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Building a 110-120 XC/ down country hardtail for cardio training, rides with the girlfriend, and bikepacking (multi day bridleway type stuff, packing light)
Usually ride trails/ enduro so it might get a bit of abuse here and there. And no first hand experience with the short travel rockshox stuff. Rest of the build is looking budget friendly so far, prepared to spend a little more where it counts.
Wondering where the sweet spot is with these for model/ spec/ value for money. Trying to keep the weight down around a 2kg ish ali frame.
I’d give the Reba a miss. I found the 32mm legs to flex. The Sid 35mm is a better bet IMO.
i wouldnt rule out the fox rhythm (oem) are on merlin 32 is £325 100mm
or 130mm 34 (1.86kg) for £299
i had a 34 a few years ago and it was setup and forget, a great fork for the money and so much stronger than a reba, which i found to flex too much, i was doing 25-30mph on road and i could see it bend :0)
sid select RL 29er 120mm £504 biketart 1.67kg
The SID 35 has a reputation for the bushings going wrong, might have been fixed by now but it put me off getting a bike with them on, especially as it was Halfords and not a shop that I could guarantee a decent mechanic.
Considered a Fox 34? There's just about a version to suit both Reba and SID35 budgets.
I have had 100mm Rebas and now SID Ulimates on my Chisel. SIDS are noticeably more comfortable. Not noticed flex, even when bike-packing. Obviously I’m doing something wrong!
SID 32 are great for XC but would be too flexy for anything more. The 35s in terms of stiffness are a BIG step up & as good as any trail fork I've ridden. Can't comment on the bushings issue - mine are fine to date..
Only looking at rockshox because that’s what I know a little bit about. Have serviced my forks and shocks no problem etc.
in terms of 35mm stanchion are any of the other rockshox worth looking at?
Pike is a good fork.
<p style="text-align: left;">I've reba 32s at 100mm travel on my ss... I upgraded the damper to the charge damper... Really good fork, but at 120mm I'd want bigger stantions....</p>
I've some 35mm sid (120mm) arriving any time now on an epic Evo... Should be great...
DrP
If you're interested in a set of 35mm SID's I have some taken off a brand new bike that I upgraded to 130mm Pikes, I've not got around to advertising yet.
I put a Reba on my son's bike and they are very simple in terms of damping (MoCo)... Not nearly as nice as SID/Pike.
I have a Sid sl 100mm on an xc bike. Considering trying the 35mm Sid as at 80kg the flex slows me down on any sort of bumpy high speed corner (think Cannock braking bumped berms).
Go for 35mm stanchions which rules out the SL which is 100mm only and the Reba.
I have a 35mm SID Select+ @ 110mm which is great, was aware of the bushing issue when I brought it second hand 20 months ago, no issues so far. I like it.
A 120mm Pike will offer more compression settings and weight if you like to fiddle with tuning the fork more.
What ever RockShox fork you get do a lower leg service on it as it will be factory dry.
I think the bushing issue on SID may have been an early on model "thing" as I had them replaced under warranty on mine, still seems to get talked about but
a) think it is fixed (assume that stock is current not old, worth checking) and
b) warranty IME was easy breezy.
James
I know a lot of people are saying that 32mm stanchions are flexy, but for your use I don’t think that’s necessarily an issue. I remember riding round on 150mm travel revelations which I think were essentially the same as rebas - the 32mm stanchions with a bulge on the lower leg. Yes vs a Pike etc they will have more flex - but if you aren’t battering down extreme downhills I’m not convinced it’s an issue. I ran mine at Bike Park Wales a few times.
I think the 32mm revelation was pretty similar in stiffness to the Fox 34 at the time.
The charger damper in the Pike / SID 35 is better than moco though.