I think it really depending on what you want to do with your bike. The Fox 34 SC is going to be light the best for XC Racing and the Fox 34 is going to be the best for harder trail riding. The SID falls right in the middle of those two in my opinion. I have hear a lot of people that have liked the SID forks and are impressed by it's weight vs performance, but your right there are some that have had problems with them. When I talked with Rockshox they told me the percent failures is relatively low (like 5% or less).

I have the Fox 34 Grip 2 on my FS Ibis ripley and I also have the Reba RL on my hard tail Chisel. The Fox 34 does a lot better in the chunky sections than the Reba, but if I go on a long down hill with lost of roots it can start to feel a little harsh at times. If I were upgrading the fork on a Epic evo I would probably go for the Fox 34 non step cast. If money were tight I would for for the SID. I have road a few bikes with the SID select + and I would say it is a lot better fork than the reba. It is more plush, and torsionally stiffer.

Here's another way to look at it. Specialized does not spec the bike with a Fox SC fork, and the put the Fox 34 Fit 4 on their best bikes.
Epic Evo base = Reba RL
Epic Evo Expert = Sid Select +
Epic Evo Pro & S-works = Fox 34 Fit 4

On a side note if you are trying to take some of the harshness out of the trail you might look at getting a set of nice carbon bars. The Enve M6 bars do a lot for removing trail chatter.

 

I think it really depending on what you want to do with your bike. The Fox 34 SC is going to be light the best for XC Racing and the Fox 34 is going to be the best for harder trail riding. The SID falls right in the middle of those two in my opinion. I have hear a lot of people that have liked the SID forks and are impressed by it's weight vs performance, but your right there are some that have had problems with them. When I talked with Rockshox they told me the percent failures is relatively low (like 5% or less).

I have the Fox 34 Grip 2 on my FS Ibis ripley and I also have the Reba RL on my hard tail Chisel. The Fox 34 does a lot better in the chunky sections than the Reba, but if I go on a long down hill with lost of roots it can start to feel a little harsh at times. If I were upgrading the fork on a Epic evo I would probably go for the Fox 34 non step cast. If money were tight I would for for the SID. I have road a few bikes with the SID select + and I would say it is a lot better fork than the reba. It is more plush, and torsionally stiffer.

Here's another way to look at it. Specialized does not spec the bike with a Fox SC fork, and the put the Fox 34 Fit 4 on their best bikes.
Epic Evo base = Reba RL
Epic Evo Expert = Sid Select +
Epic Evo Pro & S-works = Fox 34 Fit 4

On a side note if you are trying to take some of the harshness out of the trail you might look at getting a set of nice carbon bars. The Enve M6 bars do a lot for removing trail chatter.

Thank you very much ! Lots of good info in there and some to think about for sure ! I could probably afford both options but at some point one for sure starts to wonder where the point of diminishing returns lie, especially with the fox being almost twice the price !

 

The bike is never to heavy, you are to weak.
Light weight, cheap or strong….. you only get two choices.
FYI, the cheaper Rockshox have a lot of issues with bushing play. The only choice is the step cast fox 34.

 

Hahah yes, at 75kg, 240w LT and 290-300w AT/FTP I’m far from super competitive level, but also am not gonna consider myself weak 🙃
Will the FIT4 damper of the SC really be enough to make it feel like a worthwhile upgrade over the Reba? Tested a friends spectral 27.5 and wasn’t overly impressed with his fork either, albeit I think that one would need servicing..

And on the other hand, if I go with the non sc 34 at the 200gr penalty, (acceptable) would I miss the ability to lock out the fork in a standing sprint or similar in an xc race ? Or can the low speed compression be tuned so well that one doesn’t need to lock out for a good sprint ?

 

RockShox just recently updated there line. I would wait for review of the new stuff comes out before deciding.

 

Yeah haven’t found many reviews, but have found a good deal on the new 2023 version pike 130mm for 800 EUR, albeit it weighs 1900gr. I’m starting to feel that this 1900 gr extreme or the 1500gr of the stepcast are probably both at the extreme ends though, and I should probably go for the SID or the normal 34? Unless someone tells me that the Step Cast (and FIT4) is plenty fine, or that one really needs to step up to the pike to get satisfied 🤷‍♂️

How about one not on your list, Manitou R7 Pro. Better damper than any of your choices, about 650 Euros.

I’ve only found it for about 800, and suspecting that service parts and servicing might be harder to come by as it is a minor brand ? Living in Sweden so the VAT is a bit higher, might explain some differences. Apart from the big 2 I think Öhlins could be could being local, but they don’t get as favorable reviews, or are heavy.

