First trail fork from moto suspension masters
Ohlins' suspension units are the choice of many big MotoGP and motocross teams, even though the Swedish company have a no-sponsorship policy. They dabbled in the MTB world in the mid '00s when they worked with Cane Creek on the highly rated Double Barrel shock, and resurfaced recently with a custom damper for Specialized's Demo 8 DH bike. The new RFX 34 fork is a result of that continuing partnership with Spesh. Designed for use on the Camber, Stumpjumper and Enduro, it's now available to the rest of us too.
The fork uses the same TTX twin-tube technology found in Ohlins' shocks, which separates the compression and rebound damping oil flow in a bid to improve performance and consistency. There are high and low-speed compression dials on the top of the crown, and a rebound adjuster at the bottom of one leg. This impressive damping technology is complemented by a triple air-spring system. Two positive springs control the spring rate, while a single negative spring affects the initial suppleness of the fork.
The stanchions are 34mm in diameter but Ohlins claim stiffness is similar to a 36mm fork thanks to the one-piece crown and steerer tube with built-in bearing race. The RFX 34 is currently availble for 29in wheels only, and the built-in bearing race restricts which head tubes it can be used with. Our sample weighs 2.06kg, which is 206g more than an equivalent RockShox Pike RCT3. There's a choice of three travel options though – 120, 140 and 160mm – and with rumours of a 650b version in the pipeline, we’re sure it’ll be finding its way onto quite a few bikes in future.
Price 1275$
