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Fox Racing Shox
Vanilla R 130
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Average Rating
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4.22/5
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# of Reviews
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36
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MSRP
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$ 410.00
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Weight
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More Products from Fox Racing Shox
Submit a Review
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Description:The 2005 Vanilla line from Fox Racing Shox is ready, and the change you've requested most is finally here: disc-brake only lowers! Fox has dropped the V-brake bosses from the entire Vanilla line for '05. Also new for '05 is an extra 5mm of travel - these now come from the factory set to 130mm. They are internally convertible to 100mm, if the geometry of your bike calls for less travel.
The same great quality and attention to detail you've come to expect from Fox are still here - you get 12-click externally adjustable rebound damping, proprietary Fox oil seals with scraper lip technology to keep debris out and oil in, and proven magnesium lowers for unparalleled stiffness and rigidity for a difference you can feel when cornering. 2005 Vanilla's feature a new, slim damper cartridge that helps eliminate cavitation and allows a wider adjustment range. The new cartridge saves 30 grams over '04 forks.
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Submitted by
DEAGO SANCHEZ
a Cross Country Rider
from N.Y. N.Y.
Date Reviewed: December 12, 2007 | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Price Paid: |
$299.00 | | Purchased At: | RIDEMONKEY | | Strengths: | Extra light weight,super capability! | | Weaknesses: | None | | Similar Products Used: | Rock Shox ,Marzocchhi | | Bike Setup: | Jamis Dakar XC Expert | | Bottom Line: | I am over 200 pounds & this shock soaks up roots,rocks,dips & anything that comes in it's path.It seen it's share of mud,dirt & grime,works like the day I bought it(& that was used).The Cadillac of shocks.Worth the price you pay for it new or used. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Aaron
a Weekend Warrior
from Rainier, OR
Date Reviewed: May 31, 2007 | | Favorite Trail: | Stella | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | Came on bike | | Strengths: | Light, stiff, fairly plush, nice CNC dials | | Weaknesses: | no compression adjustment on a $400 fork?, typical Fox bushing play | | Similar Products Used: | 2002 Fox Vanilla RLC, 2003 Manitou Black Elite, 2005 Manitou Sherman Flick Plus | | Bike Setup: | 2005 Jamis XLT | | Bottom Line: | Not a bad fork, certainly does the job. Swapped out the stock spring to a heavier one. Has been more reliable than my 2002 Vanilla that had to be sent back twice in a year. But, it still lacks the smoothness of other forks (Manitou's with TPC+ to be exact)in its class. Also, can Fox please offer a Vanilla RC! Would it kill them to offer compression adjustments w/o a unneeded lock-out? For $400, they need to offer at least this one extra adjustment. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Adam
a Cross Country Rider
from Clarksville, TN
Date Reviewed: September 24, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$325.00 | | Purchased At: | Price Point | | Strengths: | Very Plush. | | Weaknesses: | Only comes with light weight springs. | | Similar Products Used: | Manitou axel and six. both are junk | | Bike Setup: | cannondale jekyll. fox vanilla 130r, hayes 9 carbon, xt crank, x9 twist shift, x9 rear d, deore front d, panaracer fire xc pro tires. | | Bottom Line: | at first i was bottoming out a lot on big hits. i ordered the yellow spring and now i'm very satisfied with the forks performance. rides great and takes a beating. I highly recommend you use the correct spring for your weight or you WILL be bottoming out. and if you change the travel to 100mm you will need a heavier spring. I love this fork but i'm gonna take away a chillie for not providing us fatties (180lbs riders) a spring. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ed
a Cross Country Rider
from Topeka
Date Reviewed: August 23, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$215.00 | | Purchased At: | Jensonusa | | Strengths: | Plush | | Weaknesses: | Lack of compression adj. (buy the RLC) | | Similar Products Used: | RS Judy's, Indy's, Pilot SL, Headshock's, Suntour's | | Bike Setup: | Jamis Dakar XLT /Fox Float Rear / XT drivetrain with Saint Cranks / XT Rhyno Lites / Easton Cockpit / Juicy's | | Bottom Line: | I am an aggressive "All-Mountain" rider. I ride XC trails with rocks, roots, urban ledges, 2-4' drops. This fork is very plush and laterally stiff. The loose bushing feel that comes with the fork brand new is normal. That's why it's so plush. I only notice it when I hold the brake and rock the bike back and forth.
