Front suspension - effectiveness?

G'day all.

As per my other posts, I'm looking to get a bike to ride to work.

I've been told various stories regarding front suspension, the most
believable being that the cheap ones simply add weight, and the more
expensive ones are OK.

Having ridden an Avanti Blade Sport today and suffering this arvo
(possibly) as a result, I'm even more inclined to buy something a bit
softer.

About the most expensive I can run to is an 05 Innova ($700), unless
someone can convince me a Revive or something else is REALLY worth the
extra :-)

Anyway, the question is - for street riding, almost all on bitumen, is it
worth getting a bike with suspension of the quality level of the Innova,
which runs a "SR Suntour Magnesium 1 1/8th ahead" fork, or is that just
kidding myself?

TIA.

--

cheers, mic (yes, the email address works)

M i c C u l l e n wrote:
G'day all.

As per my other posts, I'm looking to get a bike to ride to work.

I've been told various stories regarding front suspension, the most
believable being that the cheap ones simply add weight, and the more
expensive ones are OK.

Having ridden an Avanti Blade Sport today and suffering this arvo
(possibly) as a result, I'm even more inclined to buy something a bit
softer.

About the most expensive I can run to is an 05 Innova ($700), unless
someone can convince me a Revive or something else is REALLY worth the
extra :-)

Anyway, the question is - for street riding, almost all on bitumen, is it
worth getting a bike with suspension of the quality level of the Innova,
which runs a "SR Suntour Magnesium 1 1/8th ahead" fork, or is that just
kidding myself?

TIA.

For street riding it aint worth having suspension at all in my opinion.

Dave

Dave Wrote:

For street riding it aint worth having suspension at all in my
opinion.


Wear bike gloves, the palm padding makes a big difference.
Padding on the bars, Fi'zi'k bar gel or similar, helps too.

Suspension just means more work, so you hurt more!


--
aeek

M i c C u l l e n Wrote:
G'day all.

As per my other posts, I'm looking to get a bike to ride to work.

I've been told various stories regarding front suspension, the most
believable being that the cheap ones simply add weight, and the more
expensive ones are OK.

Having ridden an Avanti Blade Sport today and suffering this arvo
(possibly) as a result, I'm even more inclined to buy something a bit
softer.

About the most expensive I can run to is an 05 Innova ($700), unless
someone can convince me a Revive or something else is REALLY worth the
extra :-)

Anyway, the question is - for street riding, almost all on bitumen, is
it
worth getting a bike with suspension of the quality level of the
Innova,
which runs a "SR Suntour Magnesium 1 1/8th ahead" fork, or is that
just
kidding myself?

TIA.

--

cheers, mic (yes, the email address works)


Hi,

Depends a lot on what you mean by 'suffering' as to whether suspension
would help. Is it just hands or is the whole body? If it's the whole
body then it's probably just a matter of getting used to the bike and
the regular riding, and suspension wouldn't make much of a difference
to that. If it's hands and arms, then the advice about gloves and such
is relevant, but suspension could make a difference. One ride on a new
bike is probably too short to work out what's causing what problem, if
you know what I mean.

I've commuted with and without suspension (currently without). I'd
agree that it's not necessary on bitumen, but if you're finding that
the potholes and kerbs on your route do shatter you a bit (I know when
I took off my suspension forks and put on a *very* rigid set of forks
it took me a while to adjust) then a simple set of forks might help
take the sting out, which can help you feel better/fresher and thus
enhance your ride. When I commuted on a dual suspension bike (it was
all I had at the time) I'll admit it was overkill, but geez, was it
cushy and smooth...

Suntour forks are mid-low range forks, and I don't know that much about
them. Be aware that they will add a chunk of weight and require regular
maintenance to keep them performing well and not becoming a liability.
I doubt you'd need a Revive... Ideally I reckon it would be great to
find something with a set of air-sprung forks - Lightweight, simple,
and you can tune them to your body weight and firm them up as much as
you like for the bitumen ride. But that might be hard to find in your
price range.

