All new for 2004, the Axel family is designed to provide new levels of high performance and high value. Features include 28.6 mm stanchions, convertible travel, hydraulic damping and a Manitou RA casting for ultimate stiffness without extra weight.
Submitted by
Paully7
a Weekend Warrior
from Ottawa
Date Reviewed: May 30, 2011
Strengths: It holds my wheel
Weaknesses: It is way to stiff.I go off a 3 foot jump, land on flatland and it uses under half the travel of the fork...
Bottom Line:
Do not get this fork the only reason that I still have it is because I can't afford a new one At the moment but hopefuly by the end of the summer I will be able to buy a marzocchi 66!
Bike Setup: Giant pistol 2, fox vanilla rear shock.
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Chitown Rider
a Weekend Warrior
from Chicago, IL, USA
Date Reviewed: October 5, 2010
Strengths: Great shock absorbancy! Lockout adjustment makes this shock very versatile for both trail riding and city riding. Love being able to change the the compression on the fly to suit my riding style and location.
Weaknesses: Fluid changes and maintenance on it can be a pain at times. Have to make sure that the compression/lockout adjustment is tight enough otherwise you will get a constant bouncy ride.
Bottom Line:
Bottom line is that this is a great & versatile shock for the money! Mine came with my bike when I bought it and I rode all over Germany when stationed there with no problems. I like that these can support big riders like me (6'5" 265 lbs) as I use my bike a lot to get around and in conditioning for rugby. I love the compression/lockout adjustment especially when riding here in the city because you never know what will pop up especially with all the road construction or trail maintenance.
Submitted by
Attitude XX
a Cross Country Rider
from New London WI, USA
Date Reviewed: April 19, 2010
Strengths: Not much
Weaknesses: Spring adjustment is horrible hardly moves even off a landing of a jump do not buy unless you want a fork that only has about 10mm of travel!!
Bike Setup: Attitude XX full XT with carbon everything
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
tru biker
a Cross Country Rider
from Poland
Date Reviewed: October 26, 2006
Strengths: No problems still after a year+, riding in bad weather and winter, daily use. No leaks, nice sound when rebounding ;) Makes the job done. Things like riding down the steps a bit difficult but possible.
Weaknesses: I'm 75 kgs and feel it to be way too hard with no chance of softening the fork. Eats bumps okay, does not "fill the gaps" however, often it's unpleasant. I often do the stoppie and the fork starts to get tired of it :) so it's not very stiff down there. Shortening travel from 100 to 80 should not affect the stiffness, but it does. Due to internals fork gets uncomfortably hard in cold.
Bottom Line:
This OEM fork has driven over 7 000 km by now, all kinds of weather were approached. Always serviced on time, lubricating etc. and the fork does not seem to be decreasing its performance. Always revitalized after fresh lube.
Do not expect too much and it won't fail. Well, I could recommend it... but, you know, better save some money and get some better stuff... especially in my quite a good bike Axel Comp is definitely the weak point. I'm replacing it soon with a kick-ass 66 or similar one.
Bike Setup: full suspension, 18 inch frame, raleigh ram 4.0
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Rodrigo Stefoni
a Weekend Warrior
from Santiago, Chile
Date Reviewed: January 15, 2006
Strengths: Looks Good
Weaknesses: Its too soft,
Bottom Line:
The fort is definitelly too soft. I ride the weekend on normal MTB trails and this fork is driving me nuts. It bounces all around. I am definitelly going to try to upgrade to 100mm or to harder spring, but i dont think I should start fidling with a fork just after few weeks of purchase. Hope it gets better after the upgrade.
I like this fork. I've read some of the other reviews and it seems like heavier riders and those using the 80mm setting don't like them. I'm only 130 lbs and have the 100mm version and they're really nice forks. The only problem was they leaked, and Performance Bike in Scottsdale AZ didn't want to deal with it. They kept telling me it was normal. I called Answer products [parent company of Manitou] and asked them if it's normal. Of course they said no, told me to send them back, they [answer] fixed for free (except shipping to them) and now they don't leak and work fine. I've owned and used other forks, from really crummy Element racing crap to Marzocchi Jr T, and for recreational cross-country the manitou axel comp is a very nice 100mm fork for lighter weight riders, and Manitou fixed the leak under warranty.
