SR Suntour's New Marketing and Service Center in Wisconsin

Nov 20, 2013 at 22:45
by Richard Cunningham  

photo
  Dan Dacko (left) Darren Salsbury and Chuck McFarland in the tech facility of SR Suntour's new outpost in Madison, Wisconsin.


SR Suntour makes more suspension forks for bicycles than any other manufacturer in the world. Elite level riders may be unfamiliar with the brand, because the lion's share of their products show up on value-priced models, but that will soon change. SR Suntour suspension has been racking up World Cup XC victories and has now set its sights on Slopestyle and DH competition. SR Suntour's marketing, athlete and product support is managed by its partner, USUL corporation, in North America, which opened a new facility in Madison, Wisconsin in June, 2013 to be closer to some of their larger OEM customers (Trek, Cannondale, GT, and Pacific are driving distance away) and also to establish a centrally located suspension service facility, where they plan to guarantee 'industry-leading' turnarounds for their customers.

photo
  Pinkbike chills with the founding members of SR Suntour's new digs in their palatial main office. In addition to the offices and tech workshop, there is plenty of warehouse space to house its demo fleet and to make room for future expansion.


General manager Darren Salsbury says that SR Suntour's will launch a second demo program (their original demo team lives in Vancouver, Washington, and has been on tour for three years) that will also stage from the Madison, Wisconsin, office to provide dealers and potential suspension customers in the Central and East Coast regions a chance to experience their products first hand. At present, the Madison staff is a small crew that also includes Dan Dacko, who will be handling OEM sales and Chuck Mcfarland, who will head up tech services and the SR Suntour demo operation. When Pinkbike visited, they were still putting the final touches on the facility, which is planned to be fully staffed and up and running for the 2014 season.

SR Suntour forks 2014
  Armed with full range of high-performance forks and shocks that cover the range from DH through XC racing, SR Suntour is poised to take a sizeable bite from the existing suspension market. Success, however, hinges upon widespread acceptance from OEM bike brands. The Madison tech facility is insurance for OEM customers that SR Suntour will have their backs.



(Top) A constant reminder that the suspension business is about big bucks.
The Q-Loc 2 quick-release through axle does not require a threaded dropout.
Cartridge dampers reduce the weight and swept seal area of the forks.

bigquotesWhen people start seeing our top-end stuff on good quality bicycles, they will take notice. We've had a lot of good reviews and good results in competition. We now need to generate support from OEM sales.
- Darren Salsbury


To make money selling suspension, a manufacturer needs to sell large numbers - very large numbers - because the high cost of producing a reliable, high-performance mechanism that mixes dirt with compressed air, suspension fluid and moving parts would otherwise push the MSRP of a fork or shock into the stratosphere. SR Suntour has carefully crafted its performance suspension range to compete with RockShox and Fox, but that is only the first step. SR Suntour has locked in a handful of OEM customers for the 2014 season, but the real prize - large orders from the likes of Giant, Specialized and Trek - have yet to be realized. To get those orders, SR Suntour needs to work closely with the product managers of the big three from the inception of a model or category, through the bikes' final release. This is primarily why the new facility in Madison was conceived.

SR Suntour's Credo

When asked why SR Suntour has not made a concerted effort towards launching a slick campaign to market their fork and shock lineup directly against its two most conspicuous competitors, the answer was surprisingly simple: SR Suntour's upper management believes that to achieve long-term success, "one must earn it and be humble, and all will work out in the end." The suspension maker has no present plan in place to dazzle elite cyclists with suspension products which are priced out of reach of all but its most affluent customers. Nor did they want their damping and tuning strategies to become so complex that only a professional technician could work on their stuff. Instead, SR Suntour's philosophy is to keep its products simple, reliable, easy to maintain and affordable. To this end, its forks use a serviceable cartridge damper that can be tuned and rebuilt by any competent garage mechanic.

