I've recently got back into using my MTB, and am slowly increasing the distances and level of difficulty of my routes.
However not being as young, light or impact resistant as I used to be, I've decided to upgrade the front end of my venerable old diamondback, so I'm looking for advice from the experts.

Unfortunately since it's so long since i changed any parts on it, I no longer have a clue regarding what's good and what's not

So can someone recommend me a decent quality sprung fork that's not going to break the bank?

I suppose I may as well go the disc brake route at the same time, so recommendations in that department would be welcome too

 

You'll need rear disc first?
I to thinking mtb upgrade for winter, have old. Orange p7, with frame disc mounts but I'd need new wheels

Present fork is manitou magnum

 

I don't think I'll be able to fit a disc on the rear, we're talking a 20+ year old hard tail frame here

I'm pretty happy with the V brake on the rear, to be hones I'm happy with the one on the front too, I'm just thinking that a disc would be nice
Plus it would stop my fat **** wearing my front rim out

 

If it were up to me I'd just buy a new bike! By the time you've bought a fork, one disc brake set up, a new wheel you'll be in new bike money territory anyway!

Alternatively, go 2nd hand, go for an air fork, anything Fox will be good.

 

I was thinkin you may just end up cartwheeling Crips . Bike ain't like a car

Iv seen adapters on net to convert any frame to mount discs. But as Bob says you better off starting again maybe

 

Agree with Bob, you could spend more on components than on a new bike.

 

Also agreed, if its an old bike and bits are starting to need replacing, then theres more bits on the way out than you realise, and sods law says that when they break, they break at the furthest point out in the woods.

A decent hardtail with suspension forks and decent brakes really start at about £300.

Alternatively, if you were just keen to do up yours, then first check what style headset it is! If its 20+years old then it might be the old 1" threaded steerers and not the more moder 1 1/8" Ahead system which is the norm now. If it is a 1" steerer then its almost definately new bike time IMO.

If it is the normal steerer then your better off buying a second hand pair of good forks which look to have been serviced and feel good, over a new pair of ****e forks. Youll end up spending around £80 at a guess.

And disc brakes, sounds like a cable disc will be just what your after, youll pick one up for less than £50 from chain reaction but youll also need a wheel and probably new lever, so thats pretty much spent at least another £150

So that probably about £230 already, if your drivetrains worn out and that needs doing too, that'll pitch you over the cost of a decent but cheap, last seasons stock hardtail.

Something like these would probably be spot on. (make sure you get the right size! :-)

http://www.jejamescycles.co.uk/felt-...k-id62403.html

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/M...?ModelID=66758

 

Does everyone go for 29 inch wheels nowadays?

 

Yes, Numpties.

 

29ers ...... just a fad!

Covers distance easyer, but no where near as fun as a 26 on the way back down ..... and thats the bit its all about!

26 all the way! :-)

 

I have just bought a 2013 Kona Honzo 29er, looking to get fit again, rides really easy, noisy tyres for the road sections, so will probably change these out for Schwalbe big apples when it turns to summer.

 

Whatabout to trail riding,bigger wheel seems to make more sense


I'm road bike mostly, but may go forest here over winter months

 

Rather than answer with quotes I'll just try answer everyone together;

I don't particularly want to go the new bike route for two reasons, one, the bike I have is still a great ride and all it's components (mostly Deore XT of various years) are in good useable condition, and two, the frame is massive, with a long reach from seat to bars, which I like, and is something modern bikes don't seem to replicate.

Plus me and it have done a hell of a lot of hard miles together over the years, and I'm kind of attached to it

I'm only actually looking at fitting a fork for the moment, a disc brake merely falls into the 'be nice to have' category. The headset is 1 1/8" which is the reason I'm considering parts swaps at all.

As for 29s

 

New forks will probably not have carriers for v-brakes or cantilevers, so you may have to factor in a disc brake + lever anyway.

How much travel has it got now? You may not wish to change the fork length as that may screw up the geometry that you love and enjoy at the moment. That limits you to a like for like swap (if you have a suspension fork already) or one that doesn't exceed the length of your existing rigid fork under normal load.

You haven't told us much about your existing bike and/or what your current budget is. A new fork, as a separate item, is an expensive u/grade but bought as part of a new bike is much much better vfm.

Also, just remembered from my looking into this before, you would definitely need new wheels with a disc brake.

 

The bike currently has a rigid fork Puff, it's an early 90's diamondback steel framed hardtail. I want to go sprung to try and ease the shocks through my aging wrists and shoulders

Like I said the disc brake isn't so crucial, I have seen suspension forks fitted with yokes that have V brakes mounting points, but I don't know much about the quality of them.
I assume I'd actually only need to swap the front hub to fit a disc though? It'd be a shame to bin my nearly new mavic rim un-necessarily

 

Discs get mounted to the hubs, callipers on the forks, so you can dismantle your new disc wheel and re-fit the mavic rim to it.

As before, fork length needs to be checked against exisiting so that you don't compromise handling.

 

They'd need to be pretty special rims, would they not

 

Or alternatively I could just buy a hub?

Like I said though, I'm not that arsed about the brakes at the moment.

That's a good point about the fork length Puff, I'm assuming I need something that will put my front spindle at about the same point in relation to my headset as it is now, with my weight on the bike?

 

Pretty much yes, if the hub is further away from the frame youll get a slacker head angle.

However, frame geometry from the early 90's was all too steep anyway, so basically just dont go for a fork with too much travel! 80 to 100mm should be fine but no more.

 

I'm not to bothered about massive travel lengths to be honest, all I'm after is some cushioning for my wrists and shoulders on rocky downhills.

Either I'm not as durable as I used to be, or my discomfort threshold has dropped with age, I'm not sure

 

Yep, you just need the hub. Front brake like this

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/...29027#features

With

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/...160mm-ec020566

Will be fine. Keep the rear v brake.

Fork wise if you can stretch to an air sprung fork, go for it. Rock shox or fox. New, won't be cheap, so look for reconditioned/serviced second hand.

Alternatively something like this

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/...-fork-ec043519

Is a decent coil sprung fork. Air sprung is much plusher and adjustable tho.

 

So would it be cheaper to purchase new hub , as well as spokes , and then pay someone to make new wheel - over just buying a new disc hub wheel ?

Or am I missing something

 

Probably wouldn't be cheaper if I was to pay someone to build the wheel, but I've always built my own.

But like I said, I'm not to bothered about the disc, If I can get a fork with V brake mounts, I'll be perfectly happy with that

Basically what I'm after then is a recon air sprung unit, either Fox or Rockshox, with the same, or slightly longer free length to my existing rigid fork.

I'm assuming I will need to replace the steering head bearing too?

 

Yes to the fork, and bearing replacement is not always necessary.

Watch your steerer tube length on a second hand fork though. Might be too short or you'll need to cut/buy spacers.

 

Looking at the way the front of my son's bike goes together, the steer tube needs to be long enough to pass through the headstock, and also have enough free length to allow the stem to clamp round it, is this always the case with suspension forks?

 

Is something like this;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rock-Shox-...ht_1709wt_1085

The sort of thing I'm looking for?

 

These are a good fork mate.. they are similar to the suntour epicons i had on my old voodoo... Felt very good over the rough ground,, very stable and smooth..
Have a look on bike radar at the review section aswell..
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Suntour-Ra...item3a7b1e5ff7

 

WAIT!!! I've found the perfect solution for you!!

 

I bet that's exhilarating on wet roads

 

Wow!