Similar Products Used: some sr suntour things (way too soft)
Bike Setup: Stock 03 Diamondback Sorrento with these forks aftermarket
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
N.B.GAS
a Cross Country Rider
from LAS VEGAS, NV.
Date Reviewed: September 18, 2005
Strengths: This is for the AXEL COMP 100mm...has'nt bottom'd out... Didnt have to add kit...Price was right...A little flex with V's, but a booster took care of that! Travel adjuster works!
Weaknesses: NO LOCK-OUT...
Bottom Line:
This fork works! Maybe the 80mm version SUCKS! But the 100mm worked just fine and only gets better after brake-in period. SO SHUT-UP and BUY ONE!!!
TIME TO RIDE! ...PEACE...
5 FOR COST........4 CAUSE IT IS WHAT IT IS!.................
Strengths: It allowed my front tire to roll on the ground. It also allowed me to steer left or right.
Weaknesses: Heavy, weak, and too soft. I bottomed out quite a bit.
Bottom Line:
I replaced this fork after a few rides on the trail and around town because I didnt feel comfortable ridin such a spongy fork. I bottomed just tryin to pre load to pull the front wheel to onto something. On the trails i'd hit a rut and would almost go over the handle bars or fly forward and smack my "boys" on the stem. This is a good fork for those who don't do much trail riding and arent concerned with having a good quality fork. I knew what i was buying and wasn't too terribly surprised of the performance. I was surprised at weak they were on trails though. If you anywhere near 180 don't buy this fork.
Bike Setup: Trek 6000 with some major upgrades such as XT front and XTR rear derailleurs. Stem, handlebar, seatpost are all bontrager. Mavic crossmax wheelset.
Overall Rating:
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Submitted by
Steven
a Weekend Warrior
from Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Weaknesses: Break in period can cause some oil to get pulled up after a compression
Bottom Line:
Fork came stock with my new bike. i don't do drops or any of that crazy stuff. But I've run down a flight of ~70 stairs almost nonstop, hit roots and other small obstacles through the city and beginner-intermediate mtb trails, and seems to work fine. Don't think i've been able to bottom out the shocks yet, although i've jumped up and down and bounced the bike, never made it all the black disappear. During the first month compressions seemed to drag some fluid up, but since then its stopped. Doesn't seem to be spectacular, but its probably round 100bucks, but sure isn't a piece of crap.
Similar Products Used: Cheap Zellers feather weight gargabe fork
Bike Setup: Stock Ironhorse Warrior Comp, Deore drive, Hayes MX-2 discs, WTB wheelset, wtc.
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Submitted by
Al
a Cross Country Rider
from Garden City, MI
Date Reviewed: November 19, 2004
Strengths: Looks good, gives a place for the front wheel to go
Weaknesses: Bouncy, bottoms out easily
Bottom Line:
What a disappointing fork! It bounces all over the place and bottoms out easily. Heaven forbid you take the thing out on the trail because any rock or root will have you fighting to keep control of your bike, or flying off of it. I compare it to putting a pogo stick on the front.
Sure, I've read the other reviews that suggest that a fork change or the 80-100 conversion make a difference, which I do intend to try, but that won't affect my scores. I simply feel that I should not have to open up my fork and spend a bunch of time working on it to get good performance, period. Dealing with adjustments and dials, yes. Open heart surgury, no.
Submitted by
nate
a Cross Country Rider
from Gardnerville, NV
Date Reviewed: July 16, 2004
Strengths: cheap.
Weaknesses: Leaks like a fifty cent squirtgun. The first one was leaking on the showroom floor, second one leaked after a 5 mile ride on a bike path.
Bottom Line:
Don't go anywhere near this fork if you can help it. It leaks and is way soft. There is also not much adjustment potential. This is a good product for folks that buy bikes but don't actually ride. 1 chili
Similar Products Used: Rock Shox SID - vastly better and more $$
Bike Setup: stock trek fuel 70 - OEM Fork
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Submitted by
Karl Yik
a Cross Country Rider
from London, UK
Date Reviewed: April 30, 2004
Strengths: good value for money, looks cool
Weaknesses: Lots of plastic inside, not easy to convert to 100mm
Bottom Line:
Came with my bike, initial impressions are its very bouncy, but then again this is my first mtb! Tried to convert it to 100mm but stopped halfway as I realised I didnt have some huge great big allen key required.
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