Good for xc some freeriding while it lasts, kinda cheap parts lots gay plastic and no right spring
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Submitted by
colin
a Weekend Warrior
from toronto Date Reviewed: October 4, 2004
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$75.00
Purchased At:
cycle solutions
Strengths:
plush, sensitive to small bumps....good travel for an entry level rider, can do most drops and stair sets.
Weaknesses:
cant get the full 100 mm out of it, rubber casing looks bad, has bottomed out once or twice on like 2-3 foot drops
Similar Products Used:
judy tt, suntour piece of crap
Bike Setup:
axiom pedals, michellin wildgrippers hot s
Bottom Line:
good fork for xc, trail riding and some urban. dont expect it to do downhill or like 8 foot drops because thats not what its for
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Submitted by
Chadd McCarley
a Weekend Warrior
from Douglasville,GA USA Date Reviewed: September 19, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Yellow River
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
Silver Comet Depot
Weaknesses:
The arch cracked during the first week I had them.I am not a very aggresive rider and I weigh 180 lbs.Manitou and the bike shop were slow replacing them.Then they replaced them with the Skareb,which I am just too heavy for.
Bottom Line:
I am not happy at all with the shock or with Manitou.Will not buy another Manitou.
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Submitted by
Mitch
a Downhiller
from Kelowna Date Reviewed: August 19, 2004
Favorite Trail:
The Holy Trail
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Price Paid:
$120.00
Purchased At:
stock on bike
Strengths:
easy to service, light, looks good, cheap
Weaknesses:
only 80-100mm of travel, bottoms out really easy, arch cracked but was replaced by manitou,it has "microlube" so u need boots or the stantions and inner fork gets ruined
Similar Products Used:
judy c (similar but better quality fork)
Bike Setup:
haro extreme x1 with shiver sc's (used to ahv manitou sixes as they were the stockers)
Bottom Line:
pretty good fork for price, tho it doesnt hav as good of performance as i need, it would be a good fork for a xc rider. you do definatly get wut you pay for
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Submitted by
nick
a Weekend Warrior
from NH Date Reviewed: July 31, 2004
Favorite Trail:
fort rock
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$50.00
Purchased At:
my friend got a black so he sold me his old six after he sent it back to manitou to be rebuilt
Strengths:
its cheep
Weaknesses:
it broke on a 3 foot drop (i was not happy)
Similar Products Used:
none
Bike Setup:
specialized hardrock with not much but a manitou six and some aluminum petals and a few other small improvements i put on with the little amount of money i have to put into my bike, well no manitou six now darn it, the bikes sitting on the floor next to me all broken and stuff
Bottom Line:
dont buy a manitou six unless you just ride on only the road, it went ok on trails untill i did that little 3 foot drop. you should save yourself the trouble, and save up for a better fork if you want to do anything fun. but if you arent going to do drops or jumps it will be just fine
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Submitted by
b dog
a Cross Country Rider
from la Date Reviewed: March 27, 2004
Favorite Trail:
syc canyon
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Price Paid:
$118.00
Purchased At:
superho
Strengths:
plush fork, nice ride....easy to maintain...
Weaknesses:
none so far
Similar Products Used:
judy c (which kind of sucks)
Bike Setup:
trek 450 mountain cross---old steel hard tail frame....yah baby, steel is still real
Bottom Line:
this is about the best value you can get for a cheap shock and still get a quality ride. i have a marz marathon on my other bike and the super six is just as buttery if not more so. when my friends ride on my bike the praise the plushness of the shock. you can haul ass downhill on this shock. the fork is not made for freeride jumping, so if you broke it huckin it, well as they say in russia tough sh**zke!
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Submitted by
Bob
a Weekend Warrior
from Ohio Date Reviewed: March 24, 2004
Favorite Trail:
Mt. Logan
Duration Product Used:
2 Years
Purchased At:
Bike Scource
Strengths:
Nice ride stock but I got the firm spring upgrade in mine and it is a heck of alot better!
Weaknesses:
Way too soft from factory unless you weigh about 100lbs. It only has a spring in the left tube. So that is why the arch breaks.
It's a nice fork but not made for anything hardcore. Spring upgrade helps alot but the firmer spring rate increase the chance for the arch or right tube to break. I have also seen the whole spring shoot up out of it's mounting point cause of it being threaded on with a metal nut on plastic threads. Check your fork out after every ride! I'm gonna get a Marzocchi Dirt Jumper 3.
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Submitted by
btadlock
a Weekend Warrior
from Colorado US Date Reviewed: March 22, 2004
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Purchased At:
Performance
Strengths:
at 250lbs, the fork did well, I do XC only, no big jumps or drops.
