Rockshox 35 Silver fork issues.... replacement ideas?

[cl0nd0n]

So I have a Rockshox Silver 35 fitted to my Cube Stereo Hybrid 140 - it has just been back to SRAM tech centre under warranty for new seals as it blew something, since refitting it still feels rough and if I get past how it feels, I have to live with the loud squelch on going over even the smallest of bumps. Go down a rough trail and it just becomes embarrassing! SRAM are saying the awful noise is normal with an 'open bath' fork and it is a lower end fork so should be expected. Long story short, it's time to replace it.

So the current fork is 140mm, I understand I could fit a 150mm without any real issues - my question is could I get away with a 160mm or would it knock the geometry way out?

A couple of options I have found so far might be a Lyrick Ultimate 150mm - also found a Zeb Ultimate but that only comes in a 160mm. It's going to come down to whats available I think.....

Any advice welcome!

 

[RustyMTB]

Literally anything would be an improvement over a 35. The question is why do you want more travel? Do you need it or just want it? If you're riding UK trails, 140/50 is plenty. If you're ripping enduro every weekend then sure, 170 it dude.

Fitting a longer fork will add weight, raise the bars, slacken the headtube angle, roughly one degree for every 20mm, raise the bb, make the steering a bit more sluggish & lengthen the wheel base. In general, your average trail bike will happily take another 20mm, after that you're building a bike the designers didn't intend but a Lyrik, Pike or Yari are all decent options, even better if you can get one with the Debonair spring & charger damper.

 

[cl0nd0n]

Literally anything would be an improvement over a 35. The question is why do you want more travel? Do you need it or just want it? If you're riding UK trails, 140/50 is plenty. If you're ripping enduro every weekend then sure, 170 it dude.

Fitting a longer fork will add weight, raise the bars, slacken the headtube angle, roughly one degree for every 20mm, raise the bb, make the steering a bit more sluggish & lengthen the wheel base. In general, your average trail bike will happily take another 20mm, after that you're building a bike the designers didn't intend but a Lyrik, Pike or Yari are all decent options, even better if you can get one with the Debonair spring & charger damper.

Thanks!!

I only ride trails so don’t need 170 or anything like it. A little extra travel over the 140 would be nice, it was more about the fact that a Lyrik only comes in a 150 and a Zeb in a 160.

 

[IRideBikes]

Personally i would go for the 150 lyrik, i dont know what year your bike is but the 140 stereo action team i had came fitted with a 150mm 36 so you wont need to worry too much about making the bike too slack or lifting the BB too high and will work well. with it only been 10mm longer about 0.5 degree slacker headtube angle which itll cope with just fine. a 160mm zeb, because its a longer fork overall, would actually lift the front of the 25mm, which would equate to roughly 1.5 degrees slacker (its usually very roughly 0.5 degrees to every 10mm of extra travel) which would put your weigh quite significantly further back on the bike, which can make it harder to weight that front wheel in flatter turns. if youre riding alot of steep trails, you might find it benficial, other wise it can be quite annoying. also, the lyrik, in terms of stiffness, isnt a noodle, its already very stiff and a brilliant fork! hope that helps

 

[cl0nd0n]

Personally i would go for the 150 lyrik, i dont know what year your bike is but the 140 stereo action team i had came fitted with a 150mm 36 so you wont need to worry too much about making the bike too slack or lifting the BB too high and will work well. with it only been 10mm longer about 0.5 degree slacker headtube angle which itll cope with just fine. a 160mm zeb, because its a longer fork overall, would actually lift the front of the 25mm, which would equate to roughly 1.5 degrees slacker (its usually very roughly 0.5 degrees to every 10mm of extra travel) which would put your weigh quite significantly further back on the bike, which can make it harder to weight that front wheel in flatter turns. if youre riding alot of steep trails, you might find it benficial, other wise it can be quite annoying. also, the lyrik, in terms of stiffness, isnt a noodle, its already very stiff and a brilliant fork! hope that helps

That really does help thanks! I was thinking a 150mm Lyrik would be the best choice without upsetting things too much. It should me a mega improvement over the 35 thats on the bike now! Just got to find one in stock now.....

 

[RustyMTB]

One option is to source a cheap Yari & upgrade it with a charge damper & debonair & you have a Lyrik. They're the same chassis, different internals. You'd have to do the sums but if it works on the £££s then it's an option.

 

[Doug Stampfer]

One option is to source a cheap Yari & upgrade it with a charge damper & debonair & you have a Lyrik. They're the same chassis, different internals. You'd have to do the sums but if it works on the £££s then it's an option.

I upgraded my yari to lyrik spec & was a great change. That was just before Zebs & 38s came along & since then I've seen many nearly new 2nd hand lyriks or Fox 36s come onto the market place at much better value than what I would have spent. I would def be looking at the 2nd hand market for an upgrade if I was in the OPs place.

 

[Swiftdaddy]

It annoys me that many bikes are speccing these on their more affordable emtb’s. RS Revelation/pike Should be bare minimum on a any bike over $5k.

I bumped my trail bike from 140 to a 160 fork and have not had an issue. But you can also lower the travel on most forks to 140/150 if you need to. ZEB is a good burley fork but Lyrik will be just fine at 140/150.

 

[cl0nd0n]

Thanks for all the advice guys - thats why I love this forum!

If anyone spots a Lyric Ultimate in 150mm let me know - lots of used Lyric's around but all longer travel so far!

 

[IRideBikes]

a 150 airshaft can be purchased for about £40 if you wan to lower the travel down, and its a VERY easy job to change it, likelyhood is a second hand fork would benefit from a basic service anyway, so might be worth factoring that into the price of your search for a fork, TF tuned offer service and travel change for £150, but the parts to do it yourself would cost about £60 with the oils and grease

 

[cl0nd0n]

a 150 airshaft can be purchased for about £40 if you wan to lower the travel down, and its a VERY easy job to change it, likelyhood is a second hand fork would benefit from a basic service anyway, so might be worth factoring that into the price of your search for a fork, TF tuned offer service and travel change for £150, but the parts to do it yourself would cost about £60 with the oils and grease

Thanks @IRideBikes - thats a great point that I hadn't considered! I could look for a longer travel Lyrik and bring it down to 150 if it is only the air shaft... Can you drop a Zeb down to 150 as well?

 

[IRideBikes]

Thanks @IRideBikes - thats a great point that I hadn't considered! I could look for a longer travel Lyrik and bring it down to 150 if it is only the air shaft... Can you drop a Zeb down to 150 as well?

i believe so, biketart sell a 150mm rockshox zeb airshaft

 

[1oldfart]

Going + 20 is no problem. I did it 3 years ago and never regreted it.