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a Flash... if you going to hit high speed bikeparky stuff.. wait for 38..otherwise the 35 is enough... but also, dont be afraid of the infinity.. it actually is way better due to bushing overlap and air spring volume
I'd vote for any of the flash models. I love mine. Plus you can take them to 190mm which gives a bit of future proofing if you get a bike that might work with etc.
i‘m 96kg geared up and i would only need the 38 flash for the looks, the 35mm is more fork than i probably ever need
FWIW I emailed Intend today asking if they could recommend a HSR stack that's a bit faster than stock and they suggested removing either or both of the 13 or 12 mm shims. I may try this as I don't have the shims (currently) to try the stack SWS & unusualbread suggested
I believe it is actually KYB releasing soon.
That crown is hideous
serious upside down fork from Temu vibes on that thing.
I never thought id say this, but that colour makes Kashima look good
It is entirely possible that fork is a cheap OEM special - KYB make everything from high end A-kit supercross gear down to $100 replacement shocks for your Corolla so its hard to tell what kind of fork that actually is
It’s crap 32mm stanchions, and yeah it looks AliExpress as
It was shown at the latest bike festival in Italy
Yah, I agree. That KYB looks terrible.
I like the Flash 35 but it's likely to be discontinued shortly so I want to consider that.
why would they do that? cornelius self called the fork unnecessary
I don't know but that's what was indicated to me in an e-mail, that the 35 might not continue on.
I'm building a new e-bike and I only build a bike every other year and pretty much treat myself and go all out but am not made of unlimited money so really try and get it right. Unfortunately 90% of my decisions have to be based on reading reviews and testimonials. Even when I test ride others bikes, and I've ridden many, unless I get a week to set it up to my liking it sort of means nothing.
The new bike will 99% be the new Bosch Antidote e-bike and it can be set up as a 170 or 180mm front fork. 180mm obviously rules out the Podium, but one needs to consider the amount of leverage and weight applied to a 180mm fork when making these decisions.
Mostly, I'm all in on the Intend product but the lack of a ubiquitous 20mm front axle, and/ or torque caps, gives me pause. Fox clearly has more resources and Pro athletes (which I practically am, clearly! LOL) to test and they ended up going with a solid 20mm steel axle. Seems to me that any 170-180mm USD fork better have a 20mm axle.
if you're into intend i'd trust the man himself. if they get rid of something, they usually have a reason, i.e. not necessary
whats up! just found this thread and it's awesome!! I've been following the one on MTBR for a while with over 1,000 posts haha. took me forever to find the USD peeps but hey here i am. still reading and catching up here. i think i have a right to post as 2 years of 'thinking, planning, waiting" etc. i have this going for me heh heh
-I saw earlier (page 2 i believe...?) some folks talking about onyx hubs having huge flex? i have been running vespers for 5 years and love the brand. haven't ridden my for yet waiting for shock to show up. BUT am i in for an unpleasant surprise?
Onyx vesper on Zipp 3Zero Moto w/ Sapim spokes, built this wheel 5 years ago and still wouldn't change a thing about it! sure is compliant haha


I had a rad chat with Ollie at sea otter earlier this year. got to do a little side by side twist test; my 38 (zipp/Onyx) vs his Flash Original (not forged lower legs/blackline) with nobl/onyx hubs. this was an immediate sell for me as I finally got to feel & visualize the twist flex was nothing like I thought it'd be...
still waiting on 26' X2 to show up (hopefully today), using it temporarily until Hover MC is done. planning on riding tomorrow. will keep everyone up to date.
I've only ever ridden Fox on my bikes in my entire mtb history- so I'm pretty dang excited as this is a huge change. riding style is very aggressive/ playful, level is pro. did my research but I'll still be transparent what i feel and find out.
cheers,
I thought only the 'original' states no torque caps? while blackline has no statement on them..
I would also imagine a forged unipiece lower is stiffer than a pressed in lug, no?
Congrats, that's a baller setup! Yeah, my Vesper/Nobl front wheel feels flexier than my burly Hadley wheels in the Essential, but that makes no difference on the trails. And I bet my Vesper wheel is way more compliant than yours, with crazy 3x/2x lacing and old school bladed Ti spokes. 😎
thanks yo! okay good to hear, i have a buddy of mine that is going to make some custom torque caps for my hub, as the onyx ones dont look like they'll fit the shape of the dropout.
oh are you sure about that? 🤣have you ever ridden or felt a 3zero moto? haha i can step in the hoop and pull/push the rim maybe 3 inches or more
Zipp's are gnarly. let me see if i can find my old youtube video when i got them.
*edit* i knew i recorded something back then, sorry for camera angle. 2:45
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrypau3IsOw&t=163s
Welcome to the wold of inverted forks Colin!