Weaknesses:
Arch cracked wth just over 400 miles on the bike, Performance replaced under warr, no problems. would have like to the option to credit towards another shock.
Similar Products Used:
Rock Shock Jett
Bike Setup:
Giant Iguana disk 2003.
Bottom Line:
I think that the shock is not enough for my weight, Performance should have advised when purchasing. Concern about the arch crack and problems that might arise.
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Submitted by
CK
a Cross Country Rider
from Australia Date Reviewed: January 25, 2004
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Strengths:
Nice appearance. Price. Durability. Easy to adjust. Strength.
Weaknesses:
A slight tendancy to bottom out on big drops. But....they aren't designed for huge drop offs.
Similar Products Used:
Judy ROX
Bottom Line:
Great shock. Previous reviewers that complain about oil leaks must be putting too much in! Nice, smooth travel...and affordable. Remember, this fork is designed for XC work. Use it for what it's designed for and you wont be disappointed.
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Submitted by
Neill
a Downhiller
from Cochrane, Alberta, Canada Date Reviewed: October 2, 2003
Favorite Trail:
C.O.P- - - Downhill Course, All Freerides
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
Came With 2003 Giant Yukon
Weaknesses:
Bottoms out when you sit on it (im only a 125 pnd rider) Goes stiff some days, toooo soft on other days..leaks grease, cheap plastic parts, impossible to change travel,preload knob cheap
Similar Products Used:
Just got this for xc
Bike Setup:
2003 Giant Yukon, New Marzocchi Z.1 Freerides and Disc Brakes--Very Nice
Bottom Line:
NO GOOD for freeride, OK for a nice ride down to the gas station, OK for XC but not if your serious, not enough travel/dependability--You get what you pay for i guess
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Submitted by
Jim Thompson
a Racer
from Leeds Date Reviewed: October 2, 2003
Favorite Trail:
high peak
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Strengths:
They look good
Weaknesses:
Joint between forks leg and brake arch
Bottom Line:
My brake arch snapped on the third ride as described above. I can only think there must be a design flaw on these forks causing the join to break with relatively light use. I'm stuck with the descision of taking them back and complaining or buying a decent set of forks.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Bill Marzocchi
a Racer
from can't tell Date Reviewed: August 27, 2003
Favorite Trail:
canada
Duration Product Used:
Tested or demo'ed only
Purchased At:
Monitue
Strengths:
as strong as my dick... it totaly is cough cough bad cough cough
Weaknesses:
it sucks... it sucks my butt... marzocchi is so much better than this poop
Submitted by
Wormman
a Cross Country Rider
from Canada Date Reviewed: August 26, 2003
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Strengths:
Nice Smooth travel Preload adjustment actually does something Strength!
Weaknesses:
had to use a spacer for my cycle computer
Similar Products Used:
RST cappa CL, Rockshox Judy TT
Bike Setup:
Haro Escape 8.1
Bottom Line:
Notice this is for the six SPORT, not the plain six. As it says on Manitou's site this fork is OEM only, meaning you cant buy it as an upgrade. So the difference between the six and six sport? the plain six (ohh ohhh the thing broke!) it tube materal! its made out of Mg not AL! So heres some hard hits me the big rider have given it.
Drops, all the time 2-4 feet FULL PRELOAD hello? Straight into curbs no problem (as if they weren't there actually!) Me supermaning over the handle bars after hitting a post............. Well the shock still isn't broken, now i bet you were thinking I was a big 5'9 170 pound rider........no I am 6'3 220! So dont give me bullsh!t about this thing is soft and weak!
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Submitted by
Adam
a Cross Country Rider
from Lake Hughes Date Reviewed: August 24, 2003
Favorite Trail:
sawmill/bearcreek
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Strengths:
lite,good adjustment,takes shock great
Weaknesses:
easy to strip plastic on adding the tension
Bottom Line:
perfect foor crosscountry and XC hardtail racing
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
jesse
a Downhiller
from cromwell Date Reviewed: August 23, 2003
Favorite Trail:
cromwell creek 187
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
pedal power
Strengths:
plush, had my lbs convert the travel to from 80mm to 100mm, only cost me $5. works great when you put some oil in it.
Weaknesses:
when you put oil in, it leaks out. i was having my bike in for a tune up and the shop called me and said there were 3 large cracks on the crown and they said it needed to be sent to manitou to have the crown replaced, i dont blame it for breaking, because i do some pretty crazy stuff like 6 ft drops, dirt jumps and such, i am currently just riding a rigid fork because my lbs told me i would not be able to get the fork back for 2 weeks so that sucks, i will write back when i recieve my fork back from my lbs.
