Fox Racing Shox has today announced the release of two 2014 gravity offerings with the 40 FLOAT RC2 and DHX RC4. The 40 utilises an air spring and lightweight chassis and the DHX RC4 offers improved damping circuits and new adjustments.
After a lot of sneaky testing with many of its top racers, Fox has unleashed the air-sprung Fox 40 downhill fork. Testing has been going on for a long time, with many of Fox’s athletes racing air forks made up to look like coil forks. Sneaky…
The new forks are around a pound lighter than the previous 40s. Not all of this weight is due to going to air – there are brand new lowers (that save as much weight as removing the coil spring) and there are other weight savings all over.
Fox says:
Taking a clean slate approach and two years of development through FOX’s RAD (Race Applications Development) program, the 2014 40 FLOAT RC2 features a completely redesigned chassis and FLOAT air spring, dropping over a pound of weight from the previous model. The new chassis has the same strength as the previous design but all of the major components—the lower legs, crowns and upper tubes—have been optimized to lower the fork weight to 5.98 pounds (2711g). The FLOAT air spring is not only lighter than a coil system, it also offers incremental spring tuning and the addition of an adjustable compression ratio to modify the progressiveness of the spring curve.
The 2014 DHX RC4 borrows technology used in FOX’s Podium motorcycle shock. The damping loads between the main piston and reservoir piston are balanced to provide a more sensitive feel and better responsiveness to direction change. In addition, the shaft diameter has been decreased to ½”, which decreases friction and increases traction.
No word on UK prices or availability yet, but we’ll let you know when we hear.
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“After a lot of sneaky texting with many of its top racers” must be the new simpler internals if they can summarise the development in 140 characters or less.
Touché!
“the shaft diameter has been decreased to ½”, which decreases friction and increases traction.”
I thought the original stated aim of the massive 40mm stantions on the Forks was to reduce stiction from the seals.
Are those fender mounts on the bottom of the upper crown?
sorry, lower crown.
They won’t be that much lighter after that webbed section fills with mud…
That’s why you cover the webbed section in bike tape (or if you’re a pro, a fox sticker!)