Submitted by
john tikis
a Weekend Warrior
from athens,Greece Date Reviewed: September 27, 2009
Favorite Trail:
dont have
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
well built,stiff,adjustments
Weaknesses:
no lockout
Similar Products Used:
suntour m2025
Bike Setup:
beone aspire 1.0 full deore spec
Bottom Line:
excellent fork for the money.lots of travel even on low setup.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Dave Hancock
a Cross Country Rider
from vancouver BC canada Date Reviewed: September 26, 2009
Favorite Trail:
bottle top
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Ace cycle
Strengths:
Came with the bike a Norco fluid 4. inexpensive and built that way. The low price investment allowed someone to try technical cross country.
Weaknesses:
Heavy. Used by a light rider on North shore cross country trail and it already is leaking oil. Rebound damper has never worked. Too soft for all but the lightest rider. travel adjuster is lightweight plastic and feel ready to break.
Similar Products Used:
Fox, Marzocchi both were vastly superior.
Bike Setup:
all mountain cross country
Bottom Line:
Began shopping for a replacement immediately. Looks cheaply made, felt cheaply made and proved to be the case. Any rider over 140 lbs would find it way to soft. Only up side is the Norco was a great deal so upgrading has allowed for a custom set up with nice overall cost, otherwise wouldn't have touched a bike with this fork. I don't knoe what their higher end forks are like but I wouldn't be likely to try given this forks short comings
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
rfc_jamiegavin_rfc
a Cross Country Rider
from edinburgh Date Reviewed: May 21, 2009
Favorite Trail:
glentress,black route
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
absorbs bumps well and has a lot of travel for jumping and on aggresive trais
Weaknesses:
makes a clicking noise when on 130mm (full)
Similar Products Used:
suntour xcm (rubbish), rockshox dart 3
Bike Setup:
2008 mongoose amasa comp
Bottom Line:
this is a very good fork for a good price. It handles well and gives you a brilliant ride on bumpy terrain and they take hard landings with ease.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
debusama
a Cross Country Rider
from Spokane, Wa Date Reviewed: February 27, 2009
Favorite Trail:
Riverside state park
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Wintersport
Strengths:
As far as I can tell, it absorbs bumps and does everything a suspension is supposed to do.
Weaknesses:
Heavy (to be expected of a coil shock)
Similar Products Used:
Manitou Splice
Bike Setup:
08 Jamis Dakar XC, Stock with the exception of: Eggbeater pedals, 717 rims with XT hubs & Kenda Karma tires, shadow derailleur, and an XT cassette.
Bottom Line:
This is the RS-900 OEM version. It doesn’t have adjustable travel (100mm only), and is a little lighter than the version that does (4.9 Lbs VS 5.2). Other than the weight, I can’t think of anything I would change about the fork. I’m 170 lbs and I don’t think it is too soft. The preload and rebound adjustments both work sufficiently. I’ve started making some upgrades to the bike in preparation for some endurance races, and although the fork is on my list of things to replace because of the weight, it will probably be one of the last things I change just to get rid of a few more pounds.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Penguin
a Weekend Warrior
from South Africa Date Reviewed: February 8, 2009
Favorite Trail:
OFF ROAD!!! and DH
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Purchased At:
Got it with my bike
Strengths:
Very nice feel to it, 85-130 adjustable, easily serviced
Weaknesses:
No lock-out (even though I wouldn't use it), other than that no problems at all :)
Similar Products Used:
Fox 160mm and some random RST
Bike Setup:
Mongoose
Bottom Line:
It's a great shock and it works very well :)
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
m4
a Cross Country Rider
from napa,ca, napa Date Reviewed: December 16, 2008
Favorite Trail:
rockville
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$250.00
Purchased At:
bike store
Strengths:
dependable, responds good with the rider.
Weaknesses:
noisy
Similar Products Used:
fox vanilla
Bike Setup:
hardrock m4
Bottom Line:
good enough for intermediate single tract trail
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
KenShamrock
a Weekend Warrior
from san diego, ca Date Reviewed: November 26, 2008
Favorite Trail:
forest and moderate free ride
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$230.00
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
Dependable, consistent performance, easy to maintain, burly rigid and follows rider input well, adjustable travel from ~80-130mm at the turn of a dial works great for climbs, no flex. No worry about leaking air pressure too!
Weaknesses:
The spring included with the fork is too soft for 200lb riders, but I bought a stiffer RockShox U-Turn spring from UniversalCycles.com and it worked perfect. It's also heavier than more expensive forks.