Service and Tuning Made Easy

Darren said that the cartridge system is so easy to work on that he gave instructions over the phone to one of SR Suntour's sponsored athletes who needed to swap out a cartridge during a trip to Nepal. His rider successfully switched out the damping cartridge of his Rux DH fork and had it up and running in an afternoon. For those less inclined to work on their own suspension, SR Suntour is in the process of establishing a network of independent service centers in North America, and is expanding its presence in Europe and the UK as well. When the situation demands instant response, SR Suntour's service department can forego a rebuild and ship out a new cartridge to get a customer or a retailer up and running in a hurry.

photo


Bright Looking Future

When a customer purchases a suspension product, be it an individual aftermarket or a large OEM sale, the manufacturer and customer enter into a long-term relationship that includes tuning, service and potential warranty or damage issues. SR Suntour's latest expansion clearly indicates that they understand the importance of that relationship. We expect good things from the suspension giant in the near future. If SR Suntour and its partner, USUL, achieve success - and after touring the Madison offices, we have no doubt that they will, then expect to be seeing their forks and shocks on an increasing number of brands in 2014 and beyond.

SR Suntour

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112 Comments
  • 66 10
 Many people don't like Sr Suntour, but they forget that inside many of their Marzocchi fork there's a Sr Suntour cartridge Wink . Hope you a brilliant futur Guys
  • 14 91
flag samguu (Dec 2, 2013 at 5:10) (Below Threshold)
 First comment BOUYAAA
  • 31 119
flag caste1200 (Dec 2, 2013 at 5:19) (Below Threshold)
 thats why marzocchi sucks Smile
  • 19 2
 Didn't "forget", just didn't know. Maybe if more people actually knew it they would at Suntour more seriously, because for all the PB propaganda, they still are not taken seriously at all. Great that the prices seem good, but they need better marketing, and more interesting design.
  • 29 1
 Marzocchi no longer has forks made in the Suntour Factor, they switched vendors to Hodaka after my2012. DVO is now made at the Suntour factory but don't make the mistake of thinking that just because a certain component is made in 'X' factory it is somehow a product of that factory's engineers. There's a limited number of manufacturers in TW so often many brands' production is housed under the same roof and tested in the same facility. Turner, BMC, Lapierre, Cannondale, Pivot, Turner, GT, Evil, and others are also made at Hodaka but you won't catch too many people trying to claim they're the same thing.
  • 11 0
 That is the same as saying an iPhone is the same as a Galaxy S4, because both Samsung and Apple buy and use each others parts...
  • 5 12
flag advansti (Dec 2, 2013 at 6:35) (Below Threshold)
 ...Turner bikes are built/welded in Portland Oregon
  • 21 31
flag Protour (Dec 2, 2013 at 6:49) (Below Threshold)
 I like inexpensive things but I also like companies with integrity that treat all their employees decent. When you buy a FOX fork you are supporting a company that at least provides a living wage and safe working conditions for workers. That office full of white guys looks really nice, Hodaka probably treats employees ok, but I'm curious what the working conditions are like where some of their low end forks for wal mart bikes are made.
  • 14 1
 @general-lee

wise words!

if you really want to know what is going on in the world of global manufacturing I'd highly recommending watching the film "Manufactured Landscapes" which will blow your mind

especially the opening shot which runs for 10+ minutes and is basically the camera moving past all the benches in just one building where Chinese workers are building ****** latest electronics or consumer goods. the next shot is the workers leaving this building, and you realize its just one of many buildings!

check out these links:

www.pinkbike.com/photo/10380426

www.pinkbike.com/photo/10380427
  • 2 1
 Marzocchi arent manufactured by suntour any more. DVO are though. emphasis on the word manufactured, its not the same cartridge, its just built by the same manufacturer to the specification of the designing company. sorry general lee didnt see your post.
  • 3 0
 @advansti not the carbon ones, those are made in Taiwan (well, China actually but no one likes to talk about that....)
  • 8 0
 Hope my Suntour made DVO arrives for x-mas. Nothing better than a big giftbox. I will pretend I dont know whats in the box...
  • 5 2
 think i'd be happy to buy a suntour fork. just tell me if i'm wrong on this one but suntour are the biggest manufacturer for suspension forks. nearly any bike to 300-3000 dollars or euro has them and any bike shop you'll go to has then. i've never had problem with them in work, no idea why every one is a keyboard worrier over them. at least try them!
  • 9 0
 I've been going to Taiwan and China bicycle industry factories for almost 14 years. I was a customer of SR Suntour for 7 of those and have been working with them for the past 3+. I have always found the SR Suntour factories to be clean and safe. I am not privy to what the wages are but I believe them to be fair. Honestly you can't keep a steady workforce in the factories unless you pay a good wage. The bike industry in general does a good job at this.