2003 Giant Yukon, dk iron cross pedals, iron cross valve caps, trek cromoly rigid fork, maverick double wall rim in the back, maxxis mobster super tacky 2.35 in the back, super wolf 2.10 in the front, black bell grips, lots of stickers, red lizard skins chainstay protecter.
Bottom Line:
this fork has been great up until it broke just a few days ago, i will write another review when i get my fork back in 2 weeks.
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Submitted by
Efe Arica
a Cross Country Rider
from Ankara Date Reviewed: August 1, 2003
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Price Paid:
$280.00
Bottom Line:
I think it is a great fork for xc races. People who will race in xc and also will use in city must try this fork.
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Submitted by
garrett
a Weekend Warrior
from bedford, NH Date Reviewed: July 26, 2003
Favorite Trail:
local
Duration Product Used:
1 Year
Purchased At:
naults
Strengths:
great xc fork to start, had no unwanted compresstion and enough travel to do anything at first. very stable and structutaly strong.
Weaknesses:
this fork was great at xc untill i got into downhill and freeriding. It had enough travel to take decent drops and dirt jumps but i blew them out so now i bottom out when the front wheele hit the take off. not the landing. the travle is so loose now that i lose bout 20mm of travel when i sit on it (and i only weight 140
Similar Products Used:
manitou black, judys
Bike Setup:
gary fisher tassahara turned freeride (kinda). maxxis 3.5 downhill stem, kore chain reactor, downhill tubes and trek saddle, shimano components
Bottom Line:
over all i have loved this fork. since i blew it out, i have been beating the hell out of it till i can afford and new one and its still working decently (not comportably). if u want a good repacment fork for xc, get this. If you by a bike with this try and replace it if u beat it up. a new one is a good investment
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Submitted by
Alister
a Weekend Warrior
from Launceston,Tas,Aus Date Reviewed: July 26, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Gorge/Trevallen
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Purchased At:
Geard's Cycles
Strengths:
Good for when I first started out (I'm only new to MTB) and they have not broken...yet
Weaknesses:
Really stiff to start with and really soft now!?! It's soft when you ride for the first half hour then it goes as hard as a rock! Also had a bent axel, BUGGER!
Similar Products Used:
Whatever is on the TREK 4500
Bike Setup:
2003 YUKON with 100mmfork adjustment
Bottom Line:
OK for a beginner,like I was, but now I'm doing 3-4ft jumps and doing PROPPER mtb riding.....they just can't hack it! Looking for some cheap Rockshox psylo forks now. If anyone has any 2003 ones e-mail me....please. They would have to be the bikes only weakness, but the 2004 yukon has RST Gila forks.....and disks,YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!
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Submitted by
Michael
a Weekend Warrior
from Brisbane,Qld, Australia Date Reviewed: July 17, 2003
Duration Product Used:
6 months
Strengths:
Colour matched the bike
Weaknesses:
The forks bottomed out too much. They contributed to 2 broken axles. They then cracked and were replaced. Second pair cracked in the same place. Dealer wants to upgrade to blacks, which is fair enough but of course costs more money. My friend had exactly the same thing happen - 2 sets of forks cracked and had to be replaced. He paid for the upgrade to blacks. If you pay good money for a product, then you expect it not to fail under normal circumstances. These forks are obviously not up to scratch. It's a shame because the Giant is a fine piece of machinery. The forks fiasco has spoilt an otherwise enjoyable riding experience.
Bike Setup:
2003 Giant Iguana Disc
Bottom Line:
Giant may also be at fault here for matching an inferior product to an otherwise acceptable product. Surely they didn't expect the bike to be ridden on straight flat smooth city streets, it's a mountain bike for goodness sake. Four (4) sets of broken forks and 2 broken axles in 6 months is just not good enough. Come on Answer (Manitou) and Giant give us value for money. I shouldn't have to pay extra for mhat should have been part of the package in the first place. Nothing else on the bike has failed.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Sam
a Cross Country Rider
from Perth, WA, Australia Date Reviewed: May 11, 2003
Favorite Trail:
Lots
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Purchased At:
LBS
Strengths:
Um, good fork for a beginner? OK travel, saved my ass a few times. I guess it's cheap...
Weaknesses:
Squishy even with firm ride kit. (I'm 90ish Kgs) Can't work out how to convert to 100mm. It's just cheap stuff. Broke it on 3rd XC ride.
