Opinions on Fox 34 Performance forks

[Steve G H]

New bike ordered with Fox 34 Performance forks . This is my first ebike , previous bike was stolen , and to date never used above a 32 fork .
Initially I was happy because I've chosen a lighter weight ebike , but reading posts on here I'm starting to doubt the forks are up to the extra weight an ebike carries.
Obviously upgrade at purchase is an option , sell them as new fork , or just try them and see .
My old forks were a 32 ctd , these should be better than those , never did rate them .

 

[KeithR]

There's only one (unhelpful) way this will go: riders who are happy with the fork (like me) will say - "it's fine - good fork"; people who (rightly or wrongly) think otherwise - and be in no doubt, some people complain about it just to sound more "badass" - will complain about it being too flexy, or too harsh, or too this or too that...

And you'll be none the wiser.

Ride it and make your own decision.

But one thing I can say definitively is that the extra weight of an ebike over an acoustic bike is not a problem for the fork.

 

[Steve G H]

Lol , fair comment.

 

[apac]

They are adequate but they don't have the feel of a premier fork. I found them to be quite harsh and spikey on the down travel. They are reliable.

 

[mxh]

My experience with the 'Performance' level of Fox fork is from a few years back (I think it was the 2013 Fox 34). The fork always felt horrible and harsh, so I decided to spend some money and get it upgraded. However, talking to a few suspension shops, they all said that there was nothing they could do with it - the 'Performance' forks were built down to a price and weren't worth trying to improve.

I've used Fox factory forks since and think they're great (ie I'm not anti Fox) - but nothing would tempt me back to one of their 'Performance' products.

 

[Bike Rider 007]

If you are on the lighter side and/or just a casual rider the Fox 34 performance will be fine. If you are over 190 lbs or have rough local trails you will benefit from a stiffer fork, Lyrik or Fox 36 etc.

 

[DrStupid]

I'm 150 pounds, and ride trails, with very little jumping. But, I do hit stuff hard, I typically bottom out at least a few times every loop when running recommend PSI.

I had two bikes with fox float forks, both performance editions, both e bike optimized, one was a 34 the other a 36. I couldn't tell the difference, if the 34 flexed more than the 36 it was not happening at my weight and trail conditions.

Changing handlebars had a more profound effect on feel, than the forks did.

 

[Konanige]

As per the first comment ride it and make your own decision, however dont use manufacturers recommended pressure they can be way off, use sag measurement. You wont see any forward and back flexion in the fork when riding that is just an optical illusion created by the axle migrating back and forth as it cycles through its travel, thats why engineers use test beds. One thing I will say id that if you (like me) are a Biffer you wont get much performance from an air fork, the pressures are simply too great, and youll be on the damping limits, this includes big 38 forks as well (I have tried), for larger riders a coil spring is best.

 

[DrStupid]

Just to be clear...
My reference to recommended PSI above is to apply a context or metric for a comparison between the Two forks.

 

[KeithR]

If you are on the lighter side and/or just a casual rider the Fox 34 performance will be fine. If you are over 190 lbs or have rough local trails you will benefit from a stiffer fork, Lyrik or Fox 36 etc.

And yet I'm neither on the lighter side, nor am I a casual rider...

OP, this is exactly what I mean. Ride it yourself. Sweeping generalisations help nobody.

 

[Bike Rider 007]

And yet I'm neither on the lighter side, nor am I a casual rider...

OP, this is exactly what I mean. Ride it yourself. Sweeping generalisations help nobody.

sounds like you know it all, congratulations.

 

[Steve G H]

Thanks for all the replies . I'm around 160 lbs so not a biffer lol , I just don't tend to spend this amount of money on a bike and want to get it right . General opinion seems to be they will be fine , and I'm not exactly able to benchmark them against anything else , I've ridden Coed y Brenin fully rigid in the 90's so ya reckon I could be fussing over nothing ? Lol

 

[Jmc123]

I think you might need 36's for an ebike, either way checkout tri-sport_resort on ebay. They are the ebay outlet for wiggle, silverfish and chain reaction returns. I picked up some new fox 36 grip2 29er forks for £400