Total user serviceability and adjustment.

Can be hard to find the right information to get the best out of this fork.

Have had a fork where parts are impossible to find and all local shops only want to send it away to get serviced. The manitou minute can easily be serviced by even a novice saving money and time. Info on this shock can be sporadically littered about the Internet but if the enthusiasm is there you can become your very own suspension Technitian. I rode mine for 6 months stock, knowing the shock can be tuned at home only never really bothered. One day boredom took over and pandoras box was opened good and proper! Obsessive compulsive disorder meets its match with these forks and the absolute+ damper. The endless configurations which are all controlled by you make this the most exciting fork to own. Do you like a pedalling platform? Then by all means buy some shims and tune one in. Do you like plush? Then by all means buy some shims and tune it in. I started with a 95psi harsh trail tune with lsc full open and rebound full open. I then removed a platform shim, dropped the psi to 90, moved the rebound to half way and ran only 3 of 7 clicks lsc. Plush, no brake dive and arm pump disappeared. Buttery all the way!!!! next I'm going to try a linear tune, I hear it's even better.
If you get the idea, you are in control. I've been to low psi= brake dive but to fix it high psi= no small bump compliance. What your left with doesn't work. These forks allow you to get what you want, very very very specifically.

Similar Products Used:

Fox float evolution FIT damper

Race XC if you have a chance to buy this fork they are gold - light and super stiff I weigh 70kg. My 29er weighs 9.2kg with this fork. I am 33 fastest descending on technical singletrack out of 2500 riders and normally in the top 10 going up. 42 years old and ride hard....

1 1/8 but perfect if you buy an adapter (make sure you can get one first)

Buy one - I just bought anther spare they are seriously great shocks. BIG TIP spend $120 getting it fully serviced buy someone who knows Manitou..... right down pressure setting when you get it right :)

Reliable and constantly working - and looks amazing - chrome crown is nice
Lockout and compression work just great.
Feels stiff and compliant - stiffer than other 29er forks out therte

well After 5000 km it did feel harsh - maybe its time for service :-)

I'd buy one again!

Super reliable, once I added oil to the right fork to bring it up to the proper level, changed out the shim with Hayes kit to the convex style shim, and installed an Absolute Plus needle valve kit. This was for a 120mm with 20mm through axle.

Took a long time to break in. Was a PIA to change a flat at night in a jam with the axle release system in very cold weather on the Colorado Trail.

The most reliable fork I have ever owned. Not the best, but in terms of service and reliability, it has been stellar, for the price. More stiction and nowhere near as plush as a Marz 44 TST2, more an XC type of fork in its dampening qualities.

Similar Products Used:

Manitou Drake, Manitou Minute 100mm QR Marz 44 Ti, Marz 44 TST2.

I upgraded to the Absolute Plus damper immediately ($55 USD). This is a sweet fork. Highly adjustable.

None.

I never tried the original damper rod but I highly recommend the Absolute Plus upgrade for about $55 USD from the factory.

Similar Products Used:

Maverick DUC32

I have the 100mm version with 20mm axle. The axle and relatively short travel make this fork flex free. I like the milo handlebar level because it is small and doesn't clutter the handlebars. The fork, even with 20mm axle is pretty light at under 4lbs.

The 20mm axle doesn't use any form of quick release, so if you flat expect to take around 5 minutes to change. It uses pinch bolts and hex end cap to secure the axle. The fork is seriously underdamped. No amount of air changes the rate or pregression of this fork. There is no platform to speak of with the milo installed. It's either on or off.

This fork would be great for anyone under 160lbs due to the lack of compression damping and ineffective air pressure adjustment. Other than light weight and stiffness, there are a lot better forks out there with better damping.

Similar Products Used:

Fox RP24 130mm fork, Fox F120, Rock Shox Sid work cup. All 26ers, this is my first stab at a 29er

Lightweight

Blows through travel, need to buy new damper to switch between Absolute+ and MILO

Not happy at all thus far. Although I only purchased the 80mm version, the fork has no platform at all. With that said, I currently have the MILO damper installed, which according to Manitou reps is set to the equivalent of 2 or 3 clicks on the Absolute+. I've tried pumping the fork up to pressures in the 140's/150's, with no change in the rate of which I move through the travel. My plan for now is to install the Absolute+ damper and crank up the dial to 4 or 5 clicks, and to maybe change to a heavier weight oil. I'll let you know how it works out.