Rock Shox, Marzocchi, Manitou, have been manufacturing in Taiwan for many years and it's common knowledge Fox is preparing to. Taiwan is the place where high end suspension for bikes are made.
  • 5 5
 The bike industry does do a good job overall. I believe most of SR Suntour's forks are made in China, but they probably sell most of the forks they make in China also. The Epicon is the God fork in China. I wonder if many of the workers working in the factories are mountain bikers? Those photos hamstedbandit posted make me think they are too busy working.
  • 3 0
 @Protour

a number of contacts and close associates have worked in TW in the bike industry, as part of their responsibilities for overseeing off-shore manufacturing with their chosen vendors / partners

They have positive things to say about the wages and working conditions, but also tell me the majority of the workforce have no interest in cycling
  • 2 0
 its true that the workers in general are not bike riders, but you are talking about factory jobs mostly... in the sales jobs and management jobs this is slowly changing though... a lot of the managers have regular weekend rides... golf is not as popular as it used to be.... Taiwan has traditionally not had a strong recreational cycling culture, but its taking hold over time and there are some Taiwanese people i know who are as stoked to work in the bike business as your would expect... China is also coming around...
  • 2 0
 I'm wondering how much Fox pays all the Mexicans who assemble it's products? Same could be said for the First Nations employees that weld frames local to here? I don't honestly know but I'd be interested to know...
  • 1 0
 whereabouts in Mexico?, didnt know about that,

Assembly wages in Mexico are at 4.31 the hour, average, including benefits.
  • 2 1
 No, in the USA, but using Mexicans ;-)
  • 1 1
 Probably $10-$15 an hour in American wages. It's not uncommon for factory workers in China to work for the equivalent of $1 or $2 an hour, they typically work lots of hours and the cost of living is lower. It's higher in Taiwan but not alot.

I always thought it would be fun to work in a fork factory, but now I would have to go to Taiwan to fulfill this dream. I could do it for a month and would probably come back with a whole new perspective on my life.
  • 3 1
 I have toured the Fox plant in Watsonville Ca. It is very nice,clean and state of the art. The people on the assembly line are all Hispanic. That area of California is mainly agricultural and Fox has taped in to that labor force.They are paid at a much higher rate than what they would make picking produce and the working conditions are much better. It seems to me that the management and tech positions at Fox have a huge turn over rate though. Everyone that I use to know that worked there has been fired. It will suck for those assembly people if Fox moves it plant over seas. Those jobs are some of the better ones in that region for unskilled labor.
  • 1 0
 @ Protour