Or you could experiment with some other options. Bigger/fatter/softer
front tyre. Bigger softer grips. Something with riser bars and a more
relaxed posture. Or find a suspension stem somewhere (do they still
sell those??).


--
eddiec

On Tue, 27 Sep 2005 08:48:01 +1000, eddiec wrote:

Depends a lot on what you mean by 'suffering'

Sorry, for got to add to this post that I've got a pretty stuffed neck
(C3-C4) from a motorbike accident a few years ago. Jarring it around
doesn't do it much good :-)

as to whether suspension
would help. Is it just hands or is the whole body? If it's the whole

Mostly just the neck.

body then it's probably just a matter of getting used to the bike and
the regular riding, and suspension wouldn't make much of a difference
to that. If it's hands and arms, then the advice about gloves and such
is relevant, but suspension could make a difference. One ride on a new
bike is probably too short to work out what's causing what problem, if
you know what I mean.

Yeah, exactly. As I said in another post, just getting used to being back
on a bike on the road will take some getting used to.

I've commuted with and without suspension (currently without). I'd
agree that it's not necessary on bitumen, but if you're finding that
the potholes and kerbs on your route do shatter you a bit (I know when
I took off my suspension forks and put on a *very* rigid set of forks
it took me a while to adjust) then a simple set of forks might help
take the sting out, which can help you feel better/fresher and thus
enhance your ride. When I commuted on a dual suspension bike (it was
all I had at the time) I'll admit it was overkill, but geez, was it
cushy and smooth...

And hard work :-)

Suntour forks are mid-low range forks, and I don't know that much about
them. Be aware that they will add a chunk of weight and require regular
maintenance to keep them performing well and not becoming a liability.
I doubt you'd need a Revive... Ideally I reckon it would be great to
find something with a set of air-sprung forks - Lightweight, simple,
and you can tune them to your body weight and firm them up as much as
you like for the bitumen ride. But that might be hard to find in your
price range.

Yeah :-(

Or you could experiment with some other options. Bigger/fatter/softer
front tyre. Bigger softer grips. Something with riser bars and a more
relaxed posture. Or find a suspension stem somewhere (do they still
sell those??).

Would putting a taller stem and different bars on the Avanti Sport be a
viable idea (I liked the bike) or would it screw up the geometry?

--

cheers, mic (yes, the email address works)

Would putting a taller stem and different bars on the Avanti Sport be a
viable idea (I liked the bike) or would it screw up the geometry?

Sure you should try putting a taller stem. And then widest tires Avanti
can take. Suspension is for cross-country.

I had a Trek MTB with suspension, and it always hurt after 3-4 hours
riding. Now I have an older than me drop bars roady with a tall(ish)
stem and it doesn't hurt after 5-6 hours.

M i c C u l l e n Wrote:


I've commuted with and without suspension (currently without). I'd
agree that it's not necessary on bitumen, but if you're finding that
the potholes and kerbs on your route do shatter you a bit (I know
when
I took off my suspension forks and put on a *very* rigid set of
forks
it took me a while to adjust) then a simple set of forks might help
take the sting out, which can help you feel better/fresher and thus
enhance your ride. When I commuted on a dual suspension bike (it was
all I had at the time) I'll admit it was overkill, but geez, was it
cushy and smooth...

And hard work :-)

Funnily enough, it wasn't really all that much harder! It was a fairly
lightweight (no heavier than my old commuter i now use), firmly sprung
slick-shod duallie which served me well for a couple of years of
bitumen-commuting. Some wasted effort no doubt, but not as much as it
could have been.



Or you could experiment with some other options.
Bigger/fatter/softer
front tyre. Bigger softer grips. Something with riser bars and a
more
relaxed posture. Or find a suspension stem somewhere (do they still
sell those??).

Would putting a taller stem and different bars on the Avanti Sport be
a
viable idea (I liked the bike) or would it screw up the geometry?