Similar Products Used:

None

Absolute damping

Rebound damping

The absolute damper works very well. On the softest setting there is no platform at all. On the firmest setting it is nearly a rigid fork (but still releases for big hits). Coupled with air pressure you can tune the fork to be whatever you want:
low air pressure and high platform = no response to small bumps but full travel on bigger hits
high air pressure and no platform = some small bump compliance and medium travel on bigger hits
of course you can mix and match anywhere in the middle - I run slightly soft air pressure with level 3 (3 clicks from off) platform = no movement from pedalling at all but plush travel at anything medium sized or up.
As good as the absolute damping adjuster is, the rebound damping adjuster is that bad. I disassembled the fork to make sure it was connected. Full-on or full-off seems to make almost no difference. Glad I like the rebound where it is!!
It did take hours to fully break in and achieve full travel at a predictable pressure.
Compared to the F29 fork on my GF Rig, the Minute has more travel (100 v. 80 mm) but feels like 2x as much, is roughly as stiff (both standard QR) and requires maintenance less often.

I like the Minute 29er and would buy one for a bike in the future.

Similar Products Used:

Fox F29

Light, stiff, smooth, inexpensive, great value, easily user serviceable, awesome customer service, nice RaStA decals.

Having to order upgrades/maintenance items/parts through a bike shop.

With the TPC damper it didn't seem to handle the smaller bumps as good as my rock shox reba 29. It seemed to blow through the first part of travel (smoothly for sure) The new Asolute + Damper should help by being able to find tune it slightly more.

Make the crown black..the silver is a detractor. Black is easier to match.

The Minute 29er came with a TPC Damper set-up with my Spot Longboard purchase. I was running a Reba 29er on my other GF SS and assumed I would just switch the forks over after getting the Spot. (Had horrible experiences with past Minute 26er SPV forks...terrible to say the least..)

After researching on MTBR and other sites I was overall impressed with the positive reviews the Minute 29 fork received and figured I would give it a shot before swapping to my Reba. (lots of forums about Manitou finally coming to market with a solid/comparable fork to Fox/RS)

** Switching to my Reba? Ain't gonna happen! **

The Minute 29er TPC fork was especially smooth and tracked well on rocky descents and everything else I threw at it. After my first ride I was thinking..."this is definitely not the same Manitou fork as the ones from the past." (I am pretty sure that Hayes group is behind this new design, as Answer was behind the old Minutes..not 100% sure) Either way my only complaint was that I couldn't lock it out. That was it.

** Absolute+ Damper Upgrade **

For a mere $50 and less than an hour changing dampers this might be the best upgrade for the Minute. Period. The fork with the Absolute + now has 6-7 "clicks" and each click actually FEELS different. "Wide Open" all the way to "Closed/locked out." Every click makes a noticeable difference. I didn't believe it at first. I didn't have any experience with the Absolute damper some people said made clicking noises and didn't have any differences between open and closed.

This new damper (for 2010) is awesome. With the trails being snowed in I can't get out and fully test it but will follow up with any news.

Won't be going back to the Reba at this point (The Reba 29 is still a sick fork(always has and always will be)..but this Minute 29 Absolute+ is showing potential...lots of it.

Similar Products Used:

Reba 29er SL

Very plush, absolute valving, stiff, Price

May need some upgrades to get performance you want. IE: oil weight change and absolute valve fix from Manitou

I have had 3 of these forks both QR and 20mm axles. Besides having to install the "click fix" I have been very satisfied. I want a fork with some sort of motion control with out having to reach down to lock it out or have an extra lever on the bars. Have tried several different fork oils to get the performance I wanted, which I have had to do with other forks also. White Brothers IMV works better than the Absolute valve but its not as stiff as the Manitou. I don't know why people bag on this fork so much in the forums I feel it has the best overall features and performance for the price. Manitou customer service has been very helpful and responsive to my questions. I don't see where you can go wrong.

Similar Products Used:

Fox F29, White Brothers Magic, Rockshox Reba