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2015 Fox 36

202K views 1K replies 179 participants last post by  Pontyrider 
#1 ·
Has anyone got any info on the new 2015 Fox 36?

From what I have seen it looks like they have moved away from using a spring on the air side to using air.

I think I will have to get one for my new bike when they come out.
 
#48 ·
Thanks for the comments.

Picked it up from competitivecyclist.com, they had preordered some and I made sure I got it first thing. I got the blue retro decal kit from them at the same time and it is way better of a look than the stock orange decals.

I haven't dialed it in, I know I need to, but it feels really, really good without much adjusting. All I have done is air pressure setup before each ride, and only a little bit of knob turning 2-5 clicks back and forth to see what difference it makes. Couldn't really tell much because each ride has been different terrain. But still feels great and I am starting to notice a slight decrease in front end weight from my lyrik.


I don't think that the new lower can just bolt on to the old uppers, since they changed a lot on this fork.
 
#49 ·
I just whipped the lowers off mine to check pool volumes as Fox is notoriously bad in this area. My forks seemingly had the correct oil volumes in them, foam rings soaked in 20wt gold as well. The wiper seals were bone dry though so I've given them a lick of shock honey and the fork feels even plusher. Cannot believe on a $1k fork you need to do this though but I guess thats mass manufacturing for you.
 
#53 ·
Three reasons why I overlayed and didn't take off the originals. First, which is minor, is I got to save the inner "36" orange and white decal segment. Second, I was lazy and didn't want to clean off any potential adhesive. Third, I wanted them EXACTLY how Fox had them, which combined with the laziness makes it difficult to do without any guide or placeholder.

But we (I assume the viewers of this thread) are looking forward to the picks and ride report.
 
#56 ·
No ride report yet - the new 36 doesn't use the front caliper adapter for 180mm rotors like on the old fork so I need to get some shorter bolts.

Here are a couple pics though. I still wish they had a white version, but I swapped to decals to white ones to compensate. The orange "rainbow" decals just didn't jive.



 
#58 ·
Quick ride report from a burn down my street at lunch... PLUSH!! Small bump compliance I can already feel will be phenomenal! Yet good mid stroke support. This is just set to the same settings as my 2013 36 was so haven't played with it yet. This fork is going to be badass!!!





 
#60 ·
Definitely not as quick & convenient as the old dual QR flip levers.

I'm sure Fox did it for weight but it's a step backwards IMO. But I'll live with it. No different than a Fox 40 or dirt bike forks. Just not convenient if you typically take the front wheel off to transport.

Dropped the weight of my bike by 0.6 lbs, so that's a bonus.
 
#62 ·
Haven't ridden it on trails yet to answer the full travel, but I got full travel on my 2013 so not worried about this one. 2013 was the 1st year for Fox going with a more linear air spring.

Definitely better small bump compliance on the 2015 - less stiction - very easy to get the fork to move over small bumps. Plus the weight drop of the fork (0.6 lbs) isn't a bad thing.

Besides less weight, I've heard that another reason for going back to pinch bolts was that they now have a floating axle, so combination of that and pinch bolts has less propensity to deflect the lowers when tightened, like it can with the old axle and QR levers, helping in reducing stiction. Also heard the QR's lead to cracked lowers when the small adjuster bolt was overtightened. You'd think pinch bolts would be worse for customers overtightening, but it's what I read somewhere (one of the articles when the new 36 came out).

Apparently some upgrades to the Fit damper on the 2015, but honestly I think one of the bigger benefits besides the weight loss is the air spring - having an air negative spring, that self adjusts based on air pressure, vs the old coil negative spring. Seems to have a good effect for the small bump stuff.

My 2013 seemed to have issues returning to full travel. I'd have to often physically pull down the stanchions to get it back to full travel (a few mm's, but still). The 2015 is so buttery smooth.
 
#63 ·
I'm looking at getting a set of 160 mm Fox 36 forks for my Bronson. I currently have the stock 150 mm Fox 34 forks which I'm not really happy with.

I'm finding conflicting information regarding axle to crown height. Is it true that the 160 mm 36 fork has the same axle to crown has a 150 mm 34 fork?
 