My gut reaction says that should be ok... If it makes you more
comfortable, then by all means do so. You could even get one of those
adjustable stems if you want to experiment a bit with your position, at
the expense of a bit more weight. Then once you've worked out what's
right you can replace it with a fixed stem...

Since it's your neck that's the problem, I'd probably say that position
and fit are more important than suspension, given that your arms and
legs give your far more potential shock-absorption than even the
longest travel forks and shocks, and would probably be easier to find a
solution in your price range. You can always retrofit a good suspension
fork onto it later if you find you still want some more comfort.


--
eddiec

On Tue, 27 Sep 2005 10:11:42 +1000, eddiec wrote:

When I commuted on a dual suspension bike (it was
all I had at the time) I'll admit it was overkill, but geez, was it
cushy and smooth...

And hard work :-)

Funnily enough, it wasn't really all that much harder! It was a fairly
lightweight (no heavier than my old commuter i now use), firmly sprung
slick-shod duallie which served me well for a couple of years of
bitumen-commuting. Some wasted effort no doubt, but not as much as it
could have been.

Actually, "wasted effort" doesn't mean too much to me - all of my current
'riding' is done on an exercise bike, so there's not much more wasted than
that :-)

Or you could experiment with some other options.
Bigger/fatter/softer
front tyre. Bigger softer grips. Something with riser bars and a
more
relaxed posture. Or find a suspension stem somewhere (do they still
sell those??).

Would putting a taller stem and different bars on the Avanti Sport be
a
viable idea (I liked the bike) or would it screw up the geometry?


My gut reaction says that should be ok... If it makes you more
comfortable, then by all means do so. You could even get one of those
adjustable stems if you want to experiment a bit with your position, at
the expense of a bit more weight. Then once you've worked out what's
right you can replace it with a fixed stem...

Good point.

Since it's your neck that's the problem, I'd probably say that position
and fit are more important than suspension, given that your arms and
legs give your far more potential shock-absorption than even the
longest travel forks and shocks, and would probably be easier to find a
solution in your price range. You can always retrofit a good suspension
fork onto it later if you find you still want some more comfort.

Yeah. Thanks for that.

--

cheers, mic (yes, the email address works)

On Tue, 27 Sep 2005 10:11:42 +1000, eddiec wrote:

When I commuted on a dual suspension bike (it was
all I had at the time) I'll admit it was overkill, but geez, was it
cushy and smooth...

And hard work :-)

Funnily enough, it wasn't really all that much harder! It was a fairly
lightweight (no heavier than my old commuter i now use), firmly sprung
slick-shod duallie which served me well for a couple of years of
bitumen-commuting. Some wasted effort no doubt, but not as much as it
could have been.

Something like this, you reckon? :-)

http://www.giant-bicycle.com/au/030....005&model=9866

(There's one for sale used here in Perth :-)

--

cheers, mic (yes, the email address works)

M i c C u l l e n Wrote:
On Tue, 27 Sep 2005 10:11:42 +1000, eddiec wrote:

When I commuted on a dual suspension bike (it was
all I had at the time) I'll admit it was overkill, but geez, was
it
cushy and smooth...

And hard work :-)

Funnily enough, it wasn't really all that much harder! It was a
fairly
lightweight (no heavier than my old commuter i now use), firmly
sprung
slick-shod duallie which served me well for a couple of years of
bitumen-commuting. Some wasted effort no doubt, but not as much as
it
could have been.

Something like this, you reckon? :-)

http://tinyurl.com/a4ull

(There's one for sale used here in Perth :-)

--

cheers, mic (yes, the email address works)


he he he... that's a bit more extreme than what i was thinking and what
i rode! way more suspension and weight/beefiness than you need there,
unless your commute includes stretches of technical downhill!

Although if you stumble across something second hand XC-ish with about
3 inches or so of travel then by all means give it a test-ride... you
may love the ride it gives you, and with some slicks, lighter wheels,
and tuned suspension it could be just the beez-kneez... May be a bit
slower for sure, but life's not *always* a race is it?

Eddie(poonce)c


--
eddiec