You can still get a fit4 damper in the non step cast fox 34 fork. You could save a few $$ if you get the fox 34 performance instead of the factory.

so what you’re saying is that getting the 34 I can still switch the damper in case I need a lockout? How big of an operation is that, is it something one would do in prep for a race or race season or is it more permanent? From reading the reviews many praise the grip2 over the fit4, and I’m not reading a lot about the 34 SC being flimsy, so the main reason to get the normal 34 As opposed to the stepcast would be the grip2, am I mistaken here ?

240 Watts Long Term, his weight is 75kg, or 165 pounds Merican.

Thanks for the translation! Haven’t really gotten used to your freedom units, prefer the SI ones . LT= Lactate Threshold (first one), where blood lactate levels go above resting level, and one starts to burn more carbs. It also is about the pace one keeps for longer duration events, such as the bike ride in an Ironman, saving oneself for the marathon at the end, so Long Term is actually a pretty good mistranslation as it describes what it actually means. I might start using it ! What people usually refer to as threshold normally is called anaerobic threshold (at) and it’s the limit where you can transport as much lactate as you’re producing. It roughly corresponds with FTP.

 

How about one not on your list, Manitou R7 Pro. Better damper than any of your choices, about 650 Euros.

 

Problem with R7 Pro for the OP is availability of remote lockout kit compatible with the current R7 Pro (not the old R7).
If it is commonly available, or OP don't need remote lockout. That'd be my recommendation too.

 

You can still get a fit4 damper in the non step cast fox 34 fork. You could save a few $$ if you get the fox 34 performance instead of the factory.

 

240? Short stroke a Lyrik or 36.

 

240 Watts Long Term, his weight is 75kg, or 165 pounds Merican.

 

I score good in reading comprehension.... Real good. 👍

 

I have a 2022 Fox Factory Stepcast 120mm and a 2021 Pike Ultimate that I use on my 2022 Top Fuel. They both are excellent in very different ways.

The Stepcast is very light and stiff enough. The damper is very “supportive” but struggles on truly technical terrain. Successive rock/root sections on long downhills kill my hands. I’m not giving up completely, but I think I have realized it’s simply a “race” fork that shines in XCO type settings.

The Pike is better in every way except it’s a couple hundred grams heavier. It has no lockout but I really don’t care. I like to be able to lock the rear shock but a properly set up fork never bothers me.

So, I think I’ll run the Stepcast in our short XC races and probably put the Pike on for technical stage races etc. For reference, I’m about 175 Freedom Units and live on Vancouver island.

A regular non Stepcast 34 with a FIT4 damper sounds like the worst of both worlds: lousy in the rough AND kinda heavy. If you must have that damper you might as well save the weight with Stepcast. A standard GRIP 34 is a fine fork that could have a lockout. I assume this combo exists? The GRIP damper is actually great. Not as tunable as GRIP2 but hey…


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I have a 2022 Fox Factory Stepcast 120mm and a 2021 Pike Ultimate that I use on my 2022 Top Fuel. They both are excellent in very different ways.

The Stepcast is very light and stiff enough. The damper is very “supportive” but struggles on truly technical terrain. Successive rock/root sections on long downhills kill my hands. I’m not giving up completely, but I think I have realized it’s simply a “race” fork that shines in XCO type settings.

The Pike is better in every way except it’s a couple hundred grams heavier. It has no lockout but I really don’t care. I like to be able to lock the rear shock but a properly set up fork never bothers me.

So, I think I’ll run the Stepcast in our short XC races and probably put the Pike on for technical stage races etc. For reference, I’m about 175 Freedom Units and live on Vancouver island.

A regular non Stepcast 34 with a FIT4 damper sounds like the worst of both worlds: lousy in the rough AND kinda heavy. If you must have that damper you might as well save the weight with Stepcast. A standard GRIP 34 is a fine fork that could have a lockout. I assume this combo exists? The GRIP damper is actually great. Not as tunable as GRIP2 but hey…


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Really nice to hear the comparison! I'm starting to doubt the SC34 for the reasons you describe, apart from being pricey.
Will look into either the normal 34, the pike, or just taking my chances with the SID being on sale and hoping they got their stuff together.. I've found a new takeoff. 34 factory 130mm with grip2 at around 650. Should be a no-brainer?

We tried to go SI in the late 70s, but it never took. It is funny, because instead we end up with people mixing units. People look at bike parts in grams, but total bike weight in pounds.

Manitou is easily serviced and parts widely available from the German online shops. Ironically, I end up buying a lot of Manitou from Germany and having it shipped to the USA, as it is significantly less expensive, as are tires and Magura brakes.