I like you and think you're spot on most times, but why comment on working conditions? And how do you know so much about Suntour?
  • 1 0
 It's an interesting conversation that gives you different perspective other than your own. I would prefer to buy bike stuff that isn't associated with the wal mart brands but even shimano & sram make parts for those bikes. Factories in North America do pay more and treat their employees better so it is another factor for the consumer to consider in a world of trade-offs that will eventually catch up to us.
  • 1 3
 Where are the castings and parts made for Fox forks? China???????? Then they are assembled in USA. By unskilled Mexicans.
  • 5 0
 Don't get me started on the fact that the Mexicans have as much of a right to be there as anyone else, at least their descendants came from that continent. The nationality of the assemblers has nothing to do with quality. Especially at Fox! You think they don't want high standards? Rather that than China, in which the working conditions are just the tip of that particularly horrible iceberg, along with human rights breaches, animal cruelty, counterfeiting, drugs and just about one of the nastiest regimes on the planet which hides behind a facade of bought international relations and propaganda.
  • 1 0
 WOOO WISCONSIN
  • 4 6
 China is a rapidly developing country full of people that work hard with out complaining. The working ethics in Asian countries is to do the best job you can and be thank full for your job. Something North Americans realy need to work at.
The idea that bikes parts that come out of Asian countries is substandard is truly ignorant. I know that quality control is. That's what is responsible for crappy parts leaving a factory. The engineers and quality control management are probably trained in Hong Kong in a university where guess what? They speak English.
Made in China can now be a sighn of quality.
Sorry but almost everything around you is made in China . Don't believe me. Pick up what ever is in front of you( start with the computer you are using).Look where its made...... China.
  • 8 1
 Just don't mix up Taiwan with China. One is a healthy, transparent democracy with a free press, workers rights, environmental regulation, rule-of-law, and one of the worlds most advanced recycling systems. The other is not Wink
  • 4 0
 @Sshredder "sighn of quality" is quite an ironic sentence. And your first sentence is just ignorant nonsense. They don't complain because they will be fired on the spot at best, at worst imprisoned and disappear. Workers rights are an important part of civilized society, something which China certainly is not.
  • 3 0
 Lol, incorrectly spelling "sign" is a sign of something for sure.
  • 2 5
 All of you bashing China using your made in China mouse. Riding your made in China bikes. Or perhaps you are using you made in China smart phone. Now there is an ironic statement. I was going to say how im amazed at peoples ignorance about the development of the new capitalist China. But im not.
  • 5 1
 You might want to educate yourself about China then. For a start, their draconian, secretive regime where you can be hung for stealing a loaf of bread. Also check out human rights violations, average income, social welfare (or lack thereof), infrastructure conditions, environmental damage, air quality and pollution, medieval and corrupt legal system, political corruption, unlawful military action, illegal annexation of land and subsequent crimes against the Geneva convention. I could go on, but you must be right and China must be a utopia because my HP mouse was indeed made in China. Wow, you've sure stumped me. Just because a country makes a ton of produce does not give it an elevated status, and make no mistake, they need us a lot more than we need them. They provide plastic and technological goods, we provide the money by which their entire economic stability balances. Educate yourself, fool.
  • 3 0
 Sshredder it's painfully obvious you haven't the faintest clue what you're talking about. Also that statement isn't ironic, those actions are but your actual statement isn't ironic, it just points out an irony. Those actions aren't ironic anyway, unless criticism is inherently hypocritical? And China being capitalist is nothing new whatsoever. Its been producing consumer goods and trading internationally since the late 40s.
  • 3 0
 I just think it's funny he doesn't seem to know why "sighn of quality" is ironic Razz At least general-lee and redrook seem to know what they're talking about and add some intelligence to this!
  • 2 4
 Patriot act. Talk about rights being violated. Your sheep just like the people of China. Propaganda works.
  • 5 0
 I havent got a fucking clue what that last comment was supposed to mean.
  • 4 1
 Lol if you think the Patriot Act (which applies in the US and is controversial over there at best) compares in any way to institutional corruption, socially ingrained misogyny, torture, executions and no judicial process, not to mention forced abortion as a norm (especially if the child is a girl(), then you're a moron. And let me guess, your next comment will be something like "blah blah torture Guantanamo blah the USA is just as bad blah blah".
  • 2 0
 The funny thing is, if Sshredder was Chinese and saying these things about China, his government would track his IP, arrest him and imprison him without trial. That is if he could even access this website, since they one of the few nations who censor and control their own internet. Sure we have problems, but we have democracy and free speech to fight against excessive legislation.
  • 1 2
 As a mountain biker I prefer to see live animals when im out riding, not dead ones hanging on a wall for someones pathetic ego. I will make sure there is no suntour on any of my new bikes - shouldn't be too hard.
  • 13 0
 I'm super stoked on my Suntour forks! I have been loving the Rux, Durolux,and Auron. They look cool and have performed flawlessly for me for some XC, all mtn, serious freeride lines, and DH'ing tons of laps at Whistler, SunPeaks, Silver Star, Kicking Horse, Mt.7, Fernie, Kamloops, Squamish, Pemberton, Italy, Austria, Germany and the North Shore for two years now. They have been plush, track true thru the chunder and have been there for me bomb dropping some scary lines. Keep on giving 'er SRSuntour!!
  • 10 0
 RideOn!
I want to see SrSuntour expand!
The Durolux fork is for sure a top notch winner I have been riding for a couple of years now!