Similar Products Used:
None.
Bike Setup:
'03 Raceline Comp w/ Deore shifters, Deore front and LX rear D. Hayes HFX-9 Discs, Titec Hellbent XC bar and Big-Al stem, Mike mini barends, KAlloy seatpost, Selle Italia saddle, Truvativ Firex cranks, VP-133 pedals, Michelin wildgripper XLs, Mavic x223 rims on M-475 hubs.
Bottom Line:
I wouldn't go for this fork if given the option again. It might be good for a beginner but a serious trail caused me to break the fork at the junction between the arch and right leg. Will be looking at the Manitou Black series next, I hope.
BTW this fork is OEM only.
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Submitted by
Mike Martin
a Downhiller
from Canada Date Reviewed: April 27, 2003
Favorite Trail:
dirt
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
Courtesy Bikes/ they came with the bike
Strengths:
good strength, nice looking with disk brakes on them, real nice travel, not much maintenece required.
Weaknesses:
until u break them in the have a clonkin sound, but once broken in it goes away and the forks sound nice.
Bottom Line:
Good set of forks!!
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Submitted by
jesse carta
a Weekend Warrior
from cromwell Date Reviewed: April 12, 2003
Favorite Trail:
cromwell creek 187
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Price Paid:
$420.00
Purchased At:
pedal power
Strengths:
plush, i have done three foot drops with it, preload adjustement works well.
Weaknesses:
i cant get the cheap plastic bolt out to convert the travel, also the thing gets all hard and doesnt seem to work well at all after hour long ride or so. i heard it's because of the cold weather, but i don't know because that's all i've been riding in lately.
Similar Products Used:
none, this is my first mountain bike.
Bike Setup:
2003 Giant Yukon, the fork is OEM only.
Bottom Line:
this is a great beginner fork or XC fork, but i'm only giving it three flaming chiles because of the lousy internally convertable travel, and because the fork hardens up and works really bad and doesnt absorb anything after riding on it for a while, but the fork does go back to its normal plush self the day after the ride.
Value Rating:Overall Rating:
Submitted by
Daniel
a Weekend Warrior
from Wollongong, Australia Date Reviewed: January 22, 2003
Favorite Trail:
local bush tracks
Duration Product Used:
Less than 1 month
Strengths:
Cheap, Reverse Arch (brakes don't stick out forward so far, also aparrently stronger?), Microlube ports, external preload, internal travel adjustment (80mm-100mm).
Weaknesses:
Cheap crappy plastic parts galore!
Similar Products Used:
Manitou 5. Rock Shox Judy SL. Marzocchi Bomber. Bunch of cheapies.
Bike Setup:
Giant Yukon '03
Bottom Line:
First tried the fork on a 21" shop model Yukon and it was very plush. Bought a 25" bike (I'm tall) and the forks were very stiff. The preload didn't seem to do much to alleviate this either. I realise they need to be broken in which I have not done yet, so will not complain about this. I decided converting the travel to 100mm might make it a little more plush, but had great difficulty doing so. This would be a decent fork if it weren't for the crap plastic parts. I was having difficulty getting the nylon hex bolt out of the bottom of the right leg. I actually contacted ANSWER product support for instructions on doing this. They said it was possible to remove it by turning clockwise from the bottom with a 6mm allen key or internally (anti-clockwise?) using an 8mm key. I tried removing from the outside to no avail - the bolt just kept expanding and slipping on the allen key. I finally managed to get the plastic top cap off (after trying several methods - eventually had to buy a tube spanner and it came straight out with that). Once this was off, I found that the 8mm allen key needs to be about a foot long to reach! If I ever get that pesky bolt out, it's getting replaced with metal straight away (if possible). Probably won't bother though because I just bought a cheap un-used 99 SX-R and SX-Ti to play around with.
Come on Answer, you can and have done better!
Good for an entry level fork, but you'd be better off getting a year-old top-line model.
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Submitted by
hazman
a Weekend Warrior
from Hobart, Tasmania Date Reviewed: January 18, 2003
Favorite Trail:
XC
Duration Product Used:
3 months
Purchased At:
On my bike, anyway its OEM only
Strengths:
Great fork, fairly light weight, looks good
Weaknesses:
I gotta get the 100mm travel outta it!
Similar Products Used:
SUntour, Rockshox jett, rst 391
Bike Setup:
Giant Yukon '03
Bottom Line:
It's a good fork, but i cant work out how to get that plastic hex bolt thing out of the bottom to adjust the fork to 100mm travel, i would tell you to buy it, only you cant coz its OEM only!
$
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