Haha yeah, mixing units is FUBAR. But even mixing feet, inches and miles with no even base is also a bit WTFBBQ .

Your LT1 is similar to my LT2, so kudo to that.
That kind of power means you are well trained, and definitely not in the beginner race field. I can see why you are serious and concern not to lose those hard earned watts to the suspension bob in sprint.

However, there is no fork with full lockout that ride plush on hard hits (,well Manitou R7 Pro but the remote lock out kit is hard to find). To have a firm lockout with blow off valve when hitting something really hard, the high speed compression circuit must be preloaded pretty heavily and that won't feel plush on hard hits. You can get small bump compliance, you can get support. But as soon as you hit something hard and fast, it won't be too kind to your hands. Suspension tuners can tune out that preload HSC. But that'll also make the lockout less firm. You can't get both plush ride and firm lockout from one damper circuit (You can, with TWO separate circuits. But that'll weight more, like Manitou R7 Pro).

I also come from road background and both my skills and core muscle are really lacking. My upper body is way undertrained to handle race stiff suspension setting.
Personally, I give up on the remote lockout and use damper that allow me to be more comfortable and in control. Then, since I'm more comfortable rather than feeling beat up, I can push harder on later race laps.

Thank you dear sir for kind words. I do a bit of road, and race triathlons these days, mountain biking is more for fun on the trails as of now, so I don't need the pointiest most racy setup, but I do like to keep a high pace and keep the bike feeling quick. You seem to guide me onto the idea of just going for the non-lockout table forks. I rarely lock up now, would also not do it on most part of the race unless a gravel sprint. Sitting and spinning I don't feel I need to lockouts currently..

I have a base model EE and upgraded both the Reba and the **** select plus whatever the shock. They had to put a gnardawg token in that thing to try to make it feel stiff on the ramp up, but it's just crap. The reba wasn't bad, it just wasn't good.

So I got the 190x40 dps and the SC34. Night and day difference. I finally have small bump compliancy now. Which is mostly what I need for XCM/XCO stuff. I am not the biggest weight weenie so I did not upgrade for that reason. I just wanted something that would be better with small bumps when sag is set correctly and also something that can rebound a bit faster. The REBA just couldn't.

I am a light rider on a medium bike. 145lbs. So far on my initial 2 rides with the new fox fork/shock everything already seems perfect. Like I believe the SC comes with 1x token, and not even sure what the dps comes with but I don't feel I need to add any tokens at all. It ramp's up nice and linear and doesn't bottom out with 25% sag (yes i know specialized says 30% on the EE but they are all screwed up anyways)

View attachment 1991083

Sweet ride! Really nice to hear you got it sorted! It also gives me confidence that whatever I choose its will be an upgrade, if even the light SC34 with the FIT4 gives the sought small bump compliance and suppleness over repeated hits, maybe I should reconsider and go for that? Also a bit funny that you hate more on the shock? Coming from a hardtail I enjoy the shock and feel its alright, whereas the fork feels nah.

 

I have a base model EE and upgraded both the Reba and the **** select plus whatever the shock. They had to put a gnardawg token in that thing to try to make it feel stiff on the ramp up, but it's just crap. The reba wasn't bad, it just wasn't good.

So I got the 190x40 dps and the SC34. Night and day difference. I finally have small bump compliancy now. Which is mostly what I need for XCM/XCO stuff. I am not the biggest weight weenie so I did not upgrade for that reason. I just wanted something that would be better with small bumps when sag is set correctly and also something that can rebound a bit faster. The REBA just couldn't.

I am a light rider on a medium bike. 145lbs. So far on my initial 2 rides with the new fox fork/shock everything already seems perfect. Like I believe the SC comes with 1x token, and not even sure what the dps comes with but I don't feel I need to add any tokens at all. It ramp's up nice and linear and doesn't bottom out with 25% sag (yes i know specialized says 30% on the EE but they are all screwed up anyways)

 

Ping!
Anybody knows if the 2022 34 oem factory are different from the retail in any significant manner apart from being matte (in this case) rather than glossy? Higher weight? As good?

I've a deal going on a new takeoff 2022 34 Grip2 from a Cube Stereo 120 for EUR 650. Yay or nay for me, fellow threaders?

 

Ping!
Anybody knows if the 2022 34 oem factory are different from the retail in any significant manner apart from being matte (in this case) rather than glossy? Higher weight? As good?

I've a deal going on a new takeoff 2022 34 Grip2 from a Cube Stereo 120 for EUR 650. Yay or nay for me, fellow threaders?

