[DM-SC]

I'm trying to decide between two bike models. The first one comes with a Fox Talas RL, but has LX/XTR drivetrain. The second bike has XT/XTR drivetrain with a Manitou Minute 1 fork.

My question is, are these two forks equal or is one better than the other?

 

[Homebrew]

I'm trying to decide between two bike models. The first one comes with a Fox Talas RL, but has LX/XTR drivetrain. The second bike has XT/XTR drivetrain with a Manitou Minute 1 fork.

My question is, are these two forks equal or is one better than the other?

I would rather have the Minute. It weighs the same, it's a coil and has much better damping system.

 

[gonzostrike]

I'm with Homebrew.

I just bought a new fork to replace the old whingy 2002 MX Comp on my singlespeed. I considered the Marz Marathon S, the various Fox Vanilla and Talas models, and the Manitou Minute.

I chose the Minute.

I'm glad I did.

Fox have a ways to go on forks, they're getting there but still not on the money.

Manitou's Marathon S uses the same flexy 30mm stanchions and M-Arch casting that the cheap-o MX Comp had. The new All-Mountain forks for '05 will fix that issue, but for now, I'd rather not ride a Marathon.

The Minute does very well with only 30mm stanchions. it steers more accurately and tracks straighter than my MX Comp did. I have to think that Manitou's engineers did a fine job with the reverse-arch casting, as it's both light and stiff.

 

[impatient]

2 centavos

This may be worthless, but:

! have a Talus RL led around by a Thomsen Stem and stiff bars. I thought it was a much more precise steering fork than my old 2001 Marzocchi 80mm travel 30mm stanchion, tied to a generic stem and some very narrow flat bars. And it was / is. However, I recently have had to ride the old bike for a few weeks (not fork-related). I had scored a much better stem and handlebar for that bike and installed them, then replaced the oil in the Marz at a MUCH lower level than before. Suddenly I am getting 79.5mm of travel, much better-feeling action, AND better steering. In other words, the perceived improvement with the Fox might not have been all fork-mechanicals-related, nor had I been using the Marz to its potential for 2 years. Drat. I'll be riding the Talus again soon, so we'll see how it feels against the born-again Marz. Of course, maybe it would be appreciative of a little tweaking.

And for my 2nd centavo, I was recently discussing the Minute vs the Fox with an LBS (not local to me). He preferred the Minute. Now, he did say" it steers ALMOST as good as the Fox" but has superior damping. So choose your preference. Actually, he REALLY preferred the Maverick DUC. I guess he thought I had a $grand rattling around in my pocket.

3rd (bonus) centavo: this is a little unfair, but Fox has never let me down (front or rear), the Marz was absolutely trouble-free, but my former Manitou (admittedly old) FS was built for recreational use with plenty o' plastic. And that fork did NOT have superior damping. Or steering, or bushings, or bosses, or springs / MCU's. So you can't blame me for trying other brands, and being reluctant to give Answer another chance. But the buzz is Manitou is hot this year, Fox was hot for the last couple of years, and Marz hasn't been hot for a few years...but this is in the non-race general purpose trail niche. Of course, how accurate is the buzz?

Oh what the heck, how about a 4th centavo....they're cheap. A local (older) hotshot racer-type just put a Minute on his bike and LOVES it. But then added that he couldn't get the perfect balance. Either it was too harse (platform too "high") or it wasn't "locked" out during standing sprints. Hmmm. Will we be seeing Minutes with handlbar-mounted lock-out levers soon? Kinda like a Blur with a 5th Element. Sorry, 4 centavos and the skeptic in me comes out.

I can see the advantage of a fork that doesn't mush under hard acceleration, so try the Minute. And since I haven't been paying attention, maybe you won't be buying a hunk of plastic. Me, I gotta make my fork purchases last through the latest fads. So far, no one's blatantly laughing at my fork (they' re too busy laughing at me I guess). But I smokes a few of them. Even with a 3 yr old Marz on a 7 yr old frame..

Just watch, next year the ONLY fork to have will be the Rock Shox.

 

[DM-SC]

This may be worthless, but:
Just watch, next year the ONLY fork to have will be the Rock Shox.

LOL! I'm riding one of THOSE ('02 Duke SL 100) now...and actually like it. I'm not sure exactly WHAT that says about me. Of course, my bike came from Big "S" with a Manitou Mars Elite. "Springy" was how I described it. No, I'm not speaking of compression or rebound..."FLEX" is what I'm talking about.

Not only do I need to decide on the fork, but the brakes as well. The bike with the Fox comes with Juicy 7's and the Minute equipped bike comes with XT's...

This whole thing is giving me a big headache!

 

[Nat]

Not only do I need to decide on the fork, but the brakes as well. The bike with the Fox comes with Juicy 7's and the Minute equipped bike comes with XT's...

Take the bike with the Juicy 7's.

 

[DM-SC]

Take the bike with the Juicy 7's.

