Anyone got a set ? Thinking of upgrading my pikes to a set of Float 36’s for the Bronson.

How are you finding them performance wise ?

Thanks all

Watching this with interest. I demoed a Five with new 36s at 150mm the other day – they were very good, though not quite as super-sensitive as my Pikes on small stuff. I might have been able to alter that if I could have been bothered to tinker more.

I’ve done just that. Swapped my RS pike RTC 3 to Fox 36 RC2 2017 on my 2016 Bronson V2Cc. Yes, they were nearly £1k, but the difference is night and day. I never really got on with the Pikes and felt that they let the bike down slightly. I went for the 160mm RC2 with H/L speed which makes a huge difference. They stay up in the travel better on hard hits and fell much stiffer. The Fox are slightly heavier than the RS, but that’s a small sacrifice IMO. Extremely plush straight out of the box. I use the bike for 50k rides and Dh uplifts and the 36’s are at home on either. You are more than welcome to try mine if you are local to West Sussex. The RC2 don’t come in Qr, but have 4 bolts to remove the wheel. The FIT4 does come with 15qr, but you loose the H/L adjustments .

Same as above. Bronson from Pike rct3 to 36 RC2. Big difference, much better support in the mid stroke with pretty good small bump sensitivity. Certainly don’t regret it.

My FAST pikes decided to start leaking oil last year whilst at the mega, When I got home I was looking on alltricks and ended up with some 2016 float rc2s they cost £530 which was a steal for fox, it’s a really really good fork even compared to my fast cartridge pike, far more controlled and rides higher.

Only thing that is slightly annoying is the pinch bolt axle which is pain when I just want to sling it in the car but hardly a deal breaker. I would never have paid 1k for them originally but now I probably would stump up the full price having ridden them.

Recently made the switch from an Andreani tuned pick rct3 to a Fox 36 RC2 factory 2016. The difference is staggering. Fork has better small bump sensitivity sits in the mid travel better feels endless without feeling harsh. I owed. Ever to buy a Fox product again after their 2013 tripe, glad I changed my mind after trying the 36

your really comparing it to the wrong rockshox, the lyrik is the 36 equivalent

the 36 is a step up from a pike yes, but its only as equal as a lyrik having owned all 3

I sold the 36 rc2 as I just couldn’t get them dialled in, they were stiff granted, but they felt so wooden, and I’m not the only one to think this, a fair few local riders have said the same too

they feel great from brand new, then start to drop off after 5 or 6 semi big rides, then just feel a bit mehhhh for ages, have em serviced, they feel great again for 5 rides

the lyriks ive had since October, and my last dealings with RS pikes was not a great experience so I did think it was a risk, but they’ve been spot on, the feel so much plusher and smoother/buttery on everything consistently than the 36 did, they feel as stiff and they are QR15, ive no complaints even with the usual shit paint on RS, they seem to have looked into QC a bit more on the lyriks

2016 Fox 36 Fit4 650b 160mm going cheap at ~£430 from bike discount, see below:-

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/fox-36-float-27.5-160-fit4-3pos-performance-tapered-qr15-585153/wg_id-8718

had the 2017 float 26 RC2 for about 6 months now and they definitely feel different to my previous 2 sets of float 36 RC2’s – some good some bad

good:
feel stiffer
feel more controlled when riding harder and take the big hits very well
don’t blow through the travel or feel as wallowy mid stroke as old RC2’s
don’t dive as much on the real steep / under hard braking

bad:
not as supple on the initial stroke and feel rougher on the smaller chattery stuff
not as easy to dial in as previous models – used to getting them pretty good fairly quickly and near spot on after a few months of owning them. current set I still haven’t got quite right (although I have become lazy and just left them recently)
the LSC & HSC adjustments don’t seem to be as active as previous models
I can relate to the wooden feeling mentioned above on smaller cobbley type stuff (but this has been consistent out of the box)

when I look at the list above it makes it sound as if I don’t like them or they’re worse than previous incarnations. in reality I like them a lot and think they are noticeably better when it matter and riding hard – they reward aggressive riding. wish I could get them a little plusher for the smaller stuff though (pretty sure I can if I try)
can’t compare them to rockshox as I’ve had float rc2’s for the past 10 years

Hmmmm cheers chaps. Didnt realise the RC2 were a bolt fitting. Lots of my riding involves chucking the bike in the car. Is it much of a faff ?

Four pinch bolts to loosen and the axel to unscrew & remove. 2 minutes work. Would possibly get on my nerves if I had to do it all the time, but I’m not sure it would be enough to base my buying decision on. They do a 15mm qr version, but it’s the 15/20mm bolt through that most seem to stock

Can’t comment on the 36 but I’d like to support what Oscillate said about the Lyrik. It’s an excellent fork and much better than the Pike.

A few of us have tested them thoroughly in the Lakes, Italy and even up Rivi – with no real issues.

Went from pike solo air to 2017 36’s rc2. Many times better, much less dive, feel much more controlled. My only criticism is that they get very stiff when the temp drops and require a bit of fettling to get back to where they should be.

I also have lyrics, they’re a great fork,much better than the pike they replaced,but I haven’t tried the 2016/2017 fox 36,so can’t really compare the two

Cheers all. Went with the Fox in the end. See how they perform.

The Lyrik does compare well to the 36. My last bike had a 170mm 2016 36 on it & it was a great fork. The pinch bolts were a pain in the ass however.

Previous 36’s 2015’s & earlier 2016’s were for some reason not great – similar experiences to the above (harsh/wooden/etc) even with various warranty work, rebuilds. I ended up selling them. I always find the Fox stuff is better when not mincing – it can feel slightly harsh when i’m in cruise mode, but pushing on, racing etc they tend to just work as I want.

I went for another Fox off the back of the 26 performance. I run a ’17 34 FIT now on my 29″ – a 36 would be overkill on a 130mm trail bike. It feels almost identical in damping performance. Also has a 15QR as well, which is so much more useful.

The FIT4 version has QR15 lowers, and the RC2 HSC/LSC version comes with lowers for the 15/20 axle that you clamp with 4 bolts. Both versions are available in 2017. The RC2 version is very similar to the 2015/16 models, which were both brilliant.

yeh the pinch bolts were a royal pain in the arras everytime I got it in the car (which is basically every ride!)

but I’m sure you can now get the RC2 version in 15mm QR too, ive certainly seen local lads with them in QR15 and RC2 100%

id be intrugied to try a new 17 36′ as ive heard they are much better from a few sources but I have no reason too really as the lyrik performs above and beyond my last 36′ so until they break ill stick with them

Does anyone have any info on the 2017 OEM “Performance” 36? They seem to come in a few varieties, with different adjusters. Mine have a LSC dial and a rebound dial only, and come with the 15mm QR axle. They don’t seem to be listed on the Fox website. I may just not have looked hard enough.. Any help appreciated.

arogers – can you see a 4 digit ‘code’ on your forks ? you can query this on the Fox website to find more details…

Thanks DJ!

Except, when I plug in the numbers… “The information you are looking for is unavailable at this time”

Took the plunge and got the 36’s. Bolted them on then chucked them down a couple of rocky Lakes descents on Saturday. Game changers. The difference on the Bronson was staggering.

Cheers for all the help.