Last weekend!
2 Durolux forks having fun!
www.pinkbike.com/video/342068

RideOn!
  • 9 0
 I hesitate to blow the lid off, but there are two levels of engineering. The first level has to do with product and features and most people think of this when they say "engineering". This kind tends to be specific to large brands, less so to smaller ones who have to lean on the expertise of their vendors. Even though a big brand may have a lot of engineers, a lot of this kind of engineering work is still usually shared with the factory producing the part.

The second kind Is more like production engineering, which is the engineering required to make a design ready to be easily produced by the machines and processes used by the factory. This area of engineering is pretty much exclusive to the factory producing the part and relies on knowledge possessed usually only in the factory and not by the design engineers of the customer. When it comes to quality, this part of the equation is super important. So it's not fair to the factory to deny them credit for the quality of the products they produce for other brands just because that brand may have their own designers and product engineers.

In the business, working with the right vendors (factories) is super important. You can have a product with great design and engineering but terrible execution and the end result is a not so good product. So in this specific case, if there is a fork that the world loves and it's using parts or assembly from Suntour, then yeah, give credit to Suntour because their specific engineering knowledge is at least 50% of why that product is good and commercially successful even if they didn't do any design or engineering work on the features.
  • 2 0
 This is one of the most well thought out responses I have ever read on a comments page.

All of what is said is 100% true and it takes a great factory to employ techniques to build quality components even if it is not for their house brand.
  • 11 0
 I like em!
They are verging on really giving the big guns a run for their $$$
  • 7 0
 Have been very happy with my Durolux RC2, probably the most underrated fork out there for AM/Enduro. Has a great damper, comes with Rebound, Hi- and Low-speed compression settings and a great through-axle (20QR, too). The best part is I bought mine 1/3rd the price of a Fox Float and can do 180mm or 160mm. Once you get the settings right, you will absolutely be surprised on how good it is, very much comparable to any of the best AM/Enduro forks out there.
  • 3 0
 I'm saving up for a build next season and after checking out all the options I plan to build it up with the Durolux. I can't wait to try it out and see how it performs, and the price and serviceability are huge selling points too. Very excited to ride their stuff.
  • 1 0
 I'm saving up for a Durolux haha, they look so nice, really cool having the travel adjust setting at a lower price. Honestly I straight up refuse to pay for Fox, so overpriced just because ''OOH KASHIMA'' So it's always nice to see a brand with a good value fork for once.
  • 7 1
 "SR Suntour's philosophy is to keep its products simple, reliable, easy to maintain and affordable. To this end, its forks use a serviceable cartridge damper that can be tuned and rebuilt by any competent garage mechanic."
That's enough to make me want to try one. If the weight's reasonable and it performs well, sounds like a win.
  • 5 1
 www.pinkbike.com/video/342068
No fancy adds or funky names like RAD? Nope just a solid performing fork that competes with the Fox park 180 and cost about 200 bucks less.
No plastic inside!
Suntour,s game is to let the fork create its own reputation through performance and reliabuility.
  • 6 0
 Suntour should sponsors the Wisconsin badgers! First and ten Wisconsin!
  • 2 0
 danny, I believe they should.
  • 6 0
 Sweet sun tours in driving distance! Go Badgers^
  • 3 0
 The office is open M-F come on by and meet the crew.
  • 1 0
 Might have to do that, although between two jobs, and AP classes in school it might be a while lol.
  • 2 0
 I'm so happy to see this happen for Suntour. I've been a big believer for these guys and have always swapped out forks on my new bikes for theirs. Super easy and quick to service, plus their customer service is really helpful whenever I had any questions on anything I had for them. I really can't wait to see what's next for them.
  • 3 0
 The 180mm durolux forks are brilliant and outlast similar fox an RS in services and prices....that's a winner in my eyes.cost efficient for non pros like me means a lot more than naming brands and being a show off
  • 3 0
 It's good to see people really taking the fight to the big boys and making the frankly outrageous prices look as ludicrous as they are.
  • 1 0
 I am keeping an eye on this company with great interest. We are severely lacking in quality affordable products in the bike industry. Marketing BS and hype can only go so far, affordable quality and good word of mouth gets you much further. I had a Suntour XCR on my first full squish bike and loved it. It did everything I asked of it and then some. Ever since then I have had a positive view of the company.