Similar Products Used:
Marzocchi XC 700SL, SR Suntour SF7-XCR-LO, Fox 40 RC2, RockShox Recon 351
Bike Setup:
Ibex Ignition FS
Bottom Line:
Supreme bang for buck value. Although it lacks adjustable compression control, you can just play with different spring rates and once you get it right, no need to mess with it. I've been free-riding on stairs lately and this thing rocks, very steady compression + rebound while maintaining control. It's a very underrated fork. When jumping larger dirt jumps, it makes the trails feel easier because it soaks up big hits and makes you want to keep pedaling faster!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
dejacky
a Weekend Warrior
from austin, texas, usa Date Reviewed: November 26, 2008
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$279.00
Purchased At:
R. Cycle
Strengths:
Stiff, Predictable, and soaks up terrain very well such that it makes trails comfortable for the rider! Great for tight single track and moderate downhill aggressive trails. It really shines on jumps, soaking up hard hits, & tight technical terrain requiring precision steering.
Weaknesses:
A little on the heavy side (4.5+lbs) & having to use the correct coil for your weight (but all coil forks are like this)..it's a good thing RockShox offers several different spring rates for this fork...so it's not really a problem, just an option to get perfect spring for your weight.
Similar Products Used:
Fox Vanilla, Fox Float forks, & Marzocchi marathons.
Bike Setup:
2008 Iron Horse MKIII Trail
Bottom Line:
It's almost like the difference between riding a very stiff aluminum bike that transmits all the bumps and jolts to the rider, then riding a very expensive stainless steel bike that soaks up all the painful vibrations while still giving you a solid ride with no noticeable flex. The Tora 289 is great at providing this comfort while still giving the rider very rigid and precise control. It's fantastic at absorbing any painful bumps from the trail, but doesn't flex like other cheap forks.
Over the years, suspension forks for mountain bikes keep getting better and cheaper. Who would've thought for such a low price we could have such a solid performing fork. Initially, I had my reservations about the fork based on the specs, but was pleasantly surprised with its solid performance. Its ability to take a beating and still plow through everything I threw at it is inspiring. I was also worried about the weight after reading the specs, but when I used the fork, it didn't feel heavy to me at all and I found it made riding trails easier and I didn't get as tired as I used to on my older fork.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
mick851
a Cross Country Rider
from england Date Reviewed: October 21, 2008
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Strengths:
got it from bike shop, took it back after 1 hour!!!
Weaknesses:
leaked oil from the rebound, had'nt even rode bike!
Bottom Line:
heard theres a prob with this brand of fork rockshox tora 289 , bike shops had to send forks away to be fixed, going to take a week before i get bike back
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Qui'lan Fett
a Weekend Warrior
from USA Date Reviewed: October 2, 2008
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Strengths:
Well, it sucks up bumps. That is my main requirement. I don't notice it much on climbing, so the lack of lockout is not a problem. I took it off my first 3 foot drop yesterday and it preformed fine.
Weaknesses:
I am light at 120lbs and it is perfect for me. I can see how it would be a problem for heavier riders.
Bike Setup:
07 Iron Horse Warrior 6.0 (Great value)
Bottom Line:
As I said, it sucks up bumps, which is my main requirement. I think the most accurate thing I can say about it is I never have to worry about it. I just leave it at top travel and it works its magic.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
CTrider
a Weekend Warrior
from Griswold CT USA Date Reviewed: July 18, 2008
Favorite Trail:
AM
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
rscycle
Strengths:
Looks ok?
Weaknesses:
Not reliable
Little adjustments
too soft
noisy
Bike Setup:
Iron horse warrior 6.0
Bottom Line:
These forks came on the bike and they are terrible. On the second use of the travel adjustment knob it snapped off on the trail, good thing I brought pliers. A couple weeks later it was only getting about 1/4 of the travel. Turns out something blew and oil was getting by the seals. I rebuilt it a couple times and kept happening.They are way too soft as well. I weigh 160 and ride a large frame and I can bottom these out just by pushing down and I would estimate they have over 30% droop(non adjustable).
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
bryce92
a Weekend Warrior
from Kitchener, Ontario, Canada Date Reviewed: June 24, 2008
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Came with my Norco S
Strengths:
The Tora worked great for me for about a month and half, and continued to go down hill from there. The preload adjuster was useful until it broke. The rebound adjustment was probably the best aspect of the fork, while the 100 mm of travel is a descent amount if you are looking for very very light XC riding, which doesn't occur to me. The disc brake only was also another strength.
