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I'm looking to ride a 600km Audax and am trying to make the bike a bit comfier. Looking at upgrading contact points e.g. saddle, bar tape, shoes and forks.
Currently bike has stock carbon forks. Bike is few years old Cannondale Caadx so not expensive to begin with (fork can't be that good).
Would upgrading to new, better carbon forks make much of a difference?
Thanks,
Carbon can be very stiff, if you want comfort you need less stiffness.
Tyres and pressures will make a far greater difference than the fork.
Get a steel fork with a nice curve in it.
As said above probably a lot easier to just get some high quality tyres and tubes.
Would upgrading to new, better carbon forks make much of a difference?
I took the carbon fork off my bike and fitted a steel fork, the steel fork is comfier. But it's about design more than material generally.
Get a steel fork with a nice curve in it.
Get a slim-bladed steel fork. Not convinced a curved or straight blade makes any real odds to comfort ime, the offset, blade dimensions and wall thickness seem to do more.
Tyres and pressures will make a far greater difference than the fork.
It's a much easier difference to get, yes, though all the differences can add up to be greater than the individual parts. 26.0 bars, skinny steel fork, bigger high quality tyres, padded tape etc. I get off one of my road bikes onto my audax bike and it feels like my front tyre is at 20psi for the first mile or two.
Great advice thanks.
Maybe I'll a look at decent steel forks for a bit.
Unless anyone wants to try to sell me an Audax bike with disc brake fittings?
Is yours one of the Caad X's that had a recall for the fork? If so and you've not done it you may as well get that done before you buy anything else.