In my opinion they do have a bit of brand image work to do to catch up to X-fusion., who I still regard as a step above Suntour. Just give your stanchions the “jersey tan” treatment and you’ll be golden!
  • 2 0
 I've been riding the rux for almost a year now and it's the most plush air suspension I have ever had on the front of my bike. I recommend anyone looking for something new to give them a shot, u won't be disappointed.
  • 1 0
 In-house R&R for suspension systems is the future for brick and mortar shops. Faster turn around, maintenance packages at point of sale, and large profits for repair work. Training technicians to provide this service should be a priority. Tooling is expensive, but the return well worth the investment.
  • 1 0
 I really like what suntour are aiming for, an affordable, reliable performance fork thats simple to work with.

I just dont understand the advertising stance. The largest fork manufacturer in the world and yet they wont sponsor any high profile race teams? not every rider is riding at a world cup pace but every rider would like to know their fork can handle that sort of abuse. personally id like to see suntour put some money into the sport and put their product to the test on the world cup circuit, to me that would be earning respect.
  • 8 0
 Ohlin's don't sponsor any athletes at any level. And they never have done. Yet they are widely regarded as the best maker of suspension in the world. If they did, people would just state that people are using it because it was given to them. What Suntour are doing is spot on IMO.
  • 2 1
 Well how many Ohlin products do you see at your local trails? Not many...
  • 2 2
 its a totally different type of product though, Ohlins are aimed at the top end of the market both price and performance wise, people know how good these products are already because Ohlins has built a reputation in pretty much every sport that requires top level damping. A reputation they earned sponsoring multiple teams in pretty much every form of motor racing. Suntour is trying to gain this type of reputation. look at what DVO has achievedin the last year by sponsoring top athletes to develop their products at world cup level
  • 4 0
 Not so, taken from ohlins website;

"Already then Kenth Öhlin had made the decision that still holds today. Those riders that wanted help had to pay for parts and service. Sponsoring with free parts has never occurred. On this point Öhlins differs from other competitors.

For sure it has happened that riders have got things free from other companies and left us. But they have for the most returned to us after a month or two, says Kenth"

also pinkbike mention this fact when they reviewed ohlins shocks on specialized.
  • 1 2
 Suntour sponsors the Freehub/Transition downhill team, and probably a few more that I'm not aware of. There's probably a reason to why bigger world cup level teams aren't sponsored by Suntour, and not by choice of Suntour, rather the team. Team freehub has serious animosity towards Suntour's duel crown fork and many of the team went back to riding their 40's or even Boxxers when they could.
  • 5 1
 Three names:
James Doerfling
Garrett Buehler
Brett Tippie

If Doerfling is happy for it to be on the front of his bike doing that crazy shit he does then I'm happy to ride one. BTW I own a durolux..
  • 1 2
 That's quite unfortunate, should consider getting the new Pike with the Charger Dampener, that is if you're ready to be enlightened, but only the willing will be. Wink
  • 1 1
 @freerideguy14 Did you just say "dampener"? HA! I'm all dried out and I need a dampener.

it's tough to push the attributes of a fork, while simultaneously attempting to discredit another, when you don't know what you're talking about.

to quote an unknown genius; "dampening makes you wet, damping makes you fast"
  • 1 1
 I don't know what I'm talking about? My apologies that my Iphone thinks that Damper = Dampener in this given scenario

I find it interesting and slightly confusing that you jump to the conclusion that I don't know what I'm talking about because my Iphone prefers to auto-correct a certain word. I'm not sure if you're trying to discredit my opinion or attack a single word that was auto-corrected for an internet battle. Either way, you my friend, should probably try to make the change to the new Pike and you wouldn't be looking for battles like this.
  • 3 0
 @bluumax There is a pretty good program going so far and it grows each year. Check out pages 48-51 in this online catalog….plus lots of cool athlete stories throughout. issuu.com/why_gbr/docs/srs-2k14-low

Most of the World Cup podiums (over 20 so far) have been in XC and 4X including multiple World Champions, World Cup Overall, National Champs and Olympic Gold in London.

