Upgrading a 120mm travel fork to a 140mm travel fork

PB Forum :: Bikes, Parts, and Gear
Upgrading a 120mm travel fork to a 140mm travel fork
  • Previous Page
  • Next Page
Author Message
Posted: Jul 9, 2015 at 19:10 Quote
hello! its my first post here! i am planning to upgrade my fork from 120mm to 140mm. i am leaning on buying a fox evolution 140mm CTD. my current fork is a rockshox gold tk 30. can my bike handle a 140mm travel fork?

here is my bike and its specs:

https://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-us/bikes/model/stance.27.5.2/18767/76215/#geometry

Posted: Jul 9, 2015 at 19:22 Quote
I'd say so. Just know that it'll make your head tube roughly a full degree slacker (so you'll be around 67deg). Sometimes throwing a bigger fork on a bike would make it feel weird but yours should probably be fine, it should feel a little more like a Trance.

Posted: Jul 9, 2015 at 19:36 Quote
mcmbike wrote:
I'd say so. Just know that it'll make your head tube roughly a full degree slacker (so you'll be around 67deg). Sometimes throwing a bigger fork on a bike would make it feel weird but yours should probably be fine, it should feel a little more like a Trance.

that's cool! then it'll handle descent better right?

O+
Posted: Jul 9, 2015 at 23:37 Quote
I do not think it a good idea.

1. Changing the travel too much will put a lot more pressure on head tube, greatly increasing fracture potential. Void the warranty of course.

2. You can go up to 130mm which is very safe.

3. CTD forks suck. Get a rockshox revelation 130mm, or new fox forks with FIT damper.

4. Since your bike is a very entry level, if you do love mtb and ride a lot, I suggest you sell the bike and save up for a bigger travel, nicer bike. All upgrades on current on will be not worth it if you finally decided to upgrade other major parts like wheels, rear shock, drive-train and eventually the frame. Trust me you will be there, as every mtber did in the history of mtbing.

Posted: Jul 10, 2015 at 7:21 Quote
I think common wisdom is don't add more than ten percent to the travel. My wife has the same bike and I tend to agree with the above statement. While its an awesome handling bike for singletrack, I wouldn't recommend bumping the travel up for increased downhill shredability. The flexpoint is not meant to take that kind of beating - jumps, large drops, nasty rock gardens, etc. If those are your final goals then I would upgrade to used trance sx or something similar. I'm on a 2014 trance 3 and it is definitely way more bombproof than the stance.

Posted: Jul 10, 2015 at 9:15 Quote
Generally speaking, you will be fine as long as you stay within 1" (20mm) of your stock setup. But you will always hear from the purists who feel you should never stray the slightest bit from the stock geometry. I've put 6" forks on bikes designed for 4" forks and the difference was only very slight...it does not "completely ruin" the bike. It can negatively affect the bike, but you could also unwittingly find the "magic" setup that takes you to another level.

I just built a 2002 Uzzi frame for a friend of mine - we changed out the stock shock, bumping the rear travel from 4.5" to 5.25", raising the BB nearly 1", and put a 150mm fork on the front where a 120mm was stock. The resulting head angle is now 67 degrees...stock was around 70 degrees. This has completely modernized the bike, it's absolutely fantastic and worlds better than it's original 2002 form. He's even got an advantage over my Tracer 275 in that he has almost an inch more pedal strike clearance than I do. Despite that, there is no noticeable difference in height during a ride...in fact it feels more stable than it did in stock form. So often you can hit the jackpot this way.

Also, the 2014 or newer CTD (Factory, for the love of God stay away from the Evolution) is a fantastic fork that i would take any day over a Revelation. A Pike is a better competitor, but I test rode both the Pike RCT3 and 34 CTD Factory and chose the 34 because it was $200 cheaper and every bit as good. Plus the Pike would be overkill for you. So the 32 CTD is a great choice, however if you can get the Revelation substantially cheaper, I would not rule it out.

Posted: Jul 13, 2015 at 7:23 Quote
i really do love mountain biking and want to push my skills further. I'll be buying a new bike maybe next summer, but for the mean time I'll stick with this bike but i think i really need to upgrade the fork, the 30mm stanchions really bother me. i feel they're quite flimsy.