When I ride, I don't even give it another thought.
This fork absorbs big hits on the trail like they're not even there. Small stuff is erased with ease. I use the factory settings for XC, but when I want to jump off some ledges or ride more agressively I put a stiffer spring in it. It seems to help keep it from bottoming out on drop off impacts.
Even with the stiff spring (I weight 185) this fork is very nice on an XC trail thanks in full to the coil negative spring assembly. It helps soften that first inch and a half to erase the small stuff.
Overall, this fork is a perfect match to my Dakar XLT's plush rear suspension. I find myself getting lazy and just rolling over 6" logs that I normally bunnyhop. I tend to aim my bike toward the bumps instead of picking a line around...just to see how well the suspension works.
Great value! I would prefer to have the Vanilla RLC instead of the R because I would like to have some compression adjustment, but this fork was a closeout from Jenson for $215. I couldn't pass it up. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
James
a Weekend Warrior
from south west Sydney Australia
Date Reviewed: April 15, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Strengths: | Plush as plush can be, great dampening | | Weaknesses: | lack of low speed compression, some say a pedaling platform.
squelling noise when pulling faster than rebound | | Similar Products Used: | Minute 1:00 | | Bike Setup: | Dakar XLT 1.0 stock with new tyre, grips, the fork was post as i broke my minutes | | Bottom Line: | Plushest and light as fork. A bit too soft but can be easily fixed with larger spring. Dampening works, you feel every click make a difference. The price is a bit over the top for a fork with only 2 adjustments. I had a slight problem with mine in that when it rebounded faster than the set rate, it makes a squelling noise, it doesn't affect performance but it annoying. Knobs are simple and plain, just set and forget. Did i mention they are plush as? | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
brian
a Downhiller
from san rafael, ca, usa
Date Reviewed: April 10, 2006 | | Favorite Trail: | solstice | | Duration Product Used: | 1 Year | | Strengths: | it is very good, and very ajustable, and comes with a soft spring and a stiff one | | Weaknesses: | bottoms out too easily | | Similar Products Used: | too many to name | | Bike Setup: | specialized bighit spec, marzocchi drop off triple fork, fox vanilla r rear shock, truvativ bash guard, azonic a-frame pedals, everything else is stock | | Bottom Line: | this is a very good reliable fork. i used to have it and when the spring got loosened up a little, i took it to the bike shop and they switched the springs that i got with the fork and then it worked fine! the rebound ajustments are awesome and it is perfect for dirt jumping, cross country, and free ride- i did a 12 ft drop and it didnt even bottom out! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Petr Gromov
a Weekend Warrior
from Moskow (Russia)
Date Reviewed: March 23, 2006 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$400.00 | | Purchased At: | veloimperia.ru | | Strengths: | easy | | Weaknesses: | In we wash cases quality of assembly | | Similar Products Used: | Manitou Black Sport (2 year), Marzocchi AM II (1 year) | | Bike Setup: | Author a-gang. Rear fork Marzocchi AM II, brakes Hope MonoMini, rims Alexrims DX, the plugs Ritchey. | | Bottom Line: | After 1 month of use of a leg in trousers have strongly become loose. Condensation have deteriorated and a lot of oil has flowed out. I do not know about other such cases in Russia, imho it is my failure. The shop has returned money. Unfortunately after that I cannot trust a case to quality Fox. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
frank conrad
a Weekend Warrior
from montara, CA
Date Reviewed: February 23, 2006 | | Favorite Trail: | boyscout | | Duration Product Used: | 2 Years | | Price Paid: |
$400.00 | | Purchased At: | bike works | | Strengths: | this fork is by far the most adjustable fork for me. It is good for dirt jumping but the lip has to be big. | | Weaknesses: | it comes a little soft even for me: I've bottomed it out countless times.Its bad for exterra jumps cause the shock just absords the lip. | | Similar Products Used: | my bros RLC | | Bike Setup: | 03 stuff w/ ups | | Bottom Line: | this is a good shock and I suggest bying it. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Dave o
a Cross Country Rider
from annandale,nj,us of a