Off the XC circuit Doerfling and Buehler have each managed top 10 at Rampage the past couple years and some rad sections in Where the Trail End which felt as good as a WC win watching them. We've had a couple top 10's at the new Enduro World Series too. Plus great ambassadors like Eric Carter, Brett Tippie, and Mike Jones.

More great riders to come on board next year. World Cup DH team will happen all in good time (plus there were almost no top 10 WC DH riders with open contracts in 2014).

Bottom line is SR Suntour just wants people to enjoy riding. Of course we won't object if you're enjoying riding SR Suntour.
  • 2 0
 fair enough. thanks for the info
  • 8 0
 Hey @Freerideguy14, I'm not sure when you decided to start speaking up for teams you have no involvement with but you should probably quit while your ahead. I manage and ride for the Freehub/Transition Team and our experience on the RUX has been nothing but enjoyable. Animosity you say? My team played a big part in the development of the fork and with development comes the chance of minor set backs. But like any professional team we have work through these set backs closely with Suntour and I can confidently say that the production version of the RUX is sure to impress.
  • 5 0
 wow. straight from the horses mouth.

There you have it. Freerideguy is just another troll or idiot trying to spew garbage or pretending to know something he/she clearly doesn't.

It's cool to read that a big company like Suntour uses these small local teams for feedback and real world testing on their product. That's encouraging to hear.
  • 1 0
 The true question will be can they innovate and will they supply plenty of spares available to home mechanics ? they will take some of the lower end market if theyre cheaper but unless they pull a game changer out the bag damping/tech wise then theyre just gonna be a cheaper alternative. Lets just hope they do a better job of it than Xfusion. As much as i like X fusions offerings theyre no cheaper than the RS equivalent and i cant get any spare parts. that in my book makes them a no go.
  • 1 0
 No game-changer on the horizon. Quick sparesservice and assembly without special tools is make or break.
  • 3 0
 Yes, all the service parts are available piece by piece! I have been able to order pretty much anything for my forks. They even sell the springs and dampers separate so you can make a hybrid fork if you liked. The threads are congruent on every model line and the Durolux Chassis has stayed the same for years giving you the ability to upgrade you older model to a new fork! Pretty Cool!
  • 1 0
 I gotta admit the new cartridge-dampers in new epicons is really easy to work on, simply put: just pop open two caps up and down, pull out the damper, clamp one side of it on a vise, use a socket wrench to open up damper. drain old damping oil out and pour in brand-new till surface. use finger to get rid of bubbles and put it all the way back to the fork.
Im no longer a Suntour owner but i personnally really like the method "pour untill its full", no calculation or special tools needed to make sure exact oil volume in the cartridge. and their forks works far better then most people think so.
  • 1 0
 Sick of people complaining about Suntour being on cheap bikes. Yes, Suntour do make budget forks. The bottom of the line Rockshox XC28/30's are of the same performance, if not worse compared to stock Suntour forks. Fox don't do budget forks, I find Fox unreasonably over priced. Not everyone needs a pair of Kashima coated 160's, some people just need a basic fork to get them to work, or to go to the shops on. Just because they make budget forks, doesn't mean they are a ''shit'' company. I'd happily run a pair of Durolux's on my bike, their good value, look nice, and compared to the price of the other forks in the ''All Mountain'' category are a good pair forks. Why spend £600+ on a pair of fancy forks when you could get a great value pair for £400? Basically people need to stop jumping to the conclusion ''Suntour are shit lel'' and actually try them before they make stupid comments, that's all I've got to say haha.
  • 1 0
 It's great to see the hard work of the SR Suntour group coming together… These plans are a couple years in the making and its now going to start paying off.