I'll go with a 130mm fork as what Speeder123 suggested. I wan't to upgrade but i do not want to shell out too much cash. I cannot spend above 500$ on a fork.

Here's what I need in a fork:
32mm or above stanchions
air suspension
120-130 travel
has a good or maybe just ok dampener

BTW, why is everyone saying that i stay away from fox evolution? what's the problem with that fork? i am just curious...

Posted: Jul 13, 2015 at 9:10 Quote
raident30 wrote:
BTW, why is everyone saying that i stay away from fox evolution? what's the problem with that fork? i am just curious...

The Evolution is an insult to the Fox name. Even the most hardened Fox fans hate it. Fox seems to want you to believe that an Evolution is similiar in some way to the Factory model...maybe simply missing some features, but still a good fork. The truth however is that the Evolution is very much a leap backward in design, and needs to be differentiated in an obvious way.

The Evolution damper uses the inferior port orifice rebound/comp piston types, and only offers a firm lockout, as opposed to a platform damper like the Performance and Factory units. For Rockshox and Marzocchi, that sort of difference would merit a different MODEL NAME (Much like Rockshox is doing with the new Lyrik/Yari). The Evolution damper is just not up to what we expect from a brand like Fox. Their Factory series is among the best there is, yet the Evolution series can be matched by forks available on bikes sold in Wal-Mart.

Posted: Jul 13, 2015 at 15:38 Quote
TheRaven wrote:
raident30 wrote:
BTW, why is everyone saying that i stay away from fox evolution? what's the problem with that fork? i am just curious...

The Evolution is an insult to the Fox name. Even the most hardened Fox fans hate it. Fox seems to want you to believe that an Evolution is similiar in some way to the Factory model...maybe simply missing some features, but still a good fork. The truth however is that the Evolution is very much a leap backward in design, and needs to be differentiated in an obvious way.

The Evolution damper uses the inferior port orifice rebound/comp piston types, and only offers a firm lockout, as opposed to a platform damper like the Performance and Factory units. For Rockshox and Marzocchi, that sort of difference would merit a different MODEL NAME (Much like Rockshox is doing with the new Lyrik/Yari). The Evolution damper is just not up to what we expect from a brand like Fox. Their Factory series is among the best there is, yet the Evolution series can be matched by forks available on bikes sold in Wal-Mart.

wow that's kinda harsh but i think but there's some truth to it... so maybe i should go with a used rockshox revelation or a manitou fork..

Posted: Jul 14, 2015 at 8:23 Quote
raident30 wrote:
wow that's kinda harsh but i think but there's some truth to it... so maybe i should go with a used rockshox revelation or a manitou fork..

Or just get a Fox factory fork. A 32 or 34 factory would be perfect. A Revelation is a great fork, but as your main concerns are stiffness and strength, both the 32 and 34 would be better in that respect, or a Pike if you can score one cheap enough. I got my 2014 34 CTD factory for $400, for instance. I haven't seen a good Pike under $550 so far.

Posted: Jul 14, 2015 at 17:45 Quote
TheRaven wrote:
raident30 wrote:
wow that's kinda harsh but i think but there's some truth to it... so maybe i should go with a used rockshox revelation or a manitou fork..

Or just get a Fox factory fork. A 32 or 34 factory would be perfect. A Revelation is a great fork, but as your main concerns are stiffness and strength, both the 32 and 34 would be better in that respect, or a Pike if you can score one cheap enough. I got my 2014 34 CTD factory for $400, for instance. I haven't seen a good Pike under $550 so far.

how about a rockshox sektor? i've found a great deal near me... is it a good fork?

Posted: Feb 23, 2017 at 10:29 Quote
hi even i have this question, im a giant stance rider, im 13 years old but a reign is in my sights when i grow out of this, bout that isn't for a while yet so im upgrading so i can have a better bike.
would i be ok with putting a 130mm fork? ive ruled out the 140mm fork now

  • Previous Page
  • Next Page

 


Copyright © 2000 - 2024. Pinkbike.com. All rights reserved.
dv65 0.008339
Mobile Version of Website