That's the way I'm leaning. I'm thinking I'll notice a bigger difference betwen the XT vs Juicy 7's than between the Talas vs Minute One. If nothing else was different between the two brake set-ups, the Avid's adjustable lever reach feature would be my choice.

I wish I could get the bike with the Minute One and the Juicy 7's!

 

[Nat]

I wish I could get the bike with the Minute One and the Juicy 7's!

Can't you? LBS's have done component swaps for me before.

If that TALAS is a 2004 with v-brake bosses, you could always sell it used to someone since the 2005 are bossless. Some folks will be looking for a TALAS with v-brake bosses (ahem).

On second thought, have you seen that Maverick single crown in the next thread down?

 

[keen]

That's the way I'm leaning. I'm thinking I'll notice a bigger difference betwen the XT vs Juicy 7's than between the Talas vs Minute One. If nothing else was different between the two brake set-ups, the Avid's adjustable lever reach feature would be my choice.

I wish I could get the bike with the Minute One and the Juicy 7's!

Sounds like Supergo's Weyless XP & XP Pro...

 

[DM-SC]

Sounds like Supergo's Weyless XP & XP Pro...

Actually, it the '05 Stumpjumper Pro/Expert 120.

 

[impatient]

Something is wierd

I'm shooting from the hip here, but aren't Juicy's one of the more expensive brakes on the market? And XT's middle of the road pricewise? I'm assuming the Pro has the Minute and the XT's, and is the more expensive. Maybe OEM Juicy's aren't the same. Have you seen these bike spec's in a brochure? Or is it possible the LBS already did a little swapperoo. And I am not up to date, but if these bikes have 120mm rear travel, I would assume they are balanced with 120mm FRONT travel. On my bike, the Talus (or maybe the frame, or maybe the geometry), started making the steering a little vague at 119, 122, and 125 mm of travel. Not unusable, but definitely not as crisp as lower travel...that's why I usually run 110-116 travel. good compromise. And again, this is only a guess, but I would think the Minute would be even more likely to get a little noodle-y at such long travels. But just a guess.

I don't want to get your headache analysing this, but is there a platform shock on the rear on one or both of these versions?

If you get platform adjustability front and rear, you are in for some twiddling. Your options / decisions just quadrupled. You will either get it dialed and love it or if you have my personality disorders, you will never be satisfied. Since I have never ridden an SPV-equipped bike, I don't know what I am missing. Sure sounds good on paper though.. But if the SPV took away the smallest bit of small bump sensitivity, I would be backing it off as much as possible, to the point where, I might have the moral equivalent of a non-SPV shock. Of course, I don't race. And I repeat, SPV DOES sound good on paper.

 

[DGC]

something to think about with brakes......

Actually, it the '05 Stumpjumper Pro/Expert 120.

I've ridden both the juicy 7 and Xt hydros. Both work excellent. I think more power from the juicy 7 than 2 piston XT's. It is nearly impossible to get any parts right now from Avid and or the distributors. Hopefully the Avid thing is a little better soon, last time I tried to get an Avid bleed kit back in June, maybe by August they will be available.....and basically no parts were available then, that put me right off Avids to use or sell. Like I say, maybe by now its back up and going, and if so then I would probably go Avid, but Shimano aint too shabby either. I really like my Magura Marta SL's a lot.
Forks.....I have had 6 different Fox Vanilla forks, something wrong with all 6 at some time or another. As someone already said, Fox has a way to go on their forks to gain consistency in high quality, or quality control. Manitou is not perfect either. I do think the 04 Minute was a real nice jump for them, and now 05 gets better in their fork line, making what I think is possibly the best 5 inch travel fork right now for trail use. I have the 04 Minute 1:00 witht the 05 internals. It is a sweet ride and quite a nice way too go.
Steering precision, I felt the Manitou was basically the same as the Fox was. Damping superior in the Manitou, and the customer service at Answer blows holes through Fox's whimpy armor. The guys at Answer have been first rate all the way to deal with any anything I need for customers forks etc. Fox has been more often unpleasant in the past 2+ years, though not every time. The Fox rear shocks are much better than their forks are. Marzocchi makes waaay the hell too many forks for even their tech guys to keep track of, and I think they do too many half baked jobs on forks now, not as well designed or finished as they could be, or as they used to be.

 

[DM-SC]

The specs are from an '05 Specialized catalog that my LBS has.

Both for the 120 bikes have 120mm travel frt and rr. They also come with the same rear shock. It's a Fox Septune that has a 7 position adjustable ProPedal feature.

I like to run my brake levers in close to the bars. That's the way I have my Avid Mechs set-up on my '01 FSR XC Pro. The lever adjustment and power are why I'm leaning toward the Expert model with the Juicy 7's.

Either way I go, with my piss poor luck, I'll have problems with either the fork or the brakes or ...

 

[doanster]

I personally think that the Minute feels to spongy for me. I like Psylos