34 grip2 is a good choice,fit4 is bad.but factory don't have 120mm grip2, u need take a short.
If u want to take XC race,i think sid ult 120mm is better.

 

Has the SID Ultimate avoided the bushing issues the lesser SID’s have?

 

From what I’ve heard they all have the issue. I did however get the following answer from RockShox :
“We have fixed the issue of bushing play at our manufacturing plant for the SID chassis forks. If you purchased a SID fork today that developed bushing play, this would be covered under warranty if you're the original owner and the original date of purchase is within two years.”

 

Thanks a lot, especially @Jeremy05 @PlanB @Cary @combfilter @Hexsense.
your input proved valuable and I took the plunge. Bought the 130mm Fox 34 Grip2, it’s more plush, has better small bump compliance AND support through berms and braking. Better than I could’ve imagined. The Reba felt like it both wasn’t soaking up the small bumps but also dove in turns etc.

 

FWIW I recently put a 2022 Fox 34 130mm Grip2 on my 21 comp and I couldn't be happier. Magic carpet on our local roots and a very slight but appreciated BB boost.

 

Completely agree to this! I couldn't believe how big the difference from the Reba was! With the comp, you had the SID Select+ right? So big difference also from this one?

Now i wonder which damper to get 🤪
And do I dare to go long-stroking for a 120mm rear end?

 

@combfilter @TrustyAxe any point in going for a dpx2 or a float x? Or no point on such a small bike?

 

I don't see a reason. I Just got back from hammering my bike in Angle Fire, NM. Both on the rocky/chunky descent down southboundry black, and the bike park at Angle Fire. While my friends were on 150 travel bikes, I was on my EE with the SC 34/dps and it was never a limiting factor. I mean yeah if I could have had 150 for some of the bike park it would have been better, but my EE with that setup did just fine and the climbing part of south boundry obviously my EE was the right choice.

I don't see trying to go much more aggressive on the EE with the dpx2 or float. YMMV.

 

So.. i hade the shop remove the travel reducer making the shock 190x45, but since I have the SV version of the DPS, I cannot use the last bit of extended travel - the shock is just way too progressive!

What are my options ? Rebuild the shock with a larger volume ? A Manitou Mara? An LV Fox shock, and if so, current gen Float DPS LV, the new 2023 Float (without dps denomination), the float X? The new Öhlins TXC Air? The Cane creek db air IL? What would be the most suitable to make it slightly more linear (but not too much as I understand that the frame is already fairly linear), and what would perform the best ?

Thanks in advance !
(Should I put this in the suspension forum rather than FS bikes by now ? 😅)

 

So.. i hade the shop remove the travel reducer making the shock 190x45, but since I have the SV version of the DPS, I cannot use the last bit of extended travel - the shock is just way too progressive!

What are my options ? Rebuild the shock with a larger volume ? A Manitou Mara? An LV Fox shock, and if so, current gen Float DPS LV, the new 2023 Float (without dps denomination), the float X? The new Öhlins TXC Air? The Cane creek db air IL? What would be the most suitable to make it slightly more linear (but not too much as I understand that the frame is already fairly linear), and what would perform the best ?

Thanks in advance !
(Should I put this in the suspension forum rather than FS bikes by now ? 😅)

Hmm, I don't know who else to ask.. so @Dougal, I started thinking about this again. It seems like my shock is slightly too progressive, but on the other hand my frame is very linear, so I can't have a too linear shock.. I can't use full travel, unless I go to a ridiculously low spring rate (35% sag or so), and then obviously just blows through it.

For 190x45 on the 2021 epic evo,
Is a Fox float X a stupid idea? (will it be to linear, or too little/too much damped?) Can have it on sale for 330 EUR.
Is an Öhlins TXC a much better option? (dampening curves looks interesting), and if so, TXC1 or TXC2 ? (And why)
Manitou Mara? (which version?).

 

I have ordered a Pike Select Plus 130mm to fit on my 2021 Epic Evo in place of the SID Select Plus 120mm...hoping to see improvements all round especially in initial plushness. What do you guys think and is anyone running a 130mm Pike on the Evo?

On the rear I have the standard SID Luxe Select+ and wondering if I should flip the chip into the high position when fitting a 130mm in the front?

 

I have heard good things about it. My buddy put on his SJ. I went with a Fox Factory 34 130 Grip2 and could not be happier with it. I was literally laughing the first time I had it on a rooty local trail.
I don't think you need to flip the chip, leave it as is.

 

Ok my Epic Evo is really shining now on the rougher stuff

Pike 130 Select+ , FOX DPS Evol Performance Elite 190x42,5, Purgatory T7 and Ground Control T7 ....really happy!!