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Manitou J-Unit and Light Kids

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Doug

· mtbr member since 1996
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Discussion starter · #1 · (Edited)
I'm looking at 24" hardtails for my 8yo son (51" and 53 pounds). The main concern with kids bike forks is they can be heavy and not do much. Prevelo, Trailcraft, and a few others use the carbon fork that is light and is supposed to be tuned for light riders. That is currently my first choice. However, I really like the idea of the J-Unit. Lots of tuning options, adjustments, solid build, easy to service, etc. However, I see comments that they are really for more aggressive and/or heavier riders. My son is tall but just 53 pounds (takes after his 6' 4" 180lb father). We live in upstate NY where rocks and roots abound. Will the J-Unit be sensitive enough for his 53 pounds to take advantage of? Are the reports of it being less compliant true? Overblown? Can the air spring be tuned to work well for him?

edit: I see the Specialized Riprock comes with the JUnit. Any idea which version this is? Comet, Sport, Pro (not likely), or some other OEM missing ______feature(s).
 
#3 ·
One of my kids has a 20in nukeproof with the Junit fork. He’s in the 50-something lb range as well and it works for him bouncing off curbs (~60% travel if he plops off). I can’t really speak to the compression tuning, but it works an awful lot better than the coil kid forks. Its a pretty beefy fork compared to the Trailcraft unit on my younger son’s bike.
 
#4 ·
You can take them all the way down to zero psi and just have the kid using the air pressure buildup in the lowers.

They're a very smooth sliding fork. I've downsized air-spring seals to minimise friction further for light riders but don't do it for jumpers.
 
Discussion starter · #5 ·
Dougal said:
You can take them all the way down to zero psi and just have the kid using the air pressure buildup in the lowers.

They're a very smooth sliding fork. I've downsized air-spring seals to minimise friction further for light riders but don't do it for jumpers.
Click to expand...
Thanks, good to know.

Do you happen to know what 24” hardtail bikes come with the expert or pro? The specialized has the comp and I haven’t found any others with the junit at all.
 
#6 ·
Doug said:
Thanks, good to know.

Do you happen to know what 24” hardtail bikes come with the expert or pro? The specialized has the comp and I haven’t found any others with the junit at all.
Click to expand...
www.coloradocyclist.com

Nukeproof Cub Scout 24 Race Kids Bike - Nukeproof Factory Yellow - One Size

The Cub-Scout 24 Race is the ideal steppingstone into the world of mountain bike (MTB) riding for junior off-road enthusiasts. It features an alloy frame that takes geometry and visuals from Nukeproof's World Class race bikes and is equipped with superb quality kids-sized components. Engineered...
www.coloradocyclist.com www.coloradocyclist.com

Nukeproof has the expert. Prevelo’s 24 dirt jump has it as well, but not their ‘mtb’ for some reason.
 
Discussion starter · #8 ·
OK, looking like it will be a Trailcraft Pineridge for now, and maybe upgrade the fork and build up a new front wheel. I may have a lead on a JUnit Pro for a great deal. Fingers crossed.
 
#12 ·
I've got a Magura md100r on my daughters 24" transition ripchord..it's a 26" fork 100mm 470 a-c. Nice light weight at around 1500grams. That fork combined with some nice crest wheels has it down to around 24lbs. Cheaper alternative if you come across one.
 
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#13 ·
On my son's bike (45lbs), anything less than 45-50psi would result in the fork sucking up into the travel noticeably, as in losing about a third of the travel. And even worse, then it was rock hard when it did try to compress further. It turned out to work much better at around 50psi, keeping the fork up in the travel, but he cant use near the full travel no matter how hard he jumps or drops. Hell, I cant even get it to compress when I put my full weight on it. The expert version with the dual air chambers seemed to work somewhat better, but I wouldnt say they worked well at his weight at all. The Brood Eldorado he rode before worked much better at his weight IMO.
 
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