pdxmech13

Where do you buy Suntour in US?

The primary function nowadays for a wiper is simple. It eliminates any type of contamination from entering the inside of the fork where the glide rings or bushings (whatever they are coined) would become damaged. This is their primary function. The auxiliary function would be the keep lubrication inside the fork be it grease or wet lubricant. Simple as that. Forks are not the open bath design that they were 10+ years ago so wipers are just that...wipers. As for you stating the reason that some manufacturers do not use oil rings at the top is because these are also the companies recommending to lubricate the wipers with oil periodically to allow some of the lubrication to actually make contact with the upper bushing or glide ring. Obviously for forks with oil rings at top this will help keep them working well too!. It can also help to moisten a dry wiper but this takes severe weather conditions to dry out and an overall lack of any maintenance over and extended period of negligence. but the majority of fork manufacturers recommend wiper lubrication almost after every ride or every 10 hrs minimum. Also you will notice that almost every fork manufacturer recommends lower casting removal, cleaning and lubricating at 50 hours of ride time. Some even recommend 25 hours.....obviously this needs to be addressed more frequently if the fork is subject to bad weather condition with lots of moisture. Those are the facts. I know as I have worked with the majority of fork manufacturers at one capacity or another in the last 17 years, servicing and performing R&D. Everyone has a design principal in place and for the most part there truly isn't a terrible product on the market right know and consumers have never had so many options to choose from be it RS, Fox, SR, XF, etc....anyway this was a fun discussion.

sounds like you have the first generation Qloc that the collet doesn't lock down for hubs without solid axles. Suntour has a new model that keeps this from happening. Very smooth and fast. http://www.srsuntour-cycling.com/service/tech-videos/

Well....since you work at a shop you wouldn't need to pay that much ; )

Slotting a bushing will not effect the lubrication functionality any differently than a non slotted bushing. The upper bushing generally require the oil ring below the wiper to help keep it lubricated and functioning properly as well as to reduce overall wear. With longer travel forks the oil from the splash bath down in the lowers will never see the upper bushing regardless of a bushing being slotted or not because it is just to high in the lower case not to mention the lower tolerance from the bushing to the stanchion tube would keep the majority of fluid from reaching that point. Also gravity plays a role in this circumstance. The lower bushing will get a sufficient amount of lubrication when the oil touches the side wall of the stanchion during compression and rebound to decrease friction and wear on it with such a splash bath.

So what you are comparing is a $70.00 coil sprung fork that performs a basic task of transportation on cheap $500.00 bikes that you sell to a $1200.00 model fork that people trust their lives with riding terrain at events such as Red Bull Rampage, Mega Avalanche and bike parks all around the world. I would say that isn't a very open minded thought process on your part and very bias to a degree of being to closed minded. There is no denying that Suntour has some image issues but they have certainly been working on it with good product that is performing at a high level and is generally affordable for those who like to ride their bikes.

All SR Suntour forks can use oil in the lowers even if they do not come this way. It is actually mentioned in their tuning guide to add oil as it will improve forks sensitivity.

Crap offerings....have you every looked at how many forks they manufacture and of the actual quality. Do you expect there top riders to be riding shit? . All of the high end product is based off this same system as the RUX and cost hundreds of dollars less than the competitors. Maybe you should inform yourself before you make dumb commments.

A fork that retails for $400 less than a comparable new model from other companies. Good overall features that allow for fine tuning and quick adjustments. Low overall weight. Easy to service and good parts availability. A stout and heavy duty chassis. These all seem to be the right boxes to check on any quality item that I would want to purchase. These comments about buying non comparable forks don't make sense The people complaining here about price and performance are the same ones crying about how they can't afford the high end product from other manufacturers. A company comes along and provides a value to an end user and all they get is comparing there product to others that don't have similar prices or features????? Also the QSP system that Suntour has used here is a win win situation for just about any rider that wants to ride his/her bike more than have it in the shop. Job well done Suntour as this is a fork for the everyday rider that is looking to enjoy what MTBing is all about. Good overall review. Would like to see a recent review of the Auron and Durolux. Suntour seem to be on top of there game. Maybe they will even win the Pink Bike award for come back of the year. Peace!

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.