[LackOfProduction]

Hello, I am in the process of selecting front suspension for a Salsa Caballero frame. It was designed for 26 in wheels, 100mm of travel up front and 4 inches in the rear.

Would it be excessive to put a 130mm fork up front and just adjust the sag so the ride height is comparable to when using a 100mm?

I'm looking for good sub 400USD fork options. If I have a choice, I would like to go with coils instead of air springs.

Right now I'm looking at Manitou Match Comp on Amzn.

Thoughts on this fork/frame combo?

The runner-ups include:
Rockshox 30 gold
Rockshox Recon silver

Which are air springs, but both 100mm.

 

[bridgestone14]

Most forks are internally adjustable. Get a 100mm fork. The 130mm would through the geometry off too much.

 

[bridgestone14]

V-brake, disk, 15mm axle?

 

[bridgestone14]

ebay option
Seems a little pricey.

 

[LackOfProduction]

Disc, regular quick release axle, will use on packed dirt/gravel trails with some rocks poking through the dirt, but nothing crazy.

 

[Ashy Larry]

I have a Fox Talas 90-130 I could sell. 26” disc or vbrake 1 1/8” steerer.

 

[Harold]

just adjust the sag so the ride height is comparable to when using a 100mm?.

Nobody's commented on this part yet.

Let's assume you did this. Sag on a 100mm fork would be around 80mm-ish. Running a 130mm fork sagged that much would be about 40% sag, and it's probably going to feel like mush. Your spring rate will be too soft, so you'll get a lot of fork movement when pedaling, brake dive, etc. Usually the range for sag is 20-30% or so, depending on what you've got and how you ride.

And with a full suspension, you need to pay attention to whether the spring rates of the front AND rear suspension are balanced. Otherwise you'll wind up with odd behavior. In this case, you'd probably wind up getting bucked OTB by the rear suspension being firmer and the front wallowing.