As it’s proving difficult to get my Manitou forks refurbished now, and Sid’s are way to expensive with a 1″ 1/8th straight steerer, I’m wondering if anyone would recommend he 30TK Gold Solo Air as an alternative. It’s heavier by 300grms, but otherwise fits the bill.

Any alternatives for a light 26″ straight steer 100mm travel fork I’ve missed in the last decade, that’s actually available for around £200?

Cheers.

You should be able to pick up a Recon Gold RL (not Gold TK) for a little over that amount. Thicker stanchions (32mm instead of 30mm) so a bit stiffer and the RL version comes with the same damper as a Reba (MotionControl, rather than the TurnKey damper in the TK versions).

Thanks for the suggestion. The Recon seems to be heavier than the 30 Gold TK? I’d prefer lighter. The Reba looks good, but quite a bit more expensive.

I’m coming 14 year old 1400g, 80mm XC forks. Fancy staying light, maybe upping to 100mm travel, and probably RockShox for ease of servicing and availability of spares.

Weight is not everything. The XC30 is a rather basic fork with crude damping. I did 2 days riding on one and it was OK but quite harsh and flexy. 32mm stanchions and Motion Control damping are big improvements. Personally I’d be looking for a decent used Reba in your situation.

m360 – Member
The Recon seems to be heavier than the 30 Gold TK? I’d prefer lighter.

They’re the same weight, going off RockShox’s website. They list the Recon weight with a steel steerer, but the Gold RL has an aluminium one. Once you take that weight off (they say alu is 145g lighter), they both have the same 1660g weight.

Thanks guys, I’m way out of touch and find RS a bit confusing.

Peter, I was looking at the 30TK Gold, which seems a better and lighter fork than the XC30?

Either way, I’ll research the Recon and Reba further. Getting a 100mm travel, 26″ wheel, and 1″ 1/8th straight steerer for the money seems harder. No rush though, happy to shop around.

Cheers