Apologies if this has been done before, I couldn't find anything specific...
I have the option to upgrade my 2021 Fox 34 Performance (not elite) for a 2021 RS Pike Ultimate (with the silver legs) in near new condition. Looking online the new price for the 34 Performance RRP (£879) is only marginally lower than a new Pike Ultimate RRP (£919) - I thought the Ultimate was comparable with the 34 Factory? Or is this just Fox adding a pricing premium on their forks or are they really that much better?
There's nothing wrong with my 34 Performance, other than I find them pretty harsh on bigger hits, on small bumps they've been great. I have also been running a 2017 Pike on another bike with the latest 2021 Debonair internals, it's been faultless and plush. I feel I'd just be swapping for better big hit performance and a bit more rigidity from the 35mm stanchions (for a very marginal weight increase), unless there are other pros/cons with the Pike?
For context it would be for a 29er full sus trail bike with 140mm travel, used mostly on the South Downs and Surrey Hills for XC type rides at least once a week.
Fox Factory forks are usually close to twice the price of their RS equivalent, at least when bought aftermarket.
I bought a 2022 Fox 34 Factory Grip 2 for £975 in the last month or so so I certainly wouldn't pay £879 for the older model performance spec.
I've used the older 34, the Pike and the new 2022 Fox 34, and pre 2022 I would have said the Pike but now - the 2022 Fox feels waay stiffer (indistinguishable to my 36) and is lighter.
Get the Fox but get 2022 with the curved arch and new lowers. Performance Elite if your not bothered by Gold, but want the Grip 2 damper. It's megaa.
If the 2021 is the older chassis 34, then the Pike will be noticeably stiffer.
As Snotrag says, the new one is apparently much improved - but you may not have the option to upgrade to that for a reasonable price.
I just went from an older 34 to a Pike Select+ and it's much better in terms of stiffness, with great damping. Made a huge change to how hard I can ride the bike.
If it’s the Fox 34 Performance vs the Pike Ultimate then I’d take the Pike everytime. The charger damper in the pike is RS’s equivalent to Grip 2 which is only found in the 34 Performance Elite or Factory.
It’s a stiffer chassis and a better and more adjustable damper.
Fox 34 Performance Elite or Factory vs Pike Ultimate is probably level pegging.
Interesting, thanks. I hadn't realised that the 2022 34 model had changed that much TBH. The move from my current 34 Performance to Pike Ultimate is pretty good value (provided I can sell on my good cond 34!), but the leap to 2022 34 Factory (I believe Performance Elite is OEM only) is a few hundred more at least!
Not worth paying the Fox tax for the 2022 Factory version. The Pike Ultimate is a very good trail fork.
I’ve got the silver Pike Ultimate in a 27.5 - I couldn’t get 34 Performance set up to my liking and some Ultimates came up on ebay. Night and day! Pikes make me laugh at how good they are (and this on a hardtail). Hit a fat root and they just smooth the way. Minor point, I thought the silver might look a bit wrong, but its lovely.
Get Pikes.
ps. I do have an older set of 34s on my 29er and they are excellent, about a 2017 model..
pps. one thing better on Fox is the axle. Maxle seems a bit shit to me, takes a lot of wiggling to fit back in. Maybe I’m missing a trick!
If you already have the 34s can you not just get the Grip 2 damper (no idea if this is possible) for less than the Pikes? You did say there was nothing wrong with your Fox forks.
On the maxle it’s because Rockshox forks have cut outs for their ‘torque cap’ axle option. I’ve got one hub with torque caps and one without and the one with slots in perfectly. The other needs a wiggle like you say.
@desperatebicycle I have the same challenge on my older Pikes with the Maxle, the 34 axle is def better 🙂 Looks like the Ultimate comes with a bolt through though, so I guess that does away with that issue!
It's the big hits I really find the 34 Performance struggles with, I really notice the difference between them and my Pikes when hitting roots, rocks etc.
If you already have the 34s can you not just get the Grip 2 damper (no idea if this is possible) for less than the Pikes?
The grip 2 is expensive - Silverfish will retrofit it at the same time as a service for £499. Looks like if you can find one it’s in the region of £350-£400 to buy on its own 🤷♂️
@zerocool (or crash override ;)) Yes, I could get the Grip 2 Upgrade, but the kit is nearly £500 through Fox UK, so it seems a bit nuts really, given I could probably spend far less than that (once I have sold my 34) to get some different forks.
I've always found the opposite! Fox seems to deal better with fast compressions like rocks roots etc better than Rockshox regardless Fit4 / grip / grip2 damper. Could be because I'm quite heavy tho (95kg). When was the last lowers service?
Current aftermarket Fox prices are absolutely bonkers. I'm after a new 2022 34 to put on my Transition Spur but can't find a Performance Elite version cheaper than £1,000. You can get a Pike Ultimate for just over half that, quite easily.
Anecdotally speaking though, from my own experience I've had much less (i.e. none whatsoever) trouble with all the Fox kit that I've owned. All the Rock Shox forks I've had have needed to go back for warranty issues in some shape or form.
@devash good to know. I've only ever had 2 RF forks in many years of riding, a 2017 Pike (with 2021 debonair) and a 2000 Judy TT, both were pretty reliable, obvs the latter was slightly ropey 🙂
I know the prices are just ridiculous. Not that I'd really want to spend with them, but CRC do have a 2022 34 Factory Fit4 available in their sale and with the code SALE10 it's £836.10 making it 21% OFF. It's a reasonable saving off a very expensive fork!!
Isn’t the Fit4 damper worse than the grip 2 damper? I didn’t even know they still made the fit4.....
Grip 2 is the better damper for proper trail riding. The Fit4 damper still has its place on XC bikes because it has the full lockout. I run a Fit4 Fox 34 on my XC bike and really like it.
For what it's worth, my experience with the Pike vs Fox 34 is that the Pike is noticeabley stiffer for 150mm travel (29er) and above. Not sure I could notice much difference at 140 and definitely not at 130mm.
Personally I would go for the Pike, if only for the LSC adjustment. I never touched my LSC for years and once I did, I worked out there was so much more tuning ability to get things near perfect. e.g. run a little less psi to gain small bump complaince (less harsh), but add a click or 2 LSC to stop the fork diving due to lower pressure, and provide more support.
Having said that, the 34 performance is a really nice fork. It's a lot of money for a small benefit to move to the Pike.
I think if I was buying one, I’d get the Pike (unless I was rich enough for the 202234 with Grip2) , but if I already had either of them I don my think old be rushing to buy the other as both are alright. I guess it depends on the price
Thanks for the advice all. I ended up missing the opportunity I had on the Pike Ultimate's. However, having read the above, researching a lot online and after my ride out on the weekend I realised that for a longer term investment the 34 Factory Fit4 is probably better suited for me. I do a lot of climbing (over 3,100ft on Sunday) so I like the idea of a lighter fork, with relatively easy on-the-fly adjustment (the Grip2 is probably way more complex than I need!), that's still stiffer and more confident on the descents. Going to hold on to the 34 Performance for a while (it's still a great fork!) and keep an eye out!! Plus, I'd imagine a new Pike will be coming in 2022 as the latest incarnation has been around for a while now!
