Ive got a 2019 trek stache 7 recently and love it. My only complaint is it sometimes feels a bit twitchy on the downhills. I'm thinking of increasing the fork travel from 120 to 140 or 160. I believe I can just swap the air spring, is that correct? Has anyone done this? If so, what travel did you go with? Did it help slacken the geometry out a bit?
Trek Stache Fork Travel
medelman
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Ive got a 2019 trek stache 7 recently and love it. My only complaint is it sometimes feels a bit twitchy on the downhills. I'm thinking of increasing the fork travel from 120 to 140 or 160. I believe I can just swap the air spring, is that correct? Has anyone done this? If so, what travel did you go with? Did it help slacken the geometry out a bit?
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What fork do you have now?
It is a rockshox yari with 120 travel
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2,428 Posts
I have one stache with a 120 and one with a 130, the one with the 120 is definitely more twitchy but it's setup more XC than the other. Think the 140 would be ideal.
Those frames look "short", like the wheels are to close together, the wheelbase needs another 10-20mm? Is that just visual, or is that thing meant to be like that? I've never had good luck going longer on the fork travel than intended, but that's just me.
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I would not increase travel from 120 to 160mm. Your bike's geo will be really thrown off. Get yourself a Marzocchi Bomber Z2. They are on sale everywhere right now.
Was in a similar position where I was curious what the effect would be of having more travel / slacker head angle on my Stache.
I ultimately decided to add a 15mm extended crown race:
Carver Bikes Forklift 15 mm Crown Race Adapter for Tapered Steerers
Check out the deal on Carver Bikes Forklift 15 mm Crown Race Adapter for Tapered Steerers at Bikeman
www.bikeman.com
For $20, it's a lot cheaper than anything else you can do with the fork.
Overall I'd consider it an improvement.
Z2 depends on just how "plus" you want to go.
Despite the official spec being only 2.6", it seems to be enough for most 3.0" tires:
Marzocchi Z2 and 29+ Clearance
I know a few people may be interested to see that the Marzocchi Z2 clears 29+ with ease. Here's a 100mm Marzocchi Z2 fork with 29x3.0 Bontrager XR4 on i40 Race Face Arc rim.
www.mtbr.com
3.25" tires like the Duro Crux or Vee Bulldozer probably won't have enough clearance.
What did you think about the changes it made to how it rode?Was in a similar position where I was curious what the effect would be of having more travel / slacker head angle on my Stache.
I ultimately decided to add a 15mm extended crown race:
Carver Bikes Forklift 15 mm Crown Race Adapter for Tapered Steerers
Check out the deal on Carver Bikes Forklift 15 mm Crown Race Adapter for Tapered Steerers at Bikemanwww.bikeman.com
For $20, it's a lot cheaper than anything else you can do with the fork.
Overall I'd consider it an improvement.
Felt better on downhill sections, didn't seem to affect handling much for switchbacks / tighter turns.
bumping up the travel seems to be a pretty common mod on the Stache. Be aware that slackening the head tube slackens the seat tube as well. If you have space you may be able to slide the seat forward on the rails to undo this.
Keep in mind that once you are deeper in your travel you will be back at the same geometry. The extended crown race prevents this from happening as much.
Keep in mind that once you are deeper in your travel you will be back at the same geometry. The extended crown race prevents this from happening as much.
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The rear dropout is adjustable, and I know I keep my wheelbase as short as possible to make the front end more 'poppy', but I forgot about that...Lengthening it will stabilize the bike on the downhills.
Think the wheelbase looks short anyway because of the large tires.
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Try the Slack-R maybe. We have two Staches here and both have one installed. Very happy with the change in handling. Combo with a longer a2c fork and I’m pretty sure you can preserve bb height and st angle while slacking ht angle and increasing travel. Here is the model you need. Pay attention to the steer tube length requirements.
9point8.ca
Echo Slack-R Headset Angle Kit 1.7°
The 9point8™ Slack-R™ headset angle kit changes the head tube angle on bikes with IS headsets. (IS41 and IS42* upper bearing and IS52 lower bearing only.) CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ON IS41 vs IS42 vs IS42S Confirm the three checks below and complete the drop down menus to see what Slack-R kits...
9point8.ca
I have one sized for a small carbon stache, if you want to buy it. It didn't fit my headtube, but I assume it fits the aluminum frames.Try the Slack-R maybe. We have two Staches here and both have one installed. Very happy with the change in handling. Combo with a longer a2c fork and I’m pretty sure you can preserve bb height and st angle while slacking ht angle and increasing travel. Here is the model you need. Pay attention to the steer tube length requirements.
Echo Slack-R Headset Angle Kit 1.7°
The 9point8™ Slack-R™ headset angle kit changes the head tube angle on bikes with IS headsets. (IS41 and IS42* upper bearing and IS52 lower bearing only.) CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ON IS41 vs IS42 vs IS42S Confirm the three checks below and complete the drop down menus to see what Slack-R kits...
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