripper Descent) as we never have dry dusty very often.

I am a fan of the Michelin DH16's, these are now revamped and called the Wildgrip'r descent 2.5. I just got the new version and I'm impressed so far. I am really confident with Intense DH Fro lites I think they are labelled the Invader now, one thing about intense tyres, the compound drys up quickly, very quickly. I've run alot but those two I mentioned are in my top 5.

Again just my advice and opinion, hope it helps.
flag Irish-Ranger
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 11:58 Quote
yeah mate, that's loads of help for me like, i just want to get other peoples views and all so i can hopefully get the best start at it....
im taking your advice on the Bushings you told me about earlier after reading up on them.. they seem pretty awsum like... it maybe stupid but im still going to try out a set of Boxxers on my bike, just cause one of my mates is giving me a set because he isnt using them...
Again, thank you for the advice mate... hopefully when i get my bike built up again ill start to a few small races hear and there like..
flag manicmastiff
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 12:09 Quote
Irish-Ranger wrote:
yeah mate, that's loads of help for me like, i just want to get other peoples views and all so i can hopefully get the best start at it....
im taking your advice on the Bushings you told me about earlier after reading up on them.. they seem pretty awsum like... it maybe stupid but im still going to try out a set of Boxxers on my bike, just cause one of my mates is giving me a set because he isnt using them...
Again, thank you for the advice mate... hopefully when i get my bike built up again ill start to a few small races hear and there like..

No worries. There is no harm on trying the boxxers, in fact they are more tunable if you want serious front end grip, run around 1&1/2 inches of sag on the fork. You can use the stanchion height to slacken the geo out a little although this will raise the Bottom Bracket height a little, but if you invest in the offset bushings it's a win win situation.

One thing I forgot to mention, Bars!! There's a trend of ride wide bars that makes some people look like christ on a bike, remember you need to be able to get your body weight over the back end wo the wider the bars the more restricted this will become, I can't recomend width because there is a lot to consider for example rider height, shoulder width, reach etc.. I cut my current bars from 780 to 720mm and it's good enough for me.
flag Irish-Ranger
Posted: Apr 6, 2012 at 13:59 Quote
happy days mate cheers
oo last question, how slack can i put the bike with the boxxers and offsett Bushings on? because would putting to much slack on not break the frame?

naaa i wasnt intending on putting wider bars on, the stock bar ive got on is perfect like... but cheers for the heads up mucker!
flag angry-times
Posted: Apr 9, 2012 at 23:08 Quote
maxxis minion dhf front and rear slow reazy, super tacky or 3c OR minion dhf front and high roller rear in same compounds for tyres for faster more open tracks (Hi rolla rolls faster)
flag Irish-Ranger
Posted: Apr 10, 2012 at 4:43 Quote
cheers mate, much appreciated like!
whats your views on kenda? i always thought they where decent through moto cross and that
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