Submitted by
---dopey---
a Downhiller
from reading england
Date Reviewed: December 27, 2008
Strengths: light, rides nice, easy to maintain, simple to set up, tracks the ground well, nice and low but doesnt sit down too much in its travel
Weaknesses: stiction pretty bad and fills up with dirt pretty quick - only had mine for a few months and it needs a rebuild to get it smooth again, very flexy due to skinny tubes and very thin chassis
Bottom Line:
very good but you can tell its a racers fork. nice ride and performance but is hampered by flexy chassis and high maintenance - mine had new seals in before i bought it and it filled up with dirt real fast
Similar Products Used: 'zocchi dj3 2003, rockshox judy race - the old red ones
Bike Setup: kona stinky '03 6"travel(15" frame in gloss black), halo SAS front wheel, vanilla read shock, boxxer '01, raceface evolve dh cranks, dabomb recoil chain guide
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Submitted by
chris
a Downhiller
from syracuse new york
Date Reviewed: January 21, 2007
Strengths: i had to write this to defend the boxxer after that last writeup....this is a sweet fork....i guess not too sweet if you are lookin to land on flat or somethin like that but its pretty lightweight and tracks really well.....i wouldnt trade it
Weaknesses: does leak periodically but anybody could rebuild it....whats a seal kit a year
Bottom Line:
this is an antique at this point i guess but still a sick ass fork...its saved me countless times when things werent planned out as well as they could have been ......all bow to the boxxer
Weaknesses: The fork is weak it gave out in the arch, got all twisted. Poped the seals on a regular basis, too much up keep. JUNK
Bottom Line:
I do not think it gets all the travel it says, unless you count when you pull on the fork legs and get that extra 0.5". The fork is ok, nothing special like all the hype. There’s always something broken. Warranty is impossible, generally your better off getting it fixed at your lbs, it will be cheaper and it will not take months. Finally I had to buy a used one for parts then sell the two for parts. There’s probably some guy out there with 30 boxxers just for parts. My friend got the 2004 boxxer and hated it so much he sold it for half price 2 weeks later, stay away from Rock Shox cause it will cost you in the long run. Spend the extra bucks on a Marzocchi and you'll actually get to ride! Make sure it will fit, the sliders are short and I had to get a lowering top crown cause my tire kept hitting the lower crown...
Strengths: plush and good for dh. light. steers pretty well.
Weaknesses: a little too plush sometimes and not reactive enough, the crowns arent wide enough to have a good wide turning radius so you get stuck sometimes. the lowers are super weak, i took a bail and they hit a rock and it made a hole in them and started spueing oil out.
Bottom Line:
this fork works well but is a little too plush for hucks and stuff, the lowers aren't strong enough so ya taht's about it. used it for three days and now i need a new fork..
Strengths: Light and steers well.(sad that's all I have to say that's nice)
Weaknesses: Bad seals, mine binded up after a week of riding. rebound damper does nothing.
Bottom Line:
Tracks well! I blew the thing up twice, oil, oil everywere! I tried to get tuning tips from rock shox and the told me to put more oil in. I did and all it did was leak more oil. I'm sorry a working fork shouldn't need a few cc's of soup evertime I'm at the mountain. It was light for a dh fork. I don't know maybe I got the lemon. But if I were you save yourself from prblemsand buy a marz. shiver, 888, junior or super tI don't care, they are just better performing and more reliable.
Submitted by
Bryant Rudy
a Downhiller
from Kingston, N.Y., U.S.
Date Reviewed: June 19, 2003
Strengths: It has good seals, it's strang, not alot of flex, and is cool looking.
Weaknesses: A little to plush for what I do. The bolts for the axel stay strip to easaily.
Bottom Line:
People under rate the Boxxer. Yeah, a Dorado DC DH, or a Shiver WC DC DH miggt be better, but the BoXXer is a good fork if you follow the manual. It is best suited for DH than dropping but if you hit 5' drops and under... than buy these! I have owned this fork for 2 years now and it is a true DH fork! Don't blow the fork off just because you broke something, your probobally using it wrong. Just buy it and feel the ground like it should be felt... smooth!
Bike Setup: 2002 Santa Cruz Bullit w/ BoXXer and a 2003 Santa Cruz V10 w/ Boxxer
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Submitted by
Nate Mcvay
a Downhiller
from lewistion Id usa
Date Reviewed: May 31, 2002
Strengths: It is a awesome shock and TnT is the gratest bike shop ever the really hock you up with a good deal. they will match and work to get you what you really want
Weaknesses: This is nt weak at all when your only 115 pounds and going 50 mph down a hill its awesome adn you fell like your on a watter bed. You float.