#65 ·
I went from stock 34 to 2015 36 160mm talas on my Bronson. I don't remember the exact figures but I think it was only 5mm taller. I measured with a ruler and it's barely noticeable. If you have a bronson and upgrade to 36 be prepared to want a CCDB shock. There is a reason Santa Cruz speced the 2015 with either a pike or 36 and ccdb option.

The 36 is night and day better than the 34. Smooth as silk no more high speed chatter. With one hand on stem I can compress the fork. With the 34 I could barely move the fork without using all my weight, it was hard to set sag correctly because it was so sticky.

I only have one ride and fork isn't completely dialed but it just handles everything smoothly. I have it setup according to fox settings. You can carry more speed without getting bounced around. The wheel just stays planted to the ground way more. So far the 36 gets two thumbs up.
 
#70 ·
A-C height is the distance from the axle to where the top of the crown where it sits against the bike frame???

So you guys are saying that even though the fork has 160mm travel (in reference to a 150mm Bronson) the A-C is 536mm, that is basically the same as my my Bronson's 34mm 2014 fork? I have concerns about negatively effecting the geometry of my bike and was just assuming that I'd need to lower the new 2015 Fox 36mm to a 150mm travel just to keep everything in spec?

Also, are you guys all running 30% sag front and rear?

Please advise me cause frankly it's like reading a different language around here for a newbie such as myself.
 
#72 ·
That's just to cryptic for a newbie like me to understand.

You are saying that my current stock Bronson fork, the 2014 Fox 34mm set at 150mm of travel has a A - C of 539mm? Because at 160mm it has an A -C of 549mm?

So the 2015 Fox 36mm for a 27.5" bike is a 536mm set at a 160mm? Meaning my old fork at 150mm is only 3mm shorter than the 2015 Fox 36 set at 160mm?

If I am reading this all correctly running the NEW Fox 36mm at 160mm will have almost identical geometry (height of front end, etc..) to my old fork at 150mm.
 
#74 ·
I put some miles on the fork over the weekend... I gotta say, the 2015 is BUTTER!!!! Small bump compliance is insane. Normal pressures, soaks up little bumps and chatter, yet great mid stroke support. Amazing fork! Can't wait to take it on some gravity runs.
 
#75 ·
First ride on the 2015 on Saturday on my pretty rough "DH" trails. Absolutely awesome. Hit the first jump and got a bit spooked as it felt super soft...decided to hit the second jump but took control and pushed the fork into the lip and it felt sweet and from there on I guess i had adapted to the 'feel'. Hit all the steeps and drops and felt totally butter.

I am riding it on a Knolly Chilcotin with a Avy Woody on the back and only now do I realize how overwhelmed my old 2008 36 actually felt. The new 2015 matches the rear end so much better.

I was more impressed by this first ride than i was when i replaced my RS Rev on the Endorphin with the Pike. That was more a case of superior stiffness that i really appreciated. The Fox is more subtle and smooth through the mid stroke (compared to the pike) and feels like it ramps up nicely towards the end.

Stoked.
 
#76 ·
Rode mine at the nearby DH park and just WOW!!. As Muttonchops describes, it's weird at first because the new 36 has such smooth small bump compliance and just feels buttery smooth. But the mid stroke support is awesome and ramps up so nice and predictably. SOAKS up the small chatter, yet doesn't dive deep into the stroke when you hit large square edge rocks. You learn quickly that it just increases the confidence level due to its capability in the chunk, without beating you up in the chattery stuff.

The next day I then dialed back the LSC and HSC, dropped 2-3 psi and rode some single track trails and it was just as much at home on single track as it was on a gravity trail.

Fox has NAILED it with the new 36!! I loved my 2013 36 but the 2015 takes it to a whole new level. Plush, controlled, stiff (chassis), and relatively light (vs the old one).
 
#77 ·
Hey, any chance you guys who are already running this fork can post up your:

- Fork length (26, 27.5, 29) and travel:
- Your weight and the psi you're running:
- You HSC/LSC and LSR:
- And, if you've added or pulled any of those tokens.

BTW, was there a break-in run or 1/2 dzn before the fork bedded in and smoothed out?

Thanks.

Mine is in a box, waiting to resolve some headset issues w/ the Chris Klunk InSet 3.
 
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