Submitted by
Sherpa88
a Weekend Warrior
from Lemont, IL
Date Reviewed: November 10, 2009
Strengths: Light, adjustable, 80mm travel
Weaknesses: none
Bottom Line:
This is a massive improvement over stock fork which lasted 12 years. I run the air pressures at 80% of max. Seems very solid. Can take 1-2 foot drops without issue. Took a while to break it in. Seems plush while very responsive. Seems to respond well to successive hits on easy downhill rocks and bumps. I do not lose energy while climbing and works very well with the bikes overall geometry. Can't complain for the price.
Bottom Line: If you ride mostly XC with some light technical (no big hits/drops) this is a great lightweight fork.
Bike Setup: Specialized Epic, XO, Truvativ GXP, American Classic Disc, Thomson, WCS, XT cassette
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Submitted by
Kris
a Cross Country Rider
from Dallas
Date Reviewed: November 27, 2006
Strengths: Stiff. Great big hit performance. I've never felt faster going downhill. Says it's an 80mm travel fork, but feels much longer. Not once did I bottom it out.
Weaknesses: Breaks. Sent back to Marzocchi after 3 months of use for broken TST valve. Got another 3 months of use then the TST valve quit working again. Marzocchi claims this is "normal". Too much rake; this makes the bike feel sluggish and slow to respond in the tight & twisties.
Bottom Line:
Any product that breaks twice in a year and the manufacturer says that's "normal" is not worth my money. The increased rake of this fork makes it better suited for bombing downhills than the tight & twisties.
Submitted by
Nick
a Cross Country Rider
from Falls Church, VA
Date Reviewed: July 15, 2006
Strengths: Light and quick! Once you get it dialed in, it tracks very well and can soak up the big bumps too.
Weaknesses: Not the stiffest fork out there - you can see the fork vibrate if you look at the quick-release handles while going over rough ground. It's never bothered me, but some like it stiff!
Bottom Line:
It's a great fork for what it's designed to be - an XC race fork. If you're doing freeride, or love those monster drops, then get something else. If you want something with modest travel that's light and fast, then get this! I'm 185 lbs, and while it does have some flex to it, it's never bothered me.
This fork works well for it's intended purpose. I am glad I swithch out my 2005 Fox F80X - too many issues.
Marzocchi is a great company. The fork is well thought out and the controls are easy to learn. The TST is amazing and you can feel the difference in each mode. Fork is great for climbing and riding on paved or rough areas, a great setting for for mostly smooth trails.
I have been amazed by Marzocchi since 2000. I got the 2000 Atom 80 - one of the best fork ever made to date, and 2002 X-Fly 100.
I have used 2 these 2 bomber models since 2000,and I have not experience any leaked oil or leaked air. Unlike my fox F80x, wich I have used for only 2 month,oil keeps on sipping out of the stanchion. Fox says it's normal for open bath system and would not fix the problem. Good Bye Fox.
Similar Products Used: Fox F80X, Marzocchi Atom Race 100, Sid Team
Bike Setup: Intense, Marzocchi Marathon Race, Hugi 240 custon, King Headset, All Shimano XTR, Race Face Next LP.
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Submitted by
Ian McGraw
a Cross Country Rider
from Adelaide, Aust
Date Reviewed: December 3, 2005
Strengths: Very Smooth travel, excellent durability, highly adjustable, solid tracking and reasonable weight.
Weaknesses: None really. It could be argued that it is a little heavy compared to other XC forks, but you really have to compare apples with apples. This fork is about 250 grams heavier than my old SID but out performs the SID in every way, and I am therefore happy to trade some weight for performance. In any case, I see that the 2006 version of the Marathon is lighter.
Bottom Line:
I am really happy with this fork. As most reviewers note, the seals are a little tight to start with meaning there is a break in period before the fork reaches its full performance. About 20 hours trail time and it became the plushest and best tracking fork that I have ever used. It is highly adjustable and thefore does take a little bit of time to get your set up perfect (depending on weight and style), however once dialed it really does very well. Holds air without any loss. Lock out is solid.
As far as 80 mm forks go, this fork works great. I weigh 68 kg and have had no bottom out problems (adjustable rising rate means spring can be set to kick in harder at varied points of travel). I do serious XC/Trail riding including some solid descending. If you weigh 75kg plus I would be inclined to go for the longer travel Marathons, even if you only ride xc. For its intended use, however, this fork works great. My only disappointment is that a newer version came out so soon after I bought this one.
