Fox 38 front fork

[wgr73]

I’m about to do this same swap (from a 2019 com carbon with fox 34).

What torque Did you set the swat tool/clamp to?

Also interested in if the old bearings worked.

 

[R120]

You only need new end caps if your wheels are fitted with Torque Caps for RS forks - its not a given that a bike running an rs fork will have Torque caps on it, in fact most dont and they tend to be an optional upgrade.

 

[RodC]

Well I got good news and bad news.
Good news is that the SWAT top cap/tool fits the fork! Just make sure that you turn the bottom
piece so that it sits nicely in the oval shape.
The bad news for me... I need new end caps for my stock Roval wheels. The fox has a smaller diameter drop-out. About 19mm. The end caps that came on my wheels are 31 mm. I believe this is because I had the Rockshox front fork. So if you are going from a Rockshox fork to the Fox fork, you may need new end caps like me.

I emailed Roval and this is the answer I got:

"Hi and thanks for reaching out,
I believe the end caps you will need are S195900001, we offer those or S195900002. We recommend taking it into your nearest Specialized Retailer and having them double check all measurements. Also if you are going to over-fork your bike, anything more than 10% over the stock 150mm of travel will void your warranty.
I hope this helps.
Thank you and enjoy the ride!
- Casey | USA Rider Care Specialist"

I assume I have the S195900002 caps ... but I'm not sure the 01 are the correct ones for the FOX fork.

 

[mazukea]

how about the bearings on the stem? Did you used the old ones, same as the RS?
or new?

which end caps you bought? I don’t know how to look for those

hey man. I bought the end caps from amaincycling.com
The part number is S195900001.
I also reused the bearings and they seem to work fine. Once I get the new end caps then I can finally get a ride in. I believe the brakes should be a straight swap over using the same adaptor that was on the RS fork.

 

[mazukea]

I’m about to do this same swap (from a 2019 com carbon with fox 34).

What torque Did you set the swat tool/clamp to?

Also interested in if the old bearings worked.

the stock bearing seem to work fine. I didn’t get to have a ride on it yet since I’m waiting for new end caps though.
I dont Know what the reccomended torque setting is for the swat tool headset. I did find out that if you make it too tight, then the swat tool swing door can’t open. Lol. So I backed it off until the door could open freely again. However I am trying to research the torque setting now.

 

[RodC]

https://media.specialized.com/support/collateral/0000086993.pdf

Info for the swat cc tool

 

[mazukea]

https://media.specialized.com/support/collateral/0000086993.pdf

Info for the swat cc tool

Thanks!

 

[wgr73]

Interesting

 

[speedkills]

I appreciate you sharing your upgrade experience and linking to the parts. I have a Mezzer on order myself and hadn't even considered the torque caps, you just saved me a bad new fork delivery day.

 

[mazukea]

Well the front hub adapters came in quick! I can now confirm that the S195900001 part fits perfect!

 

[mazukea]

The fork came with 1 volume spacer installed. I could already tell that it was way too soft but I did a couple of jumps on my kicker ramp anyways. It blew right through all the travel on the fork. I weight 170 pounds and I had 95 psi in my fork at the time.
So I installed 3 volume spacers and increased the air pressure to 100 psi. Much better! I may even put one more spacer in too once I get this fork dialed in.
I still need to hit the trails to really tune it though. I currently just have everything set to the reccomended values according to my weight.
First impressions based solely on my kicker ramp and small backyard rooty yard....it’s waaayyyy better than the stock rockshox fork. So supple and smooth.

 

[RodC]

Well the front hub adapters came in quick! I can now confirm that the S195900001 part fits perfect!
View attachment 33482

It seems I have a different hub than you.

 

[mazukea]

first real ride this morning. So Plush! So Smooth! The bike felt sturdier on the fast descents too. Now I just gotta upgrade the rear shock to match the front. I feel like I’m riding a new bike.

 

[RodC]

View attachment 33551
first real ride this morning. So Plush! So Smooth! The bike felt sturdier on the fast descents too. Now I just gotta upgrade the rear shock to match the front. I feel like I’m riding a new bike.

Enjoy.
can’t wait for mine to arrive.

 

[mazukea]

It seems I have a different hub than you.

Which model Levo do you have?

 

[RodC]

Which model Levo do you have?

2020 turbo levo basic

 

[ebikerider]

It seems I have a different hub than you.

View attachment 33537

The torque caps on those hubs just pull off if you decide to buy something other than a Rockshox fork. The caps don't have any performance benefit at all, only making it easier to locate the wheel in the Rockshox fork when installing the axle.

 

[R120]

I was a doubter on any benefits of torque caps, but following a recommendation from my local mechanic I installed them after switching too 223mm front rotors and they definitely made a difference to the stiffness/maintaining the alignment of the bottom of the forks with the forces the big rotors put through the forks.

it’s for that reason I am interested to try out the new Foxes as their a system promises to help for exactly this situation

 

[RodC]

The torque caps on those hubs just pull off if you decide to buy something other than a Rockshox fork. The caps don't have any performance benefit at all, only making it easier to locate the wheel in the Rockshox fork when installing the axle.

that’s great. So I don’t need extra caps?

 

[jbrown15]

There is no 36 with 170 travel. The 36 is 150 & 160 only.

From what ive seen in reviews, Lyrik is a very good fork, maybe yours need some service and checkup.

I'm sure you could order the parts to have it converted to have more travel. The Fox 36's on my Devinci AC come with a 180mm travel.
I'm looking to upgrade to the orange Fox 38's with 180mm travel.

 

[RodC]

I'm sure you could order the parts to have it converted to have more travel. The Fox 36's on my Devinci AC come with a 180mm travel.
I'm looking to upgrade to the orange Fox 38's with 180mm travel.

As I mentioned earlier, I meant on the 2021 Forks.

 

[Shane(NZ)]

View attachment 33205

You could get them spun down in a lathe, I dont have your patience?
Anyone seen new model emtb that run the 38 as std figment?

 

[R120]

You could get them spun down in a lathe, I dont have your patience?
Anyone seen new model emtb that run the 38 as std figment?

We won't see them stock till 2021 model hit the shops, as they where launched half way through this model year

 

[speedkills]

You could get them spun down in a lathe, I dont have your patience?
Anyone seen new model emtb that run the 38 as std figment?

I have a lathe, good idea ?

 

[RodC]

Finally my fork and shock arrived yesterday.
shock installed. No problems.

And because such is life in the fkn tropics, the end caps I bought (S19590001) are not compatible with my wheelset. Lol.

These below, are the originals. The diameter Of my bearing is bigger.
anyhow I noticed these can be split. And the inner diameter is correct (I think) for the Fox Fork.

I’m an animal and was mad at the notice, I made some scratches on the caps.

 

[RodC]

 

[mazukea]

I hope you can get your front end caps sorted out so that you can install your new fork.

Have you tried out the rear X2 shock yet? Its on my xmas list for this year!

 

[RodC]

I hope you can get your front end caps sorted out so that you can install your new fork.

Have you tried out the rear X2 shock yet? Its on my xmas list for this year!

yes thanks. Everything sorted out. the end caps just split and install without the big rings that are for RockShox forks.

just a brief roll, but it feels amazing compared with the deluxe I had.

 

[RodC]

 

[mazukea]

Ah I see now. I guess I wasn’t really sure when I was reading and looking at those pictures you posted.

I’m heading out for just my 3rd trail ride this morning on this fork. I’m still running the reccomended settings cause I haven’t really found a need to change it yet. However this next trail I’m going to has more variety and speed. So i might make some small changes.