Which Forks For A Base Ta26?

[duggyd]

I'm looking to get a TA26, and was wondering which forks would go best? Can anyone who has one, or indeed had one recommend some?

I'm after a fork that has preferabley 4 bolt maggie mounts, with or without a disc mount (might try disc in the future)

I was thinking about the Echo Urban, but was not sure if they would be too short and ruin the geo?? I would rather steer clear of the onza ones, they seem to be pretty heavy.

The bike will be used for urban almost exclusively.

Thanks for the advice.

[liam-pantera]

echo urbans are nearly identicle to the base rigid forks they come with apart from them u could try echo control forks

[duggyd]

Cool, thanks, will have a look at those two. I'm guessing they'll be much lighter than the Base forks. And they look better methinks.

Cheers

[Alex Dark]

Is it a mark1 base, or mark2?

[duggyd]

Is it a mark1 base, or mark2?

At the moment, neither, but it would be anewer one if and when i get the frame. I have been looking at the Woodstock to, but it seems a little tall in the seat tube, wheras the TA26 is abit shorter.

[duane]

Hi,

There are three versions of the TA26 frame, the Tarty frame is the newest which I guess makes it a mark III. If you search the forum you will find a thread where a few of us discussed the different versions and how to tell them apart.

I would suggest a slightly longer fork. I just made some very unscientific measurements and found my control fork to be roughly 400mm and the base fork to be more like 420mm. The 420mm fork on the base gives me close to 0mm bb rise/drop, which may or may not mean anything to you, but most people would agree that it is a lot better for trials than bb drop.

My Base is stupidly quick handling, which makes me think the frame was designed for at least a 420mm fork, anything shorter might make it too fidgety and less fun.

Duane.

[Billy]

Hi,

There are three versions of the TA26 frame, the Tarty frame is the newest which I guess makes it a mark III. If you search the forum you will find a thread where a few of us discussed the different versions and how to tell them apart.

I would suggest a slightly longer fork. I just made some very unscientific measurements and found my control fork to be roughly 400mm and the base fork to be more like 420mm. The 420mm fork on the base gives me close to 0mm bb rise/drop, which may or may not mean anything to you, but most people would agree that it is a lot better for trials than bb drop.

My Base is stupidly quick handling, which makes me think the frame was designed for at least a 420mm fork, anything shorter might make it too fidgety and less fun.

Duane.

Pretty much what I was gonna say. And if you haven't already sorted a stem, I strongly recommend getting the 120 x 17 Pazzaz one from Tarty

EDIT - Not in stock Something with similar geo though. When I switched to that stem, my Base instantly rode around 100,00,000x better.

Edited September 29, 2007 by Billy

[duggyd]

Hi,

There are three versions of the TA26 frame, the Tarty frame is the newest which I guess makes it a mark III. If you search the forum you will find a thread where a few of us discussed the different versions and how to tell them apart.

I would suggest a slightly longer fork. I just made some very unscientific measurements and found my control fork to be roughly 400mm and the base fork to be more like 420mm. The 420mm fork on the base gives me close to 0mm bb rise/drop, which may or may not mean anything to you, but most people would agree that it is a lot better for trials than bb drop.

My Base is stupidly quick handling, which makes me think the frame was designed for at least a 420mm fork, anything shorter might make it too fidgety and less fun.

Duane.

Brilliant, thanks That's exactly what i was hoping for, reasoning and all! I do know what you mean about the bb rise or drop, and about level i think would be good for me, i think the frames with the +60 or whatever would be a little odd for me.

It does sound like the geo is meant for a longer fork, so that is what i'll look for. I'm currently riding my old xc bike which is just too long and unwieldy for trials, so anything will be an improvement i think!

Thanks, Billy for the stem advice too, i was wondering what would suit it, so it's good to have heard it from someone who has one.

Thanks very much If anyone has anything else to add, I'm all ears!

Cheers

[Jez]

Bollocks, wish I'd seen this a few days ago...just ordered some cheapy Kot forks off Tarty for my TA26.

Should be here tomorrow, I'll let you know how they ride.

Edited October 1, 2007 by Jez

[planet x alan]

had trailblades on mine. they were ace length just a tad front heavy

[duggyd]

Thanks for all the opinions! It's great to have first hand reviews of what works.

Are the smart guy the same as the wise guy forks i found on the component weigth wiki? And what about the fly guy? they're a little lighter. Will have to check out the length of them. I've been thinking about the fatty R forks too, has anyone used these with that frame?

Thanks Jez, i would be keen to know how they are.

Cheers

EDIT: I just checked out the Kot forks, they look ok. they're quite light, and come in at 415mm, wheras the Onza ones are 405mm. The kot might be pretty good for the money... Lemme know how they feel. Cheers

Edited October 2, 2007 by duggyd

[Jez]

OK the Kot forks arrived today. I got the curved ones in silver with V & disc mounts.

So far they feel pretty good; certainly a million times lighter than the original Base forks (the bike actually feels like it wants to stay on the back wheel now, rather than fighting to keep it up...so to speak )

They DO make the bike feel a gnat's tit longer in some weirdass way, but not annoyingly; it feels like the cockpit length has changed a bit, even though technically it hasn't.

I think they are a wee bit shorter than the old forks as well, and also the steering has gone REALLY quick and nippy. It used to feel like something that would be more at home in a bombhole, but now it feels more like a trials-specific machine (at last).

So whichever way you look at it, it's a good upgrade from the old forks. Whether the Echo forks would be better, I can't say.

Either way I'm happy.

At the mo I'm running a stem that's something like 100 x 15 or 100 x 20 I think (can't remember) with a coupla spacers underneath it.

One thing I will say is to be a bit careful putting the crown race on if you do get the Kot forks, mine didn't want to go on straight at first for some reason, despite it being a tapered affair. I had to put a lot more effort into getting one particular side down the steerer.

EDIT: forgot to mention, mine's the £99 TA26 off Tarty, so I'm guessing that makes it a Mk III. In related news, the silver Kot forks are EXACTLY the same finish as the silver Base frame, so they match pretty well if you care about all that malarky.

Edited October 2, 2007 by Jez