[southvike]

I’m trying to get as much bottom bracket clearance as possible on my nomad with the least amount of weight penalty and would like to know if anyone has the axle to race distances of some of the more common forks being used on nomads.

I’m running a Fox 36 float now and I think it’s around 535mm. I heard the Marzocchi all mountain might be about an inch taller??

 

[TNC]

The Van 36 and Float 36 are supposed to be the same travel, and my Van 36 is right at 540mm. The 150mm Marz 32mm stanchion forks that I've measured are all right at 535-540 also. I haven't measured all models obviously, but I think they're all fairly similar. If there are any noteable differences between your Float and the Marz AM models, I don't think it's anything like 25mm. One of the most popular forks for a Nomad is the 66SL. My '06 model is about 560mm. I had both the Van 36 and 66SL on my Nomad. The 66SL gave me the most relief from pedal smacking...as long as you don't start putting a bunch of negative air pressure in it, which starts lowering the fork and the available travel.

 

[MartinS]

I second TNC, I ran an '05 66VF last year with way too much axle to crown, about 8mm taller than the 07 66SL I have replaced it with (and 25mm less travel) and was confused by everyones complaints about smacking the BB. The 66SL will give you the height you want and still let you drop down the front end for quicker handling.

 

[.Danno.]

What about using a 8.75 i2i rear shock if you don't have one already? I believe I've read several threads where Nomads were delivered new with that shock. I'm not quite sure how they would end up building them up with a non-standard shock, but it would raise your BB fairly significantly at the cost of a slightly steeper HA.

I don't know if that shock will fit all Nomads though.

 

[TNC]

Yeah Danno, I really considered doing this, but I think I'm actually getting more accustomed to the lower BB Nomad as opposed to my Bullits. I just got an Evolver-6 air shock for my Nomad but kept it in the stock length. The 66SL helped a good deal with pedal smack, as well as getting away from the DHXA with its really soft mid-stroke support. The PUSH'd Fox RC definitely helped also.

 

[.Danno.]

Yeah Danno, I really considered doing this, but I think I'm actually getting more accustomed to the lower BB Nomad as opposed to my Bullits. I just got an Evolver-6 air shock for my Nomad but kept it in the stock length. The 66SL helped a good deal with pedal smack, as well as getting away from the DHXA with its really soft mid-stroke support. The PUSH'd Fox RC definitely helped also.

BB height is a tough call. I sometimes really like the way I can climb over rough terrain with my Bullit without having to even think about the pedals. But on the other hand, railing corners on my 13.5" BB 5-Spot is an awful lot of fun as well!

I want to have my cake and eat it too.

That weak mid stroke of the DHXa has kept me from putting one on my 5-Spot. Still rock'n a Romic, well, at least until the oil decided to exit stage left last week. :sad:

 

[dahowe]

This is driving me crazy! With only a few exceptions for forks in the same 'class' and within anyones riding ability, ALL THE DAMN FORKS HAVE THE SAME DAMN AC FOR THE SAME LENGTH OF TRAVEL! What is all this AC worry!!!

ok i fell better now, thanks

 

[BanzaiRider]

I'm really happy with my current AtoC and BB height on the Nomad. I've got the 2005 AM1 which is 538mm and I feel it's the perfect compromise of BB height and head angle for riding in almost all conditions. Sure, on rare occasions I wish I had a bit higher BB but most of the time I feel it's perfect and it is overal nicer that way then with my previous bike that was about 0.75" higher. So this year I wanted to upgrade my fork to get 20mm stiffness and a bit more travel but was reluctant on going higher AtoC and I really don't like air forks. So salvation came in the name of Manitou Nixon Elite. Cheap, light, smooth coil performance and same AtoC as my current AM1 with 10mm more travel. We'll see how it goes but I think it will be a wise decision...

 

[Locoman]

The 05 zoke 66 has more ac distance than the 06/07's.