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Maximum Fork travel?

4K views 8 replies 7 participants last post by  SHIVER ME TIMBERS 
#1 ·
So I have a question about my 2003 specialized bighit comp. Right now I have a cracked marzocchi bomber fork (way out of warranty) with 140mm of travel. I found a marzocchi super t pro for sale on craigslist that was rebuilt 2 weeks ago. It came off of his 2006 bighit so I know it will fit but the fork has 170mm of travel. Will this ruin the geometry of the bike? I only use this bike on downhill so if it makes me do wheelies uphill I can deal with it. I just want to know if it will end in horrible failure or will work fine with downhill for a little while. Also the 2003 bighit pro actually came stock with these forks do you know if the frame geometry is different between the bikes?Thanx please reply kinda of in a hurry:confused:
 
#4 ·
The '03 Comp and Pro use the same frames. Your bike will have no issues running the Super T, and it will be better suited for DH.

<caveat>Caveat - you'll need to switch the shock link to the DH link and swap the shock for an 8.75x2.75 if you want to keep the stock DH geometry of the Pro.</caveat>
 
#5 ·
As somebody who engineers suspensions for these bikes, the general rule of thumb is to focus on making the front suspension absorb the same travel as the rear. Is 30mm going to be critical enough to ruin the way you ride? No, but with longer travel forks, you'll notice in places like the berms, that the front wheel has a little less response to turning. Keep in mind that the longer the travel is, generally the longer the fork. As you get more length in the front, thus raising where the head tube of the bike sits, your head tube is going to be angled a little bit more forward like a Harley. Some people prefer this, however with different travel in front and rear, your head tube angle will not be as consistent while compressing the suspension.

Not a big deal, but something worth considering.
 
#9 ·
didn't the Dh comp come with the Big Hit link on the rear...

question do you have the big hit link for rear shock...the linkage around shock looks either thin or thick...take a picture of rear shock....Back in the day I ran a Shiver, lots of Monsters, boxxers, Jr T's Super T's on those bikes....people ran all those forks on both the big hit link(8 1/2) and the xc'ish link (6 1/2)
 
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