Weaknesses:
The coil springs broke after a month or so, and for what it is was meant for(XC), it didn't hold up like it should considering I used it pretty much to exactly what it was recommended for. The preload adjuster popped out because of the broken coils, I am guessing. I believe, and have talked to people at bike shops, that the Tora 289 uses cheap coils which result in very short longevity, and unreliable shocks. I am mostly a XC, freeride, downhill rider, and I was disappointed in the fact that the coils did not last very long. I did not take any really hard hits that triggered to the broken coils. It seemed that every day, from a certain point, the forks went downhill on what quality it gave to me on the trails. I am a very light person who weights 135 pounds, and was surprised that even a light person like me somehow triggered to broken coils. These shocks are under warranty, and I will be sending them back. I will not be using these shocks again, as I am buying new Fox Vanillas.
Similar Products Used:
N/A
Bike Setup:
Norco Storm
Bottom Line:
Bottom line is that for the price you are going to pay for the Rock Shox Tora, you are better of buying yourself a better fork. This fork is meant for very light XC riding, if that, and will not provide you with a long life span. The coil springs are very weak, and the preload adjuster will not work to its fullest extent for a long period of time. I do not have anything against Rock Shox, but this is definitely one of their "Fox 40" in their lineup.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
D.C.
a Weekend Warrior
from south africa Date Reviewed: June 8, 2008
Favorite Trail:
anywhere with nice technical downhills and decent hucks!
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$300.00
Purchased At:
came with bike
Strengths:
durable. i cant count the number of times i bottomed out. u-turn is nice.
Weaknesses:
makes a clicking noise. after 15 months the rebound damper had problems.from all the bottom outs the liquid from the rebound leaked into in some other chamber inside the right leg. so i ordered a rs tora 318 solo air. i suppose its a xc fork and i hucked the yhe hell out of it. and my 318 also isnt made for hucks and light freeride so im thinking of gettin a mongoose khyber.
i had good times with that fork but now i know to be careful with xc forks.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Scott
a Weekend Warrior
from Pacific Northwest, WA Date Reviewed: April 17, 2008
Favorite Trail:
Anywhere off road
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Strengths:
Very adjustable and very easy to adjust. This thing will eat up anything you can throw at it. At times it feels a little to "soft" but thats probably my fault not the shox. This fork came stock on my bike and i have been extremely impressed with it from the day i got it. The TORA is Rock Solid!
Weaknesses:
None that i have found.
Bike Setup:
Iron Horse Warrior 6.0 (stock)
Bottom Line:
I recommend this to anybody looking! Like I said above this thing eats EVERYTHING you throw at it!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Raymond Lorica
a Weekend Warrior
from Los Angeles, CA 90042 Date Reviewed: April 9, 2008
Favorite Trail:
RedBox baby!!!
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
bikesdirect.com
Strengths:
Adjustable from 85-130 mm Easy to use, no maintenance issues
Weaknesses:
No lock out feature, but you can buy that separately if you really need it...
Similar Products Used:
Marzocchi Bomber, RockShox Judy XL
Bike Setup:
Motobecane Fantom Comp DS with RockShox Ario 2.2 rear shock and RockShox Tora 218 front suspension
Bottom Line:
For a fork with a coil spring, you can't get much better than this. I've ridden my friends' bike that have an air suspension, and I'll admit it does feel slightly better to have an air suspension, but these came stock on my Motobecane and I'm more than happy with them. I've taken this to RedBox trail in the Angeles Crest Mountains and haven't bottomed out once. For a stock, so called "cheap" fork in the mountain biking world, the Tora's are the bomb!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Dylan Chernis
a Weekend Warrior
from pretoria, south africa Date Reviewed: February 24, 2008
Favorite Trail:
anywhere
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$300.00
Purchased At:
came with bike
Strengths:
really strong, great rebound adjust, soft spring(bit too soft for jumping).
Weaknesses:
when its set for 130mm travel, it clicks when compressed, so i just twist the u-turn about 120 degrees and its all good. bottoms-out on a 2-3ft drop and i'm 105pounds(i'm 15yrs. high metabolism!). the part where the rebound switch goes into is stripped so now the fork is set for slow and i can't switch it back to fast.
Similar Products Used:
bikes i had in the past had cheap forks except for my last bike which had Spinner Grind.
Bike Setup:
mongoose amasa
Bottom Line:
0n the rock shox website its found under the xc forks but i'd say its a basic all-mountain fork. i've bottomed out more than 200 times and its still good. springs are fine for xc but but they would need to be stiffer for rougher riding. travel adjust is good. rebound adust is great (except for that part that stripped)but other than that clicking noise its great fork and i've had good times with it!