Date Reviewed: November 7, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | It's all good | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | Stock on Rocky Mtn Slayer | | Strengths: | Nice adjustability, lockout is nice | | Weaknesses: | Stock spring is soft, even though it is the one spec'd for my body weight. | | Bike Setup: | '05 Rocky Mtn Slayer (FS "all mountain") | | Bottom Line: | This Vanilla RL130 fork came stock on my new Slayer. Within 50 miles of riding, the fork started making a horrendous clanking noise. It happens any time I pull up the front of the bike quickly, like when crossing a log or bunny hopping. The fork basically tops out with a loud clank! Going through technical rocky sections it sounds like a bucket of bolts. Apparently the fork is not returning all the way to it's top-most position, so now the lockout no longer works either. I have owned several Rock Shox products that lasted many years with no maintenance whatsoever. For what this fork costs, any problem this early on is inexcusable. We'll see what Fox does for me on warranty coverage. | Value Rating: Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Travis
a
from Pennsylvania
Date Reviewed: November 2, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$200.00 | | Strengths: | beefy construction, quality components, and impressive ride. | | Weaknesses: | It never goes on sale. | | Bottom Line: | Very plush fork. You need to follow the set up instructions to get the optimum ride. Setup to the freeride mode with 1-1/16 sag for 160pund rider. Impressive, It soaks up hard edge rocky terrain better than some dual crown forks I've tried. Im testing oil viscosity since the stock fork oil is 7.5 wt. Am interested in raising to 10wt to get a better dampening on rough rides. Overall this is one of the finest riding forks out there. There are many forks that are quite possible stronger. There are absolutely many more that are lighter, but the fork ride surpasses alot of them. Absolutely one of the top 3 single crown forks in production. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
dan stephens
a Cross Country Rider
from dallas tx,usa
Date Reviewed: October 23, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$410.00 | | Purchased At: | price point | | Strengths: | smooth,light,and sexy | | Weaknesses: | very weak and fragile | | Similar Products Used: | manitou,marazochi | | Bike Setup: | chameleon,raceface,xt,shimano,avid,wtb,azonic,easton | | Bottom Line: | The fork was the best feeling ever. I was really impressed at first.Im a 165 pound bike courier who rides 5 days a week , 30 miles a day.I never crashed on this fork and I like to bunny hop gaps downtown, but I'm not an agressive rider.After 3 monthes the fork started to creak when I would turn. Then the rebond started to lock up and make loud scraping noises.I tryed to see if the oil was ok and the caps bent up easy. Then the rebound knob snapped off and I bearly twisted it.Fox is fixing it ,but they charged me 90 dollars for the caps and knob.They shound have just gave those parts to me free for my troubles.For 410 bucks the fork should have not broke down in 2.5 months.They are also hard to get on the phone and are asses. This fork is a pole smoker for the price. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Ryan
a Cross Country Rider
from San Jose, CA
Date Reviewed: October 22, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Skeggs | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$300.00 | | Purchased At: | Pricepoint.com | | Strengths: | Plush ride, stiff, easy to adjust travel | | Weaknesses: | Quality control, bad seals, no service | | Similar Products Used: | Manitou Black Elite | | Bike Setup: | '04 Jamis Dakar Comp | | Bottom Line: | Purchased this fork to upgrade my Black Elite. Reduced the travel to 100mm to match the geometry of my Jamis Dakar frame. First ride I noticed this thing absorbs bumps great and I could take corners faster and with more confidence thanks to the stiffness of this fork. Unfortunately the damper locked up so rebound was constantly in the slowest mode, and the left seal started to spew oil, all after only ONE ride. All my calls to Fox for warranty service were directed to their voice mail box, to which the voice mail informed me that their box was full, and I was promptly disconnected after that. This happened every time I called. After reading the mtbr forums a bit more, it seems to me Fox has issues with quality control and service, and because of that I have lost out about 4 weeks of riding this season. In the end, I've returned the fork to Pricepoint and have a Marzocchi Marathon XC on order, with high hopes. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Doug D
a Downhiller
from yorba linda
