Strengths: Plush, reliable, efficient, stiff, comfortable, gives confidence, excellent terrain reading,quite light for a long travel coil fork, easy maintenance, low price
Weaknesses: Honestly ??? None !!!
Bottom Line:
After having tried many different forks (some of them equiped with all rebound, compression, low and high speed...etc...)it appears that spending more money would be a wrong choice!! Domain 302 in its 180mm travel version, is probably the best fork ever made for guys (and girls...)who want to go downhill with the front wheel stuck on the track. Others forks can do the same...but not for the same price. The only one reason to buy something else than a Domain is if you want to ear your friends say: Wow!!! You bought the last high tech fork with micro-wave double compression system ??? What a lucky guy you are! :-)
Submitted by
ButtonPusher
a Weekend Warrior
from Vancouver Island, BC, Canada
Date Reviewed: December 17, 2010
Strengths: Simple, Reliable, Strong, Low Maintenance (has never required service), Responds well, Nice plushy mellow feel, Has never bottomed out on me.
Weaknesses: Lack of adjustments (but really, it's an affordable and basic fork, so you can't expect much in terms of adjustments). Could be a little quicker on the rebound, even when it's set to fast. Perhaps a bit heavy compared to some of it's competition.
**Some people have complained about the rebound knob falling off while riding. I drove mine into it extra hard and can't even pull it out when I try now. You can also use an Allen key to adjust it, or just remove the knob if you're worried about it falling out.**
Bottom Line:
This is a great value fork..! It has taken every hit and trail I've thrown at it without a problem... Lots of rocks, and tons of roots.
I'm not a super good rider, but it can handle a good variety of terrain from single track to DH with drops mixed in too.
When I got it, I took it to my training trail and gunned it at rocks that I used to avoid. It ate them like breakfast.
Yes, I'd like to see more adjustments, but it is and is marketed as a basic and affordable fork. Only real complaint is that the rebound doesn't feel quite fast enough even when it's set for fast.
I went with this as the price was right. The seller said he had friends that worked for SRAM who told him to go with the Domain, as it has stronger made internals than the Totem series. Which I would tend to believe after reading sooooo many Totem horror stories that you just don't see when it comes to the Domain's.
The seller had just had it tuned and fresh oil put in before I got it. I've been riding on it for at least a year and it has never needed any servicing at all during this time. Which I love, since there's nothing worse than a bike in the shop that you can't go ride.
It's not an outstanding fork, but it gets HUGE marks in value. You'll be hard pressed to find a fork that is this affordable and reliable. Especially as it doesn't require a ton of money sunk into it to keep it going.
If you're on a limited budget, you simply won't find a better fork for your money than this.
Weaknesses: heavy, dives under aggressive braking, bottoms a little more easily than I would like, and there's no way to adjust that
Bottom Line:
i have the u-turn, great value fork, albeit heavy and lacking any appreciable adjustment (rebound doesn't change much, but feels good) but what do you expect from a budget fork? I've been very impressed with the domain, especially seeing as I use for everything from riding trails to downhill and big jumps. Handles everything without complaint.
Submitted by
FreerideOregon
a Weekend Warrior
from Oregon
Date Reviewed: September 28, 2009
Strengths: Very plush and soft, it will take any drop without bottoming out but it will soak up the shock from the small stuff too. the amount of travel is great
Bike Setup: Haro x7, juicy 7's, rockshox domain 312, marz rocco WC, 50/50 pedals, outlaw front wheel, sun ringle rear, BMW seat
Overall Rating:
Value Rating:
Submitted by
Pedro Perini
a Downhiller
from Kassel, Hessen, Germany
Date Reviewed: September 17, 2007
Strengths: Capable of taking big hits and yet retain small bumps, very plush and forgiving
Weaknesses: not many adjustability, a little bit on the heavy side...
Bottom Line:
my Domain 302 is the 160mm U-Turn model, different from the 180mm model, the 160mm model is great, i never felt the rebound problem on the 160mm model, the rebound on the 160mm Domain is great, very responsive to the adjusts you make, can be very fast or very slow. Althought the compression is not adjustable, i never felt in need of adjusting that, neither the preload (i weight 180). The U-Turn is great, can drop down from 160mm to 115mm just by turning a knob.
Submitted by
Luke
a Downhiller
from Duncan, Canada
Date Reviewed: February 13, 2007
Strengths: the domain is an extreamly flexable and durrable fork. i loved the fork right from the start. the domain is the totems little brother but the funny thing is that i like the feel of the domains more. all ive ever owned is duel crown forks and the first run down the mountain with the domains felt the same as any duel crown, exept that i can do x-ups and better freeride. the damping is excelent and the compression is perfect right out of the box. the rebound is easy to adjust and feels perfect for any riding. i suggest this fork for any freeride bike.
Weaknesses: rebound adjust cap falls off when riding hard. best to put it in your pocket. lack of other adjustments such as compression
Bottom Line:
beutiful fork, perfect for downhill and freeride and soooooo cheap for what your getting, its like buying a new 888rc2x for 800$. feels like sex when riding serious downhill but its best atribute by far is its ability to take big hits. i droped off a big rock drop a little two fast and almost landed to flat but it felt like i didnt even hit ground the fork sucked it up so much. domain: overall perfect (cheap) fork.
Weaknesses: Not much adjustment. Takes an age to bed in. Dives.
Bottom Line:
Not much adjustment, then again it is the very base model. Rebound can be solved by simply using lighter weight oil. When set up with the right oil it is a great freeride fork for the budgeteer who doesn't want the bells and whistles.
Strengths: Well, its one of those forks you buy on impulse. For me, I was going to buy a 66rc2x for super cheep at jensonusa.com. That item then went out of stock, so I began looking for big travel and a big name,and I found this
Weaknesses: The fork is extremely un-adjustable, and no matter what you do with the rebound, its always slow. I would never buy this fork again, it blows big time!
Bottom Line:
This fork is awful. It has zero adjustability, unless you want to crack it open yourself and risk breaking it. If you like the way it comes out of the box, then I guess it's fine fore you, but in my opinion, it is just terrible. I would never buy it again, and it was a serious waste of my effor, money, and time.
i've got a rockshox domain 302 (upgraded to 318 with moco damper) that is seeping a very small bit of oil out of the lowers, down by where the rebound adjustment is.
all told, it' Read More »
Can someone tell me exactly what parts are needed for the motion control kit for the Domain 302 u turn. I have a GT Sanction 2.0 and Performance has screwed up ordering the parts Read More »
hello everyone. i've got a RS domain 302 u-turn. since day one, i've never been able to get the full 160mm of travel out of it. at first, i figured it wasn't broken in. after many Read More »
So, I finally have the money together and about to purchase a parker 2010 and I need to decide if it will be worth getting the parker 1 which has the rock shox domain, or the rock Read More »
Anyone know if this is possible? I have an '09 Domain that came with U-Turn and not the Mission Control. Would like to have both if possible. Read More »