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Edward Louie
a Weekend Warrior
from Portland, OR Date Reviewed: September 15, 2007
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
Performance Bike
Strengths:
It absorbs bumps. Doesn't leak. Low maintenance so far.
Weaknesses:
It does not respond much to small bumps only big ones. The stock coil is a bit stiff for me and i weight 140 lb. I have to do jumps or ride some fairly ruff stuff to be able to really utilize the 100mm of travel. The rebound is nice. The preload does NOT seem to do anything. I have tried turning it all the way both ways and the fork feels pretty much the same. Right now i keep it on the lowest setting because i am light. The preload knob feels really loose at times and stiff during other times.
Bike Setup:
Iron Horse Warrior 5.0 stock
Bottom Line:
Not the best fork. I would like it to be more responsive. No lockout. If it came stock then great but i wouldn't go out and buy it. Even if i only get to fully utilize the 100mm of travel doing jumps and riding down ruff stuff the manufacture does not recommend this fork for jumping or downhill.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Zlatko Vlasic
a Cross Country Rider
from Zapresic, Croatia Date Reviewed: July 27, 2007
Favorite Trail:
local trails
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Strengths:
Very good absorption, u-turn and rebound adjustment work great, cheap
Weaknesses:
HEAVY!! i miss lock out
Similar Products Used:
dart 2, rst gila
Bike Setup:
Norco charger 07, stock
Bottom Line:
Probably the best XC/AM entry-level fork
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
<Mark
a Weekend Warrior
from Hertfordshire U.K. Date Reviewed: July 16, 2007
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Came with the bike
Strengths:
None i can think of apart from filling the gap between frame & wheel.
Weaknesses:
Horrible, horrible wooden feel. After reading about how good Reba's are, I don't know how Rockshox dare put their name on this junk.
Similar Products Used:
Manitou Axel Super
Bike Setup:
Stock 2007 Giant Trance 3
Bottom Line:
Like a stick stuffed up a drain pipe. Goes up & down but has no feel. The older Manitou on my Scott is ten times better than this. Looking now for a replacement after 300 miles as it's just so awful to ride. Sort of junk i'd expect to find on a fifty dollar steel frame bike, not a bike still costing $2000+ in U.K. . Avoid it at all costs. My first experience of Rockshox and it's pretty much scared me away from the brand already. Gona look for some more Manitou's I think.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Garrett
a Cross Country Rider
from Conway, Ar, USA Date Reviewed: February 27, 2007
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
www.Bikesdirect.com
Strengths:
Great absorption, nice price, lots of adjustability
Weaknesses:
Lockout has to be bought seperately but you can get a lockout kit for these for about $75.
Bike Setup:
Stock 07 Motobecane Fantom Comp
Bottom Line:
I do not know much about the super high end bikes, but I have ridden on several very nice bikes that my neighbors let me borrow. They are huge xc riders and introduced me to mountain biking for helping them lay sod on their lawn for about an hour. The three of them compete in xc races and frequently win and I have rode about 7 of their hardtail xc “backup bikes” which were all equipped with very nice stuff. These came on my 07 Motobecane Fantom Comp and they work great. I can’t hardly even feel stairs, roots, or bumps when riding in town or on the local single track trails. They seem to handle slightly less responsive than my neighbor’s bikes but they also have several thousand dollar backup bikes and mine cost $595. If you are looking for nice shocks at a reasonable price, give these a try. They do everything I need them to.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Brian Good
a Cross Country Rider
from Phoenix Date Reviewed: January 3, 2007
Favorite Trail:
Dreamy Draw/Sqaw Peak
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
Bikes Direct (Stock on the Fanton FS Comp)
Strengths:
EXCELLENT absorbing ability, easy to use U-Turn knob, adjustable ride height (85mm-130mm), adjustable dampening, leight weight design, looks GREAT!
Weaknesses:
Stock coil is a little on the soft side for me (I weight about 165 lbs).
Similar Products Used:
J3, J4 (both only tested)
Bike Setup:
Stock motobecane with a Rockshox Tora 289 front fork and a RockShox Ario 2.2 rear shock.
Bottom Line:
The Tora 289 is a GREAT XC introductory fork. However, for you heavier riders, I would recommend haveing a look into the RECON series (they run for about the same price).
In order to recieve the kind of perofrmance I want out of this fork, I'm going to have to invest into a heavier coil.
Otherwise, the performance is GREAT! The adjustable dapening is a real nice touch. It literally abosrbs any bump like a sponge. It's just not the best for drops or heavy jump. I have not bottomed out yet, but I've come VERY close.
Good luck, and happy riding.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
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