Date Reviewed: September 26, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | 7 bridges | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$500.00 | | Purchased At: | THe Path | | Strengths: | good all around fork | | Weaknesses: | springs come too soft for big drops and jumping. | | Similar Products Used: | mar. z1 (150) mar. 888 | | Bike Setup: | santa cruz hecler 5th coil 8 in roders | | Bottom Line: | good fork for beginers and x-country riders handles 4 ft without bodoming out. lots of pre-load and good for small bumps | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Martin Matthews
a Weekend Warrior
from pacific grove, california, USA
Date Reviewed: September 16, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$410.00 | | Purchased At: | blueskycycling.com | | Strengths: | eats up everything ive gone over | | Weaknesses: | none yet | | Bike Setup: | bighit spec | | Bottom Line: | i would recomend this to the lighter type of people becuz the things ive heard about bigger people having this fork it has a alot of flex and it snapped on me and stuff like that but otherwise its such a great fork if ur not a down hiller or a drop kinda guy then id get this if i were u its awesome | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
colin may
a Weekend Warrior
from dalkeith
Date Reviewed: September 12, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | natural singletrack | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$450.00 | | Purchased At: | leisure lakes | | Strengths: | super smooth from box,no xtra features that u never use.track well.fit and forget. | | Weaknesses: | none yet | | Similar Products Used: | pyslo 01 02 talas 03 pace 40fighter(worst fork ever,never ever buy one) | | Bike Setup: | 5 spot,xt,xtr,romic shock,easton,conti gravitys,set up for all round use with one eye on weight. | | Bottom Line: | the vanilla is the fork i,ve been searching for,no travel adjustment or seperate compression adjusters to fanny about with,mates perfectly with frame,MINT. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
mark woodroffe
a
from surrey, england
Date Reviewed: September 2, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Purchased At: | nirvana cycles | | Strengths: | initially very plush no stiction | | Weaknesses: | damping internals, seals, flexy, noisy | | Similar Products Used: | marzocchi z1 | | Bike Setup: | 04 kona coiler, freeride set up, twin ring with bash guard, short stem, wider/higher bars, tough cranks | | Bottom Line: | at first i was very pleased but after 4 weeks damping internals broke which were repaired by uk importers mojo under warranty. got forks back and noticed one of seals was leaking badly so my local shop fixed under warranty. rode them for another 4/5 weeks and the damping internals broke yet again! by this time i was really hacked off and now have taken them back and swapping for new set of 06 marzocchi z1 sport. i really dont have anything good to say about these forks or importers mojo who have a really bad attitude toward people who aren't satisfied with their products. if you ride hard dont buy these stick with marzocchi, i have a 4 year old pair of z1 wedges which are still going strong and i've hammered them, and they were nearly half the price! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Bryan M
a Weekend Warrior
from Deptford
Date Reviewed: August 27, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Wissahiccon, Round Valley, Ceres park, GCC & CCC | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$400.00 | | Purchased At: | Action wheels in Deptford NJ | | Strengths: | Stiff and PLUSH!! | | Weaknesses: | Didnt include the correct spring for my weight (220) Which caused the fork to make some noises. Once I got the x-stiff spring....perfect. | | Similar Products Used: | Marzocchi Dirt Jumper II, MX comp, Rock shox judy XL | | Bike Setup: | 2002 intense Uzzi SL. Fox V130r fork. Vanilla RC rear shock. Full XT, Hayes mags, sun single track rims, Kenda 2.35 tires, tompson post and stem and Azonic bars. | | Bottom Line: | Not long after getting the fork it started making a horrible noise when compressed. Realized too light a spring may be the prob,(temp fix was sliding a piece of road bike tube over the spring) ordered it. Since installing the spring, no probs since. Wissihiccon has lots of baby head sized rocks, this fork just eats them up!!! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Inon Shaham
a Weekend Warrior
from Kibbutz Tzuba, Israel
Date Reviewed: August 25, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Mt. Eitan | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Price Paid: |
