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The brake connection to the fork has snapped!
The next question is How?
Araldite, cut more thread into the bit on the fork and use a longer bolt *
*Will end in tears
LOL. I meant how did it happen?
Oh right, that sounds more sensible!
If it was on the rear I might risk a repair but no way on the front.
Did someone forget to put the top bolt in?
my guess is that the bolt was too long and bottomed out in the hole and then ripped the boss off when someone tried to keep tightening it.
Can it be repaired? No idea.
Would I want to ride it again after anything other than a professional, guaranteed repair? Hell to the no. Think of the forces that go through that.
Also,
Did someone forget to put the top bolt in?
This.
It can be repaired by removing the forks and replacing them. There's no way on this green Earth that you should do anything else.
Do you have good life insurance?
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It could be repaired as in theoretically possible but it would be very expensive and you would need to find specialists willing to do it
Proper parts bin asembly!
SRAM bolts, Shimano adapter, Magura caliper.
There was a better solution than this.
New lowers would do.
Blimey, never seen that before! was thinking the same about the bolt being too long, but there are plenty of spacers..maybe too many so bolts not binding on enough threads?
It can be repaired by removing the forks and replacing them. There’s no way on this green Earth that you should do anything else.
Look like Fox, so new lowers, rather than complete new fork.
+1 on new lowers
I like my teeth. I imagine one tooth replacement would easily pay for a entirely new fork. And dodge the pain of smashing teeth out
Do you feel lucky?
I wouldn't
I'd say the top bolt came loose/fell out and the bottom one is too short.
Possibly bodgable with a long bolt but I would be finding a set of similar forks with knackered stanchions and swapping the lowers over
Set-up as supplied. Shimano adapter as 203mm rotor with the centre lock rotor. Worked fine for months with checks every week and then the very week I didn't check......
Best guess top bolt worked loose and force applied at bottom was too great - snap! Luckly at end of the ride and just pulling in at home. Could have been so much worse.
I didn't apply thread lock as I was thinking of changing the rotors and the adapter. Lesson - always apply threadlock!
I'll stick with not checking my bolts.
Seems like every time you checked the bolt by nipping it up you might have been tightening it and it eventually snapped?
Did you use a calibrated torque wrench for the checks?
As supplied by who? Is this the cube?
Those Shimano adapters do come with a specific pair of bolts.
Magura call for 2mm rotors, Shimano are 1.8
If this was out of a shop and not aftermarket tinkering I'd have questions.
Not saying that the lower bolt you have isn't the right length as intended for an equivalently spaced SRAM 180-203 mount, but it'd still be a question mark as to the suitability for my mind.
Side note, when you get your new lowers, I'd also encourage you to adjust the axle nut to let you get the QR lever properly closed in the position you want
Sorry, not meant to be preachy/critical, but I've no doubt it sounds that way
its cast magnesium alloy so cant be tig welded?
I think it could probably be fixed with a spoon or two*
*no it can't - it's knackered.
Pic is poor on my phone for some reason so forgive me if I'm wrong but the bolt appears not to have extended into the fork lower far enough. And there's lots of spacers above the adapter under the bolt head, thus preventing full penetration of the bolt
Is that correct?
Easily fixed with a cable tie lattice of course 🫣😀
Fit for the bin now I'd say.
Sure you could try something with a jubilee clip or such, but if it doesnt work and the front suddenly jams on, its new teeth time.
New lowers, though the factory lowers arent cheap. Probably set you back £300 or so. But although im not sure, i think any fox if 36 or if 38 will work, So you could look to get rhythm lowers and fit those. I think theres about 100 quid of a difference between a rhythm lower and a factory lower.
.
On that swopping lowers note. I've a new 27.5 fox 36 and i was wondering if i could just fit a 29er set of lowers to make it more useful. Far as i can see the main part of the lowers(the tubes) are the same length on 27.5 as they are on a 29er and its only the position of the dropouts that designate what wheel its for. So for example on the 29er, the dropouts are at the bottom of the lowers, and on the 27.5 they're a little way up it.
So its just a case of swop the lowers for the bigger wheel and fit a new air shaft.
If anyone can confirm this I'd love to know.
Just had a zoomed-in look at the broken mount, and there’s discolouration of the metal around the outer edge of the screw hole, which indicates that at some point there’s been some sideways force on the post, which has cracked it and water has got in, and caused corrosion.
It’s the only solution based on what I can see that makes sense.
Corrosion can do wonders too, this fork was on a customers winter-only bike, a pretty old bike and a fork with magnesium lowers, ridden on salted roads. Looked at the fork legs, seems like paint is bubbling there, tapped it a bit with a screwdriver and large pieces fell off. The hole goes all the way through to the inside of the fork. Replaced fork immediately.
Would not have taken long for the wheel to have come off while riding.

Is there a bit of brake rotor missing too? maybe its just the angle of the photo...
I cant work out how that part of the fork would fail without significant ham fistedness.
edit : actually I think its just the shape of the rotor,nothing missing. Still can work out how that would fail on its own.
I cant work out how that part of the fork would fail without significant ham fistedness.
Roadies. They never wash their bikes.
Filthy beggars
What is the difference between rhythm and factory lowers (Other than markings?)
Looking on the Fox site (not sure what year yours are) - they don't seem to differentiate lowers between the models, just the 29/27.5, QR/Pinch axle and the colours
eg. https://www.ridefox.com/fox17/help.php?m=bike&id=956
edit - ah except Rhythm have different listed on the newer ones - https://www.ridefox.com/fox17/help.php?m=bike&id=1126
I'd check with Silverfish or TFTuned
Could've been a casting failure waiting to happen. At least you weren't riding down a techy chute I guess.
