I’ll be building up a little steel hardtail as a kind of do it all bomb-proof bike, spec’d with 140mm forks. With the pikes, apart from the weight difference and the ramping up of the coil how do the characteristics differ and will they both cope equally well with the use I intend, or are there any other 140mm forks anyone would recommend?

Pikes not sold any more – so not sure if you mean new or used Pikes?

The sektors are recomended or you could go for the magura thors

Second hand, don’t know about sektors, thors don’t come out too well in reviews.

not owned air but prefer coil myself.

Sektors are sort of Pike-lite. Very plush but not quite as burly. Lighter though.

Nothing wrong with air pikes. Most reliable fork i own. Coils do feel a bit nicer.

Air pikes for sure – you have much more control over spring rate using the shock pump, you can get it 100% right for your weight, riding style and changing needs for different rides

especially with “dual air” pikes like 454 where you can actually change the balance between positive and negative to fine tune the way the air spring works – something you cannot ever do with a coil spring!

my 454 Air U-Turns feel way better than any 454 coil U-Turns I have ridden

Coil pikes if you can still buy new from somewhere are great.

I’ve got a set of sektors on order for January. Woo.

air more adjustable

Coil, lovely and smooth and less faf, less to adjust. 454’s though as they’re best.

my (now sold) 409 coils weighed a ton compared to the 454’s I have now.