$360.00 | | Purchased At: | red barn bicycles | | Strengths: | Super plush, never ending upper tube, light, very adjustable, impart confidence. | | Weaknesses: | none | | Similar Products Used: | marzocchi MX comp, Spinner Grind (came with the bike-garbage) | | Bike Setup: | Marin bobcat trail, wtb fr wheel set, deore drivetrain, fox vanilla R forx | | Bottom Line: | best,
did many tecnichal single trails uphill and downhill and the fork worked like a dream. i do some dirt jamping at the local bike park and the fork gives a lot of positive feedback and confidence. i think i did the buy of the year... i would recommend everyone who engage all mountain riding to grab a hold to one of those superb forks. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Hugh Marsden
a Weekend Warrior
from Dorset UK
Date Reviewed: August 23, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Wall Afan Wales UK | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$500.00 | | Purchased At: | Local Bike Shop | | Strengths: | Update on previous post - hassled local shop who did admit there was a lot of play and back they went to MOjo. New bushes fitted without argument "under warranty" but with no comment as to why they were feeling worn out straight out of the box! | | Weaknesses: | I'll be keeping a close eye on the bushes! | | Similar Products Used: | see previous post | | Bike Setup: | see previous post | | Bottom Line: | They feel brilliant now & hope they'll give me hassle free enjoyment. I am concerned at the FOX initial response but lets hope its all ok now! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Tristan
a Cross Country Rider
from Boulder, Colorado
Date Reviewed: August 5, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Bergen Peak Evergreen | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Purchased At: | Performance Bicycles | | Strengths: | Long Travel and Lightweight | | Weaknesses: | Not built well inside, kinda felt loose when I lock my front brakes and rock it back and forth. Second time riding my bike and it frozed yes locked up. | | Similar Products Used: | Upgraded to Fox Vanilla RLC, Hopefully this is better | | Bottom Line: | I had just bought my GT IDRIVE5 2.0 last week and it came with these forks. I heard alot of good things about them. But the second time that I rode my bike the front forks locked up. I was in the middle of my ride with a fork stuck down and did not rebound back up. So I had to turn around and ride back to trail head with basically a rigid fork. It sucked, even my old Manitou XVERT never broke down and I had that on my Trek Y-22 for 6 years. I went back to Performance Bike and I had to fight with the manager to upgrade to the Fox Vanilla RLC and I would pay the difference in price. But finally we did reach an agreement and was settled able to swap for the upgrade with an undisclose amount paid difference. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Hugh Marsden
a Weekend Warrior
from Dorset
Date Reviewed: August 3, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$500.00 | | Purchased At: | Local Bike Shop | | Strengths: | loads of travel compared to old MXC airs | | Weaknesses: | So Noisy - took them to Afan a week or so ago & was convinced there was a problem. Mojo say thats normal with coils but it all feels very loose - seems a lot of front to back movement when locking front brake and holding hand over slider/lower leg junction. Will monitor over next few weeks before hassling Mojo. | | Similar Products Used: | Various manitous, Rock shox, marzochis | | Bike Setup: | Enduro expert 03 - hope brakes 7 hubs | | Bottom Line: | I'm underwhelmed and a bit cheesed off with my new forks - everyone else with Foxes have the air variety & of course no noise. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Scott
a Weekend Warrior
from Lancashire, England
Date Reviewed: July 31, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 6 months | | Strengths: | Cheap, easy to service, quite stiff. Comes with different weight springs. | | Weaknesses: | Horrible Knocking noise on small bumps due to bushes, sounds like youre headset is loose. Feel lifeless and overdamped. Fairly bad brake dive. | | Similar Products Used: | Manitou, Marzocchi | | Bike Setup: | Cove G-Spot with DHX 5, Marzocchi Z1 FR2, Hope Mono M4's Race Face Diabolous finishing kit | | Bottom Line: | If you wan't a good Xc fork they are probably great, for anything a bit more aggresive think again. The knocking noise can be sorted by fitting properly sized bushes. In my opinion this should be done from day one not an upgrade. the brake dive can also be sorted by the guys at TFTUNED by fitting push damping upgrade. The oil weight could do with being lighter, would give a more lively feel.