Bottom Line:
It rock the world and you never want to stop riding
Strengths: light,somewhat stiff,nice color,good warrenty sys,feels great,pretty easy to pull apart,i rode the thing for 6 mnths and did nothing to maintain it, still feels good,
Weaknesses: no on the fly adjust,cannot take the super big hits very well, not enough damping control(likes to bounce)when landing, i just put a heavier oil in, maybe it will help,i barely hit a rock and put a huge dent in the lower leg,flexy under lots of stress,cost is a factor
Bottom Line:
if ur willing to drop the bank and are looking for a good race fork this is it,if ur more into the one big hit wonders i wouold go with a shiver our a stratos,but for all around race and riding(also jumps great) i really like it
Submitted by
Terence
a Weekend Warrior
from Calgary, AB
Date Reviewed: September 17, 2001
Strengths: Light weight for amount of travel, range of adjustability, stiffness
Weaknesses: Questionable seals, have to tear down to adjust
Bottom Line:
Overall this is a good fork. It's saved my bacon a number of times on botched jumps and drops. I was blowing through the travel easily when I just bought it but an adjustment to the high speed compression fixed that.
I ride mostly technical trails that usually involve a climb (note: climb, not shuttle) so it's relatively light weight is apprecialted. I'm faily light (155) but am a fairly aggressive rider yet have not noticed any significant, control robbing flex.
The seals on the rebound leg have since parted company and will need replacement shortly. Normally I would consider this a normal part of wear and tear except that the same problem has occurred on a friends Boxxer that has sigficantly fewer and less toturous hours on it than mine.
Overall a very good fork but not a great one. At this price my expectations are a little higher so...
Strengths: travel, plush, weight,rock shox name, its colour
Weaknesses: none that ive found yet
Bottom Line:
its a good fork compared to the others. The monster T fractured when i took it off a 19t ledge and overshot the landing, super T didnt have enough travel for me so i sold it, i still have the pyslo xc on my iDrive, the F1 fork was great then my sponsership deal ended woth foes and they took it back but i kept the bike, so i still have this one and rock shox they'll let me keep the fork, and azonic said they'll let me keep the bike :)
Similar Products Used: monster T, super T, pyslo xc, foes f1 wet one fork
Bike Setup: dhi race, full xtr, shimano xt front disc 10in rotor hays hydraulic disc rear 8in rotor, maxxis highrollers, rock shox black box rear shock 8in travel, race face seat post.
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Submitted by
Jack Spurn
a Downhiller
from Portland, Maine, US of A
Date Reviewed: July 15, 2001
Strengths: looks great, soaks up anything i throw at it, and still loos great. It also has great travel.
Weaknesses: None yet, but I'm still looing
Bottom Line:
This fork is a true work of art, i cannot find anything wrong with it, especially considering i got on eBay (they have some great stuff). I would definetly recommend this to anybody who wants a serious downhill, multipurpose fork. The colors (Rock Shox calls them electric red), look great with almost any bike (mine is green), and always seem to be clean, even when i ride them trough mud and into dirt mounds. Rock Shox has created a winner.
Similar Products Used: Rock Shox Psylo Race, Mazocchi Shiver
Bike Setup: Trek Y33, Fox Vanilla rear shock, 2001 Boxxer, vetta c-15 computer, blah, blah, blah
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Submitted by
Matt T.
a Downhiller
from Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Date Reviewed: June 18, 2001
Strengths: Color, weight(lack of it when compared to others), feel, lack of stiction when set up properly, price.
Weaknesses: tight fitting upper crown, makes adjustment difficult but once their set up, they rip.
Bottom Line:
So far, this fork has been amazing. Way better ride than anything from stratos without junky seals, twisting legs and bending forks! Once this fork gets dialed, you cant stop it. admittedly, the fork doesn't suit everybody's riding style, but I spent all winter getting smoother and the fork gives me 0 problems while i get 100% satisfaction! What else? it's simple to rebuild(as long as you dont rip apart the cartridges) and relatively maintenance free... the fruity finishline stickers come off easily and the seals haven't blown yet and don't show any signs of doing so.
Similar Products Used: SS8, Monster T, Shiver, old boxxers, MX6, XVert Carbon
Bike Setup: 01' VPS team DH, rebuilt with tasty goodies, including a well matched boxxer!
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Submitted by
Ivan
a Downhiller
from Ottawa, Ontario
Date Reviewed: June 7, 2001
Strengths: Man this fork rips...it's so plush and looks soooo good. low maintenence and great feel...stiff
Weaknesses: looks so good I don't want to get it dirty!!
Bottom Line:
This is truely a racing fork...it does it job with ease...all you who say it's too flexy or your's broke maybe you should become smooth on your bike or get a big hit fork like a monster!! I love this fork and don't think there will be any faults with it!!
Weaknesses: Lowers are made of tinfoil. I cracked a hole in the lowers from hitting a tree. I wasn't going to fast. At least I don't think so. My MX6 took hits waaay harder into rocks and barely even dinged. Man I miss that thing.
Bottom Line:
I really didn't get to ride it a whole lot yet, but it feels flexy and is made of tinfoil. Next year I will buy an S7 I think.
Weaknesses: thin, flexy, weak ( i snapped them), stiction, colour
Bottom Line:
they are a fork that has a lot of hype that goes with it but there is not much point in paying the price when the fork could break like mine on a 6 foot drop. the variable rate is ok, but the forks have lots of stiction due to the stantions.
