Do I fit bouncy forks to my Swift or keep it rigid?

I just can't make my mind up. Most of the time I love it as a rigid but when doing long (4hrs plus) or gnarly rides it gets to be hard work.

I an running 2.25 Ralphs and it is fine on Thetford singletrack etc but throw in rocks etc and I start to get beaten up.

The ideal option would be to by another and run one as a HT 1×9 and the other a rigid SS but I don't have that sort of money nor do I have the space.

I am planning to use it on D2D this year where I am soloing again if that helps.

Sounds like you want to fit forks. Have you got a pair of forks you can try it with, or a mate you can borrow some off of?

Could just buy a second hand fork for the longer rides you're getting beaten up on, and sell it on if you find you don't use it much.

Go for some nice stiff 80mm forks, with a lockout.

No dilemma really. Buy some bouncy forks and put them on for long/rocky rides and swap them back when you don't need them.

Ten minutes each time, sorted.

Buy some bouncy forks and put them on for long/rocky rides and swap them back when you don't need them.

sorry but that idea sucks, swap forks everytime you ride???

how about you buy a fork with a lockout.

What's your perceived disadvantages of using suspension forks?

I am guessing weight & pedal bob? – neither REALLY slow you down that much.

If you have a split crown race/spare crown race you can swap forks in about 10 minutes. Certainly worth it if you spend most of your time riding in Thetford and want to use a suspension fork when venturing further afield.

Impossible for us to answer for you really – you say that it gets hard work on long rides – I guess it depends whether that bothers you.

Mine's got suspension as more than anything I find it allows better flow on bumpy trails and I sometimes find my rigid bike frustrating when bumping from one obsctacle/root/rock to another.

Hmmm… my perceived disadvantages of using suspension forks.

It isn't something I can put my finger on. I love riding rigid bikes and I love riding full suss too but somehow I never really get on with a HT. Having said that, the HTs I have failed to get on with didn't work that well for me either as rigid setups. Maybe I need to think about it a little more before moving the forks from "wish list" to buy.

The Swift rides beautifully as it is and maybe I'm a bit worried the handling characteristics will change if I put sus forks on it.

I favour the buy sus forks and a spare crown race and then swap forks as and when.

Dead easy to swap. Just requires some planning for the ride you want to do.

The Swift rides beautifully as it is and maybe I'm a bit worried the handling characteristics will change if I put sus forks on it.

I test rode a rigid one and bought mine on the back of that. Suspension forks do change it – they make it much better 😉

So what forks do you use clubber?

Suntour Epicon – long thread here:
http://www.singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/singular-swift-29er-and-suntour-epicon-rld-29er-fork-reviews

Wow that is a long thread… I'll read that tonight then! 🙂