These forks are really hyped up as being the best there is, I believed it and was reaaly dissapointed. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
stevo partida
a Downhiller
from sjc, CA, USA
Date Reviewed: July 16, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | San Juan Trail | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$410.00 | | Purchased At: | san clemente cyclery | | Strengths: | plush a f@#k so nice preload off of everything, lightest spring fork on the market under 4 pounds | | Weaknesses: | have been riding the fork for only a total of 30 hours and has developed a LOUD creaking in the crown where it meets the santion, its great for 4x,dj, but has been used for a dh trail(talonics, LB) so the creaking might be a manufactures defect | | Similar Products Used: | shermans firefly, marzocchi Z1-drop off. | | Bike Setup: | kona roast, fox,saintcranks,MRP SYSTEM 3,SUV wheels, holzfeller bars stem, xtr drivetrain, king headset, maxxis tires, hayes carbon 9's | | Bottom Line: | love the fork fact that its light good for racing or going to the local bmx track to school some bmxicans !!! but the nee to beef up the crown caue im sick of such a high quality forkbreakin on me! | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Jesse
a Racer
from Edmonton,Alberta,CANADA
Date Reviewed: June 6, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | pokemon world | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$385.00 | | Purchased At: | RVC | | Strengths: | everything plushest fork on the market, under 4 pounds reound adjustments stiffness | | Weaknesses: | none except its not for 360s | | Similar Products Used: | nothing...my 36 whne it comes in | | Bike Setup: | cowan, vanilla 24 mag front back saint (single speed set up) | | Bottom Line: | its a realllyt tight fork easy to change travel and change springs bought it cuz i work at a bike shop i broke the arch doing an expo type jump trying to 360 couple bails it held up for a bit after then a few jumps later it snapped at the arch i guess fox had never seen one snap at the arch but i think its all my fault | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Chris Peterson
a Racer
from Glastonbury, Connecticut, USA
Date Reviewed: June 4, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Meshomasic | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$410.00 | | Purchased At: | Price Point. | | Strengths: | Wicked PLUSH, nice rebound convertibility, perfect amount of travel for mx racing. | | Weaknesses: | After about a month of hard use it may start to sound like the spring is corroding away at the side cartriges, but just spray some teflon on the stancion tubes. | | Similar Products Used: | 04 Psylo SL, 04 Vanilla RLC | | Bike Setup: | 04 Enduro Pro, XTR components, 05 fox vanilla | | Bottom Line: | This kicks some serious as-. DONT buy it if it's just gonna go into the basment, it would be a sin! Once you get this everything will be a win, and if not you had a kick as- time with the fork... | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
paddy
a
from bristol, england
Date Reviewed: March 27, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$410.00 | | Purchased At: | jensonusa | | Strengths: | strong, looks good, rebound control is a beast | | Weaknesses: | its to god dam sexy | | Similar Products Used: | phsylos sl's | | Bike Setup: | shred, vannillas | | Bottom Line: | the forks are amazing, they can do everything. you set the rebound up to pretty hard and its a dirt jump fork, bit more spring and u got a street forks, and they r light as. and to top it off, they look like the dogs | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Oriol Ayats
a Cross Country Rider
from Blanes, Spain
Date Reviewed: March 24, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$360.00 | | Purchased At: | www.universalcycles.com | | Strengths: | High lateral stiffness, very very very plush, fatherweight.. | | Weaknesses: | It has caused me an addiction for riding harder than before | | Bike Setup: | Conor WRC 3 Disc w/ Fox Vanilla R '05 | | Bottom Line: | This fork is a must have. Very light, incredibly strong and its 130mm seems neverending. Really a nice value for that amount of bucks. Now I'm riding very harder than before and I won a race last week -I passed the 4 riders in front of me in a downhill section of a XC race- and that's because of this incredible fork. You can even make incredible drop offs and it will absorb the shock (my bike's a hardtail and I'm doing some trails if it was a full suspension because of its plushness).