In regards to Intend and torque caps, the lug design has changed over the past couple years. It's not that all torque caps are no longer compatible, as much as they are not as effective. The contact area between hub and fork lug is much smaller now and any advantage an oversized end cap interface had is now lost.
Left original version, middle current, and right blackline.
I agree that the one piece forged version should be inherently stiffer. It would be really interesting to test torsional deflection between the blackline version with a standard end cap hub and the original pressed/bonded lug with a Chris King torque cap hub.
this is gold right here, thank you Mr. SKS! knew there are differences, but getting to visualize it like this is so cool. cheers
funny- before you replied i was going to get some measurements to get end caps made, but would be too complicated with new shape- so no worries I'll just leave them. but would be pretty cool to have a cap to match the contour heh heh
Thanks for all you share on this topic.
I think these modern Enduro bikes have gotten < 64' HTA's and it adds a TON of stiction on a right side up fork. I've played with this by pressing my own Mezzer (Avy Hybrid set up) straight down on my Relay. That bike with only a 160mm travel has a 62.9' HTA (actual measurement). On flat ground the stiction is pretty dan high, placing the rear wheel on the curb to steepen the HTA and pressing downwards takes a lot less force, like >20#s less force.
Anyways my hope is that an USD fork would resist this kind of stiction a lot better than a right side up fork.
So my question to you and understanding that I don't have a time issue and don't mind waiting for the fork (I have a solid fork after all): If you were building a new full power e-bike, you were an experienced but definitely not Pro rider, but generally do the jumps and drops, and planned to run the new fork at probably 175mm (yes, 175mm!) would you run the Flash 35 or go for the Flash 38?
My concern is that maybe going to too stiff could reduce tracking and overall performance. Also, I do try and save weight when it doesn't hurt performance.
Thoughts?
Im putting my dorado on my Levo tonight to see how the steering is - but I don’t think there’s a downside to larger stanchions, except weight (doesn’t really matter on an ebike).
@Suns_PSD Larger 38mm stanchions should be stiffer all around, a 20mm axle with 2 pinch bolts/lug should be stiffer than 15mm w/ single pinch bolts. But the 15mm axle setup can also have a larger lug/hub interface. The air spring will be different due to the larger stanchions requiring a bigger piston and having a larger volume. The whole Flash 38 chassis is different.
If you were running at 190mm on a heavy e-bike or DH bike, that would tip more to the F38.
Has there been a weight published for the F38 yet? The F35 is pretty much 2300g on the nose (for the non-blackline version).
I feel either one would be good, it comes down to how much "unknown" are you OK with. The air spring on the F38 would be the biggest question for me.
Going from the Edge at 175mm to a F35 at 190mm, the air spring performance is quite different. Maybe due to the air spring pos/neg chamber ratio, maybe the change in lower leg/crown volume, I'm not sure. The F35 at 190mm in general feels like it offers less support, but with a more progressive ramp in the last 30-40mm than the Edge at 175mm. Setup is proving to be quite different.
For a 80/82KG rider, on a 150/170 bike, would you recommend the Flash or the Edge? Also, Linearizer vs regular Travelizer to have decent support and a nice plush fork?
In the Pinkbike article of the Flash 38 and Infinity WC, they state the target weight for the Flash 38 is ~2.5kg, which seems very reasonable.
I'm going to say Flash. I wouldn't want less, but I don't need more.
linearizer; I don't know. out of the box it's soft feeling but tough at the end, would be cool to see it on graph. I may change the cap to add volume and see what happens. so simple as it is, I like that a lot.
i used to run a vol spacer or two on my 170mm Fox 38 and it was miserable until I took them all out 2yr ago. felt like 140mm of really good suspension, then 30mm of teeth gnashing progression. Flash 35 feels like this out of the box but progression wall is further in the travel. only 1 ride so far but i have good 'feelers' haha
I’m trying to change the rebound tune on my Edge but I’m not sure how to get access to the rebound piston - how do I access it?
Two options:
1) After you remove the compression assembly and drain the damper, push the rod all the way though and out the bottom with the piston attached. The main issue with this method is that it can be tricky to reinstall the damper rod in the tube without the split ring on the piston getting out of place.
2) Fully remove the damper from the leg. To do this drain oil as above, remove the cir clip on the top of the leg, then use a correctly sized socket/piece of PVC pipe/etc to gently tap the black piece that holds the damper tube in the bottom of the leg. It should pop free and the rest of the damper assembly comes out the top of the leg with the bladder.
So I got the damper tube out of the lower, but how do I get the rebound rod/piston out of the damper tube itself? As in separate it from the bladder? Even fully depressed it doesn't come out the bottom...
I should note this is in an Edge, perhaps the damper rod is shorter than on the Flash.
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