Fork Needed for Bridgestone

I seem to remember seeing a 1" Tange on the Universal Cycles website, the axle to crown might be a bit shorter than you are looking for though.

Bikeman.com lists a 1" Kona P2, but out of stock, so you might try looking for one of those

bbrins said:

I seem to remember seeing a 1" Tange on the Universal Cycles website, the axle to crown might be a bit shorter than you are looking for though.

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Good find, thanks. Right, it might be a bit short. AC of suspension fork is 420mm (w/o sag). Will try Tange if nothing else presents itself.

There's also an Exotic (brand) carbon fork on Ebay, but totally not the flavor or price point I'm looking for.

wv_bob said:

Bikeman.com lists a 1" Kona P2, but out of stock, so you might try looking for one of those

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Yup, first one on a Google search. Sounds ideal, but not available. Signed up for stock notification. Thanks.

tange 1in 395mm A_C. It will change in a good way the handling.

colker1 said:

tange 1in 395mm A_C. It will change in a good way the handling.

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It's for a Bridgestone MB-S. I believe it's the only Bridgestone that is actually suspension corrected. The Tange Infinity will put my front end about an inch or so lower and lower my BB. Concerned about pedal clearance. Not sure of HT angle, but it seems pretty slack. Steeper might be better. Thoughts?

390mm A-C:
http://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=16868

Grant Petersen's Response

Here's Grant Petersen's response to the question regarding a shorter A-C height...

"A shorter fork will steepen the bike and lower the bb, but no biggie---mountain bikes have high BBs anyway, and you'd get used to the steeper front end, and halfway thru a ride you'd be fine with it, I bet. If you want it not suspended, go for the Tange fork.

I think a cm in fork length adds or subtracts a degree--or maybe it's half a degree. One of those. But the original head tube accounted for some fork sag, so the length is shorter than 420 (with sag). So--probably fine--but just a guess. I say do it..."

G

There you have it. I'll try the Tange. If the geo is funky or I'm striking pedals, I'll figure out another option. Thanks to all for your suggestions and input!

Fork Found

wv_bob said:

Bikeman.com lists a 1" Kona P2, but out of stock, so you might try looking for one of those

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Bikeman got a few 1in P2 back in stock, so I grabbed one. Nice fork. Almost pulled the trigger on the Tange, but since I wasn't in a rush decided to give it some time. Build is done and initial ride/handling was great. Will post pics of the soulful Frankenbike soon.

Glad you found something. It looks like Tange Prestige forks are still available new, but only in 1 1/8", so you have to go with the heavier one. The Kona seems like a nice choice, though...

That looks fun. How are you liking the two speed? (or is it a dingle?)

yo-Nate-y said:

That looks fun. How are you liking the two speed? (or is it a dingle?)

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Thanks. Yup, two speed with original derailleur, thumb shifter and a Paul Melvin. Rides a lot like it looks. Simple and fun. Some grouches might cringe at what I've done with it, but it seems to fit the character of the frame pretty well. Still winter here and looking forward to some quality dirt time on it. Nice option to the techno rigs I've been riding...

Nice :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

I especially dig the tringle-dingle. I bet that Melvin weighs a lot less than even the lightest road derailleur setup. Definitely a bright idea there

What cog and ring sizes are you running?

wv_bob said:

What cog and ring sizes are you running?

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Thanks, Bob. Running a 20t cog with 32t and 44t rings (stock MTB compact). Melvin can handle up to a 20 tooth difference. Neat product.

Nice find.

I am looking for something similar, but for a Trek 830 "touring" bike I'm envisioning.

I wish that Kona fork wasn't a 410mm a2c 'cause like the rack mounts in the middle of the fork legs.

I don't think the 830s were setup for suspension.

rockhound said:

Nice find.

I am looking for something similar, but for a Trek 830 "touring" bike I'm envisioning.

I wish that Kona fork wasn't a 410mm a2c 'cause like the rack mounts in the middle of the fork legs.

I don't think the 830s were setup for suspension.

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Not sure I'll ever put a front rack on it, but you never know. It is nice to have the option since I don't plan on parting with this bike again.

830s were probably not suspension corrected geo. Good luck with the search!

Hate to hijack, but I've been looking for some 1-inch threadless forks for some time. I've heard good things about the P2, but after seeing it on arietz's mb-s, I'm not sure if I like how it looks. I'd be putting mine on a Ritchey P-21, whose original Ritchey logic fork had curved blades. I think the 410mm A/C would be ok for the P-21 considering it had a 63mm Judy SL originally (and I know an 80mm fork is about 434mm).

Problem (maybe not), is the Tange Infinity has an A/C of 390mm. But it looks more fitting.

What do you guys think would be best for the P21? (Besides the unicorn Logic fork!)

I can understand your dilema. The P2 doesn't quite fit the aesthetic of the frame, but since I was going with alt bars and a threadless conversion, staying visually true to the period was not a main objective. Going threadless immediately knocked me out of the "restoration" category as I bet it does for you as well. The main reason I would have gone for the Tange would have been for comfort (maybe more vertically compliant?). But, the A-C of the P2 was the deciding factor, and I'm happy with it. Better to enjoy riding it now than sweat how it looks, I say. Good luck!

bryanus said:

Hate to hijack, but I've been looking for some 1-inch threadless forks for some time. I've heard good things about the P2, but after seeing it on arietz's mb-s, I'm not sure if I like how it looks. I'd be putting mine on a Ritchey P-21, whose original Ritchey logic fork had curved blades. I think the 410mm A/C would be ok for the P-21 considering it had a 63mm Judy SL originally (and I know an 80mm fork is about 434mm).

Problem (maybe not), is the Tange Infinity has an A/C of 390mm. But it looks more fitting.

What do you guys think would be best for the P21? (Besides the unicorn Logic fork!)

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Depends on the bike.

I really like straight-bladed forks myself (especially on suspension-corrected frames) on modern mtbs, but prefer traditional crowns on anything older.