Are they worth the money?

I went with a Lefty (PBR 90) & Lefty for all kit on my Skookum build.

The fork is remarkable, buttery smooth and doesn’t ever feel like its working …. In a good way 😀

Needle migration is a 10 minute job to sort, maybe have to do mine every 6-8 weeks although this is more through routine than need.

Currently saving for a new carbon one (100mm) for my Solaris.

Bit marmite in the looks department but hey ho ……

IMHO worth the money.

You could get a decent watch for that sort of money….

I love the look of them.

Can’t afford them.

letmetalktomark – thanks for comments not bothered about looks, just was worried about needle migration as had moto forks on super v years ago and wanted to know if they were more reliable. I was looking at 2013 model from qwerty cycles as the new models are suppose to be self fixing for the migration issue.

You are correct the new version requires less maintenance.

That said the PBR forks are (to date) a piece of cake to maintain.

The new forks also look better with their guards rather than boots.

Again IMHO the newer forks represent better value than my version …. Especially bought new.

Is any fork worth it once you get to those costs? Compared to any fork of equivalent price, they easily stand up in comparison and is as good. They have some quirks, but are very robust stiff and a very good fork. I’ve got a lefty on my Cannondale Flash which i’ve had for two years now and have had no problems – I think its great. I have got into the habit of carrying out a bearing reset every two to three rides (5 minute job) and re-lube the needle bearings occasionally, so pretty low maintenance. It does have a different feel to normal forks. Its quite progressive and as you get to the full extent of its travel it gets quite firm. You can tune this out if you don’t like it pretty simply.

The only thing I think has not been through through well is the way the wheel attaches to the axel. You have to swing the brake caliper out of the way and use an allen key to unscrew the wheel off. Not a major problem, but it just would be nice if Cannondale had a neat mechanism to remove the wheel – like a Maxel quick release, and a clever lever actuated mechanism for swinging the caliper out of the way. But i’m just being picky – it really is only a minutes job to remove and re-attach the wheel.

I’d have one of the new Super Max Lefty’s on my Covert 29 over any other fork, but its pricey and 10mm too short in travel.

Leftys are great, but be careful with the lefty4all as bonded leftys give no room for error if your stack height doesn’t fit and with non bonded leftys an increased stack height may leave you with less than specified travel and down tube/wheel collisions. Hence why I sold my lefty 🙁

Am after a carbon lefty max with non bonded clamps if anyone has one going though…

The bonded/integrated clamps are the easiest to work with.

Plus the non bonded Leftys used a less reliable set of internals ….

Also I don’t believe the Lefty for all kit isn’t supposed to be used with the non bonded/integrated forks.

Just make sure your HT+HS height is no more than 136mm

Simples.

If it is you’ll either need an XL Lefty with 156mm (IIRC) spacing.

Can anyone tell me how you remove them from the frame. All one one steerer tube/stem. Camp on the bottom… remove and then what? Do you need a special tool to push the steerer tube through?

As I have seen it done in my LBS …..

HT2 BB tool is needed to loosen the lower cap.

Loosen off(but don’t remove) then loosen off the clamp bolts.

Lightly tap he lower cap with a rubber mallet. This should visibly free the stem. Loosen off the cap a little more than repeat.

Fully unscrew the lower cap and the stem (plus built in steerer) should pull out the top.

Is this the fork on your Merlin?

Do you still need new bearings?

Yes and yes mate. My LBS have shy’d away from it 🙁

Love mine…

AWK … Where are you based?

Complaining about the time it takes to remove the wheel seems a bit daft. If you need to repair a flat, the wheel stays on. The only time you’d need to take it off would be for maintenance which is unlikely to need doing trail side. I don’t see the gripe myself.
It’s a tried and tested setup. Works great.

Mark… currently Lincoln but working in Cambridge

Not complaining about time it takes to take off the wheel, just thought it would have been nice to have a quick release mechanism that’s all. I remove the wheel regularly to get the bike in my car ad I do a lot of after work rides so the bike is locked up in the car in works car park all day so need the security. As you say, no need to remove the wheel for punctures or the majority of maintenance, so if it were not for that it’d stay on pretty much all the time.

Someone (Leonardi, I think) actually makes a replacement lefty hub that removes with a quick release. There’s no point IMO though. The standard hubs are very simple and very light and it barely takes any longer to remove the front wheel than with a QR once you get used to it. Just leave an allen key in the back of the car.

And yes, Lefty’s are ace.

Wanted a lefty for as long as I can remember. Need to get one at some point in the near future!

I see your point wobbliscott. It would get a bit old in that situation.

I had a go on a friends bike with a leftie and when braking from speed (using only the front brake) i thought it pulled to the left a bit. Not much, but a little bit. Is it a quirk of these forks or did i imagine it?

Mine doesn’t.

Love both of mine (Scalpel and Trigger 29er). Great bit of kit.

Euro – Member

I had a go on a friends bike with a leftie and when braking from speed (using only the front brake) i thought it pulled to the left a bit. Not much, but a little bit. Is it a quirk of these forks or did i imagine it?
Not that I have ever noticed. I have also heard people say they can’t ride with no hands on the bars. Not experienced that one either.

I love mine had it 11 years and dont think ill ever sell it