Hi all,

I am dipping in to the world of 29ers for the first time (going to try a 256SL Chinese frame) and am looking at forks. Current bike is an On-One Whippet with a Lefty XLR Carbon.

Manitou and Marzocchi don’t seem to be offering anything that light, good value or especially interesting lately, Fox are expensive and seem pretty heavy, Magura and Formula look nice (loved my 26er Durins) but are very expensive.

That kind of just leaves Rockshox which is new for me. Looking through reviews there doesn’t seem to be that much functional difference between SIDs and Rebas in terms of dampers, lowers or even weight comparing like for like. It seems that you buy a SID if you want the Threshold features of the RCT3, or want the better remote lockout of the XX X-Loc. I am not fussed on these and a straight forward crown mounted lockout is fine so is there any other reason to pay the extra £100+ to have a SID rather than Reba?

At the moment I’m thinking of buying a tapered, 15mm Maxle, 100mm Reba RL as the best balance of performance, weight and value…. am I missing any better options? How do the people with 29er Rebas get on with them?

Thanks in advance!

DanW

I’ve got cheap couple of year old Rebas on my Cooker, they’re fine. Little bit of a squishy noise at times… but work well.

Can’t you run the Lefty at less travel for a 29er wheel?

Reba’s are great. I have a 29er RLT but wouldn’t miss the T at all.

Can’t you run the Lefty at less travel for a 29er wheel?

You can reduce the travel to 80mm to accommodate the bigger wheel but the AC height stays fixed at 475mm, ~30mm shorter than the average 29er 100mm fork. I’m not sure I want a steeper HTA and STA as part of the attraction of trying a 29er is a more stable ride than I currently have.

Reba’s are great. I have a 29er RLT but wouldn’t miss the T at all.

Great to hear. I don’t think I would be fussed on any threshold lockout stuff either.

I’d be happy with just R as I never use the L!

I found the Reba RL 100mm to be absolutely shocking. I had to run it so hard that there was no small bump compliance what so ever and still bottomed it out every time I got to a rock garden. Very very linear fork – no ramp up at all as far as I could tell.

Saying that – I do ride very hard. I found the x fusion slide a much more comfortable fork to use.
I believe that the higher spec versions of the reba are also a much better fork

I’ve had Reba RL for about 4 years on the 26″, keep it well serviced it’s been brilliant and is very plush. Upgraded the rebound to an SID dual flow unit which made a massive difference.

New 29″ HT I went for the SID RCT3 as it was a bit lighter (but mainly cos it was all black and looks cool with the sick green frame…) and I’ve put several hundred k’s on it so far and I don’t think it’s as nice as the Reba. Just doesn’t feel as composed. I’m still playing with it and it’s improving but I think I prefer the old dual air system.

I’d try and hunt out a 12 dual air reba if I was doing it again.

I’d try and hunt out a 12 dual air reba if I was doing it again.

I had noticed in other threads and reviews that most people seem to agree that losing the dual air is a backwards step. There doesn’t seem to be any way around this in the current Rockshox line up (Reba or SID) which kind of makes me think to just go for the cheapest and not waste too much money on the SID or higher models

I found the x fusion slide a much more comfortable fork to use.

Good recommendation, I’ll give it a look…

x fusion slide

Seems to get good review, super cheap but on the heavy side… hmmm…

What is the difference in dampers and suspension performance between the Reba RL and SID RCT3 and does anyone have experience with the feel and function of the two forks?

I’m afraid I can’t help you with the difference between a Reba RL and the SID.
When I was building up my Czar I looked at the two and couldn’t see enough difference to warrant the extra expense.
I was really throwing some money at the build but I’m still happy I made the right choice (buggered if I can tell the difference with my mates SID on a Scott) The performance of the Reba has been fine,especially for the deal I got from Planet X and the Czar still came out at 22lbs.

jobro – what spec do you have on your czar to get it that light?

Reba RL here (the 2013 solo air version) – seem decent and quite light for the money but I’m no fork expert. The remote lockout is useless. Mine gave up after a few muddy rides – I am now using a cheap friction shifter instead which is working much better.

I just bought a Reba RL 29er for my new build. It is fine. Nothing special, but works fine. As said above, it feels very linear and seems to go quickly through the travel so I too upped the pressure by 5 psi. Hopwever it is now a bit harsh so may try it softer again. Reading the weights on the websites is a bit of a misnomer. Actual weight of the Reba with Maxle and poploc is 1710gm.

Another option would be DTSwiss. I have them on my 26er in Dual air format and really rate them. There are some good deals on them out there if you are lucky.

I had 2013 solo air rebas on my Niner air 9 and they where great for xc riding but obviously if you start pushing then too hard your going to get a bit of flex and maybe bottom out. But they’re light and easily serviced.

I have a ’12 RLT, dual air, 100mm, 15mm maxle, tapered, blah blah blah on my HT, and well, i just love it…. wouldn’t change a thing!

i keep looking at fox one with all that kashima bollocks on it, but there’s just no need

I’ve had the Reba dual (26er) and solo (29er). Both worked well. It took me a fair bit of fine tuning with the dual air to get them feeling ‘just right’ but I am quite fussy I guess.

The solo had the remote lockout which I used a fair bit as they were on a mile munching 29er HT, so were ideal for road sections, etc. I ran them a bit too hard on reflection (I used the lowest psi for my weight according to the chart on the fork leg) but as it was a bike for speed it didn’t matter as much. My son has the bike now and runs them much softer (he is lighter than me) and when I have tried his bike I know I could have easily dropped 5 or even 10 psi.

Now my HT has 100mm x fusion slides. A simple fork which, for me at least, lacks some of initial smoothness of the RS forks. I have run them at lower pressures too which improved them but still they feel more ‘basic’ some how. Sorry if I can’t explain that as clearly perhaps as I’d like.

Also the slides ‘stick’ when they have stood for a while. So you have to really push hard on them a few times before they budge. A bit like an airlock needing clearing. I just find it annoying quite frankly.

As that might indicate I’m quite a jump on the bike and go rider. So for me, I found the solo air fine.

I’d be interested to here from others that have tried the slides and Reba solos too.

I just bought a Reba RL 29er for my new build. It is fine. Nothing special, but works fine. As said above, it feels very linear and seems to go quickly through the travel so I too upped the pressure by 5 psi. Hopwever it is now a bit harsh so may try it softer again. Reading the weights on the websites is a bit of a misnomer. Actual weight of the Reba with Maxle and poploc is 1710gm.

Another option would be DTSwiss. I have them on my 26er in Dual air format and really rate them. There are some good deals on them out there if you are lucky.

Pretty much what I was going to say. Mate has some 29″ Reba’s on his Camber. They’re ok and do a job. Functional is probably the best description just don’t expect to be blown away.

I’d be going for DT’s if I could find them for a similar price. Had a set on my old 26″ and they were ace.

It is interesting that the majority opinion is that they are just ok but nothing special. I had in my mind that they’d be hard to top and basically SIDs by a less desirable name and a few g’s heavier.

I’ve decided to go with a SID RCT3 in the end as I found it for £70 more than Merlin etc have the Rebas for (tapered, 29er, Maxle versions). Sounds like the external LSC adjust and better rebound damping on the RCT3 (along with bottomless tokens common to all) could all actually be worthwhile to make tuning the feel a touch easier. We shall see… 😀