Hard Lesson for a X-Link Hardcore

[will]

 [smiley=worry.gif]
Okay, okay... I get it. The Crosslink is an out of date fork with only limited upgrade potential.
Yes the Crosslink EXP is a smooth acting and super stiff fork.
However, with travel of less than 3" honest inches and a homemade disk mount, it makes a 5 year old 'Zoke air/oil fork feel high tech plush-o-matic.

How did I learn this lesson? [smiley=groucho.gif]
Took a good steep drop yesterday - 25 meters with lots of rocks and roots. That little dive has always been exciting, but navigable with the Z1 Flylight fork. Yesterday, I was lucky to live through it when the Crosslink turned into a jackhammer on speed! At the bottom there's a sudden transition to a climb where you pull at least one extra G. The fork just stayed bottomed out. Scared the bejeezis outta me.

So it's off to the bike catalogs for a slider fork...

[Simon]

Oooooh nasty,glad you lived through it though
anyway good excuse to buy a new fork ,
don't you just love browsing for new bike parts
what forks have you got your eye on
Simon.

[Carbon_Angus]

I had a similar circumstance happen to me 5 years ago (on my 857), although I was going slower, still endowed from the j-path curse after hitting a hidden rut. I know I should have been weighted back more on the bike at the time, but the fork is unforgivving in certain situations.

an awesome, stiff fork for xc riding, ONLY. IMHO






[smiley=beer.gif]

[will]

Messr's Simon & Carboni,

Truly a love-hate thing, eh? I love it, but it hates me!

I thought that NR-2 was sucking the life out of me, so I took it up a steep paved hill to watch the bobbing action on a smooth surface. Yikes, it looked like a pump jack when I wasn't spinning perfect pedal circles. (A pump jack is one of those counter-weighted oil well pumps you see going up and down all overTexas.)

www.Jensonusa.com is giving away Judy U-Turns for $69. That's like forty quid, right? Any recommendations for other 2004 OEM take-off forks? Those things generally go cheap-a-delic.
Will

[Frankd3000]

Sorry to hear of your woes, Will. I won't say i'm glad to see you go with a slider, though. Yeah yeah, I still have a soft spot for my CrossLink/CC combo.  

I'd say ante-up and look around for a Noleen MegaAir. Slider, you can STILL get replacement parts and you can upgrade from 75mm to 100mm travel. Yes, you'll have to be patient with E-Bay, but you can find them - and they're light, too.

If you're really adamant on finding a take-off slider then don't forget Cambria and GreenFish. They both have Manitou's IF you wanna go that route. Most of them are SPV models (platform), but IIRC they had a couple of the TPC models (no platform). As always, be wary of manufacturers specs and changes with OEM stuff.

Pump jack. [smiley=laughing.gif] [smiley=laughing.gif] Good one, Will!

[Old Proflexer]

usually not one to assign blame but i do attribute a dislocated collar bone do to an endo that happened with one of my crosslinks up front.  a full water pack saved my back from addtional pain and misery.

i've ridden the same terrain with a psylo sl and haven't gotten close to the same experience.  

still ride the crosslinks tho' - just on the flatter, faster XC terrain -

OP

[Simon]

Marzocchi always seen to make good forks
and you tend to find many bargins for these forks,
I'd look for,
03 MX Comp air ETA
05 MX Comp
05 MX Comp ETA
These are from a few owners reviews I've just checked out.
Simon.

[rapiddescent]

My lesson was in 1996 at penhurst Off Road Club in kent (UK proflexer/K2ers will know the place) and I bottomed out the vector ii's and also bent one of the legs.  scared me crapless.  I bought Marzocchi Z1's and never looked back.

callum
rds

[jazclrint]

I am of the complete opinion that going to a slider fork is complete crap.  People who do this should be shunned.  Every time I see a sweet carbon (or any Proflex really) with one of those freqin' ugly peices of crap on it I curse God for allowing such a sacrilege!  I'm going back into my cave now. (this was all tongue in cheek btw)

On a real note I put a Fox Float RL in my carbon crosslink as well as on the back, and, as I have said sooo many times before, it climbed better, but was TRANSFORMED on the descents.  Even the Australian's thought I had lost my mind.  Well, once.  The fork still has that funny dive feeling when you mount it, but I have yet to get to play with it much.  But it was magic when riding it.  And I went down some very tecnical descents.  Diffenately worth the money and effort I put into it.  And I have more than 3" of travel now.