I'm really happy with the performance of the products and the stance they take on simplicity and service is a refreshing alternative.

This company has a lot of horsepower but is smart enough to use the clutch to feed it out.
  • 2 0
 Loving the options that are helping bring down the cost on suspension. It is about time we see more serious players in the game. X-fusion too.
  • 3 0
 I have using a SR Suntour Dorulux for a year and it has been exelent, and the price is good.
  • 6 6
 PINKBIKE and other websites need to stop with the comment of big 3 companies. There a multitude of other bike companies, i.e: KHS, DEVINCI, SCOTT, FELT, NORCO that can help make a brand like SR SUNTOUR better. The misconception that Trek, Giant and Specialized are the biggest and best products is a poor realization of the cycling market, yes there products look nice but with these 3 companies in particular there products are drastically over priced to the point that many of you consumers cannot even afford to purchase new but instead have to look at used bikes. Where at that point they have been changed from stock to something completely different, if they were to focus other companies they would have better results.
  • 5 0
 Giant sell lots of bikes, KHS don't... its really not all that difficult to understand...
  • 2 3
 Santa Cruz and Intense don't sell many bikes either, but people would rather ride there product first. At the end of the day, people need to stop referring to specific companies as the only companies there are many others and small companies like SR Suntour can benefit from working with them far more then they can from 3 others.
  • 7 1
 I hate to say it brodieclan, but Giant, Specialized, and Trek account for over 75% of the bikes sold worldwide. Hate if you want, but you can't do anything but call them the "big three".

And if you check any high end bike--ie XTR or XT/XTR spec or XX1/X0 spec--regardless of what name is on the bike, you're going to need to donate an organ to be able to shell out for it brand new.
  • 1 0
 Now they just need to get some retailers on board. Pretty sure my next fork will be a Suntour, but I can't find them for sale anywhere, save for a few used ones in the Buy/Sell section, who's selling these in the States?
  • 2 0
 For sales give SR Suntour a call at 1-855.205.BIKE (2453)
  • 1 0
 Very cool to have a Suntour responding on PB. I'll be giving you guys a call next week.
  • 2 0
 AllI want to know is...when will the Rux be coming out? Seems like a really nice fork to me Smile
  • 1 0
 available and shipping NOW!
  • 3 0
 the bad thing is that wisconsin is a little bit flat though
  • 4 0
 Its true but geographically extremely central.
  • 1 0
 Best marketing strategy would be to reinvent themselves. The Suntour brand will always just be Suntour. New Brand, New Look. New Money.
  • 2 0
 I wish I wasn't such a snob, they look and sound good...
  • 2 0
 Does this mean that we're going to be seeing Suntour on the new Treks???
  • 2 0
 You already see suntour on cheaper treks. If Trek think they can use Suntour's high end offerings, then they will use them. Not so they can lower the cost of bikes. they will just use it to increase profit margins while the RRP stays the same
  • 3 1
 Is there riding in Wisconsin?
  • 2 0
 Trek's headquarters are located just outside of Madison, we don't have mountains but we do have some decent trails
  • 4 0
 The Wisconsin Off Road Series is the largest state racing series in the US. True, no mountains but LOTS of riding!
  • 4 0
 Cool! That's great you guys have riding out there.
  • 1 0
 Are you guys still keeping you Vancouver location? I really like visiting there sometimes..
  • 1 0
 Yes both locations to serve the whole of North America better. With the addition of Madison people in the central to eastern North America can get products a little bit quicker.

In addition to service Vancouver takes care of aftermarket sales. Your dealer can order a Rux or Auron by calling 1-855.205.BIKE (2453)

In addition to service Madison takes care of OEM sales and marketing.
  • 1 0
 Awesoommmeee!! You have a good group of guys here in Vancouver!
  • 1 0
 My first air fork is the EPICON X2 , it's very cost-efficient to me
  • 1 0
 looks like a pretty awesome place to work. job well done Suntour.
  • 1 0
 well that's news to me... cool
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