Bravo for Fox. When you hear Fox is the best fork sign, you must believe him, because it's true. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Shawn
a Downhiller
from Bellingham
Date Reviewed: March 1, 2005 | | Favorite Trail: | Galbraith Mt | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$400.00 | | Purchased At: | Pricepoint | | Strengths: | Beefy, very plush, highly adjustable. Light for a coil shock. | | Weaknesses: | None so far. | | Similar Products Used: | Marzocchi Bomber, Rockshox Judy | | Bike Setup: | 03 Specialized Enduro, Race Face Bash Guard, Time clipless pedals and of course the front fork. | | Bottom Line: | Awsome upgrade to my bike. The '03 Enduros came with a Marzocchi Bomber up front, which was a good preforming shock, but only had 4" of travel up front, and I wanted something to match 5" in the rear.
I decided to go with a coil shock because it sounded like it would preform better for the type of stuff I was riding (usually riding up gravel roads the bombing down single track with roots, stunts and jumps). The diffrence was amazing to me, more than I expected. The Vanilla just seemed so much more plush and responsive even to multiple terrain types.
I did change my bike geometry slightly but I'm actually happier with it now then I was with the Bomber. If you are looking for a beefy shock to take abuse but want to stick with a single crown I would deffinelty recommend this. $400 may seem spendy, but anything comparable is between $600-$800 so you are actually getting a pretty good value in my eyes (pricepoint threw in a free Chris King headset too). | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
Mike
a Weekend Warrior
from Wales
Date Reviewed: January 23, 2005 | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$410.00 | | Purchased At: | Speedgoat | | Strengths: | Plush straight out of the box.
Comes with 3 springs to suit your weight.
Rebound adjustment actually makes a difference. | | Weaknesses: | None so far. | | Similar Products Used: | Manitou, Marzocchi | | Bottom Line: | These forks are great, I got full travel out of them on the 1st ride, and they are well made too. They feel very plush. Best fork I've used. | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
k3n!f
a Cross Country Rider
from Hobart, Tas, Aus
Date Reviewed: December 24, 2004 | | Favorite Trail: | Mt Wellington | | Duration Product Used: | 3 months | | Price Paid: |
$400.00 | | Strengths: | Stiffness, Pimpyness, Weight, Pimpyness, Plushness, Pimpyness, Travel, Pimpyness, Adjustment did I mention Pimpyness? | | Weaknesses: | None so far. Not really a problem but the don't climb as well as my last fork cos they bounce heaps more. Still I tend to make up lost time on the downs =) | | Similar Products Used: | Manitou Axel Elite | | Bike Setup: | Merida. Deore. Margura. Fox. Pretty carbon bits here and there. | | Bottom Line: | Super nice fork. Ultra plush, good value for money, pretty light. Errrrm did I mention anywhere that it looks pimp? | | Value Rating:Overall Rating: |
Submitted by
stephen jennings
a Downhiller
from renfrew
Date Reviewed: December 24, 2004 | | Favorite Trail: | street | | Duration Product Used: | Less than 1 month | | Price Paid: |
$630.00 | |
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