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Product name: SR Suntour Durolux36 EQ R2C2 Boost 29" 170mm fork - first ride review.
Price paid: Nowhere near list price.
Score (out of 10): 10
Review: I bought this fork as part of a budget build I wanted to do. The problem for me was that I like to dial in all of my settings, as I ride a variety of trail types - from full on DH, through steep, tech hand cut singletrack, to mellow trail centre blues - and at a variety of different speeds! My fork of choice, until now, has been the Rockshox Lyrik RC2, which has been utterly stellar in 160mm 29er guise, on the front of my Levo SL. Having read reviews of the Suntour Durolux and having access to a brand new fork for close to half list price, I decided to take a punt.
First off, the factory settings are easy enough to find, in the Suntour literature, but don't go expecting anything like the kind of set up support you get from Rockshox, Fox, or Cane Creek, for example. I was somewhat sceptical of the suggestions, as it seems that Suntour expect one set of settings to fit everyone! Regardless, I went with their recommendations, fitted up my ShockWiz, and headed down to the woods. My initial impressions were that I had too much air, not much mind, and ShockWiz backed that up, so I removed 5psi and went again. I chose runs that involved long drops, fast straights, tight turns, and loose, steep, tech. Oh, chucked a bunch of roots in there too, for good measure. The fork just ate it up! Not once did I feel like I was being pitched over the front, I never felt any chatter, but big hits were just absorbed without so much as a flinch. I do think there was a tiny amount more noise, compared to my Lyrik, but the Durolux was working harder, being bolted to the front of an E-Sommet 297, and it is hundreds of pounds cheaper than it's peers.
Long story short, I would be happy to put this fork on any bike I was riding. I'm thinking I might have to see if I can source the 38 version, just to see if it is any better than the 36, but really I am blown away by this fork. I do still need to do a bit more playing around, to see if I can improve on anything, but I have no worries about this fork being able to match the Fox Float X2 Performance Elite shock, controlling the back end. It really is that good! Seriously, if you like your high-end forks but don't want to pay high-end prices, this is the fork for you. It does also come in black, if you can't stomach the grey (and can find the black, though I actually quite like the grey), and there are even a few less tuneable versions that are even cheaper than this R2C2 version.
Buy this fork, you will not be disappointed.
Product name: SR Suntour Durolux36 EQ R2C2 Boost 29" 170mm fork - first ride review.
Price paid: Nowhere near list price.
Score (out of 10): 10
Review: I bought this fork as part of a budget build I wanted to do. The problem for me was that I like to dial in all of my settings, as I ride a variety of trail types - from full on DH, through steep, tech hand cut singletrack, to mellow trail centre blues - and at a variety of different speeds! My fork of choice, until now, has been the Rockshox Lyrik RC2, which has been utterly stellar in 160mm 29er guise, on the front of my Levo SL. Having read reviews of the Suntour Durolux and having access to a brand new fork for close to half list price, I decided to take a punt.
First off, the factory settings are easy enough to find, in the Suntour literature, but don't go expecting anything like the kind of set up support you get from Rockshox, Fox, or Cane Creek, for example. I was somewhat sceptical of the suggestions, as it seems that Suntour expect one set of settings to fit everyone! Regardless, I went with their recommendations, fitted up my ShockWiz, and headed down to the woods. My initial impressions were that I had too much air, not much mind, and ShockWiz backed that up, so I removed 5psi and went again. I chose runs that involved long drops, fast straights, tight turns, and loose, steep, tech. Oh, chucked a bunch of roots in there too, for good measure. The fork just ate it up! Not once did I feel like I was being pitched over the front, I never felt any chatter, but big hits were just absorbed without so much as a flinch. I do think there was a tiny amount more noise, compared to my Lyrik, but the Durolux was working harder, being bolted to the front of an E-Sommet 297, and it is hundreds of pounds cheaper than it's peers.
Long story short, I would be happy to put this fork on any bike I was riding. I'm thinking I might have to see if I can source the 38 version, just to see if it is any better than the 36, but really I am blown away by this fork. I do still need to do a bit more playing around, to see if I can improve on anything, but I have no worries about this fork being able to match the Fox Float X2 Performance Elite shock, controlling the back end. It really is that good! Seriously, if you like your high-end forks but don't want to pay high-end prices, this is the fork for you. It does also come in black, if you can't stomach the grey (and can find the black, though I actually quite like the grey), and there are even a few less tuneable versions that are even cheaper than this R2C2 version.
Buy this fork, you will not be disappointed.