Bike Setup: NRS aluminium frame built up from scratch - Mars, XT, X0, Thompson/Raceface, Hope Mono mini.
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Submitted by
Obi Juan
a Cross Country Rider
from South Texas
Date Reviewed: October 26, 2005
Strengths: -lightest fork marzocchi makes -compression control and lockout
Weaknesses: -pain to set up -bottom ends of fork legs are open causing flex
Bottom Line:
i got this fork to replace the p.o.s. axel that came on my scale. but after taking a few headers over the bars, i would like... i need 100mm of travel. i was stoked to find this fork cheep... well, cheaper than full retail. but i spent much more than i had to and ended up with the wrong part. i was looking for a light weight xc fork with lockout and that is exactly what i got. i chose a 100% air fork so it would weigh less but having never used an all air fork before, i found it hard to set up to my liking. the travel has a stiff feel that is not as plush as other less expensive forks i've used. and the construction of the fork makes it seem too fragile to ride off-road. marzocchi has made this fork for xc racing and that is all it should be used for... climbing smooth dirt paths. but if you plan to ride trails you should look elsewhere.
Similar Products Used: Z1-drop off, Judy-xc-air, judy-sl, Axel-comp
Bike Setup: 05 Scale-60 "mostly stock"
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Submitted by
Gerry Dupaya
a Cross Country Rider
from Fremont, California, USA
Date Reviewed: October 24, 2005
Strengths: Lightweight. Great for climbing. Perfect for XC.
Weaknesses: Expensive. Definitely not for DH. If you must, bring your pump and set the pressure towards the high end of the specs. This should keep the likelyhood of flying over the handlebar to a minimum.
Bottom Line:
This fork is perfect for what it is made for, XC racing. It's ridiculously light and smooth. These are it's strenghts and also it's weeknesses. This fork is too task specific.
Similar Products Used: Late 90s Marzocchi xc700 and bomber.
Bike Setup: Self built 23 lb steel hardtail w/ twist shift and v brakes. Light and simple.
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Submitted by
chris andrew
a Cross Country Rider
from winnipeg, manitoba
Date Reviewed: October 11, 2005
Strengths: light, looks good on my bike, very adjustable, excellent action
Weaknesses: cheaply made rebound adjuster. expensive.
Bottom Line:
I love this fork. my fox fork died, and it took a month to get it back, so I went out and bought this one. the fox is now my backup fork.
nice smooth action. I keep it fairly plush, but never bottom out. super adjustable (you almost need to take a course on how to adjust the thing, there are so many options). Doesn't seem to lose any air between rides. I'm light (155lbs) and haven't noticed much in the way of flex.
Only problem was, on my first ride with this fork, the rebound adjuster (at the bottom of the fork)came right out. It's a metal knob, but it sits in a very cheap plastic housing. I just ditched the knob, and adjust the rebound damping with an allen key.
Submitted by
Doug
a Cross Country Rider
from Omaha
Date Reviewed: July 26, 2005
Strengths: Relatively smooth and adjustable X-country racing fork that is weight wise in the ball park for racing.
Weaknesses: My Marathon Race fork worked well for about a month and then developed a harsh top out action when I lofted the front end. Rebound damping did nothing to relieve this and the TST unit had to be serviced by Marzocchi. I am still waiting to get the fork back. Also there is a noticable amount of flex in the fork similar to the Sids. Also the placement of the TST control on the left leg makes it difficult to activate the lock out during a race.
Bottom Line:
I am not sure that this particular Marzocchi model is as durable as the rest of the line, but it is lighter. I feel that if you run disc brakes, the Reba is a much better choice and much cheaper. You are paying a premium price for a fragile fork without remote lock-out.
Similar Products Used: skareb, sid, sid, sid, atom
Bike Setup: top fuel 110 custom color full carbon black letters, 05 skareb platinum, manitou rear shock, x0 drivetrain, magura mantra sl brakes wiht hope 2 peaice rotors, easton ec90 0 offste post, fsa os-115 stem and os carbon flat bar, fsa carbon team crankwith ac bottom bracket and custom milled rings, wheels ( you gonna like ) chris king red iso hubs-black sapim cxray spokes-red nip nips-and stans